24. Chapter 24
Chapter 24
Lili
My legs tremble as I try to work through my usual yoga routine, and I know it’s not because I’m out of shape. It’s only been a few days since my last full workout. This is all nerves. Since Victor and Owen left, I’ve been replaying the last time I got my hair done, trying to spot any signs I might have missed that he was trying to plant a tracker on me. But it was a normal appointment other than the fact that my usual stylist got sick at the last minute, so I used my mother-in-law’s person.
“Victor?” I say out loud.
The speaker in the corner crackles. “Yes?”
“I remembered something else.”
“Go ahead.”
“The reason I saw Darius that day is that Shara, my usual stylist, got sick at the last minute and canceled. Find out if she was really sick.”
“That’s very good, Lili. Thank you.”
It’s weird to be talking to him without him being here and without a phone. I wonder if he can see me, but I haven’t seen anything that looks like a camera.
When he doesn’t say anything else, I return to my yoga, but my heart isn’t in it, so eventually I give up and curl up on the sofa.
Grace pokes her head in sometime later holding an old digital alarm clock. “Thought you might at least like to be able to tell what time it is,” she offers as an explanation for her visit. We plug the clock in, and set it based on the time on her phone. She seems nervous as she works, glancing at me and looking away as soon as she catches my gaze.
“It sounds like you might be moving,” Grace says after a minute of awkward silence.
“That’s what they say.”
Grace twirls a strand of hair around her finger and looks at the ceiling, then back at me. “Can I hug you in case I don’t see you again?”
“Why? Is Victor going to kill me?” I ask sarcastically. It’s not something I’m actually worried about, but I don’t like the idea of not seeing Grace again.
Her eyes go wide. “No! Lili, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have said it like that. I mean that for security purposes, they probably won’t tell me where they move you.”
Her horror sends a pang of guilt through me, and I smile. “When this is all over, I want to be friends,” I say as I open my arms for a hug.
When she steps into my arms, the butterflies in my stomach all flutter at the same time. The scent of her shampoo wafts into my nose, and I breathe in the fragrance, trying to commit it to memory. I have no idea if we’ll be able to be friends when this is done, but I truly hope so. “You’re a beautiful girl, Grace. I’m lucky to have met you. In a different life, I would be asking for something more than a hug.” Why did I say that? The lack of fresh air must be messing with my head.
Grace takes me by surprise and cups my face and leans up for a kiss. When her lips touch mine, any sense of control I thought I had flees my body, and I give into the kiss, letting my hands slide into her hair.
“You taste even better than you smell,” I whisper when she pulls away.
“I’m so sorry. I don’t know what came over me.” Her gaze drops to the floor.
I trace a finger down her cheek and tuck it under her chin, lifting her eyes back to mine. “I think they call it attraction or lust. It hits me every time you walk into the room.”
“Victor will kill me if I do anything with you. We came to some kind of agreement today.”
“Sounds vague.”
Grace laughs. “That’s an understatement. But I want to explore it.”
“And you should. But I think we owe ourselves one more kiss, don’t we?” I mentally smack my own forehead. Stop flirting with her.
“I want you, Lili. More than I’ve wanted any other woman. Maybe even more than I want Victor.”
I put a finger to her lips. “Don’t say that. You were made for Victor. I’m just an infatuation. Forget the kiss. Go find him and let him give you what you need.”
It’s hard letting her walk away, but I know nothing can ever happen between us. Not when she clearly belongs to Victor. The trouble is, I want her to belong to me too. And I fantasize about Victor just as much. More than I’ve ever fantasized about any men, let alone my own husband.
Grace
I don’t know what the hell just happened, but kissing Lili was an out of body experience.
I’m in a daze as I head back to the sandwich shop to finish closing up. Victor has asked me to stay late because he still isn’t sure if it’s safe for me to leave.
When I get to the front, Victor is wiping down the ingredient case.
“How is she?” he asks as he tosses the rag into the sink behind him.
“Confused. And so am I.”
“What about, butterfly?”
“Why was it safe for Harper to leave, but not for me.”
“Don’t question my decisions on your safety, Gracelynn.”
The sternness in his tone catches me off guard and pisses me off at the same time. Guilt over kissing Lili is also swirling in my stomach.
“I kissed Lili,” I blurt. “I kissed her, and I feel awful.”
He looks at me for a long moment, silence hanging between us like a heavy weight. “Why do you feel awful, Mariposa?”
“Because I just agreed to figure things out with you. It’s been less than a day and I basically cheated on you.”
“You didn’t.”
“You’re not mad?”
“I’m confused just like you. I have feelings for her too. But I’ve promised to explore with you. It seems we are both taken with the same woman.”
“What does that mean?”
Victor shakes his head. “It means that has to be part of figuring things out. It likely means very little, because once this is all over, I don’t see how she would want anything to do with us.”
“Are we going to move her?”
Victor pulls me close and kisses the top of my head. “I’m waiting for Matteo and Owen to make that decision now. Owen has been holed up in his tech cave all day, and he’s trying to figure out the right move. Part of me wants to take her to my house, but if I do that, I want you to come with me.”
“Why?”
“Because she likes you, and I want her to be comfortable. When do your classes start?”
“Not for another week.”
“Hopefully, this is over by then.”
“That’s if we move her.”
He nods. “Right. If we move her.”
“Victor, I want you. Please tell me again you’re not mad about me kissing Lili.”
“I’m not mad, butterfly. A little jealous. But not mad.”
I shove his shoulder, and he captures my hair in his fingers, pulling hard as he captures my mouth with his.
“Why is this so confusing? You don’t like switches, and Lili is clearly a switch.”
Victor laughs. “That’s a problem for another day.”
His phone rings before he can say more. “This is Owen. I already counted the drawer and cleaned up the back. Go ahead and clock out and wait in the dungeon for me.”
“Yes, Sir,” I mutter as he walks away.
In the back room, I use the computer to clock out and toss the dirty apron into the hamper the cleaning service will pick up later in the week.
I highly doubt Victor will let me go home until he’s sure it’s safe, so I text my roommate just in case she’s home. As I walk into the dungeon, my eyes drift toward the hall that leads to the suites. Kissing Lili was a mistake, but as soon as she admitted to wanting more than a hug, it was like someone else took over my body. A version of me I thought I left back east when I left for Las Vegas.
I lean against the bar and bury my face in my hands, trying not to dwell on either of the people I want to do more than kiss, but their faces are there waiting for me when I close my eyes, and I realize my heart is in deep trouble.