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“Oh, don’t threaten me like that, Clint,” she says with a laugh. “I could hardly work in an office all day. Give me a sweaty kitchen over a frosty boardroom any day.”
He laughs, and I sit in awe of Lily.How is she this good at playing the role of the dutiful partner?I do not know how she’s doing it, but I’m grateful beyond measure.
After dinner, she cleans off the table, but I tell her, “Let me—
“No, no. I have bored Clint enough with my kitchen stories. I’ll get this all put away while you two chat. Clint, would you care for a nightcap?”
“I am set with what I have, thank you. And dinner was incredible. Truly.”
“I’m so glad you enjoyed it.” She cleans off the table like a pro, arms loaded with plates as though they were nothing.
Once she disappears into the kitchen, Clint firmly says, “Marry her.”
I laugh. “Like I said before, all of this is pretty new—
“And she’s perfect. Marry her.”
“Let’s talk about the resort.” Before I get lost in thoughts of Lily in a wedding dress.
22
Lily
Standing in the doorway, we wave at Clint as his Escalade pulls away. Once he’s out of sight, I close the door. “Well, that was…something.”
Cormac laughs. “Um, yes. Yes, it was.”
“About that thing I said—nannies raising your kids, and that’s why they’re so great—
He laughs again. “You weren’t wrong. And the thing I said, that I lucked out in that department…I meant that about you, Lily.”
I blink, unsure of what to say to that. “You did?”
“Yes.” He steps so close I can feel his body heat. “I consider myself very lucky to have found you.”
I gulp as I look up into his piercing blue eyes. “You do?”
“Haven’t I been clear about that?” His gaze drifts to my lips.
My heart pounds in my chest. “I—
“Dad,” Franny whines in her pajamas. “You were supposed to tuck us in.”
“Of course, sweetie. I’m sorry,” he says, rushing to her. “Let’s do bedtime.”
“Okay,” she says, yawning as she holds his hand. The pair toddle down the hallway together, and I’m moved by the sight. Cormac really is a great dad.
That was too close. Too much. He had that look again. We had agreed not to…have that look again. It’s too dangerous. Abigail will fire me. I can’t get caught up in his gaze and cologne and handsomeness. Shaking the thought from my head, I finish clearing the rest of dishes from the table and set about cleaning up.
I had cleaned as I cooked, so it’s not too much, thankfully. Thinking about the dinner, I try not to think about any of it too hard. As annoyingly traditional as Clint could be about some things, he seemed like a decent enough guy. And with Cormac treating him like a VIP, I’m pretty sure he can’t be too evil. I doubt he’d do business with someone repugnant. But all of that is really just a way for me to ignore the actual issue from supper tonight.
It felt right.
Not the part where Clint called melittle lady, because yuck. But the rest of it—pretending to be Cormac’s girlfriend, having an almost maternal role with the kids—there was no part of that I didn’t enjoy. I was right. Thisisconfusing.
Thankfully, the kids didn’t seem to pick up on anything weird. Once Franny had her berry tart, nothing else seemed to matter to her, and Aiden devoured more green beans for his dessert, bypassing the tart even though it was gluten-free. She kept giving him a look like he was crazy, but he was undeterred. Neither one appeared to care about whatever we were talking about.
When I heard Clint say the thing about marrying me, though, my heart stopped.
