“No, I’m mixing it up.” I continued to roll the potato around inside the skin, not bothering to look up at either one of them. When I did, Luke looked away quickly and then shoved some bread into his mouth.
“I love thousand island dressing.” Ryan swooned as he lifted a bit of salad toward his mouth.
“Must be why you love Big Macs,” Luke teased.
“Mmmmm McDonalds.” He chewed his food as he said around it. I looked away because, well, boys are gross.
“This was a good idea.” Ryan said, pointed his fork at me. “I like this. It's like old times with new people. I'm glad you joined our little duo, Emmy.”
“Me too,” Luke added, looking at me then quickly averting his eyes the moment mine met his.
“I'm glad I am too, I really do like it here. The woods are probably my favorite place in the world.” I had wanted to get out there today, but I just hadn't had time after getting unpacked and then Ryan wanting to grill out.
I stood from the table and picked up my plate, lifting Ryan’s from the table too. He was leaned back rubbing his belly groaning. “I should have bought me another steak. That was the best.”
“It was really good. Thank you, guys, for making such a great dinner.”
“You made dinner too.” Luke stood carrying his plate toward me.
“It was lettuce in a bowl,” I shrugged.
“With tomatoes, croutons, olives, and cheese. That's hardly lettuce in a bowl.” He bumped his shoulder playfully into mine and took the other plates from my hands.
“Well, ladies and gentlemen, I have places to go and people to do.” Ryan stood and announced. He walked over and kissed the top of my head. “I'm glad you weren’t eaten by bears. See ya tomorrow for coffee.”
“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” He slapped Luke on the back and then made his way toward the door.
“Say hey to Cindy,” Luke laughed.
“Will do.” He ducked out of the door, and I was once again alone with Luke. We washed the dishes in silence. I could feel his eyes on me from time to time, and to say there wasn't something bubbling just below the surface between us would be a lie. He started a pot of coffee and pulled two cups from the cabinet. I watched as he put half and half in one cup and two spoonfuls of sugar in the other and then poured coffee into each. He handed me the cup with the half and half. He had apparently paid attention when I rambled on about my coffee to Ryan last week.
“Come on,” he pushed the screen door open and held it for me. I followed him into the yard. He smiled up at the sky and then handed me his cup.
“Hold this for a second.” He jogged over to his work shop and produced two chairs that sat low to the ground and leaned back pretty far. He sat them side by side and then took his cup and pointed toward the chair.
“Have a seat. There’s supposed to be a meteor shower starting around midnight.”
“Really?” I sat slowly and then leaned back in the wooden chair. When I opened my eyes and looked up, it was amazing. The stars were spread over the sky like a blanket. Living near the city, we saw the brightest stars, but out here it looked as if there wasn't a blank place amongst them.
We finished our coffee and sat in silence for a while. When I saw the first light streak across the sky, my face lit up.
“Did you see that?” I jumped up from the chair.
“Yeah, I saw it,” he chuckled.
“I've never seen a shooting star before.” I wrapped my arms around myself as I stood there, head tipped toward the sky.
“They say you should make a wish on a shooting star,” he said as he stood, coming to stand next to me.
“They do?” I could feel him close to me.
“They do.” He took a step closer and pointed in another direction. “Look,” he said, drawing my attention to another streak of light dancing across the sky. When I looked, my face was turned toward his. The warmth from his body radiated toward mine. I leaned against him, and his hands found their way around my waist.
“You cold?” he asked, his closeness unnerving. I shook my head and slowly turned in his arms until I was facing him, pressed to his chest, his arms tightened around my waist, falling just at the small of my back.
“Is this okay?” he whispered, his breath tickling my skin. The goosebumps that followed spread slowly down my arms.
“This is nice.” I looked up into his eyes.