Chapter Ninety Four
"So, you finally asked her out?" Logan lounged on his twin's bed. "It's
about damn time."
"Oh, come on. Besides, it's not really a date, there's going to be a bunch
of people there, including you."
"Yeah, and I bet you ten bucks she thinks it's a date."
"So, let her. I plan to buy her dinner anyway."
"You've just been greasing the wheels all week, haven't you?" Logan asked.
Leif turned to him, shaking his head.
"No. I really like her man. She intrigues me."
"Intrigues? Since when does a girl intrigue you? She either turns
you on or off."
"You just don't listen to Dad, do you? You know the girls at school annoy
me. Sarai has brains. She's into smart stuff like genetics and
physics."
"Those curves don't hurt," Logan snorted. “She’s slammin’, bro.”
"She's not like the other girls," Leif replied, resting his feet on his
desk. "She's got this ... I don't know . . . this look about her. Natala
would probably say fae or something but it's just . . . I don't know. She
walked into class Monday and I just felt weird."
Logan groaned. "Oh god. You end up making googly eyes at her the way Dad
does Mom and I'll vomit up my pizza tomorrow."
***
Leif noticed Sarai was awfully quiet during classes the next day, and her
pretty fingers twirled a pen between them, while the amber eyes stared off
into space.
"You ok?" he asked, as they were throwing away their lunch remains.
"Yeah, can I—can I talk to you a minute?" she asked in a low voice,
"without the others?"
"Sure, I know where we can go." Concerned, he led her off away from the
crowd to the courtyard the building wrapped where it was a bit quieter.
Groups of students clustered, swapping books and catching up on the
morning’s news. Leif was about to tell her she looked pretty in her pale
pink tank top when she spoke first.
"I'm not sure I should go with you tonight," she blurted out.
One blond eyebrow went up.
"Someone giving you more trouble?" he asked.
"No, it's, it's more um, look, I think you're very cute, and sweet, and if
you're just being nice to me so you can ask me out, please don't and I
don't mean to offend you or anything but if you don't want to give me rides
to school and I'll give you your helmet back because I know people are only
nice to me because you and your family are and it's ok, I'll manage," she
stopped for air, wondering why it hurt that he looked stunned. "I—I'll see
you later, and I'm so sorry!"
Before Leif could react, she had bolted, and he was left standing here,
puzzled, as his twin walked up.
"What're you on about?" Logan demanded. “You look like someone just
suckered punched you.”
Leif just shook his head. It took a lot to render a Duke speechless, but
Sarai had done it.
***
Sarai spun the dial on her locker lock, wishing she could avoid her last
class of the day, because she'd see all of the cousins. The shell-shocked
look in Leif’s beautiful blue eyes just hurt, and she couldn’t explain why.
But she couldn’t get close to anyone, it had been made clear to her.
Getting close could be dangerous, and she didn’t want to have to move
again.
"You have a lot to learn about the Duke family," his voice said softly in
her ear. Startled, she turned, heart pounding, a jolt of fear shooting
through her.
"Dear God, Leif, don't sneak up on me!" she leaned against the locker, her
heart racing. She closed her eyes, willing her heart rate to slow down.
When she opened them again, she realized he was glaring.
"And you don't play fair," he continued, his normally bright eyes dark, "by
throwing that kind of cold rejection on a guy and running off."
"I'm sor—"
"Way I figure it," he cut her off, but his gaze met her eyes evenly, "is
you owe me a minute or two to have my say."
Oh God,
she thought in panic, he’s going to tell me off in front of everyone. But no one seemed
to be paying attention as he leaned against the lockers, facing her. Then
she realized the intimacy of his body language, the way he stood, blocking
her partially from view of the others, his body close but not too close,
his voice low.From the other side of the hallway, it would look romantic,
she thought.
Silent, she waited, switching her books out.
"First of all, no Duke does something they don't want to, or feels
obligated do. If we do something, it's because we want to. I want
to give you a ride to school. I like you. Second, yeah, I had
planned to work up to asking you on a real date, but you're skittish and
new and have been harassed already, so I figured I'd ease into it. I don't
have to soften a girl up to ask her out. But it can't hurt," he flashed the
famous Duke smile.
