Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
Lilly
“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.”
It’s almost the first thing out of my mouth when Tessa and I are finally alone two days later.
She laughs and tosses her blond hair over her shoulder, glancing toward the front door where the men went to tend to the grill on the porch. “I meant to,” she says. “But we only just told my dad, and you were getting settled in with the job and, well…I kind of wanted to tell you in person.”
“Your dad beat you to it.” I lean against the counter and watch while she slices a loaf of bread. “I’d offer to help, but?—”
“Oh, I remember,” she says with a laugh. “You’re great with numbers, but take-out was always more your style.”
“Not much of that up here.”
“Ha! That’s for sure. It takes a little getting used to,” Tessa says, “But I’d happily trade my weekly Thai takeout for my life here with Holt.”
Her face gets a dreamy look I don’t remember ever seeing on her before. It’s nice.
“I’m really happy for you,” I tell her honestly. “I’m not going to lie, I was shocked when you dropped out of school with less than a month to go, but I have to admit, you seem pretty happy here with Holt.”
The moment Luke and I arrived at their cabin, the love between the two of them was clear. I was surprised at first to see how much older he was than she, but then again…it made sense. After all, Holt is the same age as Luke and Tessa, and me are the same age, so…
But that’s different. Luke and I aren’t in a relationship. We’re just—what?
Working together? Yes
Fucking? Also, yes.
But we’re definitely not in a relationship. Not that the age gap would make a difference if we were. It clearly hadn’t impacted Tess and Holt in any negative way.
“Life is so good,” Tessa tells me. “And if you’d told me six months ago that I’d be living on a remote mountain, knocked up and engaged to a grumpy mountain man who also happens to be my dad’s best friend, having the most mind blowing sex you could ever imagine,” she leans in to whisper the last part conspiratorially before continuing, “well, I would have thought you were certifiable.” She laughs, and it’s the most contagious sound.
“It is pretty wild,” I say, but my mind is locked on something she said. “And the sex…” I reach across her and grab a slice of cucumber from the cutting board where she’s prepping vegetables. “It’s pretty good?”
“No.” Tessa drops the knife and spins dramatically to face me. “It’s fucking incredible, Lilly. Like, I can’t even tell you how freakin’ amazing it is to be with a man who knows exactly what he’s doing.”
My face heats because I do know. Oh man, do I ever know.
Not that I can tell Tessa. I mean, not only am I sleeping with my boss at the job she got for me, but that boss also happens to be her dad. No. I can’t tell her.
“That sounds…well…I mean…”
“Oh, my god. I’m sorry. I totally forgot that you’re a virgin and you and Barrett were waiting for marriage.”
“I’m not,” I blurt before I can think better of it. “I mean…I’m not a virgin,” I say, lowering my voice. “Not anymore.”
She tilts her head, examining me intently. After a few seconds, she blinks and says, “Really? When? With who?”
“I…it was…” I swallow hard and force my face to stay neutral.
“Just a guy right after Barrett and I broke up.” Is it really a lie if I withhold a few details?
“I just wanted to get it over with and…it wasn’t a big deal.
I just thought that maybe if…wasn’t it you who told me I needed to have a fling to get over him? ”
Oh my God. I need to stop talking.
“I did,” she says slowly. “But that was after you were…”
“Sorry to interrupt, doll.” Holt chooses that moment to join us. He flashes me a quick smile. “I was just wondering if I can help with anything? The steaks are almost done.”
Her face shifts before my eyes. The suspicion I was so sure was starting to register on her features is replaced with adoration as she looks at her mountain man. “No help needed,” she tells him. “We’re ready to go.”
“Great.” He kisses her on the lips, lingering a moment longer than is probably polite, but I don’t begrudge them anything. It’s clear they have a hard time keeping their hands off each other.
I can’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy for what they share together.
Sure, Luke and I can hardly keep our hands off each other, too. But that’s different. It’s very different.
“Oh, come on.” Luke joins us in the kitchen, a plate of juicy steaks in his hand. “I thought I asked you two to keep it clean in front of me. I get it, you love each other,” he continues. “But I don’t think I need to witness it every fucking time.”
“Now, now,” I can’t help but laugh. “You can’t stop love, Luke,” I tease. “Even if it makes you uncomfortable.”
“It’s not love that makes me uncomfortable.” He shakes his head, his eyes meeting mine. “It’s my best friend and my daughter that make me uncomfortable.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Holt steps back and takes the plate of steaks from him. “You’d be singing a different tune if it were you who had a sexy little woman you couldn’t keep your hands off.”
