Page 94 of Greed
“Oh—” Lilo shook her hand. “Nice to meet you. I’m Lilo.”
The woman’s shrewd eyes gave Lilo an assessing once over, then she smiled suddenly and it was like looking into the eyes of a lioness. Lilo sensed that she could be as deadly as her children. Mary indicated the tall older man next to her. “This is Flint, my husband and the father of theseniños estupidos.”
“Hey.” His hand hit his chest, as though he’d been shot to the heart. “Why am I the father when they’re stupid?”
With a shrug, she smirked and walked toward the mat. “Because I am the mother when they are not.”
“Welcome to the family.” Flint flashed a quick grin and went to join his wife.
“Um. Welcome to the family?” Lilo squeaked to Grace.
“I hope you didn’t have other ideas, because you’re in deep now. There’s no escaping.”
“Or else what? They hunt me down if I try to leave?”
“Nope. You’re just in. You belong.” That knowing smile spread on her face until she swung her medical bag and made her way to the chairs, saying over her shoulder. “I couldn’t be happier.”
“Me too.” Griffin came up behind Lilo and placed his taped hands on her shoulders. He nuzzled into her neck and inhaled deeply then tensed behind her. From the way he breathed deeply, she knew he was assimilating to the stimulation of her scent and touch. She patiently let him hold her, locked in his embrace until he worked through his visceral feelings. It made her weak at the knees and warm in the heart to know she was helping him with his sensitivity response. She knew him better than anyone else, and this was a way she could protect him—let him use her body to adjust to everything around him. She rotated and slipped her arms around his waist, looking up at him fondly.
“You mean that?” she asked quietly. “That you’re happy?”
“Hey,” shouted Tony from the mat. “If you two love birds are finished, we can get started.”
Griffin grinned, and it lit up his face. For some reason, he seemed very smug.
A deep cough sounded at the door. Parker stood there, dressed in a black business shirt and suit pants.
“I have arrived,” he said. “Now you can start.”
“All right, let’s get this lesson over with.” Griffin strode to the mat. “Who wants to be schooled first?”
Lilo made her way to the seats where Grace and Flint sat. To Lilo’s surprise, Mary had joined her children on the mat. Parker took Mary’s vacant seat and handed a clipboard to Grace.
“Do you mind recording?” Parker pointed at the clipboard.
Flint took it from Grace with a disparaging look. “She’s not your staff member, Parker.”
“What?” he looked offended. “She’s medically trained.”
“Exactly, she should be on standby.”
“It’s no big deal,” Grace offered.
“No, it’s fine, Grace. Parker can do it himself.” Flint handed the clipboard back to Parker.
“I’m the one running this thing,” he said. “Despite what they’re calling this, it’s serving a purpose—to test out Griff’s limits.”
“I’ll do it.” Lilo put up her hand. “Just tell me what to do.”
Parker scrutinized her. “Lilo, right?”
She nodded.
“Didn’t get a chance to be properly introduced on Friday.”
“Um, no,” she said with a nervous laugh—the man was intimidating—as she took the clipboard. “You were busy being the owner, and I was busy being dragged into the alley and attacked.”
It was meant to be a joke, but Parker’s expression went from bored to downright murderous. The next word barely made it out of his clenched teeth. “What?”
