The Home & Family Pt. 03

The first part of their ride back to town was completed in amicable silence. Then Luke took a deep breath and said, "Dakota? What are you going to do when we get back to the Home?"

Dakota looked at him in surprise. "What do you mean? I'm going to get in my car and head home. Is there something else that I need to do? I thought we filled out all the paperwork the other day."

Luke said, "We did. We did. That's not what I meant. I meant . . . well . . . do you have any plans for tonight?"

Dakota looked at Luke blankly. Luke's lips tightened in frustration. Dakota was not making this any easier for him. He tried again, "What I meant was, will you go to dinner with me?"

Dakota looked at him in confusion. "Dinner? Why?"

Luke whipped the truck to the side of the road and turned off the engine. He turned in his seat to face her. "Why?" he said loudly. "Why? Because I want to see you again. Can you understand that? I am having some difficulty getting this out, but I'm trying to ask you out on a date, woman!"

With eyes as wide as dinner plates, Dakota stared at Luke. Finally, she said, "No, thank you, Luke. You've done your duty. The week-end is over as soon as we get to the Home. You don't owe me anything more."

Luke stared at her in confusion. "Owe you? Is that what you think I'm doing this for? Yeah, maybe the bachelor obligation is finished, but I am asking to see you without that hanging over our heads. I want to go out with you and have a real date - with no auction interference."

Shaking her head, Dakota quietly said, "No, Luke."

Anger was beginning to get the upper hand in Luke's emotions. He put his hands on Dakota's shoulders and turned her to face him fully. "Why not Dakota? Tell me what I did wrong that you won't go out with me again. I thought what happened between us this week-end was special - hell, it was damn near magical. Why won't you go out with me again?"

Dakota pursed her lips and shook her head. With a frown furrowing her brow, she said, "Luke, I ca - I just can't and that is final."

Suddenly Luke realized that Dakota wasn't going to change her mind and she also wasn't going to explain. He dropped his hands from her shoulders and turned back to look out the front windshield of his truck. The beauty of the day was lost on Luke as he tried to figure out what to do next. He ran his hand through his hair. When he looked back over at Dakota, she was sitting, staring out the window, with a far away look of sadness on her face. Luke didn't know what had happened, but she wasn't going to put him out of his misery.

Without a word, Luke started the truck and drove toward the Children's Home. When he pulled into the driveway of the Home, he had a feeling of deja vu. Once before he had come down this driveway and been abandoned. Maybe Dakota didn't perceive that she was leaving him there, just as his grandmother had done, but she wasn't planning on taking him with her either. Luke couldn't remember clearly how it had felt that first day, but it couldn't have been much worse than he was feeling now. With all his heart, Luke wished that he knew what to say or do to change the impending separation. But, just as he hadn't known when he was four, he still didn't know, even now that he was 38.

When Luke pulled the truck to a stop beside Dakota's car, she unlocked her door and stepped out before Luke had a chance to help her. She was pulling her bag out of the back of the truck by the time he walked around to her side. As he was struggling for something to say, they heard someone calling out Luke's name.

Turning to look across the yard, Luke was surprised to see his friend James running toward him and Dakota. When he got close enough, Luke said, "What are you doing here?"

James didn't seem to notice the tension between Dakota and Luke. He was simply too excited! "Luke, Dakota, you aren't going to believe this! I really think Sarah is my sister! I was here, getting Ms. Lily to go through my files with me one more time, looking for dates and anything else that might give us a clue. Look at this." James held up a little boy's blue tee-shirt with an emblem of an eagle on it. "This is what I had on when my parents died in the car wreck. And this," he held up a pink tee-shirt that was an exact replica, "This happens to be the last gift that Sarah's parents gave her."

Luke and Dakota both stared in wonder at the two shirts. It didn't take much imagination to see a mama and a daddy buying their twin babies look alike shirts. But even in the excitement of the moment, the realization of the tragedy that had torn James' family apart was present as well. After a few moments silent, respectful consideration, Luke said, "James, I don't even know what to say."

