Taming Lily

by Monica Murphy

  He cracks a smile that takes my breath away and takes her hand. “Max. Nice to meet you.”

  She doesn’t let go of his hand. “You’re not here to steal anything from us, are you?”

  Oh, God. Why did she go and say that? Even Caden looks uncomfortable, but hello, he’s a former thief, so anytime the word steal pops up, he squirms.

  Max’s smile fades, his expression turning sincere. “No. I plan on doing right by Lily from now on.”

  Rose studies him, her eyes getting squinty as she finally releases Max’s hand. Pregnancy has really done a number on my baby sister. “Good. Because I’ll rip your balls off if you hurt her again.”

  “Rose,” Caden says, his voice stern. I can say nothing because I’m mortified beyond belief.

  “Well, it’s true,” Rose says with a shrug as she sends me a look. I don’t think she regrets telling Max that whatsoever.

  “I appreciate how protective you are over your sister,” Max says. “And if I did something to betray her again, I’d deserve to get my balls ripped off.”

  Rose starts to laugh and pats Max’s chest. “I like you.”

  Another knock sounds at the door and we all pause, looking at each other. Ryder suddenly appears, his dark hair damp, his gaze zeroing in on Max before he turns to Violet. “Everything okay?”

  “Sounds like Father’s here,” Violet says, her voice soft, her head tipping toward Ryder when he slips his arm around her waist and holds her close.

  “I’ll answer it,” Ryder says, pressing a kiss to Violet’s forehead before he releases her and goes to the door.

  “Let the good times begin,” Rose says, her voice loaded with false cheer.

  “I DON’T—” Daddy swallows and leans forward, studying Max with an intensity I’ve dealt with before. The same kind of intensity that would make me squirm in my seat and eventually confess all my sins. “I don’t want to believe any of this.”

  Max doesn’t even flinch, making me admire him all the more. He hands over his iPad to my father. “I understand, sir, but I need you to look at this. There’s your proof.”

  The rest of us remain quiet as Daddy reads over the emails from Pilar to Zachary Lawrence, to Felicity Winston from Jayne Cosmetics. Violet is also reading over the emails on her own iPad, after Max just sent her a link to the Dropbox account. I look over at her and see the way Ryder has his arm around her shoulders in a protective gesture, his face full of barely contained rage as he reads over her shoulder.

  “Why would she give up such confidential information so easily?” Violet asks, lifting her head to study all of us, her gaze snagging on Max. I’ve let him talk the entire time, an offer he made on our way over to Violet’s that I took him up on. Yes, it makes me feel like a chicken yet again, that I can’t be the one to explain what happened with Pilar. But I knew I wouldn’t be able to explain myself thoroughly enough. I’d get too emotional and Daddy would probably yell at me. Everyone would take sides and it would turn into a huge, ugly mess.

  Daddy hasn’t yelled at Max once, and I’m sure that’s because he’s explained everything so thoroughly, so objectively. He told of how he was hired by Pilar, how he followed me to Maui, got to know me, got closer to me, and then stole the laptop. He then proceeded to tell them what happened next, the information he and Levi discovered, how he lied and told Pilar he didn’t have the laptop after all.

  And now he’s sharing with everyone exactly what he found in Pilar’s in-boxes. The same information I stumbled upon but didn’t look at closely enough. The plan to sabotage Fleur and leave the company in the dust. I still can’t believe she had the balls to do such a thing.

  Well, I can believe it. This is Pilar we’re talking about.

  “Once Felicity received the information, she never contacted Pilar again. At least via email,” Max explains. “I don’t know why she gave up the goods so quickly, but it looks like her impulsive actions bit her in the ass.”

  Violet—ladylike, perfect Violet—snorts. “Finally the bitch gets what she deserves. At our expense, though.”

  “Exactly, and that’s what pisses me off. She ran and blabbed her mouth so easily to the fucking competition. You’d think she’d know better than to fuck with me,” Ryder says, his eyes glimmering with repressed fury.

