“They are, but why are you giving me flowers?” I inquire, eyeballing him.
“Do I need a reason?”
“Yes. I’m not your girlfriend, and you don’t buy me random flowers, so why now?” I quirk a brow.
His Adam’s apple bobs in his throat as he peers deep into my eyes. “You were upset yesterday. It’s partly my fault, and I wanted to do something nice for you.” He shrugs. “There’s no big ulterior motive, Lili. It’s just a bunch of flowers.”
Mom is watching our interaction with avid interest, and I can almost hear her whispering in my ear how it’s a sweet gesture and to stop busting his balls. I’m still mad at him, but itissweet. “Thank you. I appreciate the thought.” I bury my nose in the petals, inhaling the glorious scents.
“Could we go somewhere to talk in private?” His earnest eyes pin mine in place, and I stop breathing for a second.
“Sure.”
“I’ll put these in water,” Mom says, taking the bouquet from me.
“Let’s talk in the sunroom,” I suggest. “Would you like a coffee?”
“I can get my own.” He strides toward the large coffee machine and opens the overhead cupboard to remove a mug.
Mom smiles as we watch him make himself at home.
A few minutes later, we walk silently toward the sunroom at the rear of our house both nursing coffees and an abundance of unsaid words.
A sleepy-eyed Romeo emerges from the playroom, in sweats and a plain white tee, as we approach the sunroom. His scowl is instant when he sees Caleb. “Douche,” he mutters under his breath as we walk past, and I’m more than a little shocked. Romeo gallantly rose to my defense last night, and I assumed some of that bravery stemmed from the weed and alcohol in his system, but it seems I was wrong.
“Nice to see you too, Romeo,” Caleb says over a chuckle, holding the door to the sunroom open for me.
“Thank you for not making a big deal of last night,” I say, ducking into the room.
“I wouldn’t want anyone to get in trouble for protecting you. Romeo is a good brother.”
“He’s the best,” I agree, flopping down on one end of the couch. A surge of butterflies swoops into my chest and nerves fire at me from all directions. I guess we’re doing this, and I’m apprehensive now the moment is here.
Caleb sits at the other end, quietly watching me as he drinks his coffee. “I am sorry for whatever Anais said to upset you yesterday.”
I shrug, not wanting to regurgitate it.
He twists to the side so he’s facing me head on. “None of it was true. She’s concerned Cruz will discover she was spying on him and passing me intel. It’s a legit concern and being his wife won’t protect her. She needs someplace safe to hide out. That and The Commission would prefer to keep tabs on her. She’s our best chance at finding Cruz.”
“I get it.” I’ve had time to think about it since fleeing the penthouse. There has always been an ulterior motive behind Caleb being with her, so I figured there was a reason now.
“She’s not living with me, and we’re not together. I have been staying at Joshua and Gia’s place the past few days while Anais stayed at mine. She’s moving into an apartment on the floor below today.”
His words help, but only a little. “Why have you stayed with her all these years, Caleb? I understand she was revenge for Bettina, but it can’t be that after all this time.”
Air expels from his mouth, and his gaze is pensive as he eyeballs me while considering his reply. “It’s hard to explain. Even to myself. At first, I got a kick out of screwing Cruz over, and then it was convenient. I had an itch; she scratched it.”
I don’t know what expression he sees on my face, but it’s enough for his features to soften. He scoots down a little closer. “I have never cared about her the way I care about you, Lili. She’s toxic.We’retoxic together, and she brings out a streak in me I liked indulging for a while. It was only when she moved to Vegas that I realized how much of a destructive force she was in my life. I have only been with her a handful of times in these intervening years and only recently because The Commission needed me to use her.”
“I should probably feel bad for her because it’s not nice to be used. But there’s no part of me that could ever feel bad for AnaisDiPietro. She’s poison, and she’s loved rubbing my nose in it any chance she gets.”
His brow puckers. “What do you mean?”
“It doesn’t matter now. It’s water under the bridge.” I gulp a mouthful of my drink.
Caleb is still frowning. “It matters to me.”
I bark out a bitter laugh. “Why?”
