Chapter Eight

Luke and Becca still text during the days before their next date on Wednesday, but not quite as often as before and neither of them mentioned the kiss. It was almost like they needed a break.

Clara and Moira kept asking her about how their arrangement was going and when their next date was; it didn't matter that Becca had told them about five times already. It actually made her worry a little that they might just turn up to gate crash it, having had so much fun trampolining, but in the end, they told her that they'd decided to go to the cinema that same evening.

Tonight would be another date that Luke had planned as a surprise for Becca, and all he'd told her was that she needed to be dressed warm for an activity. So, she settled for one of her lined jeans, a leftover from her life in Milwaukee, and a fitted blue sweatshirt. She also brought a jumper separately in case she'd still be cold, even with her jacket.

"Hey, you look great," Luke greeted her when she opened the door and leaned in for a quick kiss on her cheek. "Ready?" he asked before either of them could overthink it.

"Ready," she nodded and stepped out, pulling the door shut behind her. "Where are we going?" she asked as she followed him down the stairs.

"You'll see," he said with a shrug, chuckling when she poked him in the back. He liked surprising her, but he thought it was funny she didn't seem to share that sentiment too much. "I know you'll like it," he assured her. When they'd first started the agreement and were getting to know each other, she'd told him of many winters worth of ice skating she'd done with her family. This would actually be an activity where in theory she'd be better than him and have to show him what to do, which he was actually kind of looking forward to.

"We'll see," Becca conceded as they both got in. "How's Derek been?" she asked him now. Her ex had been suspiciously quiet on her end, and it put her on edge a little.

"Mostly been trying to show me up in front of the partners. I think he's turned his attention to getting partner for now," Luke answered, only glancing at her briefly as he concentrated on leaving her complex. His coworker had made a nuisance of himself on Monday first thing, about seeing the kiss in the car and about getting past the hyenas, who Luke assumed were Clara and Moira. But either because her friends had shown approval of him quicker than they had of Derek or because he was genuinely worried that Luke might beat him to becoming partner, Derek had sort of left him alone on the personal front.

"Anything else I can do to help on that front?" she asked, making him smile gratefully.

"Not that I can think of right now, but thanks, I appreciate it," he told her, giving her hand a quick squeeze before focusing back on driving.

During the rest of the drive to their activity, Becca tried to think of something she could do to help her pretend boyfriend make a good impression on his bosses. She'd obviously already done the visit and muffins, so she couldn't really do that again. Something with charity or a good deed would possibly be best, especially around this time of year. She was close to figuring something out when Luke pulled up outside the skating rink.

"Ice skating?"

"Yeah, I'm not sure if we'll have time to do this when we get to Chicago and I thought it would be a shame not to give you an opportunity to teach me how to do something," he explained, starting off winning brownie points and ending up receiving a smack on the arm.

"You ass," Becca muttered even as she started laughing with him. "It's a nice idea, thanks," she added eventually, secretly a little pleased that he'd clearly remembered her telling him how much she always loved skating back home.

"Let's go then," Luke smiled as he got out to get her door. "I brought extra socks for you in case," he told her, patting the bulge in his pocket. His description of 'stay warm' may not have been enough for her to think about thick enough socks for in the skates. He frowned slightly when he saw her fighting back a laugh.

"Sorry," she giggled, thinking at least he'd put the socks in his jacket pocket and not somewhere else. "Thank you for thinking of me," she tried to say seriously when he still didn't get it, pulling her mind out of the gutter.

"You're so immature," he shook his head as he took hold of her hand and started leading the way inside, making her laugh out loud now.

"I'm sorry," she apologized, leaning into him and feeling him fight back a laugh of his own.

As soon as she had the skates on and made her way onto the ice, Becca felt in her element. She was comfortable doing this and it showed on her face and in her posture. Even as he struggled a little heading onto the ice, Luke could see the confidence in her and he couldn't help thinking how sexy it looked on her.

