Page 24 of The Long Way Found

LUKE

He read the same paragraph in an email three times before he understood what it said. It was that kind of morning for Luke as he couldn’t stop thinking about Jack.

“It’s okay,” he said. “Doesn’t mean I’m obsessing.”

He kept envisioning Jack’s eyes across the dinner table at Delmonico’s, that first kiss in the snow… and Jack’s face when they climaxed together…

Stop! Back to work.

That was easy enough until after lunch, which he had with his team on the floor—salads and sandwiches from the deli down the street. They had enough business to discuss to keep his mind occupied, and he wasn’t going to tell them yet that they might lose a major source of funding. It still might work out fine, and he didn’t want to worry them, even though that tightened the pressure on him for the important event they were planning.

“OK, so we’re all agreed about the theme of the spring fund-raiser, Bloom into Fitness?” Luke asked his three employees.

Holly objected. “Florals for spring?” she said. “Groundbreaking.”

Everyone laughed, and Luke said, “OK, Miranda Priestly. We brainstormed ideas earlier, and this is where we landed. Do you have a better idea now?”

“Well,” she said teasingly, “what if we leave the black-tie part the way it’s planned, but then after that we have a Big ‘80s roller-disco party here at The Ridge? For everyone who can’t afford black tie, for the kids, for people who just want to have fun and celebrate. Isn’t that important, too?”

“Big ‘80s?” Amir asked.

“Leg warmers, headbands, Duran Duran… I know my parents and their friends would eat it up. That was their time, and everybody knows those old songs. It was a fun era, so, so tacky. I mean, neon tights and big hair, right? What do you think?”

Luke remembered watching “Xanadu” on HBO with Jack. Corny as hell, great music, and a really cute guy opposite Olivia Newton-John. Sometimes they could catch videos of artists like the Go-Gos and Madonna on TV.

“I like it,” he said. “Definitely more sass than ‘Bloom into Fitness.’”

They voted again, and it was 4-0 in favor. “Big ‘80s” was for the after-party.

When the others had left, Amir said, “How was Delmonico’s last night, Luke?”

“Excuse me,” Luke said playfully, masking his surprise and not making a fuss.

“I heard they hired a new chef after they remodeled the kitchen. Wondering if it’s still good enough to take my parents for their anniversary.”

"Yes! Yes‚ all is well at Delmonico’s.”

Amir gave him a look. “You seem… I don’t know. Different today.”

“Different how?”

"Good different. Like you’re trying not to smile,” Amir said, running his fingers through his thick black hair again.

Luke noticed with pride that Amir was maturing beyond his adorable-young-man years.

“You get lucky last night?” Amir asked, punching Luke lightly on the shoulder.

OK, not fully out of them yet, Luke thought.

Luke grabbed a towel and threw it at him. “Get back to work.”

But Amir was right. Luke was trying not to smile. Trying not to obsess. Trying not to check his phone every ten minutes.

And failing at all three.

But he couldn’t tell Amir any of that. He could tell Mara, but then he’d have to weed through her Debbie Downer attitude toward Jack in general.

He checked his phone again.