My Stardust Melody, Chapter 14, Part 2
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What the hell was I thinking? Luke chastised himself. How hard of a fall had he taken? He couldn't possibly have wanted Reid Oliver, the destroyer of family fortunes, to kiss him. He hated Reid, so where had that impulse come from?
Not only did he hate Reid, but Reid seemed to hate him for some unknown reason. And Reid thinks my "boyfriend" dumped slime on him! So why was Reid touching his hair? Was this some sort of new game? Or was Reid actually attracted to him?
Before he could examine his feelings or Reid's too much, a nurse came in to take Luke to X-Ray for his scan. Twenty minutes later, Luke was being wheeled back into his exam room to wait for Reid. He felt nervous and just wanted to get through the next encounter, preferably with his clothes on and his lips sealed shut.
He could just imagine the look on Maddie's face, or worse, Faith's, if she ever found out that he'd contemplated kissing Reid.
Reid came back in with a stony look on his face. "Good news, Mr. Snyder. You're head is very hard and quite sound."
"So I can go?" Luke asked.
"Yes, just take it easy for the day. Take some ibuprofen for your head and come back if that headache isn't gone in 24-hours."
"Wow, I can't believe that's it." It had crossed his mind that he'd be having unnecessary tests run or be put in quarantine as retribution for Henry's antics.
"Yep, you'll be good as new and back on your back in no time. Or maybe Henry is on bottom? He seems like the type, and I guess he gets whatever he pays for."
So much for Reid being nice, Luke thought. "You just can't resist being an asshole. Seriously, Reid, I don't get you or why you seem to hate me so much." How could one person run so hot and cold?
Crossing his arms, Reid said, "I guess it wouldn't be obvious to someone like you, especially when your father generally is left to clean up."
Luke rubbed his eyes and pushed his hair back off his forehead. "I had to go after Julian. Surely, you know that."
"All too well, Mr. Snyder," Reid replied coldly.
"Then what's your problem? What did I really do that was so heinous?" What could have warranted all the attacks and barbs of the past week?
"They were your lies that started this."
Luke supposed Reid was referring to him not mentioning that he was a Grimaldi who didn't have any money. "I suppose you would see it that way," Luke replied with bitterness. He couldn't believe someone could be as coldhearted as Reid not to see that Luke had been in a difficult position two years ago. He didn't understand how a few omissions justified Reid's behavior. Could Reid still be so angry that Luke didn't have money? How messed up was that?
"What the hell else is there to see?" Reid demanded then shook his head. "You know what? I don't care. You are a waste of my time."
Luke was speechless as Reid hurried out the door. "That's what you said two years ago," Luke said quietly at the door. Luke knew he shouldn't care--Reid was awful--but Reid's words brought him back to those moments after Reid walked out of the solarium in New York.
He remembered Reid's arms around him, kissing, and then Julian and Damian walking into the room. He had left to try to reason with Julian, but Julian had made it clear that he wanted nothing to do with Luke. The blond was "another man's used goods," as far as the billionaire was concerned, and he wouldn't sink another dime into Grimaldi. Then Luke came back to the solarium to explain everything to Reid…
Two years earlier:
Luke tried to shrug Damian's hand away as Reid stormed out the door. "Let go, I need to talk to him! Reid!" he called out. He had no idea why Reid seemed even angrier than just a few moments ago, but it scared the hell out of him.
Damian refused to let go of his arm. "Son, you need to stay and listen. That man isn't what he seems to you."
"Reid!" Luke yelled again to no avail. Turning to Damian, he demanded, "What the hell do you mean?" Luke hadn't forgotten for a second that Damian had taken money from Julian without telling him and was still angry with him.
Damian spoke gently and with caution. Luke recognized his father's expression; it was the one he wore whenever he was about to deliver bad news. Dread filled him as Damian began. "Luke, you must understand that something about Dr. Oliver didn't seem right to me when I started talking to him. I followed my instincts and told him you had a trust fund that you couldn't touch."
