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“I… I…” I can’t even get the words past my lips so I just give up and shake my head.
“Is it the wine? I’m sorry. I’m not at all knowledgeable when it comes to picking it. I just grabbed a bottle from Matthew’s private cellar and assumed it was good.”
I glance up from my glass and Lily looks so upset that I feel the strongest urge to reassure her that it’s not the wine. “No, I’m sorry, it’s not the wine. I’m sure the wine is very good.”
Lily smiles, looking relieved for a moment but then she’s frowning again. “Is it something I’ve done?”
“No,” I say quickly. “You’ve been a very gracious hostess…”
Lily nods her head slowly and leans back. She doesn’t seem offended by my refusal to drink the wine, if anything she seems to be simply curious now.
She regards me over the rim of her glass for a long moment before she takes another sip.
I glance towards the door, hoping that someone will appear to save me from this situation. Lily seems so nice, I don’t know how to interact with her. A part of me assumed she would be mean or stuck-up given how flawlessly beautiful she is. Or as cruel as her husband. But she’s practically tripping over herself to make me comfortable.
“Matthew did something, didn’t he?” she finally says knowingly.
I immediately stiffen in reaction. Shit, shit, shit. I want to deny it but I just can’t.
Leaving me alone with her was a bad idea. What was Lucifer and Andrew thinking? I’m not at all good at deceiving others. I hate lying, and I really suck at it.
Her eyes narrow, and the way she looks at me I get the impression that she’s starting to figure it out on her own. “You know, I’ve been with Matthew for a little over a year now and you’re the first wife I’ve ever been introduced to…”
“Andrew and I are not married,” I quietly correct her. I have to set my glass of wine down on the table before I give in to the urge to drink deeply from it. “I’ve only known him for two days.”
“You’re kidding,” she exclaims shrilly and then blushes, casting a quick look towards the children.
Adam glances over, looking at his mom curiously, but Evie and Abigail are in their own happy little world, completely oblivious of us.
“I’m not kidding, though I wish I was,” I say, shifting uncomfortably.
I feel like I’ve already said too much and I’m afraid of what will happen if Lucifer and Andrew were to get wind of this. I wasn’t specifically told not to talk or reveal why I’m with Andrew, but I just figured that it was something understood.
Not to mention I have no clue what Lily will do if I tell her the truth. Would she even believe me if I told her? If I were in her situation, I probably wouldn’t.
Lily leans towards me and drops her voice to a whisper. “He took you, didn’t he?”
I’m so surprised she guessed it right, I blurt out, “Yes!”
I slap a hand over my mouth and look worriedly towards Abigail. She glances over at me, smiles sweetly, and then goes right back to playing.
My heart pounds frantically behind my ribs and my mind races a mile a minute. How much does Lily know? Does she already know everything and this is some kind of test?
Or is she someone who could help me get out of this situation?
I lean towards Lily and lower my voice to a whisper. “How did you know?”
Her eyes light up with something. Joy? Or is it amusement?
She looks almost as eager as I feel, like she too has been dying to say something.
As she sets her glass down on the table and turns back to give me her full attention, I feel this strange jolt, like we’re kindred spirits in this moment.
Her lips curve into a mischievous grin and she leans in close as she whispers. “Because Matthew took me… from my husband.”
Lily proceeds to tell me a whispered story about Lucifer appearing in her bedroom one night and strong-arming her and her children away from her husband. Apparently, her husband at the time, Marshall, was an awful man. He cared nothing for her or the children, and she was planning on divorcing him.
But then Lucifer swept into her life, claimed her and the children as his own, and changed all of her plans. Some of the details are fuzzy. She kind of brushes over Marshall kidnapping her and Lucifer taking care of him, but doesn’t provide any specific details.
“Are you happy?” I ask her, letting it all sink in my brain.
The story is so dramatic, so crazy, I wouldn’t believe it if I didn’t go through something similar myself.
She doesn’t hesitate. Her lips curve into a smile and she nods her head. “Incredibly.”
