Chapter 22
Twenty-Two
B reakfast sizzled away on the stove in front of Lily. Gunner was so sweet to her at the bar, but as soon as they’d gotten home, he’d withdrawn. After making sure Sage was down for the night, he’d gone into his room, leaving Lily’s nerves frayed and on edge. His door stayed open as he worked into the late hours on his laptop while she flitted about, too worked up for any restful sleep. She’d heard him exchange a few calls with the guys, but he didn’t once look at her again.
All she could think to do that morning when she woke up was cook. She needed to apologize for being outside on her own. If she hadn’t been stubborn about getting some air, then Gunner wouldn’t have anything to be mad at her for.
“Something smells good in here.” His raspy morning voice sent a jolt straight through her heart.
“Eggs and bacon, blueberry pancakes, and a fruit salad.”
“All of my favorites. How long have you been up?” Gunner asked as he grabbed a pancake off the stack.
“Not too long. I figured making all of your favorites would be a good way to apologize for last night. ”
His head snapped up from the cup of coffee he was pouring, and she took a step back, bumping into the counter.
“What do you have to apologize for?”
“What? I mean, I went outside without anyone last night. I told you not to worry, that I could keep myself safe, and then literally did not keep any of my promises. If Sebastian hadn’t been there, I don’t know?—”
“Lil. None of that was your fault. You should be able to walk outside to cool off if you need to. I shouldn’t have…” His hand rested on her arm. “I shouldn’t have shut down when we got home. My mind wouldn’t let me focus on anything beyond finding out how that asshole found you again and what he wanted with you once I knew you were back home safe. I left the bedroom door open, hoping you’d come talk to me if you needed to, but I should have made an effort to come talk to you. I’m sorry.”
“Why are you like that?”
“Like what?”
“So sweet to me. Always worrying about my feelings. Always apologizing, making sure I’m not taking on more mentally than you think I can handle.”
Gunner froze, the look in his eyes undecipherable to her.
“We’re friends.”
“Right. Our friendship.”
“Lil…I?—”
“It’s okay. I get it.” She turned back to the bacon, now crispy, and started moving it from the frying pan onto a plate. “Breakfast is ready. I’m sure you have to head down to the office soon, and I told Sloane I’d be over to her office at some point this morning.”
She heard Gunner choke on the coffee he was sipping.
“What? Are you okay?”
“You can’t leave the apartment. ”
“Okay, I know I just admitted that I messed up last night, but you can’t seriously think I’m just going to stay inside from now on. Sloane’s literally in the office next door. All I have to do is walk from this secure building, down about twelve feet of sidewalk, and I’ll be at her door.”
“Did last night not teach you anything about what can happen in twelve feet? Sloane can come over here and hang out when she’s done seeing clients.”
“They took that guy into custody,” Lily said as she scooped two eggs onto a plate for him. She wasn’t about to mention that she had to go to Sloane’s office to see if she would be a good fit for the receptionist job Sloane had mentioned. She didn’t exactly want Gunner to know that part yet, though. “I’m sure that the sheriff’s office would have called you or someone else on the team if they’d released him. And I’m assuming he’s the only one around right now trying to get me, seeing as how he’s done it twice. Unless you know something more? Am I in danger? Is Sage?”
“Danger is everywhere, Lily, and I don’t want you or Sage getting hurt. Or worse.”
“Listen, I understand. But I’m not willing to put my life on hold just because one creep took a shine to me. I just need some normalcy.”
“Fine. But I want you to text me when you leave and when you are with Sloane. And when you get back. Maybe you should just come down to the office before you come back to the apartment.”
“I’ll see how Sage does being out and about. If she’s not ready for a nap, we’ll stop in. But if she’s cranky, I’m bringing her home and I’ll let you know we got back safe.”
“Fine.”
“It’s going to be okay. I promise. Try to have a good day at work and I’ll let you know how we fare out in the dangerous and wild Silver Springs.” Lily laughed when she saw the corner of Gunner’s mouth pull up in a smile.
“Hey stranger!” Gia’s voice on the other end of the phone had her throat constricting with emotion. “How’s life in Texas treating you?”
“Hey, G.” Shit. The sound of her best friend’s voice had her getting choked up already.
“Oh no. Why do you sound like you’re going to cry?”
“I just miss you.”
“My brother is treating you right, isn’t he?”
Lily looked up and down the street. There were a few people milling about, but no one was close by. “Of course he is. As well as any fake husband would treat their fake wife. Maybe even better.”
“So have you two…” her voice dropped down to a whisper, “consummated the marriage?”
“Gia, no,” Lily laughed at the outrageous thought. “Your brother doesn’t see me that way. Trust me when I say things are better like this.”
“You deserve so much more than a platonic relationship with that potato.”
“Be nice! That’s your brother you’re talking about, and my husband.”
“Hmm, so you feel the need to defend him. Interesting.”
“Of course I do. Just because we aren’t…you know, sleeping together doesn’t mean I don’t care about him.”
Sage fussed in her stroller, and Lily stopped to adjust her sunshade.
“But you have needs, Lil. And eww, I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but so does he. God, I need to wash my brain out now. ”
“It’s been a long time since I had any of those needs tended to. I just don’t care about it right now. Sage basically takes up all my brain space. And besides, the last time anyone tried to take care of those needs, they failed miserably, and I ended up pregnant with Sage. I don’t need that right now.”
