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eing a kiss-ass, but also because he was talented, and I knew a few of my
own clients who would appreciate what he could do. And how could I have no
t known this about him? I wondered as I studied doghouses of various sizes
and styles. I liked learning new things about him. Gave me something to l
ook forward to. But that didn t mean I was going to take my time learning
all of them when he was fast asleep and I was on my own to do as much snoo
ping as I wanted.
I peeked in the refrigerator first, wanting to put a curiosity I d had to r
est. I smiled when I saw that he seemed to be a healthy eater. More fresh f
ruits and meats than take-out containers. That meant he was probably stomac
hing things like hot dogs and pizza for my sake. The thought had me further
regretting my earlier doubts. More than once he d watched me down a whole
pie or two large sides of cheese-covered tater tots with a bewildered look
on his face, probably wondering where it was going. I think high metabolism
ran in my family because Audra and I both ate like that and then bragged a
bout it when we managed to gain an ounce.
He seemed to be pretty clean, despite the clutter from his job, which he o
bviously had a passion for. Most of his books were on building and design,
and there was a sketchbook that I flipped through that showed plans for e
verything from birdhouses to real houses, and I became more and more impre
ssed with him. He seemed to know what he wanted to do, which was more than
I could say for myself most of the time.
Once I could see past the clutter I found small things that were more perso
nal, like the pair of reading glasses he kept behind a small pot filled wit
h miniature cactuses, a wallet-sized photo of a wrestling team pinned to th
e side of his coffee table--one I almost pocketed when I spotted him in the
third row--and framed pictures of people who obviously meant something to
him. They were mostly men. Two older ones that consistently popped up aroun
d his apartment. First separately, and then I began to notice them in photo
s together. Then they were in two with Luke, and there was a third that loo
ked like a Christmas photo where they were seated in the center of the phot
o, Luke to the right and another kid off to the left--cute brunet with shor
t hair and a pissed-off expression. Probably because Chey had jumped onto t
he couch behind him, determined to lavish him with unwanted kisses just as
the camera went off.
Curious, I found myself opening the back of the frame and removing the pictu
re, finding that the inscription on the back read, Rory, Eddie, Jase and Luk
e, Christmas Eve. Putting the picture back, arranging it just how he d had i
t I turned my attention towards the photo next to it. The only female he fou
nd deserving enough of a frame, I guessed it to be his mother. She was young
in it, and I could see he got his looks from her. Definitely the eyes, just
as blue as his were.
As I wondered why he didn t have any more photos of her, perhaps more recent
, I noticed another houseplant that had a pitcher of water sitting next to i
t, as if he d gone to do the task and had somehow gotten sidetracked. I smil
ed at that, too. Wanting to be helpful I moved towards it, but hardly had my
fingers around the pitcher before I became a little distracted myself, list
ening to the sound of a phone ringing.
My first thought was that it might wake Luke up, and turned to look toward
s his bedroom door. But, when there was nothing from him I moved towards t
he phone instead. I figured since I was already snooping, there was no har
m in going all out about it.
 Luke s phone, I answered.
There was no dial tone, so I knew whoever it was hadn t hung up, but when t
he silence grew for so long, I almost did.
 Who is this? a male voice finally asked. He sounded young and suspicious
. Naturally, I became suspicious back.
 Who s this?
 I asked you first.
I rolled my eyes. How dare he be childish.
 That doesn t mean anything. Everyone knows that the person calling is suppo
sed to introduce themselves first. It s the polite thing to do.
 But I wasn t calling you, he countered.
 That s true, I allowed.  But since I answered  Luke s phone, you can cons
ider me a stand-in. Besides. He s sleeping, so you ll have to leave a messa
ge. How can I give him one if I don t know who this is?
There was more silence for a minute, and then,  Are you his boyfriend or s
omething?
 Are you? I asked quickly. That hadn t even occurred to me before. What if
Luke was seeing someone else? Would it even matter? I mean, it s not like
we d talked about that. But I wasn t seeing anyone else, damn it. He wasn t
supposed to either.
So there.
 No. You re not, I said, answering my own question.  Caller ID says you re
out of state. Is that supposed to be Arizona?
 Maybe. So who says we're not dating long distance?
Huh? I sensed cockiness in his tone. And was that a snort I heard?
 You re Rory.
 How did you know? he asked, sounding disappointed, as if he d enjoyed ann
oying me. I could totally respect that.
 He has a picture... so who are you, his brother?
 Something like that.
 Mind explaining? I asked.
 Actually, I do. I get a frickin headache every time I talk about it, so ask h
im. I ll just say we re family... and you re definitely the guy he s been seein
g, right?
 He mentioned me? I asked curiously.
 That depends. Are you the ambush kisser?
 Yep.
 Huh. I kinda thought he was making that whole thing up.
I smiled.  What else did he say about me?
 I don t think that s any of your business.
 Sure it is, I insisted.  Go ahead. Don t be shy. What did he say?
I got the feeling that when he laughed, he was laughing more at me than at
my words.
 Is Luke even there? Rory asked.
 Like I said, he s sleeping.
 Is that Luke? I heard a muffled voice in the background ask. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]