Her bright red cheeks against her pale complexion were etched into my mind. Her rigid body. Her high-pitched voice. I had known something was very wrong since the first time she’d brought that man up. Why was he still following her? It had been weeks.
I’d acted on instinct. I didn’t regret it one bit.
“Lincoln, you’re mumbling to yourself in a strange, beautiful, genius kind of way.” Neema let me in. She rubbed my back and leaned in for what could possibly be termedthe idea of a hug. “Also, it’s nice to see you. We’ve missed you.”
“There was a man stalking Elizabeth,” I announced to the room, which got the attention of everyone. I wouldn’t usually do such a thing, but I was still processing.
“We’re going to need a little bit more,” Dean said from one of the couches.
I paced the living room, rattling off exactly what had happened.
“Poor girl. That sounds horrible.” Neema rubbed a hand on her growing belly.
“What would he want from her?” I asked. My brain wasn’t going to let this go until it made sense. Until I could figure out how to stop it. I got the sense my threat was only a temporary solution.
“Could be anything, I guess,” Rose said. “Ex-boyfriend, scorned business partner, influencer gone wild, a stalker! I mean… she’s a Gordon-Bettencourt. It could even be a journalist looking for dirt on her dad.”
On autopilot, I found my way over to the leather armchair, the only single-seater in the room. “She was terrified.”
“Is she okay? Did you make sure she got home safely?” Claire’s brows furrowed.
“I offered, but she didn’t need me… She’s, uh, she’s got someone else,” I said, and my heart banged unpleasantly against my rib cageat the mere assumption she’d been referring to a partner. “Obviously. Why wouldn’t she? She’s…” I stopped midsentence as they all stared at me.
I shook my head.Elizabeth = employee = losing promotion or even losing job. She’s too beautiful and funny and smart for you anyway.
I turned my phone around in my hands, and it unlocked upon recognizing my face. Lily’s message remained unread.
Lily.
I intended to reply. But I hadn’t figured out my move, and with the late nights tutoring Elizabeth, admittedly I’d kind of forgotten.
My throat thickened.Was I cheating?No. How could I be cheating when nothing had happened with either of these women.
I was working with Elizabeth. I could hardly be blamed that she was so… immersive. I lost myself in her, around her. Working was hard. Focusing was harder.
And tomorrow we’d be alone in my car while we visited the site. But what really worried me, the thought I’d been denying, was that next week we’d be staying over on-site together for a few days as part of Elizabeth’s training.
Alone. At night. Sleeping in one cabin. In not-work clothes. Oh no. I needed a distraction before I combusted at the thought of it all.
I opened Lily’s message. A pang of guilt hit me square in the chest. Lily wasn’t just a distraction either. For a long time, Lily was my only person.
How did I get myself into this mess?
At the very least, I needed to honor her request.
“I think I want to meet Lily,” I said, wondering, not for the first time tonight, why I kept announcing everything. And judging from the looks on their faces, they were as surprised as I was.
“Are you sure?” Claire leaned forward, but her husband’s arm curled around her and she fell backward against him.
Beside her, William scooped Rose into his arms before kissing her, and while I considered myself a private man… I wanted that. I wanted to love someone so much I couldn’t stay away from them. I wanted to be loved by someone in a way that made us forget there were people around.
But I didn’t want it with just anyone.
I wanted Lily to be the person I hoped she was. I wanted her to love me the way I’d already fallen for her.
But somehow at the same time, in a way I didn’t understand, I wanted Elizabeth. In every way possible. I wanted everything or anything from her.
But that would never work.