After doing a few moves to blow out the cobwebs, Becca turned towards her date and had to stop herself from laughing when she saw him holding onto the railing, resisting the urge to take a picture. "It's not funny," he told her, knowing exactly what she was thinking.

"I beg to differ," she chuckled as she headed in closer towards him. It was funny to see someone so tall and athletic looking nervous and awkward on the ice. She ignored the glare he gave her, not having let go of the railing yet. "Come on, give me your hands," the brunette said now as she positioned herself in front of him and held her hands out. His free hand reached out to her quite willingly, but he was more hesitant to let go of the railing with the second. "It's okay, I've got you," Becca told him now, giving him a reassuring smile. He looked up at her, again seeing how confident she was, and it was hard not to trust her. Luke felt himself nod as he slowly let go of the railing and took hold of her hand. "See, not so bad," she smiled when he couldn't help letting out a relieved sigh that they didn't hit the ice straight away. "It's really simple, just push one foot in front of the other. I'll start to get us moving," she said and gave him a second to process that information before she actually started moving. He jerked a little to try to keep his balance, feeling her hands tighten their hold on his. "Luke, look at me, not your feet," Becca tried to reassure him, smiling when he glanced up at her before returning his attention to his feet, trying to mimic her easy moves. "Luke," she said again, "eyes on me." His blue eyes moved up to her face after a few seconds, willing to trust her. He could feel her effortlessly moving backwards, even though pulling his weight in addition to hers couldn't be that easy. Her green eyes smiled at him, and he felt his nerves relax a little. Slowly, after what felt like a decade but was probably only a few minutes, he started moving his feet in similar slow strides as she was. "That's it, you're doing really well," she said encouragingly, and he felt relieved.

"This must be so painful for you," Luke managed to say with a chuckle, feeling her laugh.

"No," she shrugged. "It feels kind'a satisfying," Becca added.

"What, because this time it's my turn to suck at something and your turn to gloat?"

"Something like that." He gave her a roll of the eyes before tightening his grip on her because he thought he was losing his balance. "I still gotcha," she assured him.

They continued at this speed, in this manner, for about fifteen minutes before he felt comfortable enough to go a little faster. After another fifteen, he was ready to have her skate next to him and only having hold of one hand. "Despite the ever-present fear of falling, this is kind'a fun," Luke told her after skating like this for a while, making her laugh.

"Yeah, I'd say so," she agreed. "Thanks again," Becca told him with a smile.

"Any time," he smiled back, swearing he could see the hint of a blush on her cheeks.

Becca took a deep breath before she opened the firm's door. She hadn't run this idea past Luke yet, but she was fairly certain it would work. She'd bought chocolate Christmas tree baubles and paired them up with charitable donations. It was one of the things that she and Luke seemed to have in common and she knew that law firms, especially successful ones, saw charitable donations as a good tax break. She'd made sure that none of the suggestions were outrageous to put off those at the bottom levels on the lower wages. She'd picked up names from the Angel Tree for the senior partners, as they would definitely be able to afford getting children everything off their list. For the junior partners, she'd selected a couple of local youth projects. For everyone else, she'd looked into a mix of local and national causes, ranging from animal welfare, research into cures for various illnesses and environmental causes.

"Miss Swindell?" the receptionist asked surprised, when she saw the big box that the visitor was carrying. "I'm not sure if Luke's in his office or in court," the blonde said, almost panicking as she flicked through the calendars.

"That's okay. I just wanted to drop a few things off with staff. I guess it doesn't really matter if he's here or not," Becca answered, a little nervous. She hoped people would appreciate the gesture. "I don't suppose the senior partners happen to be free?" The receptionist gave her a hesitant look.

"There's nothing in their schedule…" she said hesitantly.

"I promise I won't be rude or interrupt them if they're in a meeting or whatever," Becca assured her. "Like I said, I want to drop off a few treats."

