Three Wishes(70)
Author: Kristen Ashley

Eight years ago, he’d worked relentless twelve hour days and even, sometimes, made business calls to different time zones in the evenings. It likely wasn’t so easy for Nate McAllister to drop everything because the wayward mother of his child happened by for a surprise visit and then had a medical semi-emergency.

She stepped out of the shower and towelled off, wrapping the thick towel around her hair and sorting through Laura’s various tubs and bottles – at least a two year supply for Lily, even if she could have afforded those brands, which she couldn’t.

While Lily lotioned her body and went about putting on her face, she also resolutely set aside how Nate took care of her yesterday. She didn’t think of his soft voice or the intense feeling flowing through it when he spoke. She didn’t think of him carrying her urgently to the car or pressing a flannel to her head or urging her to tell him how he could help. And lastly, she tried not to think of his admission that she scared the hell out of him and what that might mean.

They would be husband and wife so they could be mother and father to Tash, a family whole at last, just as Lily had while growing up. Lily was happy to accept all that came with it, the companionship (if it lasted), the lovemaking (which was very nice and always had been), the security (clearly, Nate could take care of them financially, they most likely would never have to worry again about the fridge breaking down and what that might mean to their grocery budget).

She would let him, indeed, welcome him into her home, her life, her family and her bed.

But she was going to have to guard her heart.

Nate wasn’t going to let her in to his that was clear. She’d practically had to beg him to tell her she’d scared him with her migraine.

Therefore, she wouldn’t, couldn’t let him in to hers. Not again.

They were, she thought as she put on one of Laura’s outfits, strangers that somehow seemed to be closer, have more of a history than they actually did, merely because everything had been so intense, so much compacted into such a short period of time.

But they were strangers and Lily had to remember that.

She combed out her wet hair one last time as Nate had no hair dryer (alas), mussed it with her fingertips and she looked at herself and her new outfit in the mirror.

The skirt was so long it was to her ankles, white, flowy and tiered with a pretty, minty-green, gauzy top that was nearly so sheer you could see through it. It’s wide neckline fell off her shoulder, exposing the strap of the pastel green camisole and matching bra she wore under it. The top was belted at the waist with a piece of wide fabric that matched the blouse.

Laura had exquisite taste. Lily tried not to think of the expense of the clothes, she knew the designer names in the labels and shuddered at what they likely cost. She resolved to find a way to pay Laura back and soon. She really didn’t want to be indebted to the Roberts.

Lily strapped on the gold sandals she wore the day before and walked out of the bedroom and down the hall in search of food to quell the growling in her stomach. She wondered if Nate still had his groceries delivered but figured he likely did, the idea of Nate wandering the aisles of a grocery store was so preposterous, it made her smile.

Lost in her thoughts, the smile still on her lips, she walked into Nate’s gigantic living room and stopped dead as she saw both Nate and Victor standing around the work that was still spread out all over Nate’s dining room table.

Nate’s head jerked around when he saw her enter the room. He was holding a file open, the papers arched for him to read and his face had been blank. The minute his saw her, though, his lips curved into one of his breathtaking smiles that a lone gymnast in her belly liked especially and therefore executed a perfect back hand-spring at the sight.

Lily’s ignored the gymnast and her antics and her eyes flicked to Victor. He was smiling at her too, his far more tentative. She didn’t know what to make of that so she nodded to him silently.

Nate was approaching her, his long legs eating the distance swiftly and she tilted her head back because, within seconds, he was at her side.

“Good morning,” she said as she gazed up at him.

“Morning.” His low voice rumbled and his head came down to give her a brief but hard kiss. His strong hand settled at her waist and flexed there and her hand went up to flatten on his shoulder to push back, not wishing to engage in a Nate-style public display of affection in front of his father.

His head came up and he completely ignored the pressure of her hand.

“How are you feeling this morning?” he asked.

“Better.” She watched his black eyes flare and instantly took his meaning. “Good,” she whispered for his ears only and felt the blush creep up her cheeks just like she was a twenty-two year old virgin and not the mother of a seven year old girl.

“Good?” His voice had a faint teasing tone that the lone gymnast also liked, very much, and the corners of his lips tipped up in a lazy grin.

She leaned into him conspiratorially, her eyes shifting around his shoulder to Victor then back to him.

“Your father,” she said, sotto voce, reminding him they had company.

For some reason, this made him snatch her into his arms and he buried his face in her hair as he chuckled against her neck.

And somehow, making him chuckle, Lily felt that she’d just reached the top of Mount Everest even to the point of having trouble breathing as she’d reach such altitude.

He let her go, though she felt it was somehow with reluctance, when the mobile phone on the dining room table started ringing. Nate strode back to the table and she watched him go, thinking he had such a powerful gait that it was beautiful, like the trained power of an athlete.

Then her eyes fell on Victor.

She felt funny around Victor. He’d hurt her in more ways than putting his hands on her in violence to the point of bruising her. He’d broken her trust by doing it.

She thought of him, when she first met him, as a kind of father-figure in absence of Will. Now Will was gone and both Tash and Lily were left with Victor and Lily didn’t know what to think of that.

He’d done what he’d done out of love and loyalty for Nate but it still didn’t change the fact that he’d lost his temper to the point of manhandling her.

“Lily,” Victor greeted softly as she walked toward him cautiously. Her eyes moved to Nate who had answered his phone. He was talking on the mobile but also watching her, watching them, and not missing a thing. He was not, this time, inspecting a bug under a microscope. Nate’s dark eyes were active, engaged and aware.