About that Night (2 page)

With a smirk, he said, “Alone at last.”

“Like I said, I’m leaving.”

It was the least subtle hint I could give that I wasn’t interested in Luke, but it lacked my usual biting sass.

Luke noticed. “Stay until you finish your drink. If you still want to leave after that, I won’t stop you.”

“Fine.” I took a big, deliberate sip of my drink and Luke laughed.

“I guess I better work fast then.” He leaned on the bar next to me and I noticed that with his suit jacket gone, tie loosened, and sleeves rolled up, he looked less like a high-fashion suit model. “How long have you been working for Judge Malone?”

“Since last August. This is my third year clerkship.” One of the nice things about talking to a lawyer about your job was that they weren’t easily impressed.

Luke nodded. “Are you planning to stay in divorce work after graduation?”

“No way.”

He laughed knowingly. “Smart girl. So what do you plan to do?”

“A friend of mine runs a nonprofit. I’m going to help out with grants and some legislative advocacy work. It won’t pay much at all so I might not be able to do it for long, but it’s not like I can really practice until I pass the bar anyway.”

I was surprised by Luke’s reaction- a curious head tilt and a softening around his eyes.

“You don’t have aspirations to become an associate at a big firm?”

“Not at all.” That might not have been my answer when I first started school seven years ago, but a lot had changed since then. “I’d rather help people.”

He laughed again and gestured around the crowded bar. “You’re not like the rest of these people, are you?”

“Does that include you?” I had just been assuming that Luke was on the partnership track. “What law firm are you with?”

“Donovan and Kramer.” He grimaced when he saw the look of understanding pass through my face.

“Your own firm?”

“My dad’s.” He sighed, already anticipating my line of questioning.

“What’s it like working for your dad?”

He looked away, face tense. “My father died a few years ago.”

“Oh.” I wasn’t sure what to say. “I’m sorry.”

“I’m not.” His face was dark and indecipherable. Then, like a switch, he turned his smile back on. “Let’s just say my father wasn’t as charming as me.”

“That’s not hard to believe,” I said, offering my first small smile.

Luke noticed. “You have a beautiful smile, Kasey. You should use it more.”

“Time’s up.” I held up my empty glass.

“Thanks for having a drink with me.” Luke made a show of looking disappointed. “I hope we run into each other again soon.”

A flash of inspiration hit me. “Who knows, maybe we’ll run into each other outside the bar in two minutes.”

Luke frowned, confused. When I flashed him a playful smile, he got it. “Maybe we will.”

I waited for him just outside the door, leaning against the stone wall and letting the breeze cool my flushed skin. The mixture of alcohol and Luke Donovan had made me warm and tingly.

When he stepped outside, he looked good enough to make my heart skip a beat, literally. He’d pulled on his suit jacket, but his tie was still just loose enough for me to imagine tugging on it to pull him closer. I shook the mental image away.

“Fancy running into you here,” I said.

He turned to me with his ridiculously perfect smile and said, “This really is my lucky day.”

It occurred to me that he might think the exact opposite if he really knew me. But I’d had just enough alcohol to let down my usually impenetrable wall.

“Are you up for a walk?”

“With you?” He stepped dangerously close to me and I could smell his cologne. I had a weakness for cologne. “I can’t think of anything I’d rather do tonight.”

“Then you must not have a very good imagination.” I grinned up at him. “Let’s go.”

It was a beautiful spring evening, warm by Chicago standards but still chilly. As we walked slowly through the loop, I was glad that my work heels were both fashionable and comfortable. The beginnings of a blister would be an unfortunate way to end the evening.

“It always surprises me how deserted downtown becomes on Friday night.” We had been walking for a while and had only passed a few late commuters on their way to the train station. “Do you live close by?”

“Already trying to get an invite back to my place?” Luke joked. “I live in the Gold Coast. You?”

“Lakeview.”

We were closing in on Millennium Park. “I could use a coffee. What do you say?”

“Sure.”

The waitress at the counter looked up in surprise when we entered. The café was empty except for the three of us.

“Coffee. Black,” I said.

Luke glanced at me in surprise and said, “Make that two.”

He insisted on paying for the coffees and turned to me while we waited for the barista to fill our order.

“No fru-fru drink?” he asked.

“What’s so surprising about that?” I felt myself get irritated. “What, just because I’m a girl I can’t drink my coffee black?”

“Whoa. That’s not what I meant.” He looked chagrinned. “Okay, actually you aren’t wrong. But I was. Sorry.”

I shrugged. “I’m sure it’s not the first time you’ve been wrong about women.”

“You’re right about that.” He picked up the coffees and handed me one. “Shall we resume our walk?”

“Let’s stroll through the park. It’s nicer at night when all of the tourists are gone.” It wasn’t quite dark enough or late enough to have to worry about our safety. Now was prime park time.

“How do you like working for Holly?”

“She’s great.” In fact, I was going to be sad when my clerkship ended in two weeks. “I’ve learned a lot from her.”

Luke paused on the pathway, uncertain which branch in the path we should take. I started down the one on the left.

“Holly is a good woman.”

“How long have you known her?”

“A few years.” He shrugged. “Time starts to fly after the age of thirty.”

My eyes widened. “How old are you exactly?”

“Not that old,” he said, laughing. “I’ll be 33 in a couple of months.”

That was when I realized that Luke wasn’t just some guy- he was a man. He probably had real estate investments and stock portfolios. Not to mention whatever romantic baggage he was carrying. I didn’t even have a cat.

“What are your plans for retirement?”

