Page 78 of The Trouble With Bad Boys

I did a quick scan of the tree line, but nothing seemed out of place. I wandered toward Lily’s greenhouse, drawing in a deep breath of the sweet scent from the succulent blooms. I walked the rows, studying the flowers.

I paused next to the brightly colored lilies and fingered a soft petal. They were beautiful and delicate, yet they demonstrated a strength that lay deep beneath the surface, just like Lily herself,.

Something had been different all afternoon, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. Until now.

Here, surrounded by her things, felt right. Like I fit here in Pine Ridge, in this house… in Lily’s arms.

Each day with her was better than the last. It was as if my DNA had been altered somehow, like she was part of me. It was a terrifying notion, because it made me wish for more. It made me want to put down roots.

But for every reason I wanted to stay, there was a reason I couldn’t. Besides my past, there was the issue of work. I didn’t have a true identity, and putting my name on anything meant I could be traced. Lily deserved more than a lover who was little more than a ghost.

Regret tugged at my heart, and my feet felt heavy as I trudged back toward the house. Temporary consolation was all I could offer her.

In that moment, I hated what I’d become.

Twenty

LILY

A knock came from the direction of the door just as I stepped out of the shower, and I jumped.

Who could it be?

Rodrigo had a spare key for the suite, and as far as I knew, no one else knew where we were staying. Unless they had followed us…

I had dismissed Rodrigo’s concerns yesterday as we stepped off the elevator, but now I was regretting not paying closer attention to my surroundings. The knock came again, harder this time, sending my pulse into a tailspin.

Grabbing a towel from the rack, I quickly wrapped it around me as I debated my options. Rodrigo had my cell phone; I could call him, but he would probably be too far away to do anything. I could contact the front desk, but what help would they be?

I ventured out of the bathroom on tiptoe, then crossed the bedroom and peered out into the living area. I jumped when the knock came a third time.

What if it was completely innocent? Most killers wouldn’t just stride right up and knock on the door. Unless they wanted to lull me into a false sense of security.

I bit my lower lip and deliberated for another couple of seconds before swiftly striding across the room to the foyer. Drawing in a deep breath, I peered through the peephole. The breath rushed from my lungs when I saw Mia and Jules on the other side.

Holding the towel firmly in place, I cracked the door open a few inches. Two sets of eyes stared at me with concern. Mia was the first to speak. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” I gave a shaky nod. “I was just in the shower.”

Her gaze moved past me to the empty suite. “I saw your friend leave a little while ago. Is he back yet?”

I shook my head. “He’ll probably be gone for most of the day.” I opened the door a little wider. “Do you want to come in?”

The two women filed inside, and I closed up behind them. Mia propped her hands on her hips and stared at me. “Is everything okay? For real?”

“Yeah.” My brows pulled together as I pointed toward the bathroom. “I just?—”

“That’s not what I mean. We both saw what happened yesterday between the two of you.”

She gestured between herself and Jules, and my heart sank. “It’s not like that.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “How well do you really know this guy?”

“I—”

Jules stepped forward and placed a soft hand on my arm. “Lily, I know we don’t know each other all that well, so I’m sorry if I’m overstepping, but... I can’t stand to see another woman hurt at the hands of a man.”

I shook my head vehemently. “He would never hurt me. I promise,” I said at their dubious looks.

---