Thorn

I walked into the conference room to meet with Lily and Trevor with a little more pep in my step than usual. Things with Lily were progressing. I showed her every day just how much she meant to me. We’d fallen into a nice routine. I’d just been given the keys to a penthouse on the top floor of her building, which made the commute so much easier. I couldn’t wait until tonight to tell her the news. Hopefully, one day the penthouse wouldn’t be just mine. It’d be ours. We’d have enough space for the three of us and even room to grow if that ever happened.

Trevor was clearing his paperwork from the table when I walked into the room.

“Good morning,” I said, confused as to why he’d be leaving before we even began the meeting.

“Change of plans. We’ll be meeting later in the week to finish discussing the launch,” Trevor informed.

“Why? Where’s Lily this morning? She’s usually here before both of us in the mornings.”

I tried not to sound too concerned since she’d yet to let me tell him of our rendezvous in Bora Bora.

“She’s not coming in today. My jaw almost hit the floor when she called to tell me. She’s never taken a sick day in all the years she’s been here. Until today. She sounded horrible. I told her to take the next couple days off to rest and get better.”

She didn’t message or call me? What the hell?

“Who’s looking after her and the baby?”

“I’m not sure. She didn’t go into all of that detail. Let’s go into my office and we can discuss some other avenues of marketing that I think would be useful.”

On the short walk over to his office, I discreetly checked my phone. Nothing. No missed messages or calls. I had half a mind to tell him he needed to wait so I could call her, but it could wait.

We sat down in his office, and I vaguely recalled the ideas that he had tried to tell me about. My mind kept wondering if she was okay and if the baby was being taken care of.

“You seem distracted. In all my years, I’ve never seen that. Especially when it comes to spending tons of money that we may not see a return on. What’s going on? Anything I can help with?”

“I’m just wondering if Lily is okay to take care of the baby on her own,” I said before I could contain the thought to only remaining in my mind. Immediately, I looked up and regretted speaking that aloud. Trevor’s face had contorted, and his head was turned to the side. I could read the questions that ran through his thoughts through his eyes.

“Why all of this concern for Lily all of a sudden?” he questioned.

Tell the truth or lie?

Tell a lie or spill the beans?

Letting out a sigh, I made my decision. Before I could speak, he knew the truth somehow. I could see it the moment he’d figured it out. His eyes opened wider and he sat up straighter.

“Tell me you’re not screwing my best employee? Dammit, Arie.”

“I’m not currently screwing your best employee. And you shouldn’t be talking about her that way.” I hadn’t lied, per se. Yes, I wanted to be inside of her again, but as of present that hadn’t occurred.

“You said currently. What the hell does that mean?”

Here goes nothing. He couldn’t get mad. I didn’t know she worked for Hidden Paradise while we were in Bora Bora. We didn’t share enough personal details for me to know that.

“We’d met prior to me seeing her here that day.”

“Get it out, Arie. I don’t have all damn day. Tell me everything. We need to do damage control. If I lose her because of you, I’m going to be pissed.”

“We met over a year ago. Enjoyed our time together and went our separate ways.”

There. That should suffice it. He didn’t need personal details. I wouldn’t divulge those anyway.

“Over a year ago?” he questioned as he sat back in his seat. His hand worried the skin on his chin as his thoughts ran rampant, trying to figure out how we’d crossed paths.

“No way. You told me you were only there for a week. She shouldn’t have been in Bora Bora the same time you were. That’s where you met, am I right?”

He was perceptive. That was one reason why we’d done so well with being in business together.

“I decided to stay an extra week at the last minute.”

The clock ticking in the background was the only noise that sounded through the room as he went back to being silent. Not even the sounds of our breathing could be heard as I waited for him to speak.

“No fucking way. Is Hali yours? I can do the math. I’m not fucking stupid. What the hell, Arie?”

And there it was, ladies and gentlemen. I knew he’d concluded all by himself if he was given enough time to put the pieces together. Technically, Lily couldn’t be mad because I hadn’t told him anything. He’d figured that all out on his own.

“Yes, Hali is mine. And no, I didn’t know about her until I had seen her in the conference room that night. Had I known, I would’ve been here sooner. She didn’t know how to find me, and I didn’t know how to find her. We wanted it that way at first. I wanted to fly back with her, but she snuck out on me. Before you freak out, we’re taking things slow. She’s finally agreed to try to build our relationship as more than just friends. I’m in this for the long haul, Trevor. I want her and Hali. Forever if she’ll have me that long.”

“You’re lucky you said all of that because I was about to have your ass on a silver platter if you had ill intentions toward her. Just don’t let it affect our jobs. I can’t afford to lose either of you.”

“You have my word. Now let’s get to work so I can get home to take care of her and my daughter.”

And just like that, another obstacle that we’d both worried about was gone. I was glad I was the one to tell him. We needed to have this man to man discussion so he knew I meant business when it came to her and Hali.

I’d called and messaged her for the past few hours, but no response had come through. At two o’clock, I couldn’t take it anymore. I went into Trevor’s office and told him of my plans to head out for the day and take care of her. He waved me on, and I headed toward her apartment.

The ride there seemed to drag on, but I finally made it to her building. Racing toward the elevator on a mission, I frantically pressed the button for the car to arrive. Looking up, I noticed it was on the top floor and had to descend thirty floors before it arrived.

Screw it.

I ran around the corner and took the eight flights of stairs to her floor.

