“We will follow you there,” I said in an upbeat voice.
We all loaded into our vehicles, and I followed them down the block and into a shopping area. The pizzeria was packed as we stood in line waiting to get in. Izzy grabbed ahold of my hand, and Lilli stayed nearby while Mr. and Mrs. Edwards stood whispering behind us.
“You know I never heard how you guys met?” Mrs. Edwards said.
“I live in the neighborhood, and we always saw each other while we were out running,” Lilli said as she leaned in toward me. “He’s a much better runner than I am, though.”
“I bet I could beat you, Daddy,” Izzy added.
“Oh, I know you could. I’m getting way too old for running. Lilli likes to run for miles and miles, but I can only run for a short distance before I’m so tired and need a break.”
Izzy laughed and smiled up at Lilli. The Edwards seemed clearly suspicious about Lilli and me, much more than they had been on our first visit out there. I had to believe that Ashley called them and said something about the situation. She hadn’t asked me about Lilli at all, but perhaps she called and asked her parents to find out more.
“So you own a house in the same neighborhood?” Mrs. Edwards asked Lilli.
Lilli looked scared as she smiled at me and waited for me to say something. I was a little panicked because I genuinely didn’t want to lie anymore. I wanted to tell the truth or some semblance of it if at all possible.
“Her parents have a home near mine. They travel a lot, so Lilli stays there while she’s going to school.”
“Oh, school?” Mrs. Edwards asked as she raised an eyebrow at Mr. Edwards judgmentally.
“Yes, I’m going to become a nurse,” Lilli added.
I wasn’t sure if that was the truth or not, but I was grateful she had joined in and said something. I quickly went back to talking to Izzy and hoped that the Edwards would stop grilling Lilli and me with all their questions. It was clearly making Lilli uncomfortable.
Dinner was quiet as Lilli, Izzy, and I sat on one side of the table and Mr. and Mrs. Edwards on the other side. I tried to talk with Izzy as much as possible, and Lilli chimed in from time to time too. The uncomfortable tension between the Edwards was palpable, though, and I was excited to have the dinner over with.
“So when did you all start dating?” Mr. Edwards asked.
He was looking at Lilli, but I knew she was going to leave the question for me to answer. Lilli quickly took a big bite of her pizza and pointed at me while she chewed and seemed to apologize for not being able to talk at the moment.
“We’ve been together for a few months,” I added. “But it was love at first sight.”
“Love?” Izzy asked as she smiled up at Lilli and then looked at me.
“Yep, I love her,” I said, and the funny thing was, it didn’t really feel like a lie.
“I like you, Lilli. My dad has a good taste,” Izzy said as she went back to eating.
“Thank you, Izzy. I’m really glad the two of us got to meet.”
“Me too. You’re really nice. I can see why Dad married you.”
I instantly looked over at the Edwards. We had agreed not to say that Lilli and I were married. I was furious because it was something I didn’t want Izzy to know. It was a lie that I didn’t want Izzy to have to deal with.
“Ashley told her,” Mrs. Edwards said apologetically.
“Yeah, Mom was really mad about it. But I’m not mad. I think it’s cool,” Izzy said as she continued eating and was oblivious to all the looks going back and forth between the adults at the table.
“I’m glad you and Lilli like each other,” I added. “You two are my favorite girls in the world.”
It wasn’t a lie. Even though Lilli and I were just getting to know each other, she was very high on my list of people I liked. Of course, Izzy was a little higher, but the two of them had become the center of my world in the last few weeks, and I was excited about those changes.
“So when did you get married?” Mr. Edwards asked.
His question seemed more like an interrogation as he narrowed his view in on me. The lie was already eating me up, and I could hardly stand to keep it going, but the thought of losing contact with Izzy was much more terrifying.
“Oh, my gosh,” Lilli screamed as her soda fell into her lap and all over her outfit.
She jumped up and started cleaning up the mess around her, but the dark soda had drenched her pants. She looked over at me, and I knew she had done it on purpose, and it was time for us to get going. Lilli was adamant about not wanting to lie, and I didn’t want to push the subject any further that evening either.
“Man, that’s a disaster,” I said as I handed her some napkins. “We better get you to the hotel so you can change.”
“I’m sorry, Miss Izzy, I’ve ruined our pizza night,” Lilli said.
“It’s okay. Are you guys going to come back next weekend?”
I looked at Mr. and Mrs. Edwards as I tried to read the expression on their faces. They didn’t look like they wanted me to come right back. But I wasn’t about to let their disapproval stop me from seeing my daughter.
“Yep, I’ll be back next weekend, but Lilli has to work, so she won’t be able to come.”
“Oh, that’s okay. You and I can go do fun stuff together then,” Izzy said as she hugged me. “I love you.”
“I love you too. You can call me anytime this week. Your grandma and grandpa have my phone number.”
They went along with what I was saying and shook their heads in agreement. A phone call with me was much better than having me show up.
“We are thinking of going on a summer trip soon,” Mr. Edwards said. “I’ll let you know when.”
“Okay, because I’d really like to spend more time with Izzy this summer.”
