“Ah, I see. Yes, Lily. I’m here if you need anything. We’ll figure it out. Together.” I can’t keep the smile out of my tone.
She makes a sound of relief. “Okay, thank you. One last question for the day: am I able to sell the house andBlake’s cars?”
I shift in my chair so I can look out the window, and I rub my lips for a second in thought. “Cars you can sell first, but I still would wait. The first thing the cops are going to think if you start selling cars is that there was something in the cars that you’re trying to hide.”
“But there isn’t anything in the cars.”
“I believe you, but the cops won’t. And they’ll waste time investigating the cars that they could have spent on finding who did this to your husband.”
Lily sighs. “Well, that’s a good point. I didn’t think about that.”
“Now your house…that’s a whole different story. You probably won’t be able to sell that for a while.”
“That’s what I was afraid of.” She sounds resigned, and I hate it.
If I didn’t hate her husband enough before, this really puts me over the edge. “How bad is Blake’s financial situation?”
After a few beats, she replies, “From what I was told, very. Vernon said he has some bad business deals. I guess he’s behind on mortgage payments. Who knows what else I don’t even know about.” The last part is said more quietly than the rest. “I have money that’s just mine that I kept hidden from him, but I just don’t want to be punished for whatever shit Blake did.”
The need to put this woman at ease eats at me. I wish I were with her, but this will have to do. “Lily, I promise we’ll figure this out. I’ll do everything I can to ensure you’re not affected by this. Or at least affected as minimally as possible.”
“Are you sure?” she counters.
“Yes, I’m very sure.”
Finally, she relents, “Thank you.” She hesitates for amoment, then continues. “I’m sorry I bothered you. I just didn’t know who else to call, and you were the first person that came to mind.”
A weird feeling erupts in my stomach at her admission. I rub my fingers over my lips to hide my smile, even though she can’t see me. “I’ll come by to see you tomorrow so we can talk some more. I have some questions for you.”
“That works. I don’t think I’m going to go to work tomorrow. I need to figure out where I’m going to go after this. I don’t want to stay at the house, even after I’m able. And I need to go buy some clothes and makeup. At the very least, to cover my bruises.”
The reminder of her injuries has anger replacing some of the feelings I’m experiencing. I swallow it down. “Text or call if you need anything. Or if reporters start bothering.”
“I will. Thank you, Chris.”
My teeth clench at the breathy way she says my name. “Have a good rest of your day, Lily.”
“You too.”
I disconnect the call before I say something really stupid, like,I’ll just come over now and spend the rest of the day with you. And if you let me, I’ll just stay the night too.Or maybe,you’re the sexiest fucking woman I’ve ever met, and thoughts of you have consumed way too much of my mind since the moment I met you.
But I don’t and won’t ever say any of that.
Well, I’m fairly certain I won’t say any of that.
My eyes adjustto the dim light of the bar, and I fight to roll them in the process.
Could Carlos have chosen a more cliché place to have a clandestine meeting?
I scan the few patrons until I see my friend sitting in a booth in the back. Crossing the bar, I slide into the seat across from him. “This is ridiculous. You could’ve just come over to my condo and drunk my expensive whiskey. We wouldn’t have had to wind up here”—I gesture around us—“like I’m selling you state secrets or some shit.”
“We could have, sure. But this is way more fun.” He wears a shit-eating grin. “Besides, if we did that, I would’ve had way too much whiskey, fallen asleep on your couch, and missed my date with Mandi.”
The waitress approaches our table, and I order a beer. After she leaves, I say, “Ah, now it’s all making sense.”
He shrugs. “This is your fault. You gave that woman my number. At that point, it was inevitable.”
I incline my head. “Fair enough.” I smile at the waitress when she brings my drink and take a sip. “Alright, let’s get on with it. Tell me what you know.”
