AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Small?” Dad sneers sardonically.
“Personal. This town and its rich history are in every detail, every nook and cranny. Don’t get me wrong—I am proud of the work my family is doing to create a resort that will bring thousands to Somerset Harbor. But we could never hope to compete with what you have here.”
Mom smiles, then looks at Dad, who hasn’t smiled since the resort talk came up. He gruffly says, “I’m surprised you even needed Lily to schmooze that investor of yours, considering how much ass kissing you just did.”
“Dad!” I bark at him. “That is enough!”
But Cormac merely gives a slight head shake. “Geoffrey, I meant every word.”
Dad sets his napkin on his plate and stands. “I am glad I got to meet your kids, Cormac. Seems my daughter is doing a good job of raising them for you—
“Geoffrey!” Mom hisses at him. “You are speaking to a guest in our home. Please do so with kindness.”
“Hard to do when the guest in question wants to make us homeless, Ellen. Goodnight, everyone.” He leaves the table without another word, and for once, I’m grateful for the silence.
Mom is so upset. “Cormac, I am so sorry for what he said. He’s not normally this disagreeable.”
“As much as I can, I understand, Ellen. He’s scared of losing everything. I don’t fault him for that. I just wish there was something more I could do to make him feel better about things—actually, maybe there is. Lily, we should go. I think he feels invaded by the enemy right about now, and I don’t want to make that worse by overstaying the welcome.”
Nodding, I choke back the urge to hunt my father down and shout at him for all of that. But with that feeling also comes the need to hug him and tell him everything will be alright, even when I can’t promise that. A third feeling hits—this is all my fault. If I hadn’t helped with Clint, then none of this would be happening. I mumble, “Yeah. I’ll get the kids.”
-
30
Cormac
A few days after our dinner from hell with her parents, the distance between me and Lily weighs heavy over us. Things were already strained by trying to hide ourselves from the kids, but with this added drama, it’s hard to feel anything but doomed. So, I’m taking steps.
I brought home a couple more flower vases, loaded to the brim with color, to cheer her up. She wanly said they looked nice, and that was it. The kids were more excited about them than she was. I delivered dinner for a night so she wouldn’t have to cook. She was appreciative and sweet, but that spark in her smile still wasn’t there. It felt like I’d done something wrong, even though nothing had changed. The worst part is, it’s hard to figure out when we can talk about it without the kids hearing us.
But I don’t give up that easily.
Lily sits with the kids on the couch as they watch a movie, and I tab through some work emails at the dining table. Our new Sunday routine. It’s been great having her home on the weekends in addition to the week, but with everything tense, I decide to try something and text her about taking a day off together tomorrow before Abigail returns.
She digs her phone out of her pocket—I knew it was on vibrate, and she’d feel it. As she reads the message, she half smiles. Then she sends back, “That sounds nice,” and a purple heart.
It’s a start. I’ve played it cool all day, but I’m almost ready to let the cat out of the bag. With Abigail coming back Wednesday, if we go out tonight, it won’t matter. She’ll be finding out about us soon enough, and even if one of her gossipy friends tells her about us, it won’t change anything. We can stop hiding. This doesn’t need to be a secret, which means I’m taking her out to dinner tonight.
I have it all planned—the candlelit restaurant with a string quartet, a romantic walk along the ocean, the works. Lily can go home and get ready while I get ready myself. Marie used to be my go-to babysitter before Lily came on, so I’m not worried about her trustworthiness. She will stay with the kids, I’ll pick Lily up, and we can go out like a regular couple. Taking tomorrow off will be the icing on a nice romantic cake. She can even sleep in once I sneak her upstairs.
Just as I notice I’m getting hungry, another text comes in and my heart clenches. Marie is sick.Shit. I text her my condolences, and that’s that. It’s all I can do to hide my disappointment, but she doesn’t need to know what we just lost. There’s no way to get another babysitter on a Sunday night on such short notice—at least, not one I trust.
Okay, there has to be a way for me to get some Lily time…I’ll make lunch. Something the kids won’t like.
“Hey, everyone. I am absolutely dying for a salad. Kids, what would you like on your salads?”
Franny’s nose wrinkles up, and she asks hopefully, “A peanut butter and jelly sandwich?”
Lily laughs. “I’ll make you one—
“I can handle a pb and j, Lily. Aiden, how about you? What do you want in your salad?”
“I’m with Franny.”
“Okay, two pb and j’s, coming up. Lily, do you want me to make it three?”
“Honestly, a salad sounds good.”