  Unease slithers down my spine. I know I sure as hell wouldn’t mess with Ryder.

  Daddy lifts his head, staring at Violet like she’s lost her mind. “She’s been filling my head with your incompetence lately.”

  “Who? Pilar?” Violet asks incredulously, and I almost roll my eyes. She’s upset, though, and obviously not thinking clearly.

  He makes a noise, resumes his reading on the iPad. “She claims she’s worried about your supposed lack of focus. Thinks you’re too wrapped up in wedding plans.”

  “Bitch,” Ryder mutters, shaking his head.

  “How dare she,” Violet breathes.

  Rose speaks up like she can’t stand it any longer. “You need to fire her, Daddy. Break it off with her and let her go, personally and professionally. She’s trying to ruin us. For all you know, she already has. God knows what Jayne Cosmetics has planned now that they know about our future product line.”

  “And the perfume line,” Violet adds.

  He says nothing and we all seem to look at each other, silently communicating that we’re in agreement with Rose.

  “Violet, I believe if you went to Felicity Winston and told her you know exactly what she received from Pilar, you can get her to back off whatever plans they might have to steal your ideas,” Max suggests.

  “Maybe.” Violet clears her throat, her eyes so sad. I feel terrible that I didn’t realize what Pilar had done sooner. We could have stopped all this a couple of weeks ago. “I know Felicity personally but I wouldn’t call her a friend. There’s always been friendly competition between us, but I would’ve never thought she’d do something so low.”

  “She may have agreed to take the information, but it was Pilar who offered it up so easily,” Ryder points out. “Don’t forget that.”

  “He’s right. I say you approach her carefully, maybe even send her a veiled threat. Nothing too outrageous—we’ll leave that up to Pilar. But you need to let Felicity know you’re on to her plan,” Max says. “If you need any help with offering Felicity proof with the email correspondence between them, I can do that.”

  Pride makes my chest fill with emotion. He’s so smart, so competent, so incredibly strong and kind. Look at how easily he wants to help my sister, my entire family. Me.

  He’s a good guy. The first real good guy I’ve ever been with.

  I don’t want to let him go.

  “I would like that, thank you,” Violet says softly.

  “What do you want me to do about this?” Daddy asks as he sets the iPad on the coffee table in front of him. He remains leaning forward and rests his elbows on his knees, running his hands through his hair over and over again.

  I don’t remember ever seeing him look so distraught. I knew what we had to tell him would end up breaking his heart, but I didn’t think it would break my heart as well. Despite our volatile history, I hate seeing him so upset. I’m tempted to go to him and wrap my arms around his shoulders, reassure him that everything’s going to be all right eventually.

  Would he want me to? Or would he tell me to go to hell? I am, after all, the bearer of bad news. I always have been.

  “I don’t know if confronting her would be the right approach,” Max starts.

  “Why not?” Rose asks, sounding annoyed. “Bitch would deserve it. She knows what she did. That’s why she’s so hell bent on bugging Lily to death for that stupid laptop.”

  “I thought about giving her a dummy laptop loaded with false information, plus screenshots of her in-boxes,” Max explains. “But now I’m thinking that would be pointless.”

  “Why?” Rose asks again. “I like the idea of her being tricked.”

  “Retaliation might not be worth the risk,” Ry
der says. I look over at him, our gazes meeting. Here is a man who speaks from ample experience. “When she thinks she’s been wronged, she can become … unhinged. I don’t want her to do anything that might harm any one of you.” His gaze falls on Max. “Even you.”

  “Thanks,” Max says wryly.

  “I’ll talk to her,” my father says quietly. “It’s the only way. I’ll call her into my office and calmly confront her with the information you’ve given me, Max. She won’t make a scene at Fleur, not after what I have to say. I’ll let her know it’s in her best interest that she give her notice and leave Fleur for good. I’ll even give her a recommendation.”

