Chapter 3
Dean
Nine days into October had brought a cool change to most mornings, making getting out of bed harder.
Especially after last night.
I wanted to stay wrapped in the sheets with Lily a little longer, relying on each other’s body warmth since the radiator in her room was broken. But she had work, and I wanted to keep up the illusion that everything was still okay.
This was why I started training at a new gym, and running myself ragged on the combined ten miles there and back to Lily’s. Running kept my mind busy and, in a way, was my version of self-punishment for getting into this mess.
My chest heaved as I leaned against the back wall of the elevator, wiping sweat from my face using the bottom of my shirt.
The numbers above the door slowly ticked to level three, the top floor of this apartment building.
I made this elevator trip so many times that it was a habit.
It felt normal. Like I had lived here longer.
It was only five months ago, during the dark early hours of a Sunday night, Lily had found me in the one-way street outside.
Normally, my cynical self would eye-roll at anyone falling head over heels for someone that fast, especially within five months…but here I was, head over heels and still falling for a woman way out of my league. For me, she was home.
The elevator doors slid open, revealing the hallway leading to Lily’s apartment at the other end of the top floor.
Standing right outside Lily’s apartment was a woman who was slowly becoming my arch-nemesis — Susan. The nosiest person I had ever met.
She had her back to me and her ear pressed firmly to the door.
You’ve got to be fucking kidding.
All Susan knew was that Lily needed bed rest. But that obviously wasn’t a good enough excuse to keep her nose out of Lily’s business.
I approached on steady, quiet steps and managed to get right behind her before I slid my hands into the pockets of my shorts and cleared my throat.
She slapped a hand to her chest as she whirled with a gasp, then slowly drew her eyes up to my face. Her mouth opened and closed as she tried to come up with an excuse.
I cocked a brow.
“You shouldn’t sneak up on a person like that. Especially considering my age.”
I tilted my head slightly. “Did you forget which door was yours?”
“No, I was going to check on Lily.”
I gestured to the door with my thumb. “Through the door?”
“I was going to knock.”
“Uh-huh.”
Her eyes narrowed spitefully. “You know you can’t live here unless you’re paying rent, and you seem to be hanging around quite a lot.”
“Who says I’m not payin’ rent?” I wasn’t, but Kira’s moms didn’t mind me staying for a while.
“People talk.”
“Yeah?” I crossed my arms and jerked my chin in a nod. “Who?”
She receded a step, throat bobbing as she fiddled with the thin silver chain around her neck. Her eyes dropped to her watch. “Oh, look at the time! I should be going. I have something in the oven. Not that it is any of your business.”
“Really?”
“Yes.” She straightened and walked across the hallway to her apartment. “Tell Lily I hope she feels better soon.” She hurried inside.
I folded my arms and settled against the wall, watching Susan’s door as I slowly counted to five in my head. At the three-second mark, her door opened enough for her to poke her head out, eager to attempt to eavesdrop again until she saw I hadn’t moved.
I flashed her a smile, and she promptly shut the door again, flicking every lock on the other side.
My smile dropped as I pushed away from the wall and let myself into Lily and Kira’s apartment using Lily’s key.
Lily hadn’t hinted she wanted me gone yet, even if she had been emotionally distant.
She explained last night, as we lay in bed, that the reason for her distance was only because of her self-consciousness of the scars.
She thought I would see her differently once I had a good look at them.
That was a thought I wanted to make sure never bothered her again.
The smell of toast filled the apartment, and I could hear someone quietly moving around the kitchen as I walked down the short hallway. Coming up on my right was Kira’s bedroom door, and seeing as it was still closed, it meant Lily was awake and making breakfast alone.
I walked into the living room, tossing the keys onto the countertop.
Lily, buttering two slices of toast with raspberry jam, looked up and smiled warmly. The way her eyes quickly took in my bare arms didn’t go unnoticed either.
“Morning, again,” she whispered.
Her eyes were shinier today compared to last night.
All of her looked shinier. She was in her work clothes with her hair brushed back into a low bun.
Her crisp white button-up top was tucked loosely into a pair of skinny jeans, and she had rolled the sleeves up to sit beneath her elbows, revealing her slender wrists.
There was no use hiding the grin spreading on my face as I walked into the kitchen, stepping in behind her while I eyed her figure in those clothes.
