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“Who are you to say anything about this,” Lucas murmured. “You’re not family; you’re an employee. For now.”
But Noah didn’t back down. “Your father prides himself on taking care of everyone, and he couldn’t stand the thought of having those roles reversed. I honestly don’t think he believed anything like this was going to happen. In the meantime, he wanted all of you to have a wonderful vacation where you had nothing to worry about.” Pausing, he shook his head. “And he certainly didn’t count on Lily coming home. She was a good distraction for him, mainly because she didn’t really fuss over him. She simply spent time hanging out, eating, and watching movies with him. I truly believe she was good for him.”
The tears were back in her eyes as she turned and thanked him. When she faced her family again, she let out a long breath. “He kept it from me and I was staying with him. I thought it was odd that he made me stay in the guesthouse, but then I thought the woman he was going out with was a decorator or something.” She chuckled softly. “That was after I thought he was cheating on Grandma…”
“What?!” they all cried.
“Why would you even think that?” her mother asked.
“Because he was lying right to my face telling me he was busy with conference calls, and then I’d see him walking out with some random woman! What would you think?”
They all looked at each other but didn’t really comment.
“But when I found the brochure…trust me, he did not like getting caught. And he certainly didn’t want to talk about being sick.”
“It’s a family thing,” Emma murmured, staring at her husband. “I guess it’s not just injuries that we don’t talk about, but sickness too.”
“Emma,” Lucas said with a small huff before looking at Lily. “And that brings us back to you. Did you go to the doctor?”
Nodding, she told them about her appointments too. “They all say the same thing, but I’ve been renting studio space for a week now and dancing and I’m fine! I think if I change how I dance, I can put off the surgery.”
There was a collective groan all around her.
“What? What did I say?”
“She is definitely your daughter,” Jason said with a small laugh. “Stubborn.”
“Hey!” Lily said with annoyance. “I’m not being stubborn. I just don’t believe in having surgery unnecessarily. That’s not a crime.”
“Okay, relax,” her mother said, patting her arm. “Just because you’re being careful while you dance doesn’t mean you don’t still need the surgery, sweetheart. You need to really think about this.” Then she looked at Noah. “What do you think, Noah? Do you agree that she should wait?”
“Um…”
Lily turned her head toward him and silently begged him not to take their side. He smiled at her and she relaxed. Until…
“I think she should have the surgery,” he said wearily. “I get that she can dance carefully without aggravating the injury, but in the long run, I believe it would be best to have the surgery now andthengo back to dancing with abandon.”
Now she glared at him.
Traitor.
Before she could comment, Uncle Robert was back and everyone was talking to him about how her grandfather had been for the last month since he spent the most time with him. Lily was only half-listening to the conversation because she felt like she needed to say something to Noah.
In private.
Carefully, they disengaged from the group and moved to the other side of the room. “What the hell?” she hissed. “How could you betray me like that in front of my family? Are you so desperate for my father’s approval that you’d throw me under the bus like that?”
His eyes went wide. “Excuse me?”
Crossing her arms, she nodded. “You heard me. I know you were freaked out about what he was going to do or say when he got home and found out about us, but I never thought you’d do something like this!”
“Like what? Tell the truth?” he asked incredulously. “I never said I agreed with your thinking, Lily. I thought it was foolish for you to keep pushing yourself with the dancing. I get that recovery wasn’t as positive as you wanted it to be, but it’s like you’re looking to hurt yourself!”
“What…? Are you insane? Why would I do that?”
“Because you’re stubborn!” he said a little too loudly. The entire cafeteria got quiet, and he groaned. “Look, I don’t know why else you’d keep pushing yourself when you know you shouldn’t. Four doctors recommended surgery. Four doctors told you to take it easy. Why would they lie to you?”
“You know what? I don’t need this right now. My grandfather is upstairs fighting for his life and I can’t believe you’d choose now to pick a fight!”
