The elevator doors open and Zeke steps out. He glances around nervously, and it sets my teeth on edge. Something’s going on. He looks terrified, but he also seems oddly happy. And then I see why.
I swear my heart stops beating when she steps out behind him. She flicks her dark curls over her shoulder and folds her arms across her chest. Our eyes meet, and I stand frozen, certain I’m dreaming and will wake up at any minute.
“Shorty?” Xander’s voice cuts through the uncomfortable silence. He’s standing at the other end of the hallway, looking as shocked as I feel.
“Hey,” she says so quietly I almost don’t hear her. Then the four of us stare at each other for what feels like a fucking eternity. Say something, asshole. Go pick her up and carry her to bed. Fucking chain her to the goddamn frame if you have to.
The sound of thundering paws breaks the silence for us, and Snowflake charges down the hallway.
Letting out a delighted shriek, Lily crouches and holds out her arms. The stupid mutt jumps straight into them. Okay, maybe he isn’t as stupid as he looks, considering he did the exact same thing I wish I could have done.
“Oh my goodness.” He places his paws on her shoulders and licks her face like it’s a prime rib, and her giggles fill the hallway. Content that he’s tasted enough of her face, he drops to all fours and sticks his head between her thighs, which only makes her laugh harder. Forget every bad thing I’ve ever said about him, the damn dog is a genius.
“Snowflake. No.” Zeke commands. The obedient pup backs off a little, his little nub whipping back and forth and his tongue hanging out.
Lily brushes the fur from her jeans and stands up slowly. “You called him Snowflake?”
“That’s what you wanted to name him. How could we call him anything else?” Xander takes a tentative step toward her.
A quiet sob falls from her lips, and she brushes a tear from her cheek. Zeke stands behind her, his hands stuffed in his pockets as though he wants to touch her but he’s not sure if he’s allowed. I know exactly how he feels.
Before Xander reaches her, she’s distracted by a movement behind him. A split second later, Stella comes into view and warily eyes Lily, her head low and her tail wagging just a little.
Lily gasps. “And who is this?”
“This is Stella. She’s Snowflake’s adoptive mom,” Zeke says, holding out his hand and beckoning the dog over. She goes straight to him, and he scratches behind her ear.
“Stella,” Lily repeats, a look of wonder on her face. “Can I pet her?”
“Sure.” Zeke looks at the dog with an expression I never saw on his face until the day we brought her home. “She’s a little nervous around people, but we told her you’re one of the good ones.”
Lily’s entire face lights up as she crouches back down and holds out her hand for Stella to sniff. In no time at all, Stella decides she likes our girl and happily steps into Lily’s arms, smiling her doggy smile as Lily rubs her back. “You told her about me?”
Xander squats down beside them. “Of course we did. She wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you, shorty.”
Lily looks between Xander and Zeke. “She’s from one of the puppy farms?”
Zeke nods.
“You … you saved her? You were the one who had those places shut down?”
“It was all of us,” Zeke replies, nodding in my direction.
She looks back at me, and her eyes swim with tears as she pushes herself to her feet. “You too?”
I swallow the ball of emotion lodged in my throat, but my voice is still little more than a croak. “Yeah.”
“Are you back, Lily? For good?” Leave it to Xander to ask the question I know we’re all waiting to have answered.
Clearing her throat, she gives a small shake of her head. My heart bottoms out. Is that a no? “I think we … we need to talk.”
Relief washes over me. It’s not an outright no. Talking is good. I’d much rather fuck her into submission, but beggars can’t be choosers. We’ll talk things through and then fuck her into submission.
“West made roast lamb,” Xander says.
Lily looks at me and licks her lips, and I push down all the memories of that tongue on my neck, my chest, my cock. “I thought I could smell your signature dish.”
“It’ll be ready in about twenty minutes.” I recognize the purple bag in Zeke’s hand. “You want to put your things away first?”
“Your room is still how you left it,” Xander adds hopefully.
“I, uh, I don’t know.”
“Lily,” Zeke says softly. “Please? Just give us one night?”
Looking pained, she finally nods, and I wonder what he did to get her here. Whatever it was, I owe him.
We eat an awkward dinner. Despite coming here to talk, Lily seems as reluctant as the rest of us to bring up any of the things we should be discussing right now, including her true identity. While I believe she never had any intention to hurt us, she still hid who she was. She still lied.
“Anyone else finding this super awkward?” Xander asks as he pushes his carrots around his plate. Lily bites her lip and glances at the three of us, her face flushing pink and obscuring the tiny smattering of freckles across her nose. He stares at her then, his bright blue eyes trained on her face. “What if we start with telling you how sorry we are?”
“You all already told me that,” she says quietly.
I let my fork clatter to my plate, and she looks over at me. “But you don’t believe us?”
Her eyes brim with tears, and the memory of how cruel we were to her that night causes a fresh wave of crippling guilt to wash over me. “I do believe you’re sorry …”
Xander props his elbows on the table and leans forward. “But?”
Her slender throat works as she swallows. She sets down her fork and takes a deep breath. “It doesn’t change what you did or how humiliated I was. It doesn’t change the fact that you refused to give me any opportunity to explain my side of the story.”
Xander reaches for her but then pulls his hand back. “But—”
“But nothing, Xander. You all turned your backs on me. I stood in the lobby of this building, the place you made me believe was my home, sobbing like my life was over, and you sent your goddamn doorman to bring me my things.” She doesn’t bother to wipe away the fat tear rolling down her cheek. “It wasn’t until you saw my article that you knew Bree lied about me. You believed her with no real evidence, while my word meant nothing to you. And that’s when I realized that I didn’t mean anything to you either.” Her voices cracks along with my heart. Surely she can’t actually believe that. She pushes back her stool.
“But you lied to us about who you really are,” I tell her. “We know that you’re Liliana Constantine.”
Her eyes go wide, and for a long moment, the kitchen is silent but for the sound of her harsh breaths. “No.” She shakes her head. “You don’t get to put this all on me. I know I kept my true identity a secret, and I know I should have told you about my past, but I lied to protect someone I love. To keep myself safe. But if you’d asked me, if you had come to me with what Bree told you—” She gasps, tears running freely down her face now. “If you’d come to me, I would have told you the truth.”
Shame gnaws a hole in my gut, and I respond before I can think about what I’m saying. “It’s easy to say that now, isn’t it? But the truth is we’ll never know.”
Her jaw drops, and she glares at me as though she’s about to tear me a new one. I wish she would. I wish she’d rage at me. Throw a goddamn plate at my head or something, because all this tension is too fucking much.
She doesn’t though. She wipes the tears from her cheeks and stands straight, shoulders rolled back and chin lifted. “You’re right, West, I guess we never will.” Then she walks out of the kitchen.
I ignore Xander and Zeke’s fierce glares and drop my face into my hands.
“You fucking asshole,” Xander yells.
Zeke remains quiet, but I feel the anger and frustration pouring from both of them. It’s inescapable. And I don’t blame them. I am a fucking asshole.
“Go fix it, West,” Zeke says quietly.
With a heavy sigh, I push back my stool and head off to stop our girl from running away. Blood thunders in my ears. She’s not leaving ever again. If necessary, I will tie her to her fucking bed.