For a split second, she thought he might kiss her. Instead, he took her
hand.
“You are fascinating, Sarai, and I want to get to know you better.”
Stunned, Sarai just stared up at him as she realized other students had
seen the display of affection.
"If you really want me to back off, I will. But I’m hoping the new girl
will give me a shot, and even if you don’t want to go out with me, I hope
we can be friends.”
Speechless from the gentle rebuke and speech, Sarai just stared at him. “I
do like you, Leif,” she finally said softly. “I just, we never stay in one
place very long, and I don’t know how long we’ll be here.”
“Then let’s make the most of it while you’re here,” he smiled at her, his
bright blue eyes twinkling.
Sarai couldn’t help but smile back. “All right,” she laughed. “Friends, at
the very least.”
“Now, c'mon," he shut her locker and set the lock before slinging his arm
around shoulders, "one more class to go."
Sarai would never be able to remember the class. Through it, she had a
vague notion of working on the lesson, but her mind was on how he had taken
her hand, squeezing it gently, but not possessing it. Leif Duke, one of the
most popular boys in school had openly expressed his intent. In the
hallway. After knowing here for only a few days. An open declaration. Sure,
she'd had boyfriends, none very serious, sex with a couple that was never
much joy for her, certainly nothing like TV or romance novels where the
earth shook and there were no orgasms, but none had ever given her this
kind of attention. Or called her fascinating. So much for the low profile
she had wanted to maintain. She had a feeling dating Leif Duke was
tantamount to celebrity gossip in school.
After class, he and Logan waited while she got her books from her locker,
but Leif didn't take her hand. Instead, he kept his arm around her
shoulders as they walked, the twins discussing the play they were in. The
school's first play of the year was Tristan and Isolde, and Leif was
playing Tristan, with Logan as King Mark. Sarai quickly learned the twins
were often cast opposite each other in starring roles. They also liked to
memorize both parts and switch roles for the fun of it. The drama teacher
still couldn’t tell them apart easily.
Knowing nothing about the play or storyline, Sarai kept quiet as they met
with some of the other cast members at a local pizza joint. Her mind had
just started to wander when Leif, who had been leaning forward in an
animated conversation with a pretty blonde, turned to her and squeezed her
knee gently with a smile. Hesitantly, she smiled back, and he reached for
her, bringing her into the conversation and slipping his arm around her
waist.
There were exchanged glances between some of the various play members. Most
had grown up with the twins and had been through many plays with each
other. This was the first time Leif had ever brought along someone that
wasn't related to him, and his intentions were clear, as he kept her close.
More than one girl was disappointed, especially the girls that had
exchanged some groping or kissing with the handsome blond young man at
parties over the last couple of years.
When they finally left the group, Leif didn't want to take her home just
yet. By the time she realized he had paid her check, they were all standing
up to leave.
"Ladies don't pay when I ask them out," he said firmly, in response to her
protest.
Sarai gave up the argument and thanked him.
"You drink coffee?" he asked.
"Not this late at night," she laughed.
"Good thing they serve decaf where I’m thinking of then," he grinned,
"unless you would rather I take you home."
Sarai hesitated just a moment. "Let's go," she smiled.
Leif regretted it almost as soon as they walked into the coffeeshop. In the
corner at a big table, were his sister and cousins, and their boyfriends.
"Oh God," he breathed, turning to her to apologize in advance. "I’m so
sorry!"
"For what?" she asked, perplexed. Seconds later she had her answer as a
tall, gorgeous blonde woman in her early twenties stood up and called out
to Leif. Taking Sarai by the hand, he led her towards the table.
"Sarai, this is my sister Aralyn, her boyfriend Frank, my cousin Tiffany,
her boyfriend Joe, my cousin Natala, and her boyfriend Dean. Everyone, this
is Sarai."
Sarai paled slightly at the large group of twentysomethings, who greeted
her cheerfully. Good God, she thought, is anyone in this family not beautiful? The three girls were as
different as night and day and all lovely, and even their boyfriends were
hot, she thought.
