Ethan

Fucking strawberry shortcake.

It was a weakness of mine and with the temptation of two such sweet treats in front of me, all rational thought had fled. Still, taking her to dinner was harmless. And, I’d given myself two days to get my head on straight.

I debated whether to use my connections to get a rush on the DNA test from the hair I’d snagged off of Lilah’s head. I was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Almost literally, considering the state of my dick since I met her. If the test was positive, then I was lusting after my best friend’s daughter—teenage daughter.

If it was negative, then I would once again be no closer to finding Samuel’s child and hopefully, closure.

Either way, I knew taking her to dinner was a bad idea. Especially without telling her who I really was, which I couldn’t do until I had the results anyway. I was being stupid and selfish, but I wanted time with her. Before the realities of our situation intruded.

I worked from the hotel the next two days, digging into the lives of Hanna and Delilah Brooks. I kept telling myself I would do it, but I never did end up making the call to put a rush on the test.

Monday night approached, and I’d almost convinced myself that I would be able to keep my distance from her. Even while taking her to dinner. I was simply being a good friend, caring for Samuel’s daughter, making sure she was all right.

It was utter bullshit and at some point, I was going to have to stop lying to myself. That point stabbed me in the chest the moment Lilah opened the door for our date. Damn, she was beautiful.

Her hair was pulled to one side and wrapped in a bun thing, exposing the length of her elegant neck. She wore a pale-pink sweater that did everything for her generous breasts and a swishy black skirt that showed far too much of her creamy thighs when she backed up to let me in. Her knee-high, black, high-heeled boots begged to be the sole piece of clothing on her luscious body when I fucked her.

Her blue eyes sparkled with delight and plump, glossy lips lifted in a welcoming smile. Even with her womanly, practically sinful curves, there was an innocence about her that kept me from losing all control.

Instead of following her inside, I retreated a few feet. Not going into the house alone with her was a miracle. Two more and I’d be eligible for sainthood, I scoffed to myself silently. I didn’t see that happening in this lifetime because this was the moment when I knew the struggle was pointless. I was going to do whatever it took to make Lilah mine.

She looked confused and I stepped forward again, reaching out to run a finger down the soft skin of her cheek. “Grab your coat, baby girl,” I told her with a smile. “I’m starving.”

Her grin lit up her whole face, and I nearly groaned in pain as my gut twisted and my balls tightened from the sight. She disappeared for a moment before returning with a light coat and joining me outside, then locking her door. I snatched the coat from her hands and held it open for her to slip her arms inside. My head drifted down and I inhaled the scent permeating from her bared skin. The spicy aroma was intoxicating.

A growl of protest slipped from my chest involuntarily when she moved away. Lilah flipped around to face me and once again, I was bowled over by her enchanting innocence. If only she knew the thoughts that were flooding my mind.

“Ready?” she asked sweetly. I nodded and took her hand, lacing our fingers together. The blush that stole over her cheeks was going to be the death of me. I’d taken a cab and instructed him to wait, so I led Lilah over and helped her in before sliding onto the cracked, leather bench seat beside her.

The cabbie dropped us at a quaint little Italian place a few blocks from her apartment on the Upper East Side. She laughed as we climbed out of the vehicle.

“We could have walked, you know.”

I frowned as I opened the restaurant door for her, glancing down at her sexy, impractical footwear. She giggled again and something warm exploded in my chest.

“I’m a New Yorker and a woman. My feet have long since stopped trying to convince me to wear comfortable shoes.” She winked, then sashayed past me. My hand itched to smack her sweet little ass, but I stifled the urge and followed her to the hostess podium.

Once we were seated and had ordered, I went back to her previous comment. It was the perfect opening. “You grew up in New York?” I asked, knowing full well that she hadn’t. Once I knew her name, I learned everything there was to know about my girl.

“No, we moved here from a small town in Florida when I was fourteen.” The twinkle in her eyes dulled slightly. “My mom had been fighting cancer for a couple of years and they started an experimental drug treatment at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, so we moved here.”

“I’m sorry,” I murmured, covering one of her hands with my own. “It must have been hard to move away from your home and then lose your mother so quickly after.”

