Calling Me Home by Louise Bay Read Free Book Online

sat down, Luke squeezed my thigh, and my stomach tumbled at his touch. I mouthed the words thank you at him, and he winked at me.
    Luke filled my water, and I relaxed back into my chair. What was he going to say? And when? Part of me was nervous, but a bigger part of me was excited. I wanted my family to know that Luke and I were together.
    “I hope the food’s good,” Haven said. “I can’t be arsed cooking at Christmas. If I can’t drink, there’s got to be some upside to the day.”
    “I’ve said I don’t mind being chef for the day,” Beth said.
    “No, Haven’s right. Going out will be great. It’s good to make new traditions,” Luke said.
    My heart sped up. Was he going to say something now? I wasn’t sure I was ready.
    “You’ve totally got to bake something,” I said. “That’s our new Christmas law. We all have enough baked goods from Beth to incite a diabetic coma.” There was a chuckle around the table.
    “Well, funny you should say that, that’s going to be the tagline to my video clips. Beth’s Baked Goods—A Diabetic Coma in the Making.”
    “Sounds like a winner. How are they going? I saw you had a gazillion hits on the one I looked at over the weekend.” I was pretty sure Beth was going to be a YouTube phenomenon sooner rather than later. She looked like a young Elizabeth Taylor and dressed like one, in vintage fifties dresses. She was the kind of girl Haven and I would joke about going gay for.
    “You’re so sweet to be checking them out. I’m not sure it’s quite a gazillion, and I’m positive most of them are just from the people around this table.”
    “I saw loads of comments. Some pervs, it has to be said. It must be every guy’s wet dream to have a woman like you in their kitchen,” I said. “Mostly they were from people who loved you and your baking.”
    Beth blushed. “I just do it for fun, but actually, I got a call yesterday from a guy who wants to talk about me doing a five-minute slot on a Saturday breakfast show in Chicago.”
    “Are you serious?” Jake asked. “That’s amazing. You’re going to be a superstar.”
    Beth pushed Jake off as he tried to grab her for a kiss. “It’s only a local TV thing. And it will probably come to nothing, but it’s fun. Right?”
    “It’s bloody fantastic,” Luke said. “We’re surrounded by incredible women, Jake,” he said, shaking his head as if in awe. My need to kiss him was almost too strong to resist.
    “I know, right?” Jake replied.
    A sommelier busied himself, pouring fizzy courage into flutes. I dreaded to think how much this evening would cost. I’d lined up a second mortgage to pay for the part of my business school fees that the hospital wasn’t covering, and I’d applied for several scholarships, but things would be tight for the next few years.
    When the waiter had filled all our glasses, Luke pushed back his chair and stood. My heart began to thump so loud I was surprised someone didn’t call an ambulance.
    “I’d like to say something,” he said as everyone stared up at him.
    This was it. Excitement built beneath my skin.
    “I’m in love with Ashleigh Franklin,” he announced.
    He looked at me as he spoke, and I couldn’t do anything but gaze at him.
    He loved me?
    Of course he did.
    How could I have ever doubted it?
    “I’m obsessed to the point of madness. Devoted, besotted, totally and completely in love with her. I hope she feels for me just a tiny fraction of what I feel for her. I intend to spend the rest of my life trying to earn her love and respect. That is all.”
    In all my years of loving him, I’d never felt more for him than as I did in that moment. He was describing how I felt about him. Our feelings were mutual. I never thought that could be possible.
    He scraped my cheekbone with his thumb and placed a soft kiss on my lips. “Breathe,” he whispered.
    “I’m good. We got this,” I replied.
    I finally pulled my gaze away from him and scanned the three faces