Luke and Laura had become closer friends too, and he’d been talking over email with that professor she introduced him to. I guess the professor was giving him advice on how to break into the fashion industry or go to Parson’s if he wanted to.
I loved watching him come to life as he spent time in the studio I’d outfitted for him — he’d come up with these brilliant ideas for outfits, then pin fabric to the mannequin in a way that didn’t make that much sense to me. I’d go in there a few minutes after he’d started and watch as his idea magically came to life.
“You are truly gifted,” I said in awe. “I’m so glad this is something you’re going to go after once you finish up your English degree. If you didn’t, it’d be a waste of talent.”
Luke squinted as he placed one last pin on the mannequin, bunching up the fabric in just the right way. “There!” he said, stepping back and admiring his work.
A very over-the-top tuxedo with a strange print hung before us on the mannequin. When I first examined it, I cocked my head. It was odd to see that type of print in a tuxedo form. But the more I looked at it, the more I liked it. After a few seconds, I was asking myself why I didn’t see tuxedo jackets with this type of print all the time.
“You’re a genius,” I whispered, grabbing his hand.
“Aw, you really think so?” Luke said, weaving his fingers together and bringing them to his chin.
“I know so,” I said with a fierce determination in my voice.
Then I pulled him into a sensual kiss.
“You’re too good to be real,” he whispered, his blue eyes flickering up to meet mine.
“No, I’m the lucky one,” I said.
We lingered like that for a moment, enjoying each other’s presence. It was like being enveloped and folded into pure happiness when I hugged him.
“I’ll love you forever,” I said, closing my eyes as I held him close.
“Same,” Luke said, wrapping his arms around my waist tighter.
He pulled away and looked up at me, his face glowing in the afternoon sunlight that poured into the study. “How are you feeling? As in, with your cop stuff.”
I knew he was asking about the case I was working on; It was causing me considerable stress. “It’s okay, just a lot of paperwork. This precinct is getting more and more bureaucratic oversight by the day. It’s taking the fun out of my job…” I complained.
Luke frowned, then smiled as if he had a secret.
“Would you be open to… to move to a different precinct?” he asked slyly.
I regarded him suspiciously. “What trick do you have up your sleeve?”
“Oh, nothing, just something I was going to show you at dinner…” he said mysteriously.
I also had something I was going to show him at dinner. It was in a tiny square box hidden in the pocket of my uniform.
“Tell me now,” I commanded.
“Yes, sir,” he teased averting his eyes.
I bit my lip and felt my cock spring to life in my pants, watching him carefully.
When he looked back up at me, I knew that this news was big. Then it all tumbled out of his mouth at once: “I got into Parson’s!”
“What!?” I exclaimed, “Wait, how? I didn’t even know you’d applied!”
He was jumping up and down, then twirled around. “I did, back in the summer! That professor I’ve been talking to told me to make a fake application. ‘Just to practice,’ she said. So I wrote up all my essays, filled out the paperwork and sent it to her, thinking she was just going to look it over and give me feedback. Then, she kept asking for samples of my work over the past few weeks, challenging me to draw and make prototypes of my designs, then send her pictures of it. So I’ve been doing that…”
This made sense. I’d watched as Luke toiled away when he was over at my house, as if he was ignited by inspiration. “Yeah, and?!”
“And little did I know, she’s been keeping the photos and putting them into a portfolio for me! She showed it to the admissions board, and they waived my application fee!”
“Luke that’s amazing!” I cried. Then we hugged again, my happiness overflowing for him. “I’m so proud of you! When do you start?!”
He bit his lip, and I knew this was the part he was nervous to tell me. “I can start as early as the winter semester.”
“So in a few weeks,” I put together, my eyebrows furrowing.
He nodded. “I didn’t know it would happen this soon, but the professor said there was someone who dropped out of this class and now they have an open spot…”
“You should go for it,” I said, letting the words hang in the air with finality. But I couldn’t stop my voice from cracking at the end.
Luke’s face turned into a sympathetic expression as he approached me. He put one hand gently on the side of my face and said, “baby, no, don’t get upset, I want you to come with me.”
“What?” I asked, not daring to believe it.
“Yeah, you mentioned that you’d love to try doing all your cop stuff in a big city. Why not New York?”
I thought about it for a moment. Even though the chief talked to the squadron about transfers at least once a year, I had never actually considered moving from this town. It’s all I’d ever known.
“You’d be closer to your parents,” Luke offered, watching my face.
“That’s true,” I said, thinking of my parents’ cottage in upstate New York.
“Come on, please?!” Luke said, looking up at me with that adorable, innocent face.
And for the first time, I could see my future laid out for me as if it was all coming together at once. Why had I never considered moving cities before? If I put in for a transfer and worked my way onto the NYPD, I would be