“I know,” he said and didn’t look happy about it.
We said our good-bye’s, and I gave Izzy one last hug before we left. The relief I felt when we finally got out of the restaurant and into the car was almost joyous. The tension had been so thick between the Edwards and me that I was sure my blood pressure was up to a dangerous level.
“Um, that was uncomfortable,” Lilli said as she buckled her seat belt.
“I know. It was like they knew we were lying or something. That soda spilling was genius, though.” I laughed. “Pretty good move there.”
“I didn’t know what else to do. They were going to keep grilling you until they caught us in a lie.” Lilli laughed as she shook her head. “They know something is up. What happened with Ashley?”
“I don’t know. She basically thinks I’m trying to steal Izzy from her. Plus, she didn’t look like she was in a good place. I’m not sure if it was the withdrawals or the medication she’s on. She was really angry. She’d been like that with me on the phone the last couple of times I talked to her too.”
“She’s going through a lot,” Lilli said compassionately. “I don’t think I’d want to meet my ex’s new woman if I was going through such a hard time. She probably wants to make sure she’s looking all dolled up and better than me the first time we meet. That’s what I’d do.” Lilli smiled so sweetly at me that I nearly drove off the road as I was so distracted.
“You’re a good person, Lilli.”
“Not really, but I do know women.”
“I thought I did.” I laughed. “But I’m starting to think I was a little delusional.”
Lilli laughed with me and a little bit at me. She had a huge brown stain of soda down the front of her shirt and jeans, but as we pulled up to the hotel, she got out without seeming to have a care in the world.
I grabbed our luggage instead of letting the bellboy take it. This way we could get up to our room faster, and Lilli could get out of those sticky clothes.
She walked beside me as we got checked in. The front desk clerk recognized me from the previous weekend and gave me the same suite we had before. When we walked into the room, it was as if we had just been there only hou
rs before.
“I’m taking a shower,” Lilli announced as she went straight to the bathroom.
“Should I join you?” I asked.
“Not right now. But you can get us something to drink. I need to calm down a little. That was a stressful dinner.”
“Deal.”
As much as I would have loved a little fun with her in the shower, I was probably more stressed out than she was, and a drink sounded perfect. I called down to room service and had them send up some desserts and Mike’s Hard Lemonade. It seemed like a good drink for the day we had just finished.
I left Lilli’s suitcase by the bathroom as I knocked on the door.
“Your bag is just outside the door if you need it,” I yelled.
“Okay, thank you.”
Lilly took a remarkably short shower and was standing in the doorway only a few minutes later. She had a towel wrapped around her as she put her bag on the bed and rummaged through it so she could grab some clothes. Her wet hair dripped all over the rug as she stood there looking in the small bag for much longer than I thought she needed to.
“Everything alright?”
“Um, I accidentally grabbed three shirts and no other pants,” she said with a laugh.
“Hmm, well you could just wear a shirt,” I said with a wink. “Or you could wear my swim trunks if you’d like, and we can send your pants down to get washed.”
“Give me your T-shirt,” Lilli demanded as she looked at me seriously.
“Why?”
“It’s bigger than mine. I’ll wear that while we wait. Can you send my pants down now? Will we get them back by morning?”
“I’m sure they can get them to us by morning.”
I did as she asked, took my shirt off and threw it in her direction. She slipped it on over her towel and then tipped her head upside down as she used the same towel to wrap her wet hair and twist it up on top of her head.
“Perfect. Now, where’s the alcohol? I need to drink.” She laughed as she climbed into the chaise chair.
“How is it that you look fantastic in that shirt, and I just look like a boring old guy?”
“I’m not sure, but I do like this shirt,” she said as she rubbed the fabric between her fingers. “I think I might keep it.”
Chapter 15
Lilli
Devin took great care of me as he sent out my pants and ordered a bunch of delicious snacks and desserts for us to feast on. The sweets were exactly what I needed after dealing with the stress of the Edwards and their questions.
I was feeling worse and worse about the lies we had already told. I didn’t want to get Izzy all wrapped up in thinking her dad and I were married, and it really made me angry to find out that Ashley had told her. But even though I was upset, I also really wanted to help Devin out, and I thought Izzy was going to do great with him at his house. Things were already so out of control, there was no pulling the lie back in at that point.
“How about a movie?” Devin asked as he flipped the television on.
We had the chaise longue pulled up next to the bed and the table right in front of it. Devin clicked through the movies, and I was surprised at how many choices there were. I’d never even bothered looking at the movie selection when I was in a hotel room, probably because I didn’t stay in nice hotels like this one.
“Wait, that one.” I laughed as he clicked past Magic Mike. “Channing Tatum is so cute.”
“You want to watch a movie about male strippers?”
“Yep, and I think you’ll love it.”
“Wait, you’ve already seen it before?”
“Of course. What kind of woman do you think I am?”
Devin laughed and kept clicking through to see what other movie choices there were. But I had my heart set on watching Channing Tatum, so I reached for the remote and caught him off guard as I pulled it away from him.
“Um, I already decided on the movie,” I said as I pressed his hand away while he tried to grab the remote back.