"I guess…" the blonde said slowly. "Sure, go ahead," she conceded eventually.

"Thank you. Merry Christmas," the brunette said, leaving one of the baubles with an animal cause on the desk for her. She headed through to the main office, stopping briefly at Tris's desk to leave her a bauble with an environmental cause.

"Thanks Becca. Do you want me to…?" Tris started as she pointed to Luke's office.

"No, it's okay, don't interrupt him yet. I just want to drop these off first," Becca said, holding the box up with a hopeful smile.

"This is a cute idea," the secretary said, looking at the tag with her cause on it.

"Thanks, I hope no one takes offence," the visitor said.

"If they do, they're petty. I think it's a great idea. Plus, the top dogs like charities," Tris assured her.

"That's what I was hoping for," Becca said honestly and headed to the upper level. She slowly made her way up and tried peeking into the seniors' offices to check they were disturbable. The first office she passed was Mr. Diamond's, but he was on the phone. She passed another senior partner's office, who was addressing his secretary, and was about to head back downstairs when Mr. Manka called out, "Miss Swindell?" She turned back and saw the boss beckon her over. "To what do we owe the pleasure?" he asked her.

"It's so close to Christmas, I thought it'd be nice to share some tree decorations and share the Christmas spirit," Becca explained, holding up the one she'd earmarked for him. Curiously he took it from her and looked at the tag with the little boy's name and list on it.

"Angel Tree?" he asked.

"It's a really good initiative for kids whose parents aren't around or can't afford presents. And it was mine and Luke's impromptu second date," she elaborated.

"Luke took you to the Salvation Army on a date?" Mr. Manka asked surprised, making her laugh.

"Oh no. We both went there on our own and bumped into each other. We then decided to go to Santa's Ranch and get some food," Becca answered, smiling as she thought back to that night. She'd had a really good time and that was when they'd first started feeling more comfortable around each other, rather than being a little awkward.

He was intrigued by the dreamy look on her face. "Well, I like this idea. After all, it's the season of giving," the boss said after a minute, bringing her back to the present. "If any of the lawyers are busy, leave theirs with their secretaries," he instructed her now, wanting to make sure all of his employees joined in. Despite being divorce lawyers, they were a family friendly firm and she had the right attitude.

"Thanks Mr. Manka," Becca smiled gratefully.

Luke scribbled on his pad, trying to get his prep done for a new client meeting, when he heard a knock on the door.

"Tris, I already told you, I don't want to be disturbed," he started saying frustrated, throwing his papers down as he looked up. He'd stressed to his secretary how important this client was and he felt like he was already behind; he really couldn't have any interruptions. "Bexx?" he almost shot up in surprise.

"Sorry, she did warn me before I came in," his pretend girlfriend said, looking a little embarrassed.

"No, it's okay, come in," he beckoned her in quickly, feeling like he should be the one to feel ashamed. He shouldn't have spoken like that, regardless of who he thought was coming in. She closed the door behind her as she watched him get up and walk around his desk. "What are you doing here?" he asked curiously.

"I dropped these off with your colleagues," Becca answered, holding up the last chocolate bauble out to him. "But theirs all had suggested charitable donations included," she added. "I gave the senior partners names from the Angel Tree," she said with a smile, thinking of how nice Mr. Manka had been. She was surprised to feel his arms pull her into a hug. "What's this for?" she asked, enjoying the feel of his arms around her as she hugged him back.

"For still trying to make a good impression on my boss," Luke said, hugging her a little tighter as he pressed a kiss to her hair.

After a quick bite to eat with Luke, Becca went back to work. Her friends picked her up for dinner just gone 5pm.

"He took you ice skating? Nice," Moira nodded her approval. She knew Derek had never taken or gone with her friend, because he didn't care for it. The fact that Luke was willing was very refreshing.

