Page 54 of Liberating Lily

Reaching over, he freed her lip from between her teeth.

“None of that,” he told her. “No fretting, no worrying. If you’re thinking that you’re using me for answers, then don’t. Because I would be getting answers either way.”

“You would?” she asked.

“Oh yes,” Harvey replied. “Whoever drugged you deserves to pay. I want to know the truth.”

So did she. “So why can’t I have my phone then?”

“Because of your mother. She’s been sending messages to you. When she was arrested, she was sent to a psych unit for a while to get evaluated, but she must have convinced them that she was in her right mind. Now, she’s out on bail. She’s been demanding that you return home, and I didn’t want you to see those messages.”

“Were you worried that I’d try to do what she wants?”

“Would you?” he asked.

“When you first took me? Yes, probably. Not that I would’ve gotten far, right?”

“You wouldn’t have,” he agreed. “But that doesn’t mean I want you upset by the messages she’s been sending. She is no longer in your life. You no longer have to worry about her, because she won’t have any influence over you and you never have to see her again.”

“She’s my mother, though.”

“Just because she’s your mother, doesn’t mean she deserves to be. It doesn’t give her the right to abuse you and expect you to just forgive her. Your mother is supposed to take care of you. She’s supposed to look after and protect you. That bitch didn’t do that, did she?”

No, sadly, she never had. Not as far as Lily could remember, anyway. She’d never been the kind of person who would give her a cuddle when she hurt herself or come running when she had a nightmare. She only turned up to school functions because it was expected of her, not because she actually cared. The only time she’d ever really noticed Lily or Clem was when they were doing something that she didn’t approve of.

“So you think I should just pretend she doesn’t even exist?”

“Yeah, I do. And I’m going to help you with that by not letting you have your phone back. If you need to contact someone, other than your mother, that is, tell me.”

“I can’t help but feel like you’re isolating me.”

“I’m sorry it feels that way, baby. It won’t always feel like this. One day soon, I’ll introduce you to my family, and then you’ll see how a real family behaves, how we look after each other. You’ll understand what it’s like when you have people at your back who are protective and loyal.” He sighed. “Shit. I don’t want you to think I’m trying to isolate you or taking things from you. But I also want to protect you. I don’t want you to have to deal with her. Not until you’re ready.”

“All right. Keep my phone for the time being. But I would like my handbag. It’s got some things in it I want.”

“Like what?” he asked.

Jeez, he was nosy.

“Are you always this nosy about everything?” she asked.

“Pretty much,” he said. “But I’m particularly nosy when it comes to you. What do you need from your handbag?”

She sighed. She really didn’t understand how this was of any interest to him. But if it meant she got her handbag, she guessed she would tell him. “My lip balm, for a start. My lips are all chapped.”

He frowned slightly. “You should have told me. I would have got you some lip balm.”

“I could have gotten my own lip balm if I had my handbag,” Lily told him with exasperation, throwing her hands up into the air.

Shoot. Would her exasperation anger him? After all, he’d only ever seen her the way she had been these last ten months, a zombie, compliant, obedient. Perhaps that’s what he wanted.

Perhaps that was why he liked her.

Her stomach tightened. Wasn’t it better that he found out what she was like? He didn’t know the real Lily. Hell, she didn’t know the real Lily anymore, but she did think that she’d been more spirited before.

To her surprise, he grinned. “There’s that sass. I know it had to be in there.”

What? He had?