Leif knew why Aralyn was smiling at him that way, with her Cheshire Cat
grin. The first time Aralyn had brought Cam home for dinner, the twins had
been ready to humiliate their sister, but Bo had intervened, and Leif just
knew Aralyn was thinking about revenge on Leif. She hadn’t brought Frank
home yet.
"You two want to join us?" Aralyn asked. Her dark blue eyes sparkled with
mischief, challenging Leif.
Not a chance in Hell, sis
, Leif thought. His sister would take the mickey out of him with ease, and
he didn’t want to be embarrassed in front of Sarai this early in what he
hoped would become a real relationship.
Sarai studied Aralyn Duke. There was something familiar about the woman,
though Sarai knew she had never met her before. And there was little
resemblance to Leif, other than blonde hair and blue eyes. Even those
elements weren't the same shades —Aralyn’s hair was a deep gold where
Leif’s was sandy, her eyes darker blue. Their features were different, and
she recalled Leif saying his sister looked like their dad. This was one
family she did want to meet, just for the genetic research alone. The two
female cousins looked nothing like the blonde Dukes.
"No, we're gonna uh, get a table over there," Leif said quickly. He did not want his sister grilling Sarai or telling her embarrassing
stories, and Leif knew Aralyn would; the mischievous glint in her eyes said
it all. They said their good-eyes and made their way to the line.
"Your family has amazingly different characteristics," she told him. He
smiled.
"We're an interesting bunch. We run the gamut of hair and eye colors,
features. Probably give you a nightmare to study us."
Sarai laughed. "No, actually I'd like to."
Leif smiled at her as they stepped up to place their order. He could make
that happen
*
"I know what you’re thinking," Frank said softly, his fingers playing with
Aralyn’s golden hair.
"Which is?" she asked with a smile.
"Don’t go tormenting the boy.”
“You’ll change your mind after you come over for dinner,” Aralyn said
dryly. “besides, according to the family grapevine, he’s really into her.”
"Do tell,” Dean said, leaning forward. Having been friends with the Dukes
since they were small children, he like to keep up with their shenanigans,
especially the twins. Dean had always found them entertaining and he and
Tim had been instrumental in cultivating that mischievous side of them.
"Mabon told Rayma who told Di who told Daisy who told Honey who told Mom,
but Mom already knew there was girl in the picture because Dad said
something about it after talking to Leif, and Logan was going on about her
as well."
Frank shook his head. "I’m not sure I followed that game of telephone."
"You’ll get used to it," she laughed.
"I suppose," he chuckled, kissing her gently.
"Get a room, you two," Natala laughed.
Frank’s response was cut off by a quick kiss from Aralyn.
“Nat, what’s bothering you?” Tiffany asked gently. The others looked to
raven-haired girl.
“Something about her,” Natala said vaguely. “She’s hiding something.”
“Something bad?” Aralyn asked, her internal alarm instantly awake.
“No. Just . . . she doesn’t want anyone to know the real her. She’s got
layers around her, as she’s blocking who she really is, and she’s being
very cautious about letting herself be seen. It’s very odd.”
“That’s why I love her. She proclaims people odd,” Dean grinned as he
kissed her lovingly. His girlfriend was rarely wrong about people.
The only table left was a small booth in the corner, but Leif didn't mind
being so close to her. Her perfume was so light he could only smell it when
she was close by, and his bike wasn't overly conducive to snuggling, though
she did have to hold onto him. He enjoyed that. He knew he could borrow one
of his parent’s car but Dad would tease him and Mom would be interested. He
wasn’t ready yet to discuss Sarai with anyone in the family, other than his
twin.
In the small booth, her hip rested against his, but he refrained from
putting his arm around her, sensing her mild discomfort. She was an
introvert, he had realized quickly, and he knew from his introverted
cousins that crowds could make them uncomfortable. Leif and Logan, on the
other hand, subscribed to his great-uncle Jesse Duke’s mantra of “Strangers
are just friends we haven’t met.”
