“Do you think he could be involved? That may explain why he doesn’t want to help. Maybe it has more to do with that than because he doesn’t want to help you.”
I don’t trust Vernon, but it pisses me off even more that Lily would be hurt by his actions.
After a few moments of considering my question, Lily admits, “It’s likely he knows a lot more than he’d want the cops to know if Blake was doing something illegal. Blake relied on him for everything, so I find it highly unusual for him not to know what Blake was up to.”
Some emotion passes across her face that I don’t understand, but before I can question her about it, she asks, “What else did you find? Maybe if we talk it out, we can piece things together.”
Nodding, I flip to my first page and start running through everything I’ve found.
25
Lily
Ihate that we had to finish last night talking about Blake. But we needed to. While this trip was meant to be relaxing, we, unfortunately, couldn’t ignore the ticking clock of the investigation.
We just need to find something that will give the cops a reason to look somewhere else. Though possibly stealing a lot of money from his company seems like a good motive to move suspicion off of me. But I can see why they wouldn’t consider that since Bob himself admits that they aren’t sure yet.
Regardless of whether Bob feels like he should be on the list of suspects or not.
Then there’s Vernon.
He has to know.
Everything.
He has to know what Blake was up to before he died.
My heart clenches when I think about that. I don’t even know why I didn’t consider that possibility earlier.
As tears threaten to form, I take a sip of my coffee. I left Chris asleep in the bed this morning so I could have a few minutes to myself. To process and plan. After I made a cup of coffee, I made my way out to the back deck, where Chris and I sat last evening. The trees and plants are just starting to bloom on this cool spring morning.
The door opening draws my attention from the landscape to Chris stepping out, shirtless, in only a pair of grey sweatpants that hide absolutely nothing. My eyebrows rise as he saunters over to me, his muscles rippling with every step. It still surprises me that all of that is hidden under his tailored suits every day.
“Baby, I woke up very lonely this morning.” He kisses my forehead, the mintiness of his breath washing over my face, before lifting the blanket and settling in next to me and wrapping his arm around me.
I lean into his warmth and inhale the scent of his leftover body wash and cologne. “Sorry, you looked so peaceful, so I didn’t want to wake you up.”
He hums against my hair before lifting my chin and capturing my lips. His kiss is deep and arousing, making me very glad I also brushed my teeth when I first woke up this morning. As his tongue slides against me, I press into him more, clenching my thighs together at the rush of desire that floods my veins.
“I want you so bad this morning, baby,” Chris murmurs against my lips.
“We can go inside.”
He shakes his head, his lips still brushing against mine. “No, here.”
I pull back so I can look into his eyes. His sexy smirkalmost makes me give in without a protest. “Chris, we can’t. What if someone sees us?”
Waving a hand toward the forest, he says, “The only living creature that will see, or hear, us is the bears. There isn’t another house for at least a quarter mile.”
“That doesn’t sound very far…”
He slides off the swing next to me, sinking to his knees at my feet and pushing the blanket up my legs.
“I need you to lift your hips just a little, baby.”
His command is quiet and gruff, silencing any more arguments from me as it hits me between the legs. I shift my hips, and he slips my pajama pants down my legs. The cold air, combined with how turned on I am, causes a shiver to ripple through me.
Chris runs a finger up the inside of my thigh, and the already-present goosebumps intensify. “Scoot your gorgeous ass out to the edge of the seat. I need better access to this delicious pussy.”
