Lily stops what she’s doing and leans on the kitchen island I spend too many nights eating alone around.
Ash and Lily look at each other before she encourages Ash to speak. “Tell him, Ash, or I will.” She tilts her head toward me and taps her fingers on the marble surface.
“Tell me what?” I ask, my brows furrowing as I have no idea what’s going on with them, but they both look like a pair of conspirators. I don’t like it. “Is one of you sick?” I ask. Fuck, please don’t let that be true. I couldn’t live without either of them.
“Of course not.” Lily dismisses my genuine concern.
Thank fuck for that. “Are you pregnant again then?”
“Oh, hell, no. Three is more than enough. My vagina is only just recovering from having Blaze.”
“Feels fine to me.” Ash grins, winking at her deviously.
I shake my head and fake gag. “I do not need to hear about my friend’s wife’s vagina.”
Lily bursts out laughing. “Sorry.” There is not a hint of sincerity in her tone.
“What’s up then? Did something happen?” I ask quickly. If they don’t tell me in the next thirty seconds, I might have a fucking heart attack. The suspense is killing me.
“Something did happen.” Ash scratches his beard, the black lily tattoos on his fingers sharply contrasting with the crisp white cuffs of his shirt. While Ash might think I’m soft-hearted, he’s the true sentimental fool between us. Although he resembles a bear, his old hockey nickname, underneath that tough exterior, he’s all heart. Proof? The lilies inked across his skin, each representing a year he and Lily have been married. Ash finally responds, “My sister ran out on her fiancé and made one of the biggest and best decisions of her life today. That happened.”
“That’s not new news,” I counter. “So, what is it?”
He exhales sharply, appearing uneasy as he rubs at the back of his neck.
I’ve never seen him look so uptight.
“Ash, spit it out,” Lily pushes.
“Okay,” he pauses for a beat as if he’s trying to work out what he wants to tell me. “I think Erika should go on her honeymoon.”
Is that it? “I agree.” It would help her clear her head. I’m gutted that I won’t get to see her for a few weeks, but she needs space and time to heal emotionally.
“With you,” Ash adds, delivering it like a comedian’s punchline, only it’s not funny.
A billion confusing thoughts race through my mind, and all that escapes my mouth is, “What?” Then, “Why?”
Without hesitation, he replies, “Because I think now is the time that you tell my sister that you have feelings for her and have had them… for years.”
What the fuck?
CHAPTER TEN
Leon
“Sorry, what?” My mouth instantly feels drier than a desert, and I feel as hot as the plains of the Serengeti. How the hell does he know that? I vehemently deny it. “I’ve not got feelings for?—”
“I’ve known for a while, Leon. Years, actually,” Lily interjects, railroading me. “I only told Ash when we were on vacation,” she says casually, as if this is the most normal conversation we’ve ever had, when in fact, it’s more difficult than trying to catch moonlight in a jar.
Lily begins humming to herself and goes back to making coffee for everyone while I stand gaping at the pair of them like a fish out of water.
Was I that obvious? I couldn’t have been, because Erika is unaware of how much she means to me and how I can’t stop thinking about her.
Ash continues as if they’ve rehearsed this entire thing. “But when we got back, Erika announced her engagement to Huck, so my chance to give you a gentle nudge pretty much flew out the window, and it wasn’t my place to tell her how you felt because I thought, well, hoped, actually, that you might have stepped in to stop her ridiculous decision.”
That would have made me look like a fucking chump. “I was waiting for you to do it,” I counter.
Ash leans forward, resting his forearms on the marble work surface. “After what happened today, I think it’s time to be honest with her, Leon. And yourself.” He stalls for a second too long. “Fuck. This is way harder than I thought.” Tilting his head back, he raises his eyes to the ceiling. “I’m giving you my permission to go after what you want.” A long sigh escapes his chest, as if he’s struggling with his decision before he looks directly at me. “I know, in the past, I’ve told you Erika was off limits, but it was wrong of me to do that. I don’t own her, and it wasn’t my place to put a stop to what might be your forever.” His eyes crinkle around the edges, his lips turning upward slightly, softening his face a little. “But I’ve been watching you, man, and I see the way you look at her. Hell, I’ve seen the way she looks at you, like you hung the damn moon or something. It’s been in front of me all along. I hate to admit it, but I felt it and knew it myself, but I couldn’t bring myself to tell you because I’m a pig-headed shithead. So here we are. I’m giving you my blessing.” He sounds out of breath, as if the burden he’s been carrying around isn’t weighing him down anymore. However, he’s shifted the pressure onto me.