” Seriously,” Luke growls. “That’s my daughter you’re talking about, man. Shut the fuck up.”
Tessa, Holt, and I all laugh as we move to the table and take our seats. Luke doesn’t join in. His eyes are locked on mine as he takes the seat across from me at the solid wood table.
“If it was me that had a sexy little woman I couldn’t keep my hand off,” he says, his gaze never leaving mine, “I’d be a hell of a lot more discreet about it.”
Luke
It’s impossible to keep my eyes off her.
I try, I really do. But every time she moves, my attention follows. The way she leans across the table to reach for a dinner roll, her blouse shifting just enough to remind me what’s underneath and that less than two hours ago I had those sweet tits in my hands.
I should look away.
I don’t. I can’t.
And that’s a big problem, especially with my daughter sitting next to me, watching the two of us as if she’s trying to figure something out.
But there’s nothing to figure out. At least I’m going to make damn sure that’s what Tessa and Holt believe.
“So, it’s working out then?”
Holt’s question snaps me back into the moment.
“She’s been a big help,” I say, dragging my attention back to the table, forcing myself to act like I haven’t spent the last few minutes staring at my assistant like I want to drag her out of here and bend her over the nearest chair. “Got my entire office running smoother than ever.”
“That doesn’t surprise me,” Tessa says, her tone a little too pleased. “After all, you had a lot of room for improvement, and Lilly is the best.”
“She is.”
Lilly glances up, and for a second, our eyes lock.
She looks away first, reaching for her water. “I can rest easy knowing I’m leaving him better than I found him.”
“So you’re still leaving?” Tessa sounds disappointed. “But it sounds like it’s working out.”
“We agreed,” she says quickly. Too quickly. “One month. Long enough for me to find something more permanent.”
I stab my fork into my steak and saw my knife into the meat with a little more force than necessary.
“How’s that going?” Holt asks. “The job search, I mean.”
Lilly shifts slightly in her seat, and I catch the movement out of the corner of my eye.
“Slow,” she says after a moment. “I’ve put out dozens and dozens of resumes, but no bites yet. Only rejections.”
“Seriously?” Tessa says with a frown. “With your grades? And your experience? You should have more offers than you know what to do with.”
“That’s what I thought,” Lilly replies, her tone still light, but I can hear the slightest trace of uncertainty now.
My gaze flicks to her without thinking. “You haven’t heard anything yet?”
Her eyes lock on mine, and she shakes her head a little. “No.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
Something passes between us, and I hope like hell Tess and Holt didn’t pick up on it.
“I’m sure I’ll hear something soon.” Her hand tightens around her glass before she sets it down slowly and smooths her napkin over her lap.
“You should have told me.”
The minute the words are out of my mouth, I know I’ve gone too far. It’s not my place. I’m her boss. That’s it. Everything else is…well, it shouldn’t be anything.
“I just mean?—”
Her phone rings, saving me from whatever I was about to say, which no doubt would have buried me in front of my friend and my daughter, if I hadn’t already done that.
“I’m so sorry.” Lilly grabs for her phone. “I’ll just—oh.” She looks up. “I should take this, it might be?—”
“Go.” Tessa waves her away, and she jumps up from the table, offering us a small apologetic smile on her way.
I watch her go because I can’t seem to stop myself. The second she disappears into the living room, it feels different. Quieter.
Holt leans back in his chair and clears his throat.
I don’t look at him. I know exactly what he’s thinking, and I don’t want to deal with it. Not now.
“That’s so strange,” Tessa says, breaking the silence.
“Lilly is the perfect candidate for…well… for any job in finance,” she shakes her head.
“She’s totally overqualified to be your assistant, Dad.
I just thought it might be a good way for her to get a bit more experience right out of school.
She should have a million offers by now… ”
“And you're sure you want to let her go, Luke?”
I risk a glance at Holt then. He’s stroking his beard, watching me carefully as if he already knows something. Or thinks he does.
"Because from where I’m sitting,” he continues with a grin, “things seem to be working out?—”
“Lilly?” Tessa interrupts him, her eyes darting to the door to the living room. We all turn to see Lilly standing there, holding her phone, her face white, her eyes wide. “What’s wrong?”
“I know why I’m not getting any job offers,” she says, her voice hardly more than a whisper. “It’s Barrett. He’s blackballed me.”
Lilly
I didn’t believe it. Not at first.