Page 75 of Lilly

"I do, but you usually don't take me aside like this to talk to me. And I know something's going on. I heard Mom and Dad whispering in the kitchen."

"That's why you were standing in the hall? You were trying to listen in to what they were saying?"

"Yeah," I say, avoiding his gaze.

"And what did you hear?"

I'm surprised by his question. I thought he was going to lecture me on how I shouldn't be eavesdropping.

"They said something about my mom. It sounds like she did something that made Dad really mad. Do you know what she did?"

"No." He lies his head back on the lounge chair, closing his eyes to shield them from the sun. "But when it comes to Katherine, anything's possible."

"Is that why Dad was so angry yesterday?"

"I don't know. I guess."

"Garret." I nudge him so he'll look at me. "Tell me the truth. I know you know what's going on. You were here all afternoon yesterday talking to Dad and Mom about this. So tell me what you know."

"Dad was just upset because he had a meeting in New York that didn't go well."

"What kind of meeting?"

"It was just a meeting with one of the guys who handles some of Dad's investments. Dad thinks he might've stole from him."

"Oh." I ponder that for a moment. That would definitely make my dad angry, but then why was he talking about my mom? "So you don't know anything about what my mom did?"

He shakes his head, then lays it back on the lounge chair and closes his eyes. "Don't you love this weather? It's so much better than when we were growing up in Connecticut."

"I guess it is, but sometimes I miss the seasons."

"You think you'll stay here after graduation?"

"Probably. I don't know where else I'd go. Plus, I don't want to move away from my crazy family." I smile.

"Or Reed," Garret says. "I assume he wants to live in L.A. after he graduates?"

"He says that now, but he might change his mind. It's too early to say."

"If he moved, would you go with him?"

Garret's eyes are still closed and he's talking in a casual tone, but it's clear he's fishing for information. Did Dad put him up to this? Or Rachel? Rachel seemed concerned when I told her I plan to marry Reed someday, so maybe she asked Garret to talk to me about it. My parents do this all the time. They use Garret to get me to talk. And when it doesn't work, Garret sends Jade to talk to me.

"Who put you up to this?" I ask.

He opens his eyes and looks at me. "Up to what?"

"This interrogation about Reed and me. Was it Dad?"

"I'm not interrogating you. It was just a question. I want to know if my little sister's thinking of moving away. Because if so, I don't want you to go."

"I won't. I'd miss you guys too much. And what would Abi and Hannah do without their Aunt Lilly?"

"What about Miles and Ethan? Did you forget about them?"

I laugh. "They don't sit still long enough to notice I'm even around."

"That's not true. They love you." He pauses. "So if Reed wanted to leave California, are you saying you wouldn't go with him?"

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