Lilah nodded and took a sip of her water with her free hand. “Yes, but nothing that is worth anything is easy. I’ve kept in touch with my best friend, Maggie, and I’m thinking about moving back there to be near her.”

It was on the tip of my tongue to tell her that would be happening over my dead body, but I didn’t want to scare her. She was so young and naïve that I knew I needed to tread carefully.

Our food arrived and as we ate, she told me more about her friend and childhood. Genuinely interested in anything my girl had to say, I sat back and simply enjoyed listening. However, near the end of our meal, there was a lull and I took the opportunity to steer the conversation. “And”—I hesitated, trying to find the right words—“what about your father?”

Her expression had begun to lighten again as she talked, but at the mention of her father, I was shocked to see anger rush over her face.

“I don’t want to talk about my father,” she uttered darkly. “As far as I’m concerned, I don’t have one.”

I was taken aback by her fierce declaration. Clearly, Bonnie had been bitter about Samuel and apparently, passed it along to her daughter. It wasn’t the time to get into it all, though, so I changed the subject.

“What about college?”

Lilah sighed. “I’ve been accepted to Harvard, Princeton, Columbia, and Yale.”

Again, this wasn’t news to me, however, her complete lack of emotional response to her answer was. “You don’t sound particularly pleased over that impressive list,” I teased.

She giggled. “It’s not that. It’s just…” she trailed off, looking uncertain.

“You can be honest with me, baby girl,” I urged, taking her hand once again and giving it a gentle squeeze.

“My mom was so proud. It was everything she wanted for me. She even had an inheritance that she set aside specifically for my college, never once touching it.” Her eyes misted, and I wanted to pull her into my lap and cuddle her close to make her distress go away. “I feel so guilty.”

I raised an eyebrow at that. “Why?”

She leaned forward, almost conspiratorially, and whispered, “I don’t want to go to college.” She said it like she’d just confessed to murder, and I had to compress my lips to keep from chuckling. She was fucking adorable. Every minute, I was more and more convinced I needed to keep her.

Lifting her hand, I brushed my lips across the back and smiled at her pleased blush. “I’m confident your mother wanted what was best for you, Lilah. I didn’t know her, but I can’t imagine the woman you’ve described wanting you to be anything less than completely happy.”

She shrugged, but I saw a spark of hope light her crystal blue eyes.

“What do you want to do, Lilah?” I queried.

Her cheeks tinged pink and she glanced down shyly. “I’ve always loved to draw, and I think it would be amazing to be an illustrator for children’s books.” She became animated as she continued. “Not only would it be fun, but I could do it from home and be with my kids—” she broke off abruptly and red engulfed her face. “Um, not that I have kids, or am planning them anytime soon. I mean, it’s not like I want to get married and have babies right now”—she blushed even harder as she prattled on—“I shouldn’t have mentioned marriage. It’s too soon to be talking about—not that you would want to marry me—oh, sweet heaven, please let a hole in the earth open up and swallow me now.”

I lost it. Threw my head back and belly laughed so hard that my stomach hurt and my face ached. Lilah sat silently, looking completely miserable, and it was only her sadness that curtailed my amusement so I could stop laughing. I stood abruptly and picked up her hands, lifting her to her feet as well. “C’mon, baby girl. We need to go.” I tossed some money on the table and led her from the restaurant, ignoring her crestfallen expression.

Outside, I stepped off of the curb and raised a hand, hailing a cab. It zoomed up next to us and screeched to a halt. “Midtown Hilton,” I barked after we were both securely inside.

Twisting my upper body, I grabbed her around the waist and dragged her over until she was straddling me. She gasped as she settled on my lap, clearly feeling my physical reaction to her as it pressed against the heat of her pussy. There was nothing left for me to hold onto, I’d thrown caution and logic out the window. I was going to get inside her that night or I was pretty sure I would fucking die.

Palming her cheeks, I looked straight into her blue pools. “You are too young, too beautiful, and I’m nowhere near good enough for you. But fuck, Lilah, I can’t resist you.” Then I slammed my mouth down over hers.