James' smile had faded as he, too, seemed to sense the seriousness of the evidence. "Luke, she's my sister . . . "

Luke clapped James on the shoulder. The three of them stood quietly for a few more somber moments before James shook his head and said, "So, enough serious stuff. How was your week-end?"

The look that passed between Dakota and Luke finally clued James into the friction between them. "What's going on, you two? What happened?" James asked.

Luke clinched his jaw and scowled at Dakota. After a moment, she dropped her eyes and stared at her toe as she kicked the dirt around. Bewildered, James looked back and forth between the two of them. "Is somebody going to tell me?"

When the silence continued, James threw his hands up in the air in frustration. "You two take the cake. Boy, I've never had any trouble getting you to talk to me before. What in the world has happened? Never mind - never mind. I'm going home. You two work it out and come get me when you figure it all out. I'm too excited about my good news to let you two be kill joys."

With that, James walked away. Luke continued to look at the top of Dakota's head and she continued to refuse to meet his eyes. Finally, Dakota took a deep breath and looked up as far as Luke's chest. Closing her eyes tightly, she put her hands on Luke's shoulders and tiptoed up to kiss his cheek. Before he could grab her, Dakota stepped back, out of his reach. She managed to mumble, "Thanks for the week-end. See you around." Then she spun on her heel and jumped into her car.

Luke didn't move until her car disappeared out of view around the curve. Then he slumped against his truck and, for the first time since the last time he had stood in this same driveway watching his future drive away, Luke felt tears running down his cheeks. He had only felt this alone one other time in his life, and he didn't like the comparison.

Chapter Twelve

Dakota made it a few miles down the road before she had to pull over to the side of the road. It was too dangerous to continue driving when she couldn't keep the road in focus due to the sobs racking her body. She had never felt so miserable, not even when Robert had died. She felt so miserable because she knew the truth. She knew why she had told Luke no.

And it was all because of her own damn insecurity. Reality, for Dakota, was that she felt Luke was out of her league. He was the man she had hoped for all of her life - but hadn't believed he really existed. Luke was all of her dreams come true, complete with the perfect combination of sexual energy and sweet stability that Dakota craved. But it was too much to expect Luke to feel the same way. Dakota loved Luke. If she stayed around him and went out on a few 'harmless' dates with him, she knew that Luke would discover her feelings. She was lousy at lying and the truth seemed to shine out of her eyes. Luke would see and then he would know. And it would break her heart to lose him that way. Because there was just no way she could hope to keep him interested in her when he had so many other options available.

No, it was better to quit now and have the memory of the perfect week-end - even if it was killing her to do so.

Chapter Thirteen

Luke spent the evening agonizing over all of the possible reasons for Dakota walking away. It didn't take him too long to realize that she was afraid of having a relationship with him. But afraid of what? With a little effort, Luke pieced together Dakota's feelings about her body and her decision to never date again. Realizing that she was cutting him off because she wasn't confident of his attraction to her gave Luke the insight to make a plan. Before the auction, Luke could never remember having seen Dakota in town. Over the next few days, though, he planned to see her lots of places.

On Monday, it was at the diner over breakfast. Dakota looked like she almost swallowed her teeth when he walked in wearing his three piece suit and cowboy boots. Luke noticed that every woman in the establishment seemed to turn her head to watch him. But Luke only had eyes for Dakota. He thought that she looked adorable with her unruly curls pulled back into a ponytail, wearing her old jogging pants and a stained white tee-shirt. Luke had been told that he looked good in his suit and he hoped the effect wasn't lost on Dakota. But she didn't look very receptive to him, so Luke had nodded his head at Dakota, paid for his 'to go' order and left. There was plenty of time to talk to her soon.

On Tuesday, Luke went to the bank during lunch. Again, he was dressed for work, with his sports coat hanging open over his button down shirt.

