Page 85 of Delilah In Discretion

“And what didMr. Russelhave to say about that?” she asked, and as if on cue, Killian’s loud voice shook the entire home.

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE, LOCKWOOD!”

Grabbing Delilah’s hand, Kimiko glared at Archer for the final time. “See? Not invited.” She dragged Delilah away from him to which he could do nothing but watch with an unreadable expression.

“Thank you all for coming. It was nice to see you all!” Brielle said with a small smile to the last few guests who were now on their way out. She groaned heavily as she closed the door and watched Killian, Calvin, Shin, and Blaine sitting at the dining room table, going back and forth. Though it was always three against one, Calvin stood his ground and made up for the lack of assistance in going after the other three.

Meanwhile, Delilah sat outside with her dog in her lap as she watched her younger brother, Zachary, playing in the kiddie pool.

Someone took a seat beside her, and she looked over to see Archer staring off into the open yard.

“You’re afraid of me,” he stated rather than asked, and she sighed as she shrugged.

“You’re not exactly friendly.”

He didn’t say anything. He looked over to her for a moment, and she averted her gaze.

“You’re right. I’m not kind to anyone, but I make an effort with you, Princess.”

“Really? You make an effort?” she asked, clearly not impressed with his response, and he sighed.

“Delilah. You and I both know this is as far as an effort that I can make.”

She continued looking away from him as she puffed, “Well, you should try harder.”

He looked around for a short moment before gazing over at her once the coast was clear.

“...can I hold you?”he whispered, and she gulped softly as she made a move to scoot away, her heart racing as he watched her.

“T-that’s not a good idea.”

He grabbed her arm again, only this time more gently, as he made eye contact with her.

“Just for a little while. Our parents are busy; no one will know.”

She bit her lip for a second and eventually moved over to him. He wrapped his arms around her and nuzzled his head in the crook of her neck. She leaned into his hold.

“You know I don’t mean to be harsh, Princess.”

She didn’t say anything, even as a small blush made its way to her face. Though Archer hadn’t always been mean or cruel to her, his jealous and overprotective behavior was what made her want to stay away. At times he was as kind as he could be, though his possessiveness or personality usually overpowered it.

Her dog remained comfortable on her lap despite Archer’s presence, and slowly, she could feel his hand slipping into hers. Her eyes glanced down at the hands that were beginning to intertwine, though she said nothing.

They sat in silence for a short while before they heard a throat clear. Getting ready to jump in fright, Delilah tried to move from Archer’s now unbreakable hold, but she relaxed slightly when she heard Benjamin’s voice.

Benjamin was well aware of their love-hate relationship but said nothing because a few things were better to be left unsaid.

“...Archer, your mother is calling for you,” Benjamin said.

Archer whispered in Delilah’s ear before he pulled away and stood: “Happy birthday.”

He gave Delilah one last glance before following Benjamin inside. Before entering the home, he glimpsed over his shoulder to see her back to him now, and he mouthed the words he’d longed to say to her.

“I love you…”

Chapter twenty-eight

Omniscient

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