Chapter 22
TWENTY-TWO
Work isthe worst kind of torture this morning. Evie crashed on my couch the night before, since Francine was already asleep in the guest room. I insisted Evie take my bed, but she was terrified Lucy would wake up in the middle of the night and find her there, and she didn’t want to take the cottage without Francine knowing. In the end, I had to allow it.
At six in the morning, I was able to head Francine off in the hallway to warn her about our guest. I told Francine the story, we called the police, then I rushed Evie back to Firefly, where Gabe was waiting for her. He did a sweep of the entire building, even checking closets, the attic, and anything that opened.
Unfortunately, Gabe didn’t find any sign of forced entry or evidence of any person being there other than Evie. “What about that camera?” he asked Evie, pointing to it.
She frowned and shook her head. “Those haven’t worked since Patrick left. He said he was going to send someone to fix them, but he might have forgotten.”
What the hell?I didn’t know Evie was living in a busy bar with no security cameras to back her up in case something happened.
Gabe promised to stay until Kyle got there for his shift, so I headed back to my place to start my routine, sans the run. I would have to work off the steam later.
Now I’m stuck in a session with Lilith, a woman who likes to treat our visits like a coffee date. She asks me just as many questions about myself as I ask her. It’s inappropriate, seeing as she isn’t Evelyn Vaughn—not even close.
I humor Lilith, understanding enough about my profession and the people who come here to know that she booked the session for a reason. However she chooses to use that time is up to her. All I can do is try to steer her in the right direction—to look deep within herself rather than to try to coax me into asking her out.
According to the file Jenkins had for her, Lilith has been in and out of therapy since she was a little girl. Apparently, she found her father dead in a blood-filled tub and has been traumatized ever since. She didn’t speak for two entire years of her childhood, then she seemed to start overcompensating for it in her teen years. She was promiscuous, as Jenkins noted, welcoming sex as early as fourteen years old.
As much as I want to judge Lilith for the way she’s presenting herself to me and using these sessions, I sympathize with the woman more than she’ll ever know.
“And how is your daughter coping with the loss of her father?” I ask, hoping to get her off the subject of scheduling playdates for Lucy and Willow.
Lilith’s eyes glaze over for a second, then she frowns. “If I’m completely honest... not great. I haven’t been able to grieve for myself because I’ve been so busy making sure Willow is okay.” Lilith presses her shoulders back, raises her chin, and takes in a deep breath. “It’s what my mom did for me when I lost my father. She showed me how strong a woman could be, how there’s nothing we can’t do. I looked up to her my whole life.”
“Having a strong adult in our lives is very important. Your daughter is going to be just fine, Lilith. Please let me know if I can help in any way.”
She smiles, her eyes filling with genuine warmth. “You’ve been wonderful, Lincoln.” She lets out a light laugh. “I will say, I was a little wary of someone new taking over for J.D., but I’m glad I gave you a chance. I hope the others in town haven’t given you too much of a hard time.”
I shake my head, ruefully thinking that Evie was the only one who gave me a hard time. “Everyone has been great.”
Lilith nods and purses her lips. “Speaking of J.D., you haven’t heard from him by chance, have you?”
I shake my head. “I’m afraid I have not. Everything okay?”
“Just curious where he ran off to.” She shrugs. “I’ve been in his care for so long—on and off, of course. It’s not like him to just disappear.”
“I hear he had some family things to attend to.” I don’t say more, not wanting to get any deeper into anyone else’s business.
The alarm buzzes, alerting her that our time is up. I stand and give Lilith a friendly nod. “That was a great session today, Lilith.”
Her smile spreads, and she walks forward, opening her arms for a hug. “Thank you, Lincoln.” She wraps her arms around me, and I somewhat hesitantly pat her back in response.
“Same time next week?” I ask.