Matched with his khaki colored pants, he figured that he looked decent enough. As he walked in the front door, he noticed that several woman in the bank suddenly straightened up and they all seemed to fluff their hair at the exact same moment. Luke smiled to himself at the subtle flirting and looked around. When he spotted Dakota sitting in the waiting area for the bank officers, his heart jumped a beat. But when he looked into her eyes, he again saw that she wasn't welcoming his attention. Yet, when his eyes locked with hers across the room, Dakota's own hand flew to her hair. Luke tried to stifle his smile at her almost thoughtless action. But Dakota caught herself. Luke saw her roll her eyes at herself, and shake her head, ruefully. Luke smiled and nodded his head in recognition. He, himself, wasn't sure if it was in recognition of who Dakota was, or if it was in recognition of how cute she was when she got caught innocently flirting. Dakota's eyes dropped to her lap. Luke finished his transaction and left, without Dakota ever looking back up at him. At least she wasn't indifferent to him.

On Wednesday, Luke didn't see Dakota until that night at church. Ms. Lily, from the Children's Home had called him and asked if he would meet her for supper. When Luke arrived at Ruby's diner, the owner, a buxom lady who was almost as round as she was tall, showed Luke over to Ms. Lily's table. Luke hoped that Dakota would be there, but he scanned the room in vain. Then Ms. Lily handed him a file that she had brought with her. Inside was the life story of one of the boys at the Home. Luke forgot about looking for Dakota as he read the file. The child was five years old and had been abandoned by his family. He had been in the foster system for about two years. He had only come to the Home within the last few months. Ms. Lily asked Luke if he would make time to get to know the boy. Luke felt a strange reaction in his chest as he stared down at the file. He agreed to meet with the boy, then he and Ms. Lily ate supper together. Afterward, he agreed to join her for her evening worship service. Luke was kneeling down at the end of one of the pews, talking quietly to one of his old high school teachers when he saw Dakota enter the sanctuary. He watched as her eyes widened in recognition and then she slid into one of the pews in the back. When he stood up, his eyes zeroed in directly on Dakota, as she sat watching him. He didn't smile, he just nodded his head, as he had done all week, and took a seat near the front. Luke noticed that she chose to slip out the door before the service ended to avoid any possible confrontation. He was getting frustrated, but he could wait till she was ready.

By Thursday, Luke was beginning to enjoy the game of 'Dakota hide-n-seek'. He knew from the look in her eyes when she saw him that she wasn't unattracted to him. Luke reminded himself to take his time.

He would woo her and win her. She was worth it, weather she seemed to know it or not! When Luke came out of the grocery store that evening he saw Dakota pulling into the parking lot. Trying to hide his grin, Luke nodded his head in her direction, to acknowledge seeing her. He almost laughed out loud when Dakota parked her car and didn't get out until he was finished loading his groceries and driving away. Luke sighed. As much fun as this was, it wasn't what he wanted to be doing with Dakota. And she wasn't making it any easier.

Friday's encounter was even better than Luke could have hoped for. He had just started to go into the post office when someone called his name. He turned to find the blond from the auction running toward him.

She introduced herself and asked if he would be interested in getting together for coffee soon. Luke was trying to find a polite way to refuse, but the lady was becoming insistent. Just as she reached out and wrapped her hand around his arm in an intimate gesture, someone ran into her from behind. Luke grasped her other arm to keep her upright and then looked behind the blond to see Dakota staring at them, open mouthed. The mail that she had been carrying was scattered on the ground around her feet. She obviously hadn't been looking where she was going. Luke watched as Dakota's face first turned white, then rapidly changed into a deep red blush. Finally, Dakota mumbled an apology as she picked up her mail and turned to make her get away. Just before their eyes parted, Luke nodded his head at her. Dakota wasn't quick enough to mask the flare that lit her eyes. Luke wasn't sure if it was anger or desire, but at least it wasn't apathy.

It took Luke a few minutes of polite conversation to be able to extract himself from the blond's grip and to waylay her invitation to coffee. When he finally managed, Dakota was long gone. Luke only hoped that a little jealousy might go a long way.