by: TNRiverRat

Chapter 9

At exactly 5:25, Luke pulled into the driveway of Cherokee Hills Apartments. He guided the General into a tight parking space in front of the building Meghan lived in and shut off the engine. The dark-haired man sat in the car for a few minutes and took a deep breath to calm his nerves. He had decided to tell Meghan, tonight, exactly how much he cared for her and he was scared that he would either say something wrong or cause her to run. Luke quirked a slight grin, slapped his hands on the steering wheel and said, “Here goes nothing.” He climbed out of the car and noticed that he was being watched. Meghan had come out onto her patio when she heard the distinctive sound of the General’s engine and she had been watching Luke’s hesitant exit from the car with some amusement. Luke looked up to see his girlfriend leaning over the railing of her second-floor apartment’s patio. He waved and flashed a wide smile before he sauntered across the walkway leading to the stairs.

Meghan returned the smile and wave and waited for him. She watched as he walked down the path and shook her head in amazement. He looked so good in the white T-shirt and black jeans he was wearing! Every time she saw him she still couldn’t believe that this gorgeous, sweet man was interested in her! He was such a gentleman; never pushing her farther than she was ready to go. That was good, because she still didn’t really know deep into this relationship she wanted to get. Meghan stopped her train of thought abruptly. She heard Luke approaching the top of the stairs and she smoothed the blue and white sundress she was wearing, hoping she looked presentable.

“Hey, Sweetheart. You look great.” Luke said as he reached to hug his girlfriend.

“Hey, yourself, Good-Lookin’. I though you were going to stay in that car all evening!” Meghan said jokingly. She walked into his embrace and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

Luke pouted, “Is that all I get?”
Before Meghan could reply, he pulled her close and bent his head to hers for what he determined to be a proper kiss.

When the kiss broke, Meghan smiled and giggled. “I could get used to those, you know!” she said, looking up into Luke’s sparkling blue eyes.

“I hope so,” Luke said as he wiggled his eyebrows and smoothed her soft, brown hair. He liked it when she wore her hair down, as she had it now. “You ready to go meet my family? It shouldn’t be too bad since you’ve seen them all before already. Uncle Jesse and Daisy are really lookin’ forward to seeing you again. Bo too, I guess…he’s been acting sorta odd lately, so don’t be offended if he doesn’t act too friendly.”

Meghan smiled and listened to Luke’s explanation. “Of course I’m ready. I’ve been wanting to see them all again for so long. I hope they like me as your girlfriend and not just as a nurse!” She didn’t let on that she was actually scared to death!

Luke smiled and held out his arm to Meghan. She wrapped her arm around his elbow. “They’ll love you. Don’t fret”, he said and winked as he escorted her down the stairs.

When they reached the General, Meghan noticed a problem. Her short stature combined with the dress she was wearing made it almost impossible to climb into the car window with any semblance of grace.

She looked at Luke, batted her eyelashes and pretended to wave an imaginary fan. “Well, kind Sir, I find myself in need of some assistance”, she drawled in her best imitation of a Southern Belle.
Luke took her hand, kissed it and bowed, gallantly, before her. “At your service, Ma’am,” he said in return. The dark-haired man lifted Meghan as if she weighed no more than a feather and helped her into the car. He noted to himself that he would like to see her wearing dresses more often if it meant getting to help her in and out of the car. Luke climbed into his window and started the car.

Meghan said, “Thank ya so much. I do declare that you are the very heart of chivalry, Mr. Duke,” continuing with her Southern Belle routine.

Luke looked at her with smiling eyes. He tilted her chin up with one finger and briefly kissed her lips before replying, “Always happy to oblige, Miss Meghan. Now let’s roll.” Luke put the orange muscle car in gear and spun tires as they left the parking lot. He didn’t have to worry about scaring Meghan with his fast driving; he had already found out that she liked fast cars and was a little bit of a wild driver herself! The sound of Meghan’s laughter filled the air as they headed toward the Duke farm.

