Drawn To You (Taking Chances #3) by Liwen Ho Read Free Book Online

back and stretched his long legs out in front of him. “Did you ever think back in high school about what your life would be like? Is it anything like how you imagined?”
    “Well, if you mean did I ever think you and I would build a four-foot-tall dollhouse together and not kill each other in the process? Then, no.”
    “What did you expect? I couldn’t get on your bad side while you were wielding a hot glue gun. I still have nightmares about the time you spilled hydrochloric acid on my hand.”
    “Oh, come on, you big baby. It was diluted and you had gloves on.” She lifted his hand off the couch and pretended to inspect it. “Don’t tell me it left a scar?”
    Without thinking, he closed his hand around hers and stroked his thumb across her smooth skin. The feeling of their fingers laced together sent his heart racing. He didn’t know what had compelled him to grab her hand, but he was kind of glad he had. His contentment, however, was short-lived. Sensing her body stiffen, he promptly let go. “Sorry,” he coughed out, “must be my cop reflexes working overtime.”
    Sam clenched her hand into a fist and tried to ignore the warm tingles spreading up her arm. Over the course of the day, it had become more apparent that being near Lucas left her bothered. Okay, maybe it was more like hot and bothered. Even though he drove her crazy, she was drawn to him for some inexplicable reason. She always had been. Maybe the ticking of her biological clock had turned her into an irrational teenager again. Remember who you’re dealing with. “You were always out to catch people. Is that why you became a cop? So you could catch bad guys for a living?”
    “On the contrary, I joined the force because I wanted to protect the good ones.” He turned in his seat to face her. “I have you to thank for that.”
    “What’re you talking about?”
    “I meant what I said about the grad party. I was trying to protect you. When I was getting ice in the kitchen that night, I overheard a guy say he had slipped something into the beer kegs.” A vein throbbed in his temple and his face flushed. “I didn’t know much about roofies then, but I knew enough about the guys hosting the party to know they were trouble.”
    “That’s why you kept telling me to drink soda.” Sam spoke quietly as she digested Lucas’s words. “And why you kept trying to take my cup away.”
    “You were too stubborn for your own good. When you wouldn’t listen, I called my neighbor, the cop. He said he’d come and break up the party. I just wanted to keep you and the other girls safe. You getting arrested was an unintentional bonus. I’m sorry that happened.”
    “Why didn’t you tell me? I was furious! An explanation would’ve been nice.”
    “I tried. You wouldn’t return my calls, remember? The one time I showed up at your house—”
    “Oh yeah,” she cut in, “it’s all coming back to me now. I slammed the door in your face.” She looked down at her hands, then back up at him. “But in my defense, if I had known you were watching out for me, I wouldn’t have been so rude.”
    Lucas stared at her for a moment before his whole body started shaking with laughter. Once he caught his breath, he remarked, “You’re something else, Sammie Koo. Even if I had told you the beer was spiked, you would’ve drunk it just to spite me.”
    She gritted her teeth, both hating and liking the fact that he knew her so well. “You’re probably right. I guess we were always at odds.”
    “Well, now that you know the whole story, what do you think? All is forgiven? Can we start fresh?”
    “After you just laughed your head off at me?” Her tone sounded annoyed, but she was secretly pleased to see him so happy. When he laughed, his whole demeanor relaxed and reminded her of the teenage boy she had once loved. “I don’t know …”
    “I was laughing with you, not at you.”
    “Ha ha, not !” She emphasized the last word with an eye roll. “Good