Her best friend laughed on the other end of the line. “Okay, but maybe I want another niece or a nephew. I’m never going to get one if you don’t start working your feminine wiles on Gunner. There’s something there, Lily. I saw it in the way he looked at you before you guys left for Texas. The way he fussed over you when you were sick and then home from the hospital.”
“He was just worried about me.”
“Exactly.”
“Exactly what?”
“That man does not worry about things or people he doesn’t care about. That’s not the way his mind works.”
“He was probably just worried about having to raise Sage by himself.”
“Lily…”
“Gia, I can’t get my hopes up that our marriage means something more to him than a mission he’s just trying to complete. I need to protect my heart so I can prepare for the moment he finds the woman he actually wants to spend the rest of his life with.”
“I get it. I really do. But promise me, if you sense he’s changing his feelings for you, even the littlest bit, you’ll give him a chance.”
“What happened to ‘Gunner is a potato’ and all that?”
“Well, he may be a potato, but he’s meant to be your potato.”
That had Lily laughing again.
“Alright, enough about my dumb brother. Tell me all about my niece! How is Sage? Has she been doing anything new since you got there?”
Lily’s heart felt like it was about to burst when she looked down at Sage. “She’s great. Smiling more, but she wants to be held all the time lately. I’m surprised she’s not screaming her head off right now in her stroller.”
“I hate that I’m not there with you. Maybe I can come visit soon.”
“I’d love that, Gia, honestly more than anything in the world, but I’m not sure that’s a good idea right now.”
The worry in her voice must have been clear, because there was a pause on the other end of the line.
“What’s going on?” Gia asked.
“There was a guy. He tried to take me.”
“What? Take you where?”
“I don’t know. Gunner is super on edge from it, but I think it’s probably just some local guy who’s maybe not well, or something like that. All I know is that it wasn’t James, and on some really weird and messed up level, I’m glad it’s not related to him. I really can’t have him or his parents finding out where we are. Corrine made it clear she would try to take Sage from me, and that would kill me, G.”
“There’s no way she would ever win any case against you, but I get it. I promise I haven’t said anything to anyone.”
“He hasn’t been looking for me?”
“No. In fact, I saw him not too long ago when I was coming out of work. But maybe that was before you guys left. Anyway, his eyes went wide like he’d seen a ghost and he took off running in the opposite direction. I just figured he’d heard about his mom showing up here and the threat Gunner made.”
The mid-morning sun beat down relentlessly on Lily, sweat dripping down and collecting on the small of her back. “Well, that’s good. I really don’t want them finding out where I am. Legally, she is mine and Gunner’s, and I did nothing wrong naming him as her father on the birth certificate.”
“Exactly, honey. They hold no power over you.”
Lily wiped her hand over her face. “I don’t think I’m ever going to get used to the weather here. It’s not even noon, and it’s already so hot I feel sick.”
“Why don’t I let you go? Get back somewhere cool and we can pick up our conversation later.”
“Yeah, probably a good idea. I don’t want Sage overheating. I’ll text you later.”
“Sounds great. Bye, Lily. Don’t forget to give that brother of mine a little hell from me.”
“Yeah, will do G. Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
Lily hadn’t paid attention to how far she’d walked while on the phone, but looking up at the signs on the street, she realized she was farther away from the apartment than she’d meant to be. Gunner would be pissed if he realized how far she had wandered.
She blinked the sweat out of her eyes. Jesus. How had it become so hot out? Looking around, Lily spotted a diner with a few people milling about inside. She hated to stop, knowing she needed to make it to Sloane’s office and then home before Gunner could suspect she’d been wandering, but the call of ice water was too alluring. Maybe she could sneak and nurse Sage in there while she rested.
“Hey there, sugar. You new around here?” A white-haired woman came over to greet her at the door. Lily couldn’t hold back a smile. The woman reminded her of her maternal grandmother, soft in all the right places to give the best hugs. When Lily raised an eyebrow at her question, the woman softly smiled. “We don’t get too many people just passing through. Figured you had to be new to Clarence County. ”
“My husband and I just moved to Silver Springs for his job.”
“Ah, I see. Is he one of those Montgomery Defense boys?”
Fear struck Lily’s stomach. There was no reason not to trust this woman, so why was she hesitant to share details about Gunner?
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Oh, well, we’re happy to have you all! They’ve certainly got all the women in town up in a tizzy. I mean ex-SEALs built like the gods, and I have yet to meet one of them that didn’t have great manners. I didn’t know any of them were married, though.”
“We’re newlyweds.”
“How special! And how old is your little one?” The woman nodded towards Sage.
“She’s a little over two months.”
“Oh goodness. How precious. Seems like just yesterday my Jessie was that age. Now she’s working behind the counter for me.” A little waif of a thing waved from behind a case filled with delicious looking pies.
Sweat still trickled down Lily’s back, despite the air conditioning in the small diner. Black dots filled her vision, and she reached for the half wall she was standing next to as she tried to blink them away.
“Oh gosh, honey, you just lost all your color. Did the heat get to you?”
All she could muster was a nod as the woman wrapped her arm around Lily’s back and ushered her towards a booth.
“Sage…”
“What’s that, love?”
“The baby.”
“Oh, she’s right here and right as rain. Don’t you worry. Let me get you some cold water. That Texas heat can be really unforgiving. ”
“Thank you….”
“Dolores, hon. But everyone calls me Dolly. I hope you will, too.”
“I’m Lily.”
“Lily and Sage. Beautiful names. I’ll be right back with that water.”