As they talked, Sarai encouraged him to tell her more about his family, and
he could practically see her mind cataloging the details as he described
them. She also relaxed, her eyes starting to sparkle as she charted it in
her mind. Leif cold almost see her wheels turning.
"I'd love to see some pictures some time, if you don't mind," she said
hesitantly.
"Sure," he found the whole thing funny. "Miles looks enough like me and
Logan we've always been confused for each other, as you’ve probably
noticed. Yet my brother Sean looks more like Natala over the there--the
black-haired girl. Her dad is Mom's oldest brother. Then there’s Tiffany’s
parents. Even though her dad is my dad’s cousin, they look nothing alike,
either. "
"Your family sounds really interesting," she murmured.
"Want to meet them?" he asked.
"Tonight?" She was stunned.
"Sure. Let me ring the house and make sure they're awake," Leif pulled out
his cell phone before she could protest. The last time he and Logan had
come home early with friends it was obvious they had interrupted a moment
of intimacy between their parents in the living room. Neither twin wanted
to make that mistake again. Bo and Trixie were always happy to
have their children’s friends over, but now they knew to call first.
After getting the ok, the pair left the coffeehouse and walked towards his
bike. Leif hoped the quieter environment would make her more comfortable.
"Someone at school said your dad was a NASCAR driver?" she asked.
"Yep. The guy still loves cars. Spends his free time working on his old
racing car-which oughta make you laugh when you see it—or drooling over car
magazines. If you ever need to buy a car, let me know and he’ll go with
you. He never gets ripped off. He such a smooth talker, he always gets a
good deal."
"And your mom?"
"She used to be a private detective," Leif didn't like to mention the US
Marshal part. His dad still got occasional publicity as it was from his
race car days.
"You sure they don't mind us crashing?" she asked, as they removed the
helmets in the driveway.
"Nah. The benefit of having such a big family, is that they're used to used
to us all running in and out, especially because most of us live in this
neighborhood." Leif paused, as something struck him. “Are you okay with
this? I just realized I didn’t ask, I just kind of assumed. I’m really
sorry. I don’t intend to force you into this. We can leave.”
Sarai chuckled. “It’s fine. Somehow I find meeting your parents less
intimidating than your sister and cousins.”
Taking her by the hand, he unlocked the door with his other. "Dad? Mom?"
"In the living room!" his mother called.
Sarai followed him into the living room where she encountered Trixie, a
petite, pretty blonde woman who looked like an older version of Mabon. Leif
hadn't been joking about resembling her.
"Your father's with Sean, getting him settled. Hi, I'm Trixie Duke," she
shook hands with Sarai. “Welcome to our home.”
“Hello, Mrs. Duke,” Sarai said shyly. The woman radiated warmth and
curiosity, her bright blue eyes, evaluating. Leif definitely resembled her.
She remembered Leif mentioning Trixie and her brother looking so much alike
they could be twins, and that brother was Mabon’s father.
"This is Sarai. She’s new to school this week so I've been showing her
around. She’s really into genetics and I thought she be interested to see
how different we all are. We’ve got all these pictures around, so she'd
realize I'm a pretty normal guy."
"I don't know that any of my offspring are really normal," a familiar voice
to Sarai said and she turned to meet his father. “They’ve all got a crazy
streak that lands them in plenty of trouble.”
Bo Duke stared at the young woman with his son as Sarai’s face went ashen.
Dear God,
she thought. It had only been a couple months but here was the handsome man
again. Clearly as stunned to see her. And now she knew why Aralyn seemed
familiar. Aralyn resembled Bo strongly.
"Dad, this is Sarai," Leif hadn't noticed the girl pale but Trixie had, and
her bright blue eyes narrowed slightly.
"Pleasure to meet you Sarai," Bo snapped back quickly and stepped forward
to shake her hand. "Welcome to the Duke house."
"Also known as Chaos Central," Leif grinned. "She wants to be a geneticist,
so I thought I'd show her some of our pictures. I told her we're the
original variety pack."
"Sure, feel free. We have plenty of pictures," Bo said mildly, aware of his
wife's eyes on him. “Me and my cousins definitely don’t look alike.”
