Luke was doing a lot better, when Reid met up with him in Java. He looked calmer and his eyes lit up when he saw Reid come in. After a short kiss, Reid looked into Luke’s cup.
“What’s that?”
“Hot chocolate,” Luke smiled when Reid smacked his lips.
“Ah yeah, chocolate. It tastes good on you.”
Reid’s eyes found Alison’s and saw her hesitation.
“Please don’t leave at my account, uhm…”
“Alison,” she smiled, “and if you play your cards right, I will even let you call me Ali, Dr… uhm…”
They all laughed. Even louder when Reid completed her sentence with a teasing “Oliver.”
“I want one of those,” Reid pointed at Luke’s cup, “Do you guys want a refill?”
“Let me get it,” Ali was already standing, “so you have some privacy to say hello.” Her wink was a little mischievous and Reid chuckled.
“She’s okay.”
“She is,” Luke agreed, put his hand on Reid’s leg and looked him deeply in his eyes.
“Hello.”
Reid caressed Luke’s cheek and smiled.
“Hello.”
“E-nough! I’m back.” With a loud clash Alison put the cups down and raised hers to make a toast. “Here’s to you guys. Especially to you, Dr… Reid…for making my dear friend so happy.”
Reid accepted her vote of thanks with a bow of his head and held his cup up to her. “Right back at you, Alison,” he gazed at her for a moment. “I know there’s something I had to say to you, but for the life of me…”
“Nurse Stewart, you deserve a raise?” Ali asked hopefully and Reid chuckled.
“I’m sure you deserve one, but we don’t always get what we deserve, do we?”
“You’re right about that,” Ali looked very serious, “You’re living proof of that…walking away with the greatest guy in town!”
“Ha!” Reid grinned. “That’s just me being brilliant.” His face lit up, when he suddenly remembered his message.
“I’ve put the bouquet at the nurses station, for you all to enjoy it.”
“Nice, but why would you do that? You enjoyed it as well.”
“I did, but I cleared my schedule, so I won’t be in for a couple of days.”
“A couple of days?” Luke became radiant. “Really?”
Reid smiled. “Really. The new wing opens in a few weeks, so this is the perfect time to do that. So I did.”
Ali watched them with a joyous smile. She’d seen Luke and Noah growing apart and, liking both of them, had felt sad about it. The sadness had turned into worry, when Luke had shared his feelings for Dr. Oliver with her.
Dr. Nasty?
Luke had told her about Reid’s humour, his love, his loyalty and how he made Luke feel, but he couldn’t take away all her concern. But now, all Ali could feel was joy. There was no doubt in her mind anymore. Reid Oliver was exactly what the doctor had ordered.
She took Luke’s hand. “I’m glad we caught up,” she kissed his cheek as she stood up and waved in the air to Reid. “I’ll take good care of your flowers.”
“What?” Reid mixed a pout with a defiant grin, “no kiss for me, then?”
“You big baby you,” Ali’s eyes sparkled when she kissed Reid on the cheek. “There. Stop whining and enjoy your days together.”
With a quick wave goodbye she flew out of Java, leaving both men smiling.
“She’s more than okay.”
“Yes, she is.”
“So are you.”
“Yes, I am.”
“Wanna play doctor?”
“Yes please.”
Their ride home was a reasonably nice one. It hadn’t escaped Luke’s attention that Reid had checked the car before stepping in and it galled him. He decided not to tell Reid about it, but again his lover somehow sensed it anyway.
“What’s eating you, Luke?”
He was glad Reid was doing the driving, because he still felt tremulous and now he could focus on the question.
“Somehow I can’t shake this feeling of embarrassment,” his voice was soft, but steady. “And please don’t tell me it’s not my fault, because I know…”
“It’s not your fault,” with a teasing look Reid covered his mouth, “Oops, I said it anyway.”
They chuckled and Luke continued: “I know you’re trying to make me feel better, and I love you for it, I really do… but this is a very familiar yet complicated pattern for me and I need to find my way out. This morning, at the police station, I became conscious of my thought process and it was insane…”
Reid took a quick look at him.
“Like what?”
“Like…maybe I should have stayed with Noah, so my mother wouldn’t had freaked out like this…”
Reid’s expression hardened.
“That is insane.”
“I know. And just thinking about it, made my skin crawl, it really did. So it suddenly made me realize how it works, in my brain. Now I understand why I kept jumping through Noah’s hoops. I was constantly telling myself it was my responsibility if they felt bad, or disappointed or what ever. I’m just one big people pleaser.”
Reid wasn’t arguing with that.
“You’re extremely loyal. I know it’s the same thing, but somehow it doesn’t sound so harsh. And there’s nothing wrong with being loyal, but when the loyalty to someone else is bigger than the loyalty to yourself… that’s when it will get to you. You just need to find a balance. That’s all.”
When he felt Luke’s hand on his leg, he quickly smiled.
“What?”
“When did you became so wise when it comes to feelings?”
Reid chuckled.
“I watch Dr. Phil.”
Their laugh filled the air, when they stepped out of the car.
When Luke was hesitant to open the front door, Reid raised his eyebrow.
“What’s wrong? Are you afraid somebody is waiting for us?”
“No…no…it’s just….I don’t have the key.”
What? “Did you lose it?”
“No…no… I lent it out…”
Passing him to open the door, Reid looked at him.
“What did you do?”
“It’s just…”
Reid had a feeling it was something nice and found Luke’s stammering absolutely irresistible.
“You’re stuttering,” he said, closing in on Luke.
The blond smiled, remembering immediately.
“I know, is it freaking you out?”
“Well…yeah…a little bit…”
“I don’t know what else to do.”
They both smiled when they leaned into each other for a very tender kiss.
“And no Noah watching us,” Reid whispered and Luke chuckled.
“As far as we know, that is.”
Reid quickly unlocked the door and almost pushed Luke in.
“Let’s hide, then.”
The door closed, their lips found each other again, their kiss deepened and..
“Ahum…”
Reid looked up to find the kitchen genius in front of him.
“Emma! What are you…”
She held up a key and Reid grinned.
“That’s one mystery solved… please tell me what your grandson put you up to?”
“Ohhhh,” Emma clapped her hands in pure joy, “All will be revealed, my dear.”
She kissed both man on the cheek, gave Luke back his key and put her coat on.
“You enjoy each other, now!”
At the front door Luke and Emma whispered something and after a shared goodbye, she was gone. Leaving Reid standing in the living room, with his nose in the air.
“Something smells very good,” he was actually sniffing, “can I go see what you cooked up for us? Or should I say: what Emma cooked up for us?”
Luke smiled, reached his hand to Reid and brought him into the kitchen, where a small table was set for two.
“Hey… that table is new!”
“It is.”
“Wait a minute…” Reid looked around and needed a few minutes to take it all in.
“Everything is new!” Curtains, pots, pans, plates…their kitchen had come to life.
Luke laughed, happy to see Reid so pleased with the end result.
“How did you manage all this? You joined me at the police station this morning!”
“I ordered it online, yesterday, and was expecting to be home today to handle the delivery. But then you called… and so I asked Emma and she helped me out.”
“It is unbelievable! It looks…homey.”
“And homey is good?”
“Homey is very good,” Reid assured him, then noticed the big pot on the stove. “Especially with a home cooked meal to share.”
“So… let’s eat then.”
“Finally he’s making sense!”
The stylish drapes allowed them to shut out the rest of the world and to create their own little piece of Wonderland. And they did. Unaware of the movement around their house. Not hearing the soft foot steps on their lawn. Completely in the dark about the emotions their newfound privacy stirred up…
