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“Wait.” She pulled back, looking at my body. “You are hurt. Jesus.”
“Shh.” I pulled her back to me, but she looked up and into the tub.
“Oh…my God.” A strangled sound left her and my stomach flipped. My hands spun her back to face me and I pulled her from the restroom as fast as I could.
“You don’t need to see that. Come here, let me hold you. I was so scared when I heard about the shootings.”
Lilian melted into my arms and I glanced up to see Slade holding Mary, but looking at me. I couldn’t read his face. Couldn’t even begin to decipher what he was thinking. In that moment, he could have hated me or been grateful and I wouldn’t have been able to distinguish the emotion he was so good at hiding.
“Let’s go home,” Mary said, pulling back to glance up. It was enough to break Slade’s stare.
“Of course. We’ll get you home and have the doctor come over to check you out. Are you sure you’re okay?” His finger traced her face and she nodded.
“I’m fine. I just want to go.”
“The moment Marcio arrives, we will. Brace had to ditch the car we came in.”
Gaige emerged from the restroom. “Come on, I’ll take you. Blake needs to take care of things here and we shouldn’t be in his way.”
“It’s okay. I’m responsible. I can stay.” I held Lily tighter, giving her a squeeze before I stepped back.
“No,” Slade ground out. “You’re going. The doctor needs to check you out, too. Apparently, someone doesn’t listen very well when they’re told to wear their damn vest.” At that moment, I knew. Slade didn’t hate me. His expression softened and he shook his head, breaking his gaze and wrapping his arms around Mary as he buried his face in her hair.
As I looked down, Lily’s eyebrows drew in and I could have cursed Slade for ratting me out. He’d probably done it on purpose.
“We’ll talk about that later. Let’s get you home.” I looked over, nodding to Blake, a silent thank you I knew he caught. He returned the gesture and I grabbed a shirt, sliding it on. Gaige led the way down the stairs and I knew it was probably the last time I’d ever go down them. Lily wouldn’t want to live here. She wouldn’t want to take a shower in the only tub I had, where my uncle had been killed. I was going to have to start over again, but this time would be the last. No more rentals. No more prolonging what I knew I wanted. The next house would be purchased and it would be the one Lilian and I would come home to after our marriage. It would be the one we raised our children in. It would be the one we’d build the foundation of our new relationship on. My past was history now. It was time to start a new beginning. One with the woman I loved.
Chapter 47
Lily
Three months later.
Air burned my lungs as I raced through the crowded streets in my heels, dodging couples emerging from the packed Italian restaurant. No more guards. No more protection. In this moment, I was free. Unafraid of being hurt or alone. I’d come so far in the months that followed Saul’s death. I felt unstoppable when it came to my confidence, but that barely registered in my impatience to make inside.
I slowed enough to weave around a man exiting and broke into the entrance, nearly sliding on the tile floors as I came to a stop. Stands of hair fell from my bun and I reached up, trying to pat it back.
“Robert’s party, please.” My breathless request was greeted with a smile from the hostess. I followed while she began to lead me through the tables, toward the back. Work...I’d been so caught up in the details of closing this newest deal, I’d completely forgotten to check the time.
We stepped through a door and a table of women looked up. Zain sat in the corner with Slade, Blake, and Gaige. My brother and boyfriend both smiled as I gave an apologetic expression. They had an all too knowing look on their face and I couldn’t stop the guilt from making me rush forward. Mary stood from the table, her rounding stomach visible as the dress fell loose.
“I’m sorry I’m late. I tried to hurry.”
She laughed while I came around to sit beside her. “You’re only a few minutes late. It’s okay. We were keeping ourselves occupied with stories. Elle was just telling us about her adventures with Connor when he was a toddler.”
My smile grew as our eyes connected. Elle and I had become very close while working together at the foundation. Even Kaitlyn was present for the baby shower, although we were only just getting to know her. Our pain had brought us all together and it hadn’t taken long for Mary or Blake’s wife to want to help in any way they could. A chapter was being opened in Texas and we were determined to bring in more awareness in whatever way we could to what we all knew needed to be stopped.
“So, where do we begin?” I asked, grabbing a strawberry from the platter of fruit on middle of the table. “I’m dying to know if I’m having a niece or a nephew. The anticipation is killing me.”
Mary glanced over to Slade, but turned back to all of us. “I was told we had to play a few games before we cut the cake. Don’t worry, though, it’s been driving me crazy, too. Slade and I have had to wait a week already. I can’t believe we decided not to know until we saw the color inside of the cake. Whose idea was that again?”
“Mine,” Kaitlyn said, laughing. “And it’s a great thing to do. The torture will be well worth it when you learn what you’re having.”
“Agreed,” Elle said, standing. “So, let’s get started. I can’t wait to find out either.” She reached into a small bag and pulled out a clothespin, opening and closing it. “This, will be our first game. She grabbed what looked to be an old milk bottle from the table and walked over, setting it on the ground. “What you’re going to do is hold the clothespin against the middle of your stomach, like so,” she said, demonstrating. “And then, see if you can make it in the bottle. The one with the most wins a prize. Mary,” she said, gesturing, “you’re first.”
Slade laughed as Mary walked around, took a handful of clothespins, and began letting them drop. One bounced off the rim and she closed one eye, trying to aim.
I grabbed another slice of fruit and leaned over the table to see better. One by one, she let them fall and everyone cheered when she dropped the fourth one inside.