"Yeah, it was quite cute actually," Becca chuckled and told them about how she helped him get used to being on the ice and how they'd made it without falling up until the moment they were getting ready to leave. He'd made the mistake of saying that he was happy not to have fallen and, as he reached for the railing, overstretched and lost his balance. Becca had been able to hold him up for a few seconds, but he ended up slipping and pulling her down with him.

"That's too cute," Clara almost cooed, almost forgetting to continue eating. "So... what's next on your dating agenda?" she asked after a minute and took another bite of her chicken burger. "Office party, right?"

"Yup," Becca nodded as she finished her mouthful. "Mine tomorrow, his on Saturday," she added.

"And then what? It's the last week before Christmas. That was all you'd agreed, right?" her friend asked curiously.

"Yeah, do you want to get together a couple of times next week?" Moira suggested.

"Oh, well I can't... coz I won't be here," their friend said, stuffing another bite in her mouth.

"You... what? Where are you going to be?" Clara asked, giving her a kick against the shin when she dramatically pointed at her mouth.

"Ow," Becca said muffled, trying to empty her mouth a little quicker before she'd get kicked again. "I'm going home for Christmas on the twenty-second," she started, "from Chicago," she added when she saw her friends were about to say that still give them four days to plan things in. She let that sink in for a second, hesitant to take another bite.

"As in... where Luke's family live?" Moira remembered him telling them that's where he was from. "Oh Bexx," she added a little exasperated.

"In my defense, we planned that when we were still trying to get back at both Derek and Kirsty," the brunette tried to explain. "Now we're hoping that it might look good to his bosses."

"Bexx, can you hear yourself?" Clara asked, after she'd exchanged a quick glance with their third friend. They'd agreed not to talk to Becca about their concerns unless they had to, and clearly that was now. "Come on, why would you ever think that was a good idea?" she asked.

"Well..."

"No seriously," Moira cut her off. "I mean, surely it must be hard to keep things straight about what your relationship actually is," she said.

"No... not really," Becca tried to say nonchalantly. She could see straight away that her friends didn't believe her. "It's fine... There's nothing to confuse, we only kiss if we really have to, in public."

"Do you hear yourself?"

At this the brunette stuffed more food in her mouth, not sure what else to say.

"Bexx..." Moira started.

"We're worried... that you might be falling for him," Clara continued.

"If you haven't already," the first finished.

"That's not happening," Becca said after letting what they were saying sink in. "Seriously, don't worry about me," she assured them now, as well as.

"Okay... if you say so," Moira said, sitting back in her seat to continue eating. Neither of them sounded particularly convinced but, while they didn't want their friend to get hurt, this wasn't something they could tell her. She would need to figure this one out on her own. "Just be careful," she finally advised Becca, seeing Clara nod.

Friday morning was Becca's deadline for her article and she was fast running out of time to get it done. The aim of course had been to give people some advice on how to survive the festive period. But somehow that wasn't quite what she ended up writing. She couldn't help but draw from her dates with Luke, thinking that they would've been great fun even just with friends. So, she ended up pushing the angle of friendship and activities, even if some of them were still Christmassy in nature. That really was the best way to survive the festive period – with friends. She listed the lights and the luminaries, the glow-in-the-dark golf and laser tag, bowling, trampolining, the Salvation Army's Angel Tree and Santa's Ranch. She even added some of the pictures she'd taken, just not those of her and Luke by themselves. She knew readers would then not believe the rest of the article, as the pictures would imply that she obviously did 'have a boyfriend'. She did use one of the group pictures from trampolining and from the River Walk lights with Kirsty and Xander, so the pictures wouldn't just be of the activity or her.

Becca was a little nervous when she sent it off to her editor at 3pm. After all, she didn't technically follow her assignment. But, in the end, all her worrying was for nothing; her editor gave it the go ahead with minimal typing errors to be corrected. "That was a good piece Becca, one of your best," he told her, in a rare compliment. "Enjoy the party tonight, you've earnt it," he said by way of goodbye.

"Thanks Eddie," she said, taken aback.