Page 87 of Touch Me Not: Anniversary Edition

“Oh my, let me fix him a plate.” Joanna went about doing just that on a paper plate they could take.

He went over and slipped an arm around Lily, loving how she snuggled into his side. He leaned down and whispered, “Happy?”

“More than I could ever tell you,” she whispered back. “Thank you, Nikoli.”

He brushed his lips over her hair and caught her mother staring at them. She looked so full of hope he couldn’t meet her eyes. He was, for the first time in a while, starting to feel guilty about his own motives. Lily truly was a beautiful person inside and out. She deserved better than to be used the way he wanted to use her.

“Here you go.” Joanna handed the plate to Lily. It was overflowing under the plastic wrap. She was a good cook, and Luther would be groaning with food orgasms before he’d finished the plate.

“Thank you, ma’am,” he said. “It’s been a pleasure to meet you.”

Lily handed Nikoli the plate and hugged her mother. “Love you, Mama.”

“I love you too, baby,” Joanna murmured, and Nikoli smiled, knowing how much this meant to Lily.

“Can you start the car while I tell the twins goodbye?” Lily asked him, and he nodded, telling her mother goodbye once more before walking out into the humid Florida night. He started the car and rolled the windows down then turned on the air conditioning. He blew the heat out and rolled the windows back up to cool the car off. Carefully putting the plate of food in the back seat, Nikoli leaned back and let the cool air hit him in the face.

She’d been on his mind all week. Ever since she told him about Adam, he knew it was the beginning of the end of their arrangement. He’d gotten a little attached to her, but that wasn’t a bad thing. It just showed him he could eventually care for someone.

The little voice in the back of his mind snorted at his own idiocy, but he ignored it. Lily was an arrangement. That was all. He’d done his part; he’d helped her get past her fear of anyone touching her. She’d gotten Boy Wonder. Now it was time for him to get his half of the deal.

He winced just thinking about it like a deal, something dirty and sordid.

The passenger door opened, and Lily slid in and buckled her seatbelt. “Thank you for bringing me.”

“Of course,” he murmured and pulled out of the driveway.

Lily turned on the radio and surfed a few channels before settling on one. She didn’t say anything else the entire ride back to the hotel. Not that she needed to. He could see the thoughtful expression on her face. She had to be thinking of the afternoon. He’d seen the wonder on her face when she first realized she could give her mother a hug, and it had nearly undone him, truth be told.

When they parked the car and went upstairs, just as Nikoli had predicted, Luther drooled at the sight of the food presented to him. He grabbed it and shut the door, as if afraid they’d ask him to share.

Shaking his head, Nikoli steered Lily to their room. She said she wanted a shower, and he nodded. He opened his laptop and started going through some emails that needed attention while he waited for her to come out. Shoes and socks off, he settled himself in the chair and started scanning his emails.

He found one from Lily listing all her thoughts about his new zombie game. He was amazed after he’d read through the very detailed report. She listed the good things, the things she hated, what needed to be improved, and finally her thoughts on fixing everything she took issue with. He’d never gotten such detailed feedback from any of his beta testers. The woman never failed to surprise him.

Twenty minutes later, he heard the shower cut off, and he closed his laptop. He turned and faced the bathroom door, waiting for her to come out. Another fifteen minutes went by, and still no Lily. Maybe shaving her legs? After another ten minutes, he got concerned and went over to the door. Even before he raised his hand, he heard her. She was crying.

“Lily?”

No answer.

“Lily, what’s wrong?”

Still nothing but the sound of her crying. He tried the handle and found it unlocked. She sat in the middle of the floor wrapped in a bath towel, her head on her knees. Tears streaked her face, and her eyes were so sad. He knelt in front of her and stroked her hair.

“What’s wrong, baby?”

She just shook her head. He pulled her into his lap. “Shhh,dushka, don’t cry. Tell me what’s wrong.”

Instead of telling him, she wrapped her arms around him and sobbed harder. What in the hell? She was starting to scare him.

“Lily, tell me why you’re crying.” He put an edge into his voice, a tone that told her he wanted no nonsense. She would answer him.

“Kiss me,” she said instead, and he looked down into her dark blue eyes, eyes full of pain and longing.

He wanted her to tell him why she was crying, but when she looked at him like that, it was more than he could bear. If he could ease her pain, he would.

Nikoli lowered his head and kissed her softly, tenderly. Her arms crept up around his neck, her fingers tangling in his hair. She pulled him closer. He reveled in the feel of her lips against his, their breath mingling. He ran his fingers up and down her back, relaxing and seducing her at the same time.

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