Chapter 14

Dinner went by very quietly. Lucky and Elizabeth weren't speaking to each other, and none of Luke's attempts to start a conversation worked. Throughout the meal, the two of them kept glancing at one another, always when the other wasn't looking.

When they were finished, Liz took her plate to the sink. "Mrs. Spencer...Laura...that was a wonderful meal. Thank you so much for having me."

Laura smiled. "Thank you. It was nice to have some help in the kitchen for once," she says, looking at her husband and son. Lucky got up and quickly excused himself, leaving the room.

Liz sighed. "I guess I should go apologize to him. I shouldn't have yelled like that." She followed him out of the room, leaving Luke and Laura alone.

"Well, what did you think about all of that?" Luke asked, joining his wife at the sink.

"I hate to say it but you were right. Did you notice how they kept looking at each other? There's definitely a spark between them, but they're both so stubborn, it will probably take forever for them to admit it." She looked at him and saw the expression on his face. "Oh, no, you can not interfere in this. They have to find their way on their own. Promise me you'll stay out of it!" she warned.

"I'll try, but if Lucky brings up the subject, then I claim no responsibility for my actions!"

Upstairs, Lucky was on his computer, searching the Internet for hotels. Even though he was still mad at Elizabeth, he figured he might as well get it out of the way. It was the last thing they had to do, aside from her decorations, and he wanted to get it over with. There was a soft knock on the door.

"Yeah?" he said angrily.

"Lucky?" Liz asked softly, opening the door. "Look, I'm sorry for yelling at you like that before. You see, I don't like to be ordered around, and when you started going off on me about how I wasn't here to help you mom make dinner, I guess I just lost it."

He sighed and turned to face her. "I know. I'm sorry I did that. I just wanted to get this assignment over with, and when you chose to stay with my mom I guess I just got mad. I had no right to order you to do anything. I swear, I'm not usually like that. I don't know what came over me. Tell you what, if you forgive me, I'll forgive you."

She smiled and nodded. "Sounds fair to me. So what are you doing now?" She walked over to the computer and looked over his shoulder.

"Just looking at hotels."

She sat down on the bed and took a pad of paper out of her bag. "Do you mind if I work on the decorations while you do that? I don't really feel like going back to that empty house yet."

"Sure, go ahead. I'll let you know if I find anything."

For the next hour, Lucky searched for a suitable hotel, printing out pages every once and a while, while Liz laid on his bed and sketched. She was lying on her stomach with all of her Polaroids strewn all over the bed for reference. Lucky watched her out of the corner of his eye, wondering what she was drawing. Finally, his curiosity got the best of him and he got up and walked over to her.

"Wow," he said, sitting down on the edge of the bed to get a better look. She had sketched an exact representation of the interior of the church, complete with flowers and streamers. There was a big arch of roses over the altar, and bouquets tied to the end of each pew. "You never said you could draw!"

She shrugged. "It's just a hobby. Anyway, this is just a rough sketch. I still have to add the color and stuff."

He shook his head. "That's what you call a rough sketch? Elizabeth, this is amazing. You should really be an artist."

Surprised by his comment, she looked up and smiled at him. "Thanks. I never really considered doing this professionally, though. It's just something I do when I'm bored. You really think it's that good?"

He leaned over her for one of the photographs, reaching across her back and bracing his arm on the bed beside her. He held the photo up to her sketch. "Look at this, it's like looking at the picture. You even got the detailing on the pews. And the flowers are so realistic!"

She turned her head to look at him, amazed that he was complimenting her like that. "Thanks. You know, you're the first person that's seen any of my sketches. I never really thought of my stuff as being good. It was just something I did for fun."

He put down the picture and absentmindedly brushed a strand of hair out of her face. "Well, now you have a second opinion, and they're very good. You have a talent that many people don't have."

She stared at him, stunned at his gesture. Hadn't he hated her an hour ago? How could he dislike her so much one minute and then be so gentle and kind the next?

~*~

(a little earlier)

Laura had finished the dishes and was relaxing on the couch with Luke. They had been discussing their son's project, wondering how long it would take him to realize that there was something between him and Elizabeth.

"You know how stubborn he is, and she's obviously just as bad. When you have two people that obstinate who don't want to admit that they have feelings for each other, it could take a while before they finally give in." Laura pointed out.

"Sure, under normal circumstances, but this is different. They're being forced into a marriage of sorts, and that's going to make them deal with a lot of things they normally wouldn't have to think about. Plus, they are going to have to spend a lot of time together working on the project, so that always helps. I have a feeling this may happen faster than you think. I could already see the beginnings of it at dinner. He may not know it yet, but our boy is very taken with that young lady."

Laura smiled. "I got the feeling that she feels the same way. She kept watching him eat, although I don't think she realized that she was doing it."

Luke sat up and looked toward the stairs. "You know, it's been awfully quiet up there. You don't think they killed each other, do you?"

"Maybe we should go check on them." Laura suggested. They got up and crept up the stairs. They arrived at Lucky's room to find his door open, so they carefully peeked in, not prepared for what they were about to see.

Liz was laying on her stomach in the middle of her bed and Lucky was sitting on the edge, leaning over her, his hand resting on the bed on the opposite side of her, looking down at a sketch pad. He was gushing over the drawing she had done, and slowly brushed a strand of hair out of her face, causing her to turn and look up at him. They were totally oblivious to the fact that his parents were watching.

Luke looked at Laura and raised an eyebrow as if to say "I told you so." She pulled him away from the door, not wanting to get caught spying on their son. When they got back downstairs, he chuckled. "And you thought it was going to take them a long time."

Laura shook her head. "Somehow I don't think that was the end of it. It's just a momentary lapse, but I'm sure they'll be fighting again in no time."

He smirked. "Care to place a small wager on that?"

She grinned and put out her hand. "Okay, you're on." They shook on it and laughed at themselves for betting on their son's love life.

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