Aussie: A Bad Boy Second Chance Romance Read Online Free PDF

lecture about how Luke had brought drugs into his house, and how I could have gotten involved, and the trouble it caused. I got it. I did. But, I missed the hell out of Luke, and seeing him today brought back so many memories.
    After coming back from college, I moved back in with my parents. It’s not like they didn’t have tons of space, and my mom begged me to stay there for a while. Money wise, it worked out. Not like I’d landed my dream job, and it afforded me the ability to take my time.
    When I got home after work, I wanted to blurt out that I’d seen him. That Luke was back in town. I knew better, and held my tongue. He looked so good, his eyes were clear, that had to mean something. He was taking care of himself. It didn’t matter. I knew my father had cut him out of his life, and me bringing him up would only open an old wound.
    A week passed and I still hadn’t heard from Luke. I ached to get a message, a text, a call…anything. Two weeks passed, then three. Honestly, it pissed me off. Why was he cutting me off? What had I done? Was I being punished for a crime I didn’t commit?
    Life went on. I gave up hoping he’d call. He’d obviously made his choice.
    ***
    I went out with Scott one night, we were going to catch a movie and grab a bite to eat. I didn’t mean to be quieter than usual, but he picked up on it.
    “What’s going on? You seem off. Is something the matter?” he asked.
    I shrugged, then brushed it off. “Long day at work, I guess.”
    He dropped it for the time being, but seemed annoyed that I didn’t go into detail. The rest of the night was…fine. That’s the thing, it was always fine. Just fine. Nothing more, nothing less.
    Scott was a good guy. There was nothing wrong with him. Hell, he was smart, driven, focused on getting ahead and treated me well. I just didn’t have the connection with him that I needed. Our chemistry fizzled years ago. Something was missing. Great boyfriend material, and yet not a boyfriend that filled me with passion. At times, he felt more like a brother than a potential mate. I think he knew. The worst part was my parents wanted us to end up together more than either of us did. Breaking the news to them that I was done trying was going to be rougher on them, than on Scott.
    Being with Scott was easy. Too easy. There were times when I wanted to grab him by his shirt, shake him, and say, “Challenge me! Convince me to try something I’ve never tried before! Tell me I’m wrong about something!”
    You know: passion, intensity. We lacked any kind of fire between us, including in bed. There wasn’t even a spark, never mind a fire.
    I felt stuck, caged, confined.
    And now Luke appeared in my life again, breathing new excitement into my existence. It had now been a couple of weeks, and I still couldn’t stop thinking about it. And yet, there was still no word from him.
    All I had left were memories…
    Looking back, I remembered one specific incident. I was probably around twelve, something like seventh grade, and I was being picked on. Some bully was making fun of my glasses and teasing me. Luke would have none of it. He moved up to my seat from the back of the bus and sat beside me. The guy saw him there and never bothered me again. Luke made it clear he’d make things a problem if the kid messed with me anymore.
    Oh yeah, and then there was the time we were goofing off at home. We started playing volleyball over the sofa, and I got a little over enthusiastic. Next thing you know, the ball smashed into one of my mom’s antique mirrors. When it shattered all over, Luke refused to let me take the blame. He said it was his fault. When I tried to thank him for covering for me, he wouldn’t hear of it.
    And that other time when he insisted I watch this movie he really liked. I kept putting him off, telling him I had too much homework. I smiled thinking back. He convinced me that he’d do my homework while I watched the movie. He was always so sweet to