She nods and turns to grab her purse. “Absolutely.” Then she looks back. “Willow wanted to have a few friends over this weekend. Maybe Lucy would want to come hang out? You can come, too, if you’d like to stay.” Her brows raise as she awaits my reply.
I frown, conjuring up all the mock disappointment I can. “Lucy and I already have plans this weekend but thank you so much for the invitation.”
Lilith’s smile pinches tight. I can tell she’s not pleased. “All right, Lincoln,” she says, cocking her head. “Tell me the truth. Are you dating Evelyn Vaughn?”
Her bluntness surprises me. “Lilith, I really shouldn’t be speaking to you about my personal life.”
She gives me a sly smile. “Everyone is curious. That’s what you get for moving to a small town.”
I chuckle, still not sure what to say. “Well, don’t go starting rumors until I figure things out for myself.” I hope that will be enough to drive home that it’s really none of her business.
She winks and struts toward the door, swinging her hips as she goes. “Well, I think it’s a great thing, if it’s true. Evie is a pretty girl.” She frowns like something’s just dawned on her. “Never seen her really with anyone, though. Well, except for Gabe, but we all know that was short-lived.”
I walk toward the exit, passing her as I go. If she’s not going to see herself out, then I’ll help her. Smiling again, I open the office door for her. “Have a good night, Lilith. See you next week.”
As soon as Lilith’s gone, I tell Doreen she can go home, then I text Evie to let her know I’m heading to Firefly to get her. She’s coming to my office for a private session, but I don’t feel comfortable letting her walk alone at night, considering recent events.
Fifteen minutes later, she slips out the Firefly door and regards me with flushed cheeks. Her shyness would almost make me think I hadn’t just enjoyed the best sex of my life with her last night.
“Hey,” I say, holding my hand out.
She slips her fingers through mine, her cheeks darkening. “Hi.”
I squeeze her hand gently. “Work okay?”
She nods, batting her lashes up at me. I swear I’ve never witnessed Evie so nervous as I’m seeing her now. “Yeah,” she says. “Thanks again for letting me crash on your couch last night. I’m sure it’s safe enough to stay in my apartment again. Gabe did another sweep after you left and found zero evidence of anything out of the ordinary.”
I want to tell her I don’t trust Officer Gabe as far as I can throw him, but I force myself to consider her perspective. Gabe is her friend, creepy ex-boyfriend or not. They share a history I could never, and would never, take away. “I’ve already talked to Francine, and the guest room is all prepped and ready for you tonight. You can stay there as long as you need to.”
She grimaces and shakes her head. “I can’t, Lincoln. Lucy won’t understand.”
“Are you kidding?” I laugh. “Lucy will be ecstatic to have a live-in friend. Besides, I’ll talk to her and tell her it’s only temporary while your place gets cleaned. She won’t find out what’s really going on.”
Doubt still shadows her eyes. “We’ll see. Let’s get this whole repressed memories thing out of the way first. Maybe I’m more nervous about that.”
I slip my hand out of hers to wrap my arm around her shoulders as we round the corner. “There’s nothing to be worried about. It’s just me.”
She looks up at me, her features visibly relaxing. “Exactly.” Her mouth curves a bit. “Maybe you’re the reason I’m nervous. You’re about to learn just how dark my life was at one point in time.”
I hug her shoulders. “I happen to remember telling you some pretty dark details of my own last night. But what we uncover tonight is completely up to you. We’ll go at your pace. We don’t even have to get into anything specific if you don’t want to. We can just talk.”
Evie lets out a deep breath. “Okay.”
It’s one word, but it’s acceptance, trust in something neither of us quite understands. The fact that she’s trusting me at all is pretty fucking fantastic.
I unlock the door to my building and let her in then lock it behind me. Then I usher her into my office. She walks naturally to the couch and nestles into the corner, which seems to be her favorite spot.
Then she squares her shoulders and looks back at me. “Where do we start?”
I take a seat in the oversized chair across from her and lean back, ready to listen. “Wherever you want to begin.”