"More lies? Damian, that's not going to help. Why would you even do that?" Seriously, what was Damian hoping to accomplish? No wonder Reid was so damned angry when he left. He'd probably gotten sick of more lies and gone, Luke thought. The blond wondered anxiously if he could still salvage the situation.
Damian put his hand up to stop Luke from saying anymore. "Just wait, Luciano. I wanted to see if he was interested in your money, and unfortunately, my concern was justified. From that moment, he became a lot more open about his real feelings. It seems he was hoping for more money for that hospital unit he's going to run. He couldn't believe he'd spent all that time on you when there were so many other wealthy men around."
Luke immediately shook his head. "You're lying. Reid's not like that."
"I wish I were," Damian said with regret. "Did he ever say anything about you being wealthy?"
Reluctantly, Luke admitted, "He made assumptions, and I didn't correct them. What else was he going to think when he saw my room?" I did let him think I had money, but what else could I do when we'd known each other for so little time?, Luke thought with self-recrimination.
"Your room?" Damian shook his head sadly and cupped Luke's cheek. "I am so sorry he used you that way. I had hoped…"
Luke swallowed and pulled back from the touch. "You'd hoped?"
Damian finished his though. "I'd hoped things had gone no further than what I saw tonight."
Luke was becoming increasingly confused. Damian seemed so earnest that it was difficult to believe he was lying. Maybe there was a misunderstanding? "Damian, this just doesn't make sense."
"Luke, think back. Did he ever say anything to you to assure you of his feelings?"
Luke thought of the one moment he had said anything to Reid about what he was feeling. He replayed the conversation in his head:
--"You feel it, too. Don't you?" Luke asked.
--"You'll have to be more specific. I've felt a lot of things," Reid responded.
--"I don't know how to describe it. The 'we've known each other forever' feeling."
--"Ah, that," Reid replied.
--"Well?" Luke paused. "Reid! Do you feel like that, too?"
-- "What do you think?"
Looking back, he realized what Reid said wasn't much of an answer. He'd taken it as affirmation, but maybe Reid was still dodging the question. The doctor hadn't even wanted to discuss it afterwards. Maybe it wasn't because of the late hour, but because of something else. Panic started to edge out his faith in Reid.
"Damian this is hard to believe," Luke said. He knew he sounded rattled.
"Luke, why do you think the doctor took off so quickly when you left? I tried to explain to him as much as I could without harming Grimaldi, but all he could do was talk about 'spoiled trust fund kids with bankrupt companies.' That man has quite a temper."
"I--" But he didn't have a good answer. Why would Reid run off so quickly when he had seemed to be waiting for him after Julian left?
His father wouldn't stop, and Luke desperately wished he could hide from the questions. "Luke, how long have you known him? It can't be more than half a day."
"But I felt like I knew him." It sounded pathetic to his own ears. Is that what Reid had thought? Was Luke such an easy mark? It had only been a night. And I was almost throwing myself at the guy, Luke thought derisively. He rubbed his eyes with the heels of his palms. How could he be such a fool?
"That's how he wanted you to feel. You're in the news a great deal; he probably knew who you were before he even met you. It wouldn't take much to do some research." Damian draped his arm around Luke's shoulders in commiseration.
"I just have such a hard time believing he'd do this." But the jagged pieces of Reid's deception were starting to fit together in Luke's mind. They cut right to his heart.
"You're too trusting, my son. I've seen men do terrible things for money," Damian said.
All Luke could do was nod. He didn't think he could speak at the moment.
Nailing his point home, Damian asked, "What was it that he said to you as he left?"
Luke flinched as he remembered. "He called me a colossal waste of time." His voice broke midway through as tears started to slide down his cheeks.
Damian shook his head sadly and pulled Luke into his comforting embrace. "Luciano, I think there's your answer. What else could he mean by that?"