  “Why?” Rose explodes for the third time, leaping to her feet, causing Caden to stand as well and try to calm her down. She shrugs off his hands and strides right up to where our father sits. She’s the epitome of righteous, indignant fury, resting her hands on her hips as she stares down at him. “A recommendation? Are you serious? Why the hell would you even consider that! She gave away company secrets! Confidential information to our direct competition! Giving her a recommendation would be like a reward for all the shitty things she’s done. I can’t let you do that, Daddy. I say we go after her and give her a dose of her own medicine. I’m sick of the way she’s fucked with our lives. She would deserve every single awful thing that might happen to her!”

  “Calm down, baby,” Caden says, slipping his arm around Rose’s waist and steering her closer to him. “I don’t like seeing you so worked up.”

  She drops her hands from her hips and takes a deep breath, nodding. My heart is beating triple time. I’m just as upset as Rose is and I tell myself to calm down, wishing that Max would wrap me up in his arms and never let me go.

  His being here by my side and helping me, helping my entire family, is proof that he cares. That he wants to do right by me. I can’t deny that I’m still hurt over his betrayal but in the end, he kept my laptop and came to me. I can forgive him.

  But I want him to ask for that forgiveness. I want him to … grovel a bit. Does my wanting him to grovel make me a bad person? Probably.

  “He’s right,” Ryder says grimly. “She’s not worth you getting upset over, Rose. Let your father take care of this by taking away the thing she wants the most.”

  “And what’s that?” Max asks as he turns to him.

  Ryder smiles, the sight of it almost feral. “Her job.”

  chapter twenty-seven

  Max

  “I’M EXHAUSTED,” Lily says as she enters my apartment.

  I flick on the switch near the door, illuminating the darkening living room. The sun’s almost down. We were at Violet’s place for hours and I have to agree with Lily—I’m exhausted, too.

  I didn’t mind taking over for Lily and explaining everything Pilar did. I knew Lily wouldn’t be able to get it all out, and I had a feeling her father or her sisters would shut her down anyway. Not that they would mean to—well, her father might mean to, because that guy doesn’t have the best relationship with Lily—it’s all a part of family dynamics. Everyone has their roles.

  Lily is the fucked-up, messy one.

  “Want something to drink?” I ask once I lock the door and turn on another lamp.

  “No, thanks. I’m all drunk out.” She smiles and I join her on the couch, not sitting too close, though I’m dying to.

  Being close to her and not really touching her the way I want … is freaking torture, especially when she’s wearing that beautiful dress that fits her like a dream. She packed a bag at her place yesterday before I brought her to my apartment and when she came out of the bedroom after taking a shower, dressed and ready to go to Violet’s, I almost swallowed my tongue.

  She’s so damn beautiful it hurts. Feisty, defiant Lily turns me on like no other woman I’ve ever met, but vulnerable, soft Lily is another thing entirely. She brings out all of my protective instincts. All I want to do is fight for her, take care of her, make her realize that she needs me.

  She’s mad at me and she has every right to be. I wronged her and I hate myself for it. What’s done is done. I can only hope my actions from the last couple of days prove that I am here for her, no matter what.

  “I wanted to thank you for helping me and my family,” she says, her voice soft as she stares at her clutched hands resting in her lap. “What you did today … it means a lot to me.”

  “You’re welcome.” I pause. Should I tell her how I feel? Fuck it, I’m going all in. “I’d do anything for you, Lily. I hope you know that.”

  A little smile curves her lips but she still won’t look at me. “I don’t get why. We barely know each other …”

  I reach out and clasp her knee, my fingers tingling at first contact with her bare skin. “I know enough. I feel a connection to you that I’ve never experienced with another woman before.”

  She’s quiet for a moment, but at least she doesn’t pull out of my reach. “I’m not big on relationships.”

  “Me either.”

  “As in, I’ve never really had one. Not for a long period of time, at least,” she admits, her teeth sinking into her lower lip.

  “Same.” I squeeze her knee and move my hand upward so it’s resting on her lower thigh, on top of the skirt of her dress. She still doesn’t stop me and I swear, I’m not breathing, for fear she’ll tell me to fuck off and run away.

