After all those years, she still hadn’t let another man get close. She’d had some hookups and dated a few guys here or there, but as soon as it looked like it might get serious, she walked away. It was hard for her to trust that a man genuinely wanted to get to know her and wouldn’t turn on her, break her down, and control her.
Embry’s thoughts shifted to Luke. What was it about him that had her acting so out of character? She had worked so hard to put herself back together after Jack. But Luke brought down all of her walls with one look. She couldn’t hide her reaction to him. No one had ever affected her that way, and it made her uneasy. Morgan was right; she wanted to get to know Luke. She actually wanted to open up to him. Letting out a long breath, she reached for her phone.
Home safe, had a great time. Thx for the drink. x
Embry turned off her phone and went to sleep. She dreamed of a southern boy with blue eyes.
Embry sat in the law school atrium on Monday afternoon, eating lunch and listening to Morgan ramble about one of the girls in her class. Students bustled in and out of the crowded atrium, their chatter bouncing off the walls and filling the room with a loud hum.
“I mean, I just don’t get it. She’s like a machine. She somehow manages to keep up with all of the work and stay perfectly prepared for each class. Her answers are flawless, and she doesn’t hesitate to throw one of us under the bus if we give a wrong answer. I can’t stand the girl!”
Embry tuned Morgan out when she noticed Luke walking into the atrium. Everything around her melted away, and all she saw was him. He scanned the open space, searching her out. Their eyes met and locked as he crossed the atrium. Embry felt her skin warm from the intensity of his gaze. When he passed her table, he winked, his lips tipping into a slight smile. As much as she wished he’d stop and say hi, she didn’t mind the view as he left.
She’d woken up Saturday morning to a good morning text from Luke, and they texted back and forth all weekend. As much as Embry needed to focus on law school, she wanted to talk to Luke and get to know him better. She had never felt such a pull toward a man.
“Um, wow! ” Morgan exclaimed. “What was that and why do I feel like I need a cold shower after watching the two of you devour each other with your eyes?”
Embry took in Morgan’s surprised face and couldn’t help but laugh.
“On Friday, you weren’t even sure if you were going to text him back. Now he’s looking at you like he wants to eat you alive. What did I miss?”
“Um …” Embry gave a shy smile. “I wound up texting him back.”
“Clearly! And?”
“We’ve kind of been talking all weekend.”
“Why didn’t I hear about this?”
“You left to spend the weekend with Brett before I even woke up. It’s not like anything monumental happened. We just texted back and forth. He’s really sweet.”
“Sweet isn’t the adjective I would choose after seeing him molest you with his eyes, but okay, go on,” Morgan said, her face splitting into a wide grin.
Embry playfully shoved Morgan’s shoulder. “Shut it. He is sweet. He asked to see me tonight.”
“Ooooh, he did?”
“Mmhmm.”
“And?”
“I said yes, but I figured—”
“Oh. Em. Geeeee,” Morgan squealed. “A date! I’m coming over after class to help you get ready, and you better give me minute-to-minute updates throughout the night.”
Embry grabbed Morgan’s shoulders to stop her bouncing. “Morgan, calm. I told him that I wanted to see him, but I was worried about getting all of my studying done. So he offered to come over and cook for me instead of us going out.”
Morgan’s eyes widened in awe. “He’s hot and he cooks? Where can I get one?”
“You already have one. His name is Brett, and you just spent a romantic weekend away with him, remember?”
Morgan laughed. “You know Brett’s idea of cooking is putting a