Page 97 of Devious Temptation
“Lucy, you’re deflecting.”
“I’m not, though. Parents do things like that for their kids. They take the blame, and they clean up after their messes. I can’t… I can’taskLawson to stand by and watch while I press charges against his son.” My voice rises in pitch the longer I talk. The fact that Lawson hasn’t called me all day weighs heavily on my chest, and the more I talk about the situation, the worse my thoughts get.
What if Rhys just gets away with it? Is that really fair? Is him being hurt by what we did a justifiable enough excuse for his actions?
Whyhaven’tI heard from Lawson? Did he make his choice? He lost his job, of course, he wouldn’t want to lose his son, too.
“So, Rhys is going to get a slap on the wrist, and you get to what? Just deal with the fallout?”
Exhaustion slams into me like a freight train, weighing me down along with all my self-pity. “Can we not talk about this anymore, Mom? Please? I’m tired. I need a nap.”
She must hear the defeat in my tone because she relaxes. “Okay. Get some rest. I’ll wake you for dinner.”
I don’t bother telling her I’m not hungry.
She leaves, and I curl up again, pulling my blanket over my head to drown out the buttery sunshine beaming through my window.
I’d rather it be storming.
I’m more comfortable when it’s cloudy.
Thirty-Three
An entire weekpasses without Lawson reaching out.
Honestly, I don’t know how to feel about that.
M.I.G. has been in constant contact, most likely trying to assess whether I’m going to slap a sexual harassment lawsuit on their asses. But I do know that they haven’t completely fired Lawson… yet.
Anna texts me daily to say that Lawson is already in his office by the time everyone arrives and doesn’t leave until everyone else has gone home. I don’t know what to do with that knowledge. He’s going to work but hasn’t called me to check how I’m doing.
It validates my mother’s worries—that he isn’t fighting for me. But I can’t help but think maybe it’s more than that. Perhaps he’s dealing with Rhys. Maybe he’s preparing himself and his son for the consequences.
I don’t even know what the consequences will be yet.
M.I.G. doesn’t know Rhys is the one who hacked his father’s email, and I don’t see how they’d find out unlessLawson tells them, which it’s looking more and more every day like he won’t.
I’m beginning to feel like a fool—like maybe I imagined the level of connection Lawson and I had. Yes, we said we love each other, but this isn’t love. This has been traumatic and a total invasion of privacy, and instead of being a beacon in the dark, Lawson’s just left me to deal with it alone.
Well, not totally alone. I have Ben and Jerry—the two most dependable men there are.
Thinking about everything makes my skin heat with irritation. I have to stretch to scratch at the middle of my back, even though it’s just going to spread the hives. The attacks are a daily thing now, triggered by random things I can’t pinpoint and that aren’t food.
A knock interrupts my night of self-pity, echoing throughout my small apartment like an unwelcome guest. Glancing at the clock on my nightstand, I see it’s nearly eight. Lawson is the only person I can think of who would be coming by unannounced at this time.
My heart skips a beat as I slam The Tonight Dough ice cream pint on the nightstand and shuffle down the hall to answer the door.
It’s not Lawson.
Cornflower blue eyes and the pearly white teeth of Cameron’s charming smile greet me on the other side of the door. “Hello, little Lucy.”
“Cameron? What are you doing here?” Even though he’s seen me completely naked, I pull my robe tighter around my magenta silk nightdress.
We haven’t spoken since the night Lawson and I hadwith him. He likes my photos on Iconic but never leaves a comment. So, seeing him on the other side of my door is a surprise.
“Wanted to check on you, considering everything that’s going on.” He waves his hand in the air like my leaked sex tape is nothing to write home about. “Gonna invite me in?”
I narrow my eyes, scrutinizing the way his happy-go-lucky countenance takes in every surface of my place like he’s calculating all the ways he can fuck me on them. His Cheshire grin widens, and his gaze darkens as he runs his eyes over my body. Then his face relaxes, and his tone softens.