Leif took her back to the hallway, and Bo and Trixie could hear the soft
murmur of voices as they looked at the pictures of the walls.
Trixie motioned Bo into the kitchen. Bo shut the kitchen door behind him
and faced his wife, who stood with her hands on her hips and a familiar,
feisty gleam in her blue eyes.
“You haven’t looked that shell shocked since Natala showed up and you were
all worried who the father was!” she hissed.
Bo shook his blond head. “Sweetheart, I promise you, she’s not mine.”
“Where do you know her from?” Trixie persisted.
Bo stepped to her and drew her close, holding her tightly. “It’s
work-related, and that’s all I can say.”
Now Trixie understood. She had been a Marshal once too.
“Is our boy in danger?” she asked softly.
“I don’t know,” he leaned forward to rest his forehead against the crown of
her head. “I didn’t know she had been relocated so closely; I’m not her
handler.”
In the hallway, Sarai forced herself to stay focused on the project, and
forced herself to take steady breaths. She made mental notes as she studied
the family wide ranging physical characteristics, but the back of her mind
was whirling. She couldn’t focus on what Leif was saying. Of all the men on
earth, why did she have to develop a crush on his son?
“I should probably be getting home,” she said after a while. They were
still in the hallway. Framed photos hung everywhere, taken over the last
twenty-plus years.
“All right,” Leif agreed reluctantly. “I guess it’s getting late.”
With the pleasant early fall weather, they decided to walk, and Leif took
her hand. They reached her driveway and she turned to him.
“You ready to tell me what’s bothering you?” he asked.
“I—Why do you say that?” she asked nervously, facing him.
“You got really jumpy a while ago, after meeting my folks. My family is
good at embarrassing each other, but they actually behaved. I promise my
sister wouldn’t have. So, what’s got you spooked?” he ran his hands up her
arms and she shivered with pleasure.
Leif brushed a stray wild curl back, his fingers tugging it lightly as he
smiled at her.
Sarai gathered her thoughts. Leif was so direct, and honest and she
couldn’t tell him the truth.
“I just—I don’t think I can date you, after all,” she said softly. Leif’s
blue eyes popped open. “Leif, you’re so nice and I really like you but—I
thought I could do this, and I can’t.”
“Am I moving too fast?” he asked quietly. “Because I can slow down, back
off a little bit. I shouldn’t have brought you home after the coffee, I’m
really sorry.”
“I just don’t think we’re compatible,” she said finally, wondering why his
eyes suddenly looked so dangerous, and so compelling at the same time. She
wanted to kiss him. Really kiss him, and she knew she shouldn’t.
This had to end, before they both got their hearts broken.
“We’re just getting started,” he said tensely, “so I don’t see how you can
decide that.”
“It’s just a bad idea for me to get involved with anyone,” she said firmly,
wishing her chest didn’t feel so tight. “You’re a super nice guy Leif, and
I’m really sorry.”
Before he could stop her, she bolted from his hold and dashed to the front
door, letting herself in. Leaning against the door, she cursed her life as
the hot tears came.
Leif stared after her, shaking her head. Kicking the ground as he shoved
his hands in his pockets, he walked back home.
His parents were upstairs, as he suspected, and he wasn’t about to disturb
them. Flopping on his bed, he had drifted off when he heard his twin come
home.
“You score?” Logan asked, breezing into Leif’s room. After sharing
everything their entire lives, they still checked in with each other before
bed every night.
“No. Shot down, cold rejection.”
“Again? You’re losing your touch, bro,” Logan sat on his brother’s bed.
“Something like that. I don’t get her. She’s a total mystery.”
“Oh, God, don’t say the M word in this house,” Logan groaned. “Mom’ll be
poking her head in any second if she hears it.”
“She is. She’s terrified of something,” Leif said thoughtfully.
“That’s just your Belden-Duke pride talking ‘cause it got bruised,” Logan
chuckled.
Leif continued to stare at the ceiling. Things didn’t add up and he wanted
to know why.
Meet the cast in full & see the family tree!
Author’s Notes
- A huge yee-haa to the fabulous and lovely Ronda, for editing!
- Word Count, 4,005
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