I brace myself for more questions, but they don’t come. Instead, he pops open his trunk and pulls out a box of tools, then follows me to the front door. When I open the door and Luke steps onto the threshold, he lets out a low whistle.
“Wow,” he comments.
“I know.”
“This place is huge.”
“Yes, I know.”
Luke flashes me a sheepish grin. “Sorry, I’ve just never known anyone who lived in a castle before.”
I ignore his comment comparing my home to a castle. “So I’ve got the kit I bought to set up the security system over there.” I nod at the cardboard box pushed against the wall. It arrived yesterday, and I spent twenty minutes looking through the instructions and verifying that there was no way on earth that I could set it up on my own.
He chews at the corner of his lip. “You sure you want me doing this? A professional would—”
“Luke.”
He lets out a long sigh. “Okay. I’ll do it.”
He crouches down to rummage through the cardboard box. I shuffle between my feet, concerned that this job could be too big for him. From my perspective, he’s a genius with electronics. But my standards aren’t exactly high. The vast majority of employees at the Apple store fall into that category. Still, I’m heartened that he carries around a toolbox in his trunk.
“Do you think you’ll be able to do it?” I ask.
“I can’t see why not.”
My shoulders relax slightly. “And can you install the camera to overlook the front door? So I could see who’s there from my phone?”
“Sure.”
“Great. Perfect.”
He pulls out a small plastic bag of screws and squints at them through his glasses. “Do you have any objections to me putting a couple of tiny holes in your wall?”
“Do what you need to do.”
He glances up at me. “Don’t feel like you have to stand there watching me. This won’t be quick. Why don’t you do some work or something and I’ll let you know when I’m done?”
Truthfully, I would not have minded watching him. I find this sort of thing fascinating. And while I hate to admit it, I’m finding Luke more attractive as I watch him rummaging through his toolkit. As a rule, I don’t date. I rarely find a man who seems worth the effort. I always felt like I was immune to the urges most women have.
But as I watch Luke, I wonder if that’s true.
I cough, pushing away unwelcome thoughts. “I’ll be working over there, in the room where I see patients. Let me know if you need anything.”
“Will do.”
I spend the next ninety minutes answering emails in my office. I’m dying to go out there and check up on how Luke is faring with the setup, but I don’t want to hover over him. So I wait patiently for him to come to me. With every minute, my guilt escalates at how long he’s spending helping me.
Finally, when I’m contemplating getting up to check on him, a fist raps on the door to my office. “Adrienne?”
“Just a moment!”
I quickly finish up the email I’m working on, then get back on my feet. When I come out of my office, Luke is near the door, standing by my bookcase. He’s holding one of my books, and it takes a second to realize it’s my newest one—soon to hit bookstores all over the nation. The Anatomy of Fear.
“Oh, hey.” His cheeks color. “Sorry, didn’t mean to snoop. I saw the book with your name on it and I got curious.”
“It’s just a proof copy.”
“It looks really interesting.” Again, that sheepish smile. “I read your other one. It was great. Intelligent, but down to earth. The sort of thing that would appeal to anyone.”
“Thank you.”
“You probably hear that all the time though.”
“Not that much.” I look down at the copy in his hands. “This one is coming out in a few months. I’m really proud of it.”
“It’s about… fear?”
I nod, eager to talk about it. When the book releases, there will be book tours and interviews and perhaps television appearances. But as of now, there’s been nothing. And I’m dying to talk about my book. “Basically, it’s about people who have survived terrifying situations and how they have coped in the aftermath.”
“Heavy stuff.”
“The most striking case study is a patient PL I’ve been seeing for a few years now,” I say. “She was staying at a cabin for the weekend with her fiancé and two of her best friends. Out in the wilderness, no cell phone service, yada yada yada.”