Meghan and Luke rode in comfortable ease; occasionally talking about random things or singing along to the radio. Luke had a wonderful singing voice and she loved adding harmony along with him, but mostly she just liked listening to him sing alone. The closer they got to Hazzard, however, the more nervous Meghan became. Luke had often talked about his family and she felt she knew them all very well, already, and she wanted to make a good impression. Yes, she was anxious to see how the Duke family thought of her now that she was dating Luke; but the primary reason for her nervousness was Bo Duke. Try as she may, she had not been able to get the tall blond out of her head! She was ashamed to admit that she had been thinking and dreaming about him ever since they met at the hospital, April. Even though he was sick with his asthma and upset about his uncle, she had felt a very strong attraction to him; not just physical, but something deeper. She couldn’t explain it. Those brief feelings she felt when barely touching Bo or when she looked into his wonderfully expressive blue eyes were, she hated to say, deeper than anything she had felt with Luke. She even longed for Luke to talk about his cousin. Sometimes she purposefully turned the conversation so Luke would have to mention things about Bo. Meghan longed to get to know this person that Luke seemed to care so much about; the carefree, lovable, impulsive young man that he considered to be his younger brother.
‘This is crazy! He has absolutely no interest in you and you don’t even know him! Get him out your head, Meggie. He probably has so many girls hanging off him that he wouldn’t even give you the time of day! Besides…you are dating Luke. He is the one who is paying attention to you. He’s the one who cares about you and wants to be with you, not Bo.’ she chastised herself.

Luke noticed Meghan’s prolonged silence. “You OK, hon?”

Meghan turned to look at Luke and smiled. She scooted closer to him on the seat and he put his arm around her. “I’m just fine, now.” she said with a soft, happy sigh. Luke chuckled and dropped a soft kiss on the top of her head.

“Seriously, Meghan…are you OK? You seemed to zone out for a while.” Luke said with concern.

“I’m fine, Luke. I’m just a little tired. Those double shifts I worked at the beginning of the week are starting to catch up with me…that’s all.” It wasn’t a total lie; she was tired from working extra at the hospital due to short staff. She snuggled into Luke’s side and vowed that no matter what it took, she would get Bo Duke out of her head. She cared about Luke more and more every day. The petite brunette knew that it would hurt Luke if he ever found out that she had feelings, however irrational, for his cousin and she did not want to hurt Luke in any way. This man sitting next to her was too special to lose. He deserved her undivided attention and damned if she wasn’t going to try to provide him with that!

Luke tightened his arm around the woman beside him. She grew more beautiful every time he saw her. The simple sundress she wore accented her figure perfectly without being revealing. She wasn’t the kind of girl to dress in revealing clothes anyway and he was glad. He didn’t want guys to look at her like they looked at Daisy when she had to wear those skimpy outfits at work. He grinned, thinking that his feisty little Meghan could probably take care of herself in such situations, just like Daisy; but he didn’t want her to have to. He wanted to take care of her. He thought to himself, “It’s now or never…”

“Meghan…I want to tell you something.”

“What’s on your mind?” She sat up straighter and looked at Luke.

Luke kept his eyes on the road and took a deep breath.
“Meghan…I’m not really good at lettin’ my feelings show and I’m even worse at talkin’ about them. I really like you. I enjoy being with you more than I have any other woman I’ve known. I usually don’t open myself up to anybody. I don’t get attached to people very easily…but I could get attached to you real quick, Meghan! I guess what I’m tryin’ to say is that…I think…I think I’m falling in love with you.” Luke finished in a rush. He looked scared and surprised that he had actually said what he had. “Uh…we can take things slow…not rush things, you know. I’m still getting used to the idea of a steady relationship! But if it’s OK with you, I’d like us to get more serious…taking it slow, of course.” Luke said in a soft, hopeful voice.

Upon hearing Luke’s words, Meghan’s heart had melted. Just last night, she had dreamed of hearing those words. But instead of Luke, her dream had conjured up Bo and she heard his gentle voice say them and she had been looking into dark-blue eyes; not the clear, crystal-blue eyes she was looking into now. She pushed the thoughts of Bo from her mind. Luke had just told her he loved her…in a round about way! She cared about Luke so much and realized that she loved him, too. She ran a hand through Luke’s dark, wavy hair. He turned away from the road briefly, and caught her soft-green gaze with his own. She smiled widely at him, her dimples deepening. “It’s perfectly fine with me, Luke. Slow is good…I’m still getting used to the idea of a steady relationship, myself…and…I think love you, too. You’re something special, Luke Duke.” she said as she leaned over to kiss his lips.

Luke grinned like a fool. He pulled her closer with one arm as he drove with the other. “And you, Meghan Riley, are too cute for words.” he said as he returned the kiss.

Luke turned off the main road and pointed the General down the gravel road leading to the Duke property.

“We’re almost there.” Luke said with excitement shining in his eyes.

Moments later, the General Lee pulled into the yard of the Duke farm and came to a stop in front of the old white house.