Figure It Out by J.V. Speyer

Author:J.V. Speyer [Speyer, J.V.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-04-28T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 10

Luke stayed at the loft with Evan and Nick until Sunday, returning once to the apartment he shared with Chris to grab clothes and his laptop. He found Chris and his girlfriend having sex on the kitchen counter. Neither of them seemed particularly disturbed at having been found there. Luke just shook his head as he ran out the door and vowed not to use the kitchen for the remainder of the lease.

His uncle called on Monday, while Luke was at lunch. “Hey, buddy. How’s it going?” Bruce’s voice had an underlying tension to it, one Luke couldn’t quite understand, but his words were affable enough.

“Not too bad.” Maybe Bruce had something ugly going on at work. After all, he was a week later than he said he’d be. Work had a way of creeping up on people like that. “The kitchen in my apartment is officially no longer fit for human use, but that’s okay. The school has cafeterias and stuff.”

“Good. That’s good. Listen, You and I have some things we need to talk about. Why don’t we get together for dinner tonight? It’ll be better than institutional dining, at any rate.”

Luke relaxed. If Bruce was inviting him out, it couldn’t be all that bad. “Yeah, sounds great. Where and when?”

“Let’s say six o’clock. And meet me at…oh, let’s say Stella’s. I know you know where that is.”

Luke froze. Had the older man in the booth near him and the guys actually been Bruce? No, that was impossible. “Sounds good. I’ll see you then, Uncle Bruce.”

“Don’t be late.” Bruce hung up.

Something definitely had Bruce wound up, but Luke didn’t put too much energy into unraveling what it might be. He’d find out tonight at dinner, for better or worse, and he had work to do. He would be better served focusing on his classwork and his projects than on puzzling out what might be going on in Bruce’s brain. It might have nothing at all to do with him.

He went home to change before heading out to meet with his uncle. A brief encounter with Chris proved he had no intention of cleaning the kitchen, but Luke hadn’t expected him to.

Luke walked over to Stella’s, arriving a little ahead of time. Bruce was already there, because it was Bruce. He’d already ordered appetizers and wine for both of them. His bushy white beard couldn’t hide the grim set of his jaw, or the hunched set of his shoulders.

He gestured to the seat across from himself. “Have a seat, Luke.”

Luke slid into the booth. His stomach twisted, but he stayed silent. Bruce hadn’t ever been the kind of guy to speak up before he was ready. Pushing him to speak would make things worse.

“How’s school going?” Bruce spoke after a few moments of silence.

“It’s going okay. My GPA is still near the top of the class, at least within the department. I’ve gotten great feedback on my honors project. Actually, I’m licensing the results to a couple of consultancies and think tanks.

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