“Morning,” I hummed, bracing my hands on the countertop on either side of her.
“I’m guessing the run was good?” She peered over her shoulder, licking jam from the knife she used. The corner of her mouth curved up.
The only response I could muster was to kiss my favorite part of her neck.
The soft area above her pulse. When my lips parted and brushed against her skin, she tilted her head, exposing that side of her throat.
I held the rest of me away from her, keeping my sweat-soaked shirt off her clean clothes.
“You smell so good,” I murmured onto her skin.
She let out a little laugh. “It’s just fabric softener.”
“You taste good too, but I don’t think that’s fabric softener,” I smiled, leaving lazy kisses wherever my mouth wandered.
Kira’s bedroom door clicked open, reminding us we weren’t home alone, before she stepped into view. Her fiery red hair was stacked in a messy bun as she yawned and stretched.
I pulled back from Lily, turning down the PDA but keeping my arms on either side of her as I offered Kira a nod in greeting. And briefly glanced down to make sure I wasn’t revealing too much beneath the fabric of my black knee-length shorts.
Kira rolled her eyes as she smiled. “You know you don’t have to stop doing the cute relationship stuff around me.”
“Are you sure? It’s not too awkward?” Lily started to move away with her toast, but I gently grabbed her waist to hold her in place. She glanced back with a frown and then pressed her lips together to keep from smiling when she realized why she couldn’t move yet.
My body was just a little excited…
Kira hadn’t noticed as she continued. “It’s a distraction from he-who-does-not-deserve-to-be-mentioned.” She visibly forced back a shudder.
His name wasn’t spoken out loud, but it was enough to subdue the mood.
“And you two are cute together, so don’t stop because of me,” Kira continued before she swiped a piece of toast from Lily’s plate and headed to the couch.
“By all means, help yourself,” Lily drawled, lifting the second piece of toast from her plate.
I couldn’t help myself when I took a bite, making her suck in a quiet gasp.
The smile in Lily’s eyes betrayed her attempt to seem annoyed as she jabbed my stomach lightly with her elbow. “Go have a shower, toast thief.”
I chuckled and backed away. “Yes, ma’am.”
We pulled up outside the Whitmore real estate agency right before 8 AM, driving slowly along the brown and orange fallen leaves packed into the gutter before I put the Cadillac into park and turned the engine off.
Lily paused, watching as I pulled the keys from the ignition.
“What?” I asked.
“You don’t have to come in. It’s just work.”
I shrugged, tugging the sleeves of my hoodie up my forearms. “It’s your first day back.”
She smiled as she gathered her bag from the back seat, bringing herself closer. “And I can walk in on my own.” She kissed my cheek.
Sue me for feeling a little protective of her. She was finding her feet again, and I wanted her to have a smooth landing when she did.
I rested my wrist on the steering wheel as I watched her and then looked past her shoulder at the office.
Through the glass front doors, I could see her mother and the other busybody who worked in reception eyeing the car with scrutiny.
Her mother’s gaze narrowed with spite when she recognized the loud car was mine.
Still not a fan. Noted.
“I’ll be fine, Dean,” Lily said, cupping my face in her hands to pull my attention to her. “See you at four o’clock?”
I let out a disgruntled hum in agreement as I read her face. There wasn’t a hint of sadness, worry, or fear in her eyes. Like something had clicked into place last night. Or her poker face was better than I thought.
Don’t be that guy; trust your girlfriend. And kiss her properly before she leaves—
Lily had already climbed out of the car with a little wave before I jumped out of my door. As I strode around the front of the Cadillac, she watched me curiously from the sidewalk until she realized what I had in mind, and her face lit up with a smile.
“You thought you could get away that easily without a proper goodbye?”
She shook her head. “You’re ridiculous.”
“I’m in love.” I stopped in front of her, cupped her face, and kissed her.
Fuck what people thought about PDA. Fuck what her mom thought too.
Lily’s hands curled around my wrists and slid down my forearms as she tilted her head back, kissing me softly until she slowly stopped.
“I should get inside before I change my mind about starting work today,” she muttered, eyes lifting from my lips.
I raised an eyebrow.
She looked like she was considering it as she played with the drawstring of my hood, but then she blinked and stepped back. “Nope. No. Don’t give me that look.”
“What look?”
“You know exactly what look.” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “Like you’re undressing me with your eyes.”