Page 13 of His Secret Addiction

As I make it back down to the lobby, I am convinced that I have ruined things between Lizzie and me, but when I walk up to her at the desk, an apology on my lips, I am met with a nervous smile. She is not alone at reception, but even with the company, I expect her to tell me to fuck off or something along those lines. I took things a little too far in the hotel room, and I deserve whatever she has in store for me, except she doesn’t seem angry.

I brush my hair from my face when I stop in front of her, but she speaks up before I can offer my apology. “Sebastian, your mother just called me,” she whispers, leaning in so my words don’t carry to the others in the lobby.

Her words take me aback. “What? How does she have your number?”

Lizzie rolls her eyes at me. “We are neighbors, remember?”

Oh, right. “Why would she call you?”

“She saw your Instagram post and wanted to confirm that the girl on your post was me.”

“Fuck! Why didn’t she just call me instead?”

Lizzie shakes her head. “I don’t know, but she wants to talk about it. She knows you are in town and said she and your dad want to have dinner with both of us.”

Fuck, I should have called my family when I arrived, but I was in a hurry to see Lizzie and clear things up between us before the news got to her. A part of me forgot how small Valor Springs is and how fast news travels. Someone probably called my parents the second I arrived in town.

“You don’t have to go with me to see my parents, Lizzy.”

“Your mother was really insistent about both of us joining them for dinner, but I don’t think I can make it anyway. The hotel check-in is open till late into the evening, and I can’t leave Abby to handle everything on her own.”

“Yes, you can,” chimes in the voice of the person who has been pretending not to be listening in on us. “You should go and see your in-laws, Lizzy. Besides, I can James will help me close up.”

“They are not my in-laws” Lizzie cuts herself off, letting out a loud sigh. “I can’t leave you to handle reception alone, Abby. We’ve been getting so many calls today, and you are new to all this. I don’t want you getting overwhelmed when I should be here helping you. You do pay me to manage the hotel, after all.”

“I’ve already called in help.” Abby waves her hand like she’s batting away Lizzy’s concerns.

Lizzie blinks at her boss. “You have?”

“Yeah, one of the people we’ve been interviewing for the job. She’ll be here in half an hour or so. I asked her to come in for trial shift.”

“Are you sure you’ll be okay without me here?”

“Shush, go grab your things and then go see your in-laws for dinner,” Abby says before leaning into whisper to Abby, though she barely lowers her voice. “And make sure you tell me everything tomorrow.”

Lizzie offers her a smile before turning away. I watch her disappear through a door I imagine leads to the back, leaving me alone with her boss and friend, who immediately drops her smile. Amber eyes narrow on mine, and I let out a sigh, expecting a speech on how I should not hurt her friend or something along those lines.

“Are you using Lizzie to boost your career?”

Definitely not what I was expecting. “What?”

“I told you, I am a fan. I saw the news about how your bandmates got wasted at a party, trash talked you, and leaked all your new songs. The mess was all over social media. That was until you made that post about Lizzy, and now it’s all anyone is talking about.”

Fuck! Of course, people were going to make the connection, and although that was my manager’s plan, it’s not why I want Lizzie playing my girlfriend. “I like her. I won’t deny that my label thinks a relationship will be good for my image, but that’s not why I’m interested in Lizzy.”

“I want to believe that, but I’m not convinced. Lizzie was visibly upset when she came down here. She wouldn’t say what you did to her, but I know it was something,” she accuses, and guilt slams into me with such vengeance. Lizzy’s friend circles the desk and stops next to me, her eyes glaring at me when she speaks. “I may be your fan, but I will have you know that Lizzy’s cousin is a retired Marine. If you hurt her again, I will send him after you.”

“No need. I’ve known James for a long time. I’m well aware of how scary he can be when he’s fired up. I’ll fix things with Lizzie right now.”

Abby is all too eager to point out where I’ll find her. “That door leads to the kitchen, and the backroom is at the end of the hall.”

I nod briskly and walk away. Everything is just as she said, and I don’t bother looking around as I walk straight to the door at the end of the hall. I don’t knock, simply pushing the door open to find Lizzie sliding into her coat. Her head shoots up when I walk into the room, and her eyes widen in shock when they lock on mine, and just like that, I forget what it is that brought me here.

Christ above, she’s beautiful. She has always been a pretty girl, but something in me changed when I saw that photo, and now, I can’t see her the same way I used to.

“Sebastian…”

I kick the door shut behind me and walk over to her, grabbing her waist and yanking her hard against me. She lets out a sharp breath, palming my chest, but makes no move to escape my hold. My eyes drop to her sensual little mouth, and the need to kiss her climbs up my throat and threatens to choke me.

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