Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
Luke
After our first week together, having Lilly around is almost normal.
Almost.
I’ve grown used to the cute way she hums when she works, and she thinks I can’t hear her.
I’m even starting to like the way she moves around my office as if it’s hers, and it might as well be, since she’s behind my desk hours before I am every morning, and would probably be there late into the night, too, if I didn’t insist she go to bed.
She’s trying to prove herself to me in this so-called trial period. Either that or she really is every bit as competent as my daughter says she is.
Probably both.
In just a few days, my office has never looked cleaner, and for the first time since I started this business, everything runs the way it should.
Files are where they belong. My schedule actually makes sense.
Client meetings feel controlled instead of reactive, thanks to the notes she prepares and leaves clipped neatly to each folder before I even sit down.
And the notes she leaves are full of good tips and insights.
The woman knows her stuff.
Beyond knowing she’s a recent graduate, I haven’t directly asked her about her background in finance yet, but I’m starting to see the way she works.
She has a natural skill in anticipating problems before they happen.
And the instinct she has for numbers and investments is something that can’t be taught.
I can see it.
She’s good.
Too good.
And that’s a problem.
Or, it’s going to be. Because the more useful she proves herself, the harder it’s going to be to justify letting her go at the end of the month.
And I have to let her go.
The longer she stays here, and we work closely together, the more aware I am of her and everything about her that has absolutely nothing to do with work.
She steps up beside me now, leaning over my shoulder as she sets a file down on my desk. Her silky blouse brushes my bare arm, sending fire through my veins, but it’s the way her dark hair falls over her shoulder that has my breath catching in my throat.
It’s the softest touch, it shouldn’t register at all, but my body isn’t getting the message as a slow, unwelcome awareness slides down my spine, right to my dick.
I don’t move. Instead, I keep my focus locked on the screen in front of me, even as my body registers exactly how close she is. How sweet she smells. The scent of something clean and light, with the slightest trace of sugar, consumes me.
“Here,” she says quietly, completely unaware of the effect she’s having on me. “I ran a few projections on the numbers based on your last call. I think you might find them helpful before your meeting Monday.”
Her voice is steady. Completely professional.
Like she has no idea what her mere presence is doing to me.
“Thanks,” I say, forcing my tone to match.
She lingers long enough for me to notice before stepping back and leaving a space between us that feels way too big.
I don’t like it.
I drag a hand over my jaw and refocus on the file she put in front of me, but it takes longer than it should to settle into work.
“Is everything okay with that report?” she asks from across the room.
“Why wouldn’t it be?”
“You’ve been staring at it for a while.” I can hear the lightness in her voice. “That usually means that something isn’t adding up.”
“I’m thinking.”
Before I can stop her, she’s next to me again. Her proximity makes it harder than it should to keep my thoughts straight.
“Are you questioning my math?”
I glance up to see her lips twisted in a frown, her eyes narrow as she peers down at the report in front of me.
“No.” I snap the folder shut. “I’m just?—”
A knock sounds on the front door before I can finish the thought.
It’s definitely for the best.
Lilly straightens. “Are you expecting someone?”
“I’m never expecting anyone.” The words are little more than a growl as I shove my chair back from my desk and head for the front door.
My irritation over the interruption is warring with relief that I was stopped before I said something I couldn’t have come back from when I open the door and see Tessa standing on the porch with a box in her arms. “Hi, Dad.”
“What are you?—”
“Saving you from yourself,” she says with a grin as she brushes past me into the house. “Like usual.”
I’m not laughing as I follow her into the kitchen, where she sets the box down.
“I was in town, and I grabbed your grocery order,” she says before turning to me. “They said you’d?—”
“I was going to go.”
“Sure you were.”
Lilly appears in the hallway, her face lighting up when she sees Tessa.
“Oh my God, hi!”
They run into each other’s arms like long-lost friends and share a moment of greeting that reminds me exactly how old Lilly is.
Young enough to be my daughter.
“Give us a few minutes, Dad,” Tessa says. “I really need to catch up with Lilly.”
“It’s a work day.” I cross my arms over my chest.
“Dad!”
I know when I’ve been beat. “Fine. I’ll put the groceries away. Then it’s back to work.”