“Funny.” Luke looked around, lost. “Where are you taking me?”

“To my lair.”

“To take advantage of me?” he said with a hopeful smile.

I rolled my eyes. “You wish.”

We had reached the pathway that would take us to the top of the Art Institute. I had accidentally discovered it during my first visit to the modern wing several years earlier and it was one of my favorite spots in the city.

“This is a great view,” Luke said, stopping in the middle to look toward Michigan Avenue.

“One of my favorites,” I agreed. The Chicago skyline was beginning to light up. “Come on. There’s more.”

At the very top, in the farthest corner, I pointed to the rooftop below. With my other hand, I dug into my bag and pulled out a penny.

“Make a wish,” I said.

“What is this?”

About three feet below where we stood, the roof was covered in dozens of pennies. Somehow, visitors had collectively decided to turn this into their own version of a wishing well.

“Pretty cool, huh?” I handed him the penny. “My wish is already down there. It’s your turn.”

Luke took the penny, tentatively holding it between his thumb and forefinger. “A wish, huh? I can’t remember the last time I made a wish.”

“That’s crazy.” I slapped his arm. “You better get busy making up for lost time.”

He thought for a second, lips pursed and eyes searching the sky. “I got it.”

The penny flipped through the air and landed with a satisfying ping.

“Good work.” I smiled in satisfaction. “Okay, I showed you one of my favorite spots. Now you have to show me one of yours.”

Luke’s brow furrowed. “Alright. I’ve got it.”

We headed back in the direction from which we came. Conversation came surprisingly easy for us. Even though I had just met Luke, it felt like I was talking to an old friend.

“If we’re headed back to your place, I won’t be coming in.” I was only half-joking.

“Relax. We’re not headed to my place. Yet.” He grabbed my arm and yanked me back just as I was about to cross Wacker Drive. A car had run a red light and was a foot away from crashing into me.

“Nice reflexes,” I said, my heart racing from the close call.

Luke held onto my arm for a few seconds longer than was necessary before letting go. “I just saved your life.”

“My hero.” I pretended to swoon. “Can we cross now?”

“Yeah, but stick with me, okay? I might be a hero, but I don’t have superpowers. I can only save you if you are close.” To emphasize his point, he brushed against me.

We were on the bridge, crossing over the river, and Luke stopped me again.

“What’s wrong? I’m about to get hit by a biker?” I looked around wildly.

“No, silly. We’re here.” He proudly held out his arms and turned in a half-circle.

“This is your spot?”

He nodded. “This is it.”

With the river below us, cars speeding by us, and the scenery around us, I wasn’t exactly sure what I was supposed to focus on. “Which part?”

“All of it.” Luke spun in a slow circle and I could see a hint of wonder in his eyes. “The first time I ever stood in this spot, I knew that I would love living in this city.”

A bus barreled over the bridge, shaking the metal beneath our feet. “This is pretty cliché,” I said.

“Maybe, but I don’t care.” Luke pointed to the buildings in front of us. “Does the city’s architecture get any better than this?”

He had a point. I loved the Tribune Tower and Wrigley Building. Looking down the river, even more magnificent skyscrapers dotted the skyline.

“Okay, I’ll give it to you. This spot is pretty cool.” I actually happened to like this spot a lot myself. “When did you move to the city?”

“I moved here for college. I’m from the suburbs, so it’s not like I had to move far. My dad’s firm was here, so I spent some time in the city growing up. But it just felt different when I moved here for real.”

I noticed that his face darkened when he mentioned his father.

“Were you close to your father?” I asked quietly.

“Not exactly.” He didn’t seem excited to elaborate further. “The only thing my father and I had in common was our last name.”

“It’s a good last name,” I said lamely. He smiled and we stood quietly, looking at the water lapping below.

Luke reached into his pocket and pulled out a quarter. “Wish time. I already made my wish,” he said, nodding to the river below. “Your turn.”

“A quarter? That’s an expensive wish.” I took it carefully.

“The good ones always are,” he replied.

I thought carefully about which wish I should offer up. I’d had so many over the years, and none of them had ever been answered. But there was one that was new, and that was what was on my mind as the quarter somersaulted into the water.

“Now what?” I asked, turning back to Luke.

“A drink?”

It sounded like a reasonable suggestion. “Let’s go to the Signature Room.”

“Okay, now who’s being cliché?” Luke’s beautiful eyes rolled around in his head.

“I don’t care. I love the view.” It was true- everyone knew that the Signature Room was a tourist trap. But it was also the best view in the city, in my opinion.

“Well, it’s your turn. So let’s do it.”

We were lucky. Our arrival at the Signature Room was timed perfectly to miss the prime dinner rush. The lounge was still crowded, but we were able to find an intimate table by the windows.

“You were right,” Luke said with a reluctant sigh “The view is spectacular.”

“I’m always right,” I replied without missing a beat.

Luke changed the subject. “Tell me about Kasey. Where did you grow up?”

“Wisconsin. Just outside of Milwaukee.” I didn’t like where our conversation was headed.

“What about your family?”

“What about them?”

The waitress arrived and Luke paused long enough to order drinks for us. “Were you close to your parents?”

“I was.”

“Do they still live in Wisconsin?”

I took a breath before answering. “They’re dead.”

“Oh.” Luke blinked hard. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.” Even after all this time I still never felt comfortable talking about their deaths. “They were hit by a drunk driver ten years ago.”

“That’s terrible.”

“Shit happens.” I waited for the waitress to set down our drinks and then grabbed mine and took a big drink.