  “My sisters have found love and most of the time, I think they’re crazy for tying themselves down. But Rose is so happy, married and about to have a baby, and she and Caden are madly in love.” She sighs. “Then there’s Violet and Ryder. I would’ve never picked him for my sister, but what do I know? She’s going to take over Fleur someday, and Ryder will be right by her side, running the company with her.”

  “And what about you?” I ask. She sounds wistful, almost jealous, though I know that’s not the right word. More like envious. Like she wishes she could have even a piece of what her sisters do.

  “I always believed something like that isn’t in the cards for me.” She lifts her head, her gaze meeting mine. “You know what my motto used to be?”

  “What?” I’m almost afraid to hear it.

  “Live fast, die young.” She pauses, gauging my reaction, and I try to keep my expression neutral but damn, that’s a shitty motto. “My mother was the most beautiful person I ever knew and she died young.”

  Right, because she killed herself. That’s the sort of model she looks up to? I know she loves and misses her mom, but she shouldn’t want to emulate her in that way. “That’s a terrible motto to have.” More like fucking awful.

  “I know, but I can’t live like this forever. I’m bound to fuck up. It’s like I want to fuck up and I can’t stop myself. My dad calls it a waste.” She looks away, as though she doesn’t want to see my reaction.

  Anger fills me and I try to tamp it down. “Your dad called you a waste?” I thought I was the asshole. I wasn’t much impressed after meeting him, but at least he believed what we said about Pilar, not that he had any choice. He gave Lily a hug before he left and thanked her for telling him, then shook my hand and thanked me as well.

  Despite the hug from her father, Lily looked sad. I didn’t ask her about it because I didn’t want to upset her further. That’s a relationship that’s still going to need some work before all the old resentments and anger are resolved.

  “No, he didn’t call me a waste, though I wouldn’t be surprised if he does feel that way sometimes. He’s referring to what I do. He always tells me I’m wasting my life when I should be doing something with purpose. But I tell him hey, at least I’m living.”

  “Are you, though? Are you really?”

  Those pretty, sad eyes meet mine once more. “I was, for a brief moment. When we were together in Maui. That was the first time since I don’t know when that I felt … real. I may have kept things from you, Max, and you definitely kept things from me. But that was the real me when we were together. That girl you were alone with was me.”

&
nbsp; Her confession stirs something deep, makes me remember all that we shared, the struggles and the frustration and the triumph. She is a woman who was made to submit yet is scared to give up control.

  I see the struggle right now, playing out before me. Her expression, her words, everything about her is so raw and open, especially after the day she just had. I’m filled with the need to coax the real Lily to make an appearance once more. She needs me.

  And I need her.

  It was liberating, our time together on Maui, for both of us. I needed that and so did she. She challenged me and I challenged her and together, we have the potential to make a good team.

  Does she see it? Does she realize what we can have?

  She must.

  I move closer to her and slip my arm around the back of the couch, reaching for her with my other hand. I touch her cheek, drift my fingers across her skin, and she licks her lips, blinking up at me with wide, scared eyes.

  Fuck. She is my every weakness, and the realization both exhilarates and scares the shit out of me.

  “I want you,” I whisper, keeping my voice even, not wanting to startle her and make her run. “I know I’ve fucked things up and I’m so sorry, you don’t even know. I have a lot to make up to you and I will, but I want you so bad, baby.”

  She blows out a harsh breath. “I just … I don’t know, Max.”

  “I understand. But I swear to God, I won’t fuck this up.”

  “I’m scared,” she admits, licking her lips again. She keeps doing that and I’m going to kiss her whether she likes it or not, I’m that desperate to taste her.

  “Why?” I lean into her, my mouth at her ear, my nose close to her fragrant hair. I breathe deep, then whisper, “Tell me how I can make this right. Tell me what I need to say to convince you to willingly come to bed with me.”

  It’s not just about taking her to my bed, either. I want her, I can’t deny that, but I also care about her. I want to take care of her and learn what makes her happy. And then I want to keep making her happy for as long as she’ll let me.