I don’t miss the way Tessa rolls her eyes, but fortunately, she doesn’t push the issue. Instead, the two of them sit down at the kitchen table and start chatting.
I try not to listen, really I do. But when I hear Tessa ask Lilly how things are working out, my ears perk up.
“It’s...” Lilly hesitates. “It’s the change I needed.”
“You really did need to get out of there. I’m glad this is working out.”
“For now,” Lilly adds quickly.
“For however long,” Tessa says. “How does it feel now that you’ve had some time away from him?”
Him?
Who has Lilly had time away from?
I know it’s not really any of my business, but I can’t help but wonder. She said there wasn’t a boyfriend, but is there an ex? Is she trying to get away from someone? If so, why?
I have too many questions. But all I can do is listen.
“It’s good,” Lilly says. “But still a little?—”
“You know what you need?” Tessa interrupts her, all but jumping out of her chair. “You need a distraction.”
I hesitate, a can of tomatoes in my hand. I do not like where this is going.
“Preferably a hot one,” Tessa continues, and I drop the can.
Both girls turn toward me. “Sorry,” I mumble. “It slipped.” I turn my attention back to the groceries, and they continue talking as if I’m not there.
“I don’t know, Tessa. That’s not really?—”
“It’s totally a thing,” my daughter interrupts her again. “You know what they say, the best way to get over someone is to get under someone else.”
Absolutely not.
The thought of Lilly with someone else, some random guy… fuck no. The bag of bread in my hand doesn’t fare well as I try not to react to the conversation going on around me.
“I don’t really think that works,” Lilly says.
“That’s the point,” Tessa laughs. “It doesn’t have to work. It just has to remind you that you’re allowed to want something. And you’re a young woman with needs.”
I can’t stop the growl that slips from my throat, but I manage to cover it with a cough.
Both girls turn to look at me.
“Okay. Time to get back to work.”
I don’t bother to pretend I wasn’t listening. It doesn’t matter. I just need to shut down this conversation before it goes any further.
Because if I let myself think of Lilly with another man for even one more second, I’ll put my fist through the wall.
Lilly
Dinner is simple tonight. An easy pasta with meat sauce and a salad.
Like every night this week, Luke handles the main dish while I take on the salad, since it’s not something I can easily mess up. Over the last few days, we’ve settled into a rhythm that feels surprisingly natural. He cooks, while I help where I can.
Somewhere between the chopping, cooking, and stirring, the sharp edges between us have softened a little bit. Maybe even…enough?
I’m not naive enough to think that after only a week, Luke’s changed his mind about keeping me on as his assistant, but at least we’re not openly hostile with each other anymore.
I carry the salad to the table while he brings the bowl of pasta. For a few minutes, the only sound is the clinking of forks as we dig into dinner, neither of us talking while we eat.
I sneak a glance at him across the table, and for a moment, I wonder what’s going through his mind.
Like always, he looks focused, almost grouchy, while he attacks his meal.
There’s a tension in his shoulders that never quite disappears, like he’s holding the weight of the entire world up by himself.
I can’t help but wonder if it’s as exhausting as it looks to be so guarded.
The thought lingers as I take another bite, my appetite fading as the conversation I had with Tessa earlier creeps back in.
You need a distraction.
I shift slightly in my chair and push my food around the plate, trying to push her words from my mind, but it’s no use.
Maybe I do need a distraction?
Something—or someone—to symbolize this new chapter of my life.
It feels stupid in a way, since I never tried to overthink things with Barrett, but ultimately, he was a major part of my life. I was going to marry him, for God’s sake. That’s pretty major. More than that, I held onto my virginity for him.
Ugh, why?
I’ve never been the type of woman who was precious about things like that.
When Barrett and I started dating, I’d been so worried that he’d be turned off by the fact that I’d never had sex, but he thought it was sweet. And then he’d started talking about it as if it were something special, a gift that I’d been saving just for him.
I’d gone along with it because it seemed to make him happy.
But I didn’t want to be that girl anymore.
The type who goes along with it. The type who almost let a snake of a man dictate my future for me.
No way.
I wasn’t that girl anymore. I never was, I’d just forgotten for a little while.
I let my fork clatter to the plate as the realization hits.
I need to make a statement to myself.
“You okay?”
Concern crosses Luke’s face, and he sets his own fork down while he watches me carefully.