The Final Score by L.M. Trio Read Free Book Online Page B

a bit as Deanna tries to keep up with my brisk strides. The steam coming from my body has nothing to do with the heat.
    “Can you believe that shit?” I ask, referring to Luke’s accusation.
    “Why would he say that? What is wrong with him?” she asks with her voice full of angst as she keeps a slight jog to keep up with me.
    “He’s fuckin’ nuts! That’s what’s wrong with him. He’s lost it ,” I answer, full of hostility.
    “God , Mikey, don’t say that,” She chastises, fearing it may be true. “What can we do? I don’t even know what to say to him anymore.”
    I hear her voice quiver and I glance down at her beautiful , chestnut, misted eyes. My heart softens when I see her face, and I stop in my tracks to pull her into my arms, holding her tightly. I know it frightens her, thinking we’ll never have the same Luke we know back again. It kills me watching her be this upset. I want to take all of that away from her.
    “He’s gonna be fine ,” I say, holding her close while rubbing her back. “Maybe it’s a good thing he got that off his chest. At least he showed some type of emotion. It’s better than him walkin’ around acting as if he doesn’t give a shit about anything,” I offer, trying to reassure her.
    I wrap her small, soft hand in mine and she holds onto it tightly. We begin to walk again, this time at a more relaxed pace.
    “You know what? I think you’re right. What should we do?” she asks diligently after thinking it over for a few minutes.
    “Nothing. Let him work through it. We can only just be there for him when he’s ready to talk ,” I answer, happy to hear her enthusiasm.
    “Are you two going to be alright?” she asks, looking up at me curiously.
    “DeDe , c’mon. Do you really think I’d let somethin’ like that come between us? Big deal, he flipped out. It’s about time. He’s usually so damn low-key. I’m over it already.” I give her a wink and a smile.
    I can sense her body calming itself down as she interlocks her arm with mine and holds on tightly while we make our way back to the house. There is nothing that I wouldn’t do to make things better for her. I want her to always be able to depend on me. Nothing brings me more pleasure than seeing her smile. It’s been that way for me for as long as I can remember.
    Maria is having a cup of coffee when we burst through the kitchen door , laughing hysterically and trying to catch our breath. We’re always competing. I gave her a good head start before we raced the rest of the way home. Just as she is about to reach for the door, thinking she has beat me, I push her aside and take the lead. As much as I love making her smile, I equally love when she pretends to be pissed at me.
    “So much for gallantry ,” Maria laughs, mumbling to herself.
    It makes her happy to see us laughing. She knew something went down between me and Luke earlier. The last thing she needs is for her boys to be arguing. I know she thinks of me in that way.
    “Is everything okay?” she asks, looking at me curiously.
    “Yep, everything is going to be great. I promise ,” I assure her, giving her a peck on the cheek, hoping to ease some of her tension.
    Deanna and I continue the bantering as we head to the rec room to watch a movie. It feels good to be home and spend a couple of days together. I’ve missed this . I’ve missed her. Just as we finally agree on a movie, Luke appears, standing in the doorway.
    “Hey, can I talk to you for a second?” he asks meekly, looking at me.
    “Yeah, sure ,” I reply, springing up from the couch and handing De the remote.
    I follow him out to the garage where Luke closes the door behind us to give us some privacy and takes a seat on the weight bench.
    “Look , I don’t know what is wrong with me. I’m sorry. I was way, way out of line. I shouldn’t have talked to you like that,” he says with sincerity. “And if you are with her, I have no business saying anything about it,” he adds,