He was pulling up the skirt of my dress at the same time, stepping all over my plan.

“Luke! You’re going to mess up my makeup.”

My skirt was bunched around my h*ps and Luke’s hands were at my ass.

“I don’t care.” His mouth glided up my neck to my jaw.

“Someone can walk in,” I kept at it.

His fingers were moving across lace and satin, his head came up, he leaned back, looked at my h*ps and his body went still.

“Jesus,” he muttered as he slid the skirt up higher so he could get a better look. Then his eyes lifted to mine and they were ink. “Those for Dexter too?”

“No!” I snapped, slapping at his hands. “You’re ruining my surprise, for you, which was supposed to be for later on tonight.”

At that he grinned, not a sexy half-grin, an even sexier, full-on, white smile.

“Stop smiling at me,” I bit out, shoving my skirt back down. “I’m losing my revenge mojo here. I was all psyched up and you got all testosterone on me. Or more testosterone than normal”.

“Ava.”

I got my skirt in place and raised my eyes to his. His were still ink but they were amused ink and I knew his intent.

“Don’t you kiss me, you’ll mess up my lip gloss,” I ordered. “Jet spent ten whole minutes on my lips and I don’t want her time wasted.”

His arms came around me and his face got close. “You’re cute when you’re bossy.”

I rolled my eyes to the ceiling.

“Look at me, babe.”

I looked at him.

“The eighth part of your revenge can be him rottin’ in prison for the next decade.”

I sucked in breath and stared at him.

After a few beats I whispered, “You’re not going to kill him?”

He shook his head.

I kept staring at him then something hit me. “Were you ever going to kill him?”

His arms got tighter. “If I’d have seen him after I found out he touched you or when I found out he did it while I was in your house, maybe. Since then, no.”

Oh… my… God.

“Why on earth didn’t you tell me?”

“Because you were in less danger traipsin’ around with the Rock Chicks. Didn’t hurt that it served the added purpose of keepin’ your mind off inventing ways to push me away.”

I should have known Luke wasn’t going to kill Noah. He was a good guy, hell, he was The Best Guy Ever.

Still, I was annoyed.

“I was worried to death you’d do something gonzo.”

His forehead came to mine. “Yeah, that’s what kept your mind off inventing ways to push me away.”

I could just not believe him. “You’re incredibly annoying,” I snapped, pulling my forehead away and putting my hands on his chest and pushing (which didn’t work, per usual).

He ignored my comment and started his own topic. “I’m gonna kiss you now.”

“You are not,” I said but his lips were coming toward mine and I couldn’t tear my eyes from them. “Luke, my lip gloss!” I protested right before his mouth hit mine.

In the end I had to repair my lip gloss and Luke had to wipe Jet’s application off his mouth with the back of his wrist.

Not to mention his kiss was so thorough, Luke was going to get part of his revenge because, even after shaky-handed lip gloss application, I was going to walk in to see Noah in the waning throes of a serious Luke Lip Fog.

* * * * *

“Who’s that?” I asked, staring at a guy I’d never seen in my life. He was sitting on the side of the bed in the small, sparsely furnished (read: bed only), secure room at the back of the offices, a room they called the Holding Room.

Hector and Vance were in with him. He had a fat lip, a swollen nose and was holding his torso straight like bending would cause pain but otherwise he looked healthy as an ox.

And he was not Noah.

Luke had walked in the room in front of me. Tex wheeled Winnie in the room behind me. Monty was standing outside.

I stopped at Luke’s side, Tex and Winnie stopped at mine.

“Fuck,” the man said, his eyes on Winnie.

“What do you mean, who’s that?” Hector asked me.

“I mean, who’s this guy?” I turned to Luke. “I’ve never seen this guy in my life.”

“But, that’s Jeremiah,” Winnie told me.

I turned to stare at her, thinking she might be confused but you could tell by the blistering look she was aiming at the guy she was far from confused.

Wow.

“Okay,” I said to Winnie. “But it isn’t Noah.”

“You’re shittin’ me,” Luke said from beside me and I turned back to him.

“No,” I replied and I watched his mouth get tight. I looked back at the guy.

He had Noah’s loose description. He was stocky, his hair color was not quite brown, not quite blond and he had blue eyes. But Noah was slightly slimmer and definitely cuter.

“I can’t believe this, I got all psyched up to confront Noah and I get this guy?” I cried in exasperation.

I mean, really, what the hell?

Luke turned to Tex. “Get me Brody.”

“I don’t know where he –” Tex started.

Luke moved, it was a barely there movement but it made a chilly statement.

“Calm down, badass. I’ll find Brody,” Tex muttered and took off.

“Been waitin’ all day for this to come out,” Jeremiah said, grinning through his fat lip. “The Nightingale Boys f**k up. It’s beautiful. Walt’s gonna piss his pants laughing.”

Uh-oh.

All of a sudden I realized the seriousness of the matter. I felt the danger in the air and I felt a freak out start to happen.

“Maybe you shouldn’t talk,” I advised him and I thought I was being nice. A lot nicer than he deserved considering he was Jeremiah.

Jeremiah’s eyes slid to me and they were so cold, my freak out magnified to creepy proportions.

“Walt and I drew straws for you,” he told me, voice and smile oily slick. “Once we got a look at you, we both wanted a shot. I got the short straw which meant I got Aunt Jemima here and Walt got a good taste of you. He said you tasted sweet as cherry pie.”

Mrs. Conrad had gasped at the Aunt Jemima comment. I felt, rather than saw, Luke go still. I was frozen to the spot from the minute he began talking.

“Ava, get Mrs. Conrad out of here,” Luke ordered, voice controlled but it held an angry edge.