“No. I can’t possibly keep my man card if I watch that.”
“Shhh, I won’t tell anyone. It’s a good movie. Trust me,” I said playfully as I clicked to purchase the movie.
“I’m only going to watch it because you’ve gone out of your way to help me out here. That’s the only reason. And don’t you dare tell Jacob.”
I couldn’t help laughing at how serious he was looking at me. He clearly was very concerned that his friend would find out that he had agreed to watch the sexy male stripper movie.
“I won’t tell him.”
“Swear on it.”
“Oh, okay.” I laughed. “I swear I won’t tell him that you watched the sexy Channing Tatum with me.”
“Man, I can’t believe I got roped into this.”
He grabbed his drink and climbed up into the bed while he held the blankets open for me to join him. I grabbed another Mike’s Hard Lemonade and climbed in next to him. We organized the pillows behind us and leaned back to enjoy the movie.
The scene where the guys were dancing was pretty sexy, and I looked over at Devin to see if he was even watching the movie. Sure enough, he was focused on the movie just like I was. But when he noticed that I had seen him, he pretended like I was torturing him by rolling his eyes and sipping more on his drink.
“I got better moves than that,” Devin scoffed as Channing Tatum took to the dance floor.
Without hesitating, I grabbed the remote and paused the film. If Devin had moves like that, I definitely wanted to see them.
“Let’s see,” I said as I motioned for him to take the floor.
“I’m not dancing for you. Those moves are saved for a special occasion.”
“Ah, so basically you don’t have any moves at all? I get it, it’s okay.”
Devin didn’t like me saying that, and he jumped out of the bed and stood in front of the television. I clicked the movie back on so he had a little background music, and Devin started shaking his ass just like the movie star on the screen. Actually, I was watching Devin much more than the television.
He pulled his shirt off and unbuttoned the top button on his shorts. His pelvis thrust forward, and he moved around like a man who, without a doubt, knew how to dance. My body tingled with the memory of being in his bed and how those hip thrusts had felt against my naked body.
Devin saw the desire in my eyes and motioned for me to join him. By this point, I’d consumed a couple drinks and dancing with Devin didn’t seem like a bad idea. I crawled across the bed, and he grabbed me and pulled me up to dance with him before I could get myself off the bed.
His hand held me close as he moved his pelvis and glided our bodies back and forth. I wanted to laugh at how ridiculous we must have looked, but it was too much fun. Devin was taking his moves seriously as the music from the movie played behind us. When the movie moved onto another scene, Devin slowed his movements but kept me close to him as we continued to dance together.
“You are a better dancer than I thought,” I admitted.
“You knew I was good. What’s that they say about if a guy can dance then he’s good in bed or something like that.”
My face turned bright red because that was exactly what I had been thinking. He was right; I did suspect he was going to be a decent dancer. But it was still fun to see him put out the effort.
“You are so damn beautiful,” Devin said as he stopped moving and put his hand up to my cheek. “Have I told you that yet? I don’t care if I have. I’m saying it again.”
“Thank you,” I said softly as I looked up at him.
“I’m sorry we had to meet like this, and I had to ruin it with this lying nonsense.”
“There’s worse ways to meet. I mean you could run into someone while running,” I teased.
The moment was gentle and sweet as he looked at me as if I was indeed the most beautiful woman in the world. I wasn’t sure if he was drunk or if he actually thought I was beautiful, but his words seemed very sincere to me, and I q
uickly gave in as his lips pressed against mine.
I wanted all of him again. I couldn’t wait to feel our bodies together and the joy of explosion when he brought me to the ultimate ended.
His hands stayed up by my face as he guided my lips and his together. He moved from one direction to another, and we stayed standing for a long time while our kisses took control of us. I was lost in his touch. The gentleness, the firmness, and the pleasure he was delivering were more than I could have hoped for.
I felt at home there in Devin’s arms. He was becoming more than just a lover; we were friends, and that was new to me. I still felt nervous as his hands reached for my shirt and pulled it up and over my head. I was naked as I stood at the foot of the bed with the music from the movie playing in the background.
His rugged beard had developed more than I had seen it before, and I felt the difference when he bent over and took my breast into his mouth. The tickle of his whiskers was actually softer than before, likely because he had more than just a stubble of hair on his face this time.
I wrapped my fingers through his hair as he held onto me and nibbled my body. He let out sweet moans of pleasure as he let go of one breast and moved over to the other one. I smiled at how much he was enjoying having me. His hands were smooth as they ran up and down my back, caressing my skin and pressing me toward him all at the same time.
My body tingled with desire, but this time I wasn’t in such a hurry. I enjoyed the fun of feeling his mouth on me. I loved the moments when he paused and looked at me. The playful glint in his eye before he pressed me back onto the bed was a surprise and had me giggling while he climbed on top of me.
The sultry music of the movie continued in the background, but I certainly wasn’t thinking of any hot movie stars. Instead, I had a delicious specimen of a man right there in my arms. I’d fantasized about men like Devin for most of my life. I’d always assumed they weren’t at all what they seemed. No man could be so handsome and actually nice, or so I thought.
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