Page 94 of Taming Grumpy Dr. Beast
“Fuck me.” I needed to get Lily to her room while I dealt with my parents and fixed this mess. Not wanting her to hear, I lowered my voice. “Ms. Ketill, can you please walk with Lily to her room? I’d rather she didn’t see my parents or Jess’s right now.”
Her face softened. “Jaxon, if you care for her—”
I knew what she was about to say and cut her off. “Not now. I need to get my parents out of here, and then I’ll talk to Lily.”
“I should have encouraged you to talk to her before now.” Ms. Ketill was one of the few that knew about my sham of an engagement to Jess, and how I’d done it to save my friend.
My limbs moved back into my bedroom on autopilot, each heavy step of my foot, feeling like they were encased in lead. It didn’t matter the reason my parents were here, regardless of the reason, I needed to minimize their interaction with Lily. If I could, I’d make sure they didn’t get anywhere near her.
I stood by the edge of the bed. My sweet Lily crawled closer, getting to her knees in front of me. My arms hung there, wooden, as I stripped away my emotions. It was best to deal with my parents when I had a cool head.
Her fingers lightly traced the deep grooves on my forehead. I didn’t know how I was going to kick my parents out without involving the police. She wrapped her arms around me, holding me tight. With a little shudder, I released a sigh and rested my chin on her head.
Her cheek rested against my chest. Having her with me was like a balm to my tortured soul.
“It’s going to be okay.” I reassured her. I didn’t like what was happening and needed to shield her from them a little longer.
“I know.” She pulled away from me, her hands gripping my biceps.
I hated to ask her this just as much as I hated to be away from her tonight. “Can you please stay in your room tonight?”
“What? Why?” She sounded hurt.
I laid my forehead against hers. “I need to get rid of my parents and I’d rather you didn’t have to witness it.”
“Why can’t I meet them?”
I stiffened. “Lily, it’s not you. You have to know that. If I had normal parents, I’d introduce you to them in a heartbeat, but these two only seek to make my life miserable.” I stared into her eyes, hoping she could read my sincerity within their depths. “I don’t want them to say anything that will cause you pain. The moment they see us together, they’ll know how important you are to me, and they will hurt you in order to hurt me.”
Her eyes gentled. “That’s awful.”
“It’s who they are. They know full well they’re not welcome here. I’ll need time to talk to them, and I don’t want to disturb you when I finally get to bed.”
“Okay.”
“Ms. Ketill will go with you.”
She laughed. “Jaxon, I think I know the way to my room by now.”
“Please, I’ll explain more later.” I kissed her once before forcing myself to move away.
“You know I’m here for you, right?” She gazed at me, her eyes full of worry.
I nodded.
I had to go deal with my parents. Mentally, I pulled away from Lily, needing to harden myself before the confrontation I already dreaded. “I’ll see you in the morning.” I turned on my heel and left.
I barely spared a glance at Ms. Ketill when I left the room. My parents were fucking assholes. They of all people knew the West Wing was the last place I’d want them to stay. I strode down the hall, getting more pissed off with each step.
My mother’s voice filtered out into the hallway. I could hear her British accent full of displeasure at how old everything looked. And how she should invite her designer here tomorrow to help bring the space into the current century.
I seethed. The place was filled with antiques. It wasn’t old looking. “This home is not yours to do with what you wish,” I barked as soon as I cleared the doorway.
Mother jumped and laid a hand dramatically over her heart. “Jaxon, darling, you frightened me.”
“You arenotsupposed to be in this house let alonethiswing,” I growled.
“That is no way to speak to your mother,” my father said, in a stiff tone of voice. He’d never had a kind thing to say to me while I was growing up. Often, I wondered if I was the product of an affair, but the family resemblance to my grandfather was uncanny.
