I haven’t heard from him in over a year. For all I know he’s living it up in California after transferring our father’s company to the west coast to get in on the tech boom.
He really doesn’t occupy too many of my thoughts. We’re as different as night and day. And when it comes down to sibling bonds, ours is nonexistent. Not that I can blame him much.
Our father Andrew Knight III played a pretty big role in that. We were constantly pitted against each other and by the time we were grown and on our own, neither of us bothered to take the time to mend what would have been our relationship.
I can honestly count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen my brother in person since our mother’s funeral four years ago. My father had passed two years prior due to kidney failure and my brother disappeared like a ghost until a member of staff hunted him down to tell him of our mother’s pending funeral arrangements.
“Go to hell,” he grits out between his teeth. I can see him unbuttoning the jacket of his suit as he paces back and forth in his office hurling insults at me.
The mere visual is pretty damn comical if I do say so myself.
“I’ll see you there,” I promise darkly, then I hang up.
My concentration shot, I throw my tools back on the table and stare at the piece in front of me.
Lilah Tucker.
Why can’t I stop thinking about her? No matter how hard I try, she’s right there in the peripheral of every thought I have.
I must have taken about ten cold showers in the last two days alone. Every time I recall her, my dick aches in protest.
The sexual frustration is to be expected. She’s a walking wet dream if I’ve seen one.
But why do I miss her feistiness and that sharp tongue as she tries to deflect attention away from the intensity of our chemistry. Why do I miss the fire raging in her beautiful eyes?
My fist balls up again on its own accord, a clear indication that I need to get a grip.
How the fuck do I miss someone I barely know? What kind of spell did she put on me?
The tension radiating from me is so strong that I push away from my workstation. If I try to continue sculpting, I might just ruin it.
Tired of these frustrating thoughts, I snatch up my phone with one goal in mind.
Spurred on by my recent conversation, I find Lilah’s number intent on making my first sizable investment.
Even if I were to never touch my trust fund, I know that my inheritance will take care of me until the grave. However, I suddenly feel like I have something to prove and Lilah’s going to help me.
And I’ll be killing two birds with one stone. Because if I don’t see her soon, I’m going to combust.
Fifteen
LILAH
I’m not sure what possessed me to go grocery shopping in the middle of the night, but here I am in aisle six comparing generic cereal brands.
By the time I grabbed a squeaky shopping cart, it was midnight on the dot and I’ve been busy ever since. My tight budget makes it necessary that I pinch every penny possible and I don’t take the task lightly.
Because of the late hour, my contacts have long left my eyes, so I push the clunky glasses further up the bridge of my nose to continue my price comparison.
When my phone vibrates in my back pocket, I tear my eyes away from my current task and retrieve the device. Who would be calling me at this hour? My mom? Charli? Edward?
Nothing prepares me to see Andrew’s name on the screen.
I haven’t heard from him once since I pulled my little disappearing act and I sure as hell wasn’t going to be the first to reach out.
When can I see you, Ms. Tucker?
I may not have reached out to him in reality, but he was all I could think of, night and day. I had even found myself washing my hands under scalding water this afternoon lost in my thoughts as I recalled our last encounter.
I’m free all day tomorrow. What time works best for you?
I take a deep breath and wait for his response. Hopefully, he says later in the day. I need time to prepare for our next encounter, because the last one nearly knocked my world off its axis.
What about tonight? I want to pick your brain before I move forward with anything…
Shit.
Sorry. I can’t right now. I’m in the middle of something.
His response comes through quicker than lightning.
What the fuck are you saying, Lilah? Where are you?
He’s nowhere near me but I can feel the heat of his jealousy through the phone.
Cool your jets, caveman. I’m not in danger. I’m fine. Honest.
I hesitate to respond, but I know that I have step lightly.
I’m food shopping.
When no follow-up text comes through, I shrug and get back to the task at hand.
I breeze through the aisles humming softly to myself. I make it to the cookie aisle uninterrupted when a kind male voice breaks my train of thought from behind me.
Great.
“How are you?” He asks politely, and I continue to stare intently at the package in my hand. The less I say the better. Maybe this overly friendly mystery man will back off.
I grunt and bend down my head even further. Perhaps shopping at midnight is not the best idea I had recently.
“I’m sorry to bother you, but you looked fa—”
That’s when I recognize the voice. Deep yet nasally. I teased him about it all the time when we were together.
“Mason!”
Unintentionally, I pounce on him hugging him tight as comfort fills my heart at seeing someone familiar from my past.
“Hey, Lily Cat,” he greets laughingly when I pull away.
His old
