Skin Deep by J.M. Stone Page A

I told you that we were
through!” I shouted at him.
    He just smiled at me and calmly said, “That’s
just it. You think too much, sugar. We’re not done, not by a long
shot.” He looked over at Leah, who had taken my keys back from
Allie, and asked her, “You good to take her car back?”
    Leah nodded, her and Allie both grinning
widely.
    Luke grabbed my hand and pulled, tucking me
into his side, his arm wrapping around my shoulders as he started
walking me toward his car parked in front of Allie’s house.
    “Luke, wait!” I yelled, frantically trying to
think of a way to stall him. “My purse! I need it!”
    “No you don’t,” he stated.
    “My cell phone!”
    “Don’t need it either, sugar.”
    He stopped us by the passenger door of his
car, opening it and lightly pushing me in, one hand on the top of
my head and one on my hip. He closed the door as soon as I was
completely inside and walked around to get in.
    I turned to him. “Resorting to kidnapping
now, are we? Where do you get off?” I huffed.
    “In your tight little body,” he responded,
deliberately twisting my words.
    I gasped as butterflies started dancing in my
belly at his words, while other parts of me became damp. No! Not
going there, not giving in! I sat quietly for a minute, twisting my
hands in my lap.
    “Where are you taking me, then? Will you
please just take me home?” I asked the last question quietly,
pleading with him and hoping that he would fall for it.
    “No, and you’ll see. We’re almost there,” he
replied.
    I didn’t say anything else, just stared out
the window as he drove. After about fifteen minutes, we turned onto
a narrow lane, winding back through the trees. We pulled up in
front of a two story log cabin style house with large windows
framed by red shutters, a red tin roof, and a wraparound porch. It
was beautiful, set back in a clearing in the woods, and it looked
so homey and inviting. I wondered who lived there and asked Luke
the same.
    “I’ll show you,” he said.
    We got out of the car and walked up on the
porch. Luke slid a key into the lock and opened the door, stepping
back to let me pass.
    I stared at him, not moving into the house
like he intended. “You live here?” I asked.
    He nodded. “Well, me and Brandon and
Doug.”
    “Doug?” I asked. I got my answer when a large
yellow lab came bounding out the door at me, tail wagging, tongue
lolling out the side of his wide open, full of large, sharp, pointy
teeth mouth…yikes! I took a step back as he gathered himself to
leap at me, terrified that I was about to be eaten. I looked at
Luke, waiting for him to do something, say something, anything to
save me, but he just grinned at me.
    I felt two saucer sized paws come up on my
shoulders, surprisingly gentle, and a big, wet tongue licked up the
side of my face. My eyes flew open (I didn’t even realize that I
had closed them) and I stared into deep brown doggie eyes. My heart
melted and I brought my hands up to rub his soft, floppy ears.
After a second, he dropped to the ground and ambled away.
    Luke smiled. “Emma, meet Doug. He likes
you.”
    I smiled back. “I think I like him, too. He
just caught me off guard and he’s so big!”
    We both turned to watch Doug as he marked
about a dozen trees before ambling back towards the porch. He
walked up the steps and stopped by my side, where he reached his
nose up and nipped the sleeve of my hoodie in his teeth, tugging me
towards the door. I walked inside, not given much choice.
    I heard Luke laughing behind me as he
followed, closing the door behind him. Doug let me go once I
cleared the door, walked to a large overstuffed tan couch, climbed
up on it and laid down with a sigh.
    I looked around the living room, surprised by
the openness and warmth. It was definitely lived in, but not
cluttered or dirty. To the left, a wide staircase led upstairs, and
the kitchen was on the other side of the living room, separated by
a long breakfast bar, complete with