Here We Come (Aggie's Inheritance) (70 page)

The
boy
nodded.
“Yeah.
I
get
frustrated
sometimes,
I
guess—but
not
like
Vannie.”

“Right.
This
conversation
fits
her
personality
better,
but
it
is
still
true.
I
think
sometimes
Aggie
doesn’t
know
how
hard
it
is.
We
see
her
struggling,
but
to
her
it’s
just
life
and
that’s
good.”
Luke
reached
over
the
back
of
the
couch
and
stretching,
managed
to
snag
the
paper.
“But
stuff
like
this?
It’ll
break
her.
You
might
enjoy
feeling
powerful
enough
to
bring
her
to
tears
or
knowing
that
you
beat
her
at
a
game
of
wits
she
didn’t
even
try
to
enter,
but
let
me
tell
you
something.”
Again,
Luke’s
eyes
bored
into
Laird’s.
“You’ll
hate
yourself
for
it
someday.
It’s
cruel.
It’s
disrespectful,
and
that
isn’t
the
Laird
Stuart
I
know.”

“I’m
sorry.”

“No,
you
tell
her
that.
You
tell
her
and
you
mean
it.”

“I
will.”

Luke
stood
and
went
to
the
door.
Before
unlocking
it,
he
turned.
“Next
time
you
feel
like
you’re
spinning
out
of
control—
as
if
you
want
to
prove
something
to
someone,
you
come
tell
me.
I’ll
help.
I
know
that
feeling
much
better
than
you
can
imagine.”

“Thanks.”
Laird
stared
at
his
hands,
unwilling
to
meet
Luke’s
eyes.

“Oh,
and
one
more
thing.”

With
evident
difficulty,
the
two
green
eyes
darted
around
the
room
before
resting
on
Luke.
“Yeah?”

“If
you
ever
show
that
kind
of
disrespect
for
my
Aggie
again,
you
will
sorely
wish
you
had
not.
Do
you
understand
me?
This
is
the
woman
who
will
be
my
wife.
No
one,
man,
woman,
or
child
will
get
away
with
that.
Am
I
clear?”

There
it
was—the
penitence
Luke
was
looking
for—in
Laird’s
entire
demeanor.
“Yes.
I
understand.
I
didn’t
mean—”

“Don’t
do
it.
Don’t
try
to
defend
yourself.
Just
don’t
do
it
again.”

Unsure
if
he
made
the
right
decision,
Luke
walked
from
the
room
without
a
second
glance.
Laird’s
eyes
followed.
He
stared
down
at
the
paper
beside
him
and
frowned
at
the
red
A
on
the
top.
With
a
sigh,
he
picked
it
up
and
set
it
on
top
of
the
pile
of
work
to
be
graded
and
left
the
room.
Smiling.

Aggie says:
What’d you say to Laird today? The boy is almost obsequious in his attitude.

Luke says:
He’s probably going a little over-board with showing his remorse, but I think he gets how disrespectful those papers were.

Aggie says:
Something’s not right, Luke.

Luke says:
How so?

Aggie says:
I can’t say. I can just feel it.

Luke says:
I’ll talk to him again if necessary.

Aggie says:
Well, we should probably give him time to process it.

Luke says:
I don’t know.  With kids like Laird, they  seem ok, but  if

the behavior is still off…

Aggie says:
That’s just it. His behavior is too “on” if anything. It feels almost as if he’s mocking me.

Luke says:
I thought he understood. He seemed genuinely sorry for it once he saw it.

Aggie says:
I’m probably just being overly sensitive. I’m tired and frustrated.

Luke says:
Why? What’s wrong?

Aggie says:
I have a stack of presents a mile high for the three littlest kids, Tavish, and Laird. I have nearly nothing for Kenzie, Ellie, or Vannie.

Luke says:
Oh, Mom had an idea for Vannie. Actually, she had a few. She suggested getting some kind of jewelry. She said something about the owl skirt and the chocolate dress if those make any sense to you.