Finally, her apartment came into view after I crashed through the door from the stairwell.

I rushed up to her door and checked the handle, surprised to find it unlocked. She must not be feeling well at all.

Opening the door, I peered inside just in case she was in the living room so I didn’t scare her. Only I found the room empty.

I let go of the door and entered the space. Throwing off my jacket, I went in search of Lily and Hali.

I peeked into the baby’s room to find it empty.

Once I reached Lily’s room, I gently knocked on the door only to hear a groan from the other side.

Gently, I pushed the door open and walked into the space. My heart rate sped up at the sight I found.

Used tissues were scattered on the table beside her bed. Two empty bottles of ginger ale were among the mountain of trash that littered the space. Lily was half under the covers and half out. Her leg was curled over top of the blankets and a washcloth lay over top of her eyes. Only there was another body behind her. Owen looked as he heard me enter. His eyes went wide at the sight of me in the room. Only I didn’t respond. I remained quiet so she could continue to sleep.

Searching the room, I found our daughter was sound asleep in her playpen on the other side of her bed.

I walked over to the bed and sat down on the side. Placing the back of my hand on her cheek, I checked to see if she had a fever. Her cheek was hot to the touch.

Placing my hand on her shoulder, I gently shook her to see if there was anything that she needed and when the last time she took meds was.

She mumbled that she’d taken them a couple of hours ago in a hoarse voice and went right back to sleep. I covered her as best as I could and walked over to the playpen to retrieve our daughter. Lily had a fever and was contagious, and I wanted her to sleep so she could get well.

I picked up Hali and bounced her so she’d stay asleep and picked up the baby monitor before I left the room.

“We’re gonna get your mama better, sweetie. It’s just going to be me and you for a bit, okay?” I whispered before I kissed the top of her head. I put her in her crib so she could finish her nap and went to see if Lily’s cabinets were stocked with what she’d need to battle this cold. She was almost out of medicine and needed some more soup.

Owen walked into the room moments after I’d finished my search. I crossed my arms and leaned against the kitchen counter. There was nothing going on there my fucking ass.

“It’s not what you’re thinking, Arie. I swear. She called me not feeling well early this morning. I came over as soon as I could. She didn’t want to worry you with a cold knowing everything you had to work on today. I was just helping a friend.”

“In her damn bed?” He could’ve remained out here while she rested.

“I’d just laid down before you came in. She didn’t want the baby to be too far from her. I stayed in there in case Hali woke up so I could get her and keep her from waking up Lily. I’ve already told you it’s not like that with us anymore. You’ve gotta trust and believe that.”

The hell I did. I didn’t have to do anything of the sort. She was well on the way to becoming mine and after what I’d just witnessed it would be sooner rather than later.

“Look, now that you’re here, I’m going to go. You look like you can handle everything. The baby eats again in two hours,” he responded, giving up this fight and leaving the apartment.

It was a good thing technology was what it was today. Quickly, I placed an online order to be delivered in a couple of hours for all of the items she’d need, including some for the baby. I didn’t plan to leave this apartment except for the short time I’d need to go and gather some items from my place.

The baby woke shortly before the delivery driver arrived. Once I unboxed the soup, crackers, ginger ale and medicine, I packed up the baby so we could go and grab me a bag. Hopefully Lily wouldn’t wake while we were gone. Just in case, I left a note on the fridge to let her know I’d be back shortly.

I’d never noticed how women looked at men with kids until I’d seen several swooning over me carrying Hali in her car seat in one hand and my overnight bag in the other. Some whispered to their friends while they stared, and others covered their chests as they ooohhed and aahhed all within earshot. Too bad I was spoken for. I smiled back to be polite and continued on my quest to get back to Lily before she woke.

I walked into the apartment and sat down the carrier on the kitchen table.

“We’re going to make your mama some soup and see if she’ll eat. How does that sound?”

I never thought I’d be one of those guys who talked to a baby who couldn’t respond. But I found that I loved how she listened to everything I said and how excited she seemed to get when she heard my voice.

The soup warmed in no time at all on the stove. After I poured some into a soup cup, I picked up Hali’s carrier and went to see if I could get her mom to eat.

Lily stirred as I walked into the room, but laid her head back on the pillow without waking. I almost just wanted to let her sleep, but she needed some food in her stomach when she took the cold medicine.

“Lilly, sweetheart. I need you to wake up for a bit and try to eat some soup,” I whispered as I tried to coax her awake. I sat the carrier on the floor and the cup on her nightstand before I sat on the bed beside where she lay.

“Come on, Lily. It’s time to wake up for a bit,” I said again a little louder. This time I shook her arm in another attempt to rouse her.

She looked up at me groggily and groaned.

“I know you don’t feel good, but the soup will help you get better.”

She sat up a little, and I helped get the pillow behind her back so she could rest against the headrest as she ate.

“How did you get in here?” she asked as I handed her the cup of soup.

“You hadn’t answered my messages, and I was worried. So I left early and came straight here once I’d gotten some work done. Your door was open, and I came inside to check on you. You had a fever and I knew you needed the rest, so I took Hali in the other room and took care of ordering some supplies.”

“You didn’t have to do that, but thank you. Where’s Owen?”

I hated that she had depended on Owen and not me. I thought we’d broken through some barriers, but with that comment, I knew I’d need to try harder to get her to come to me when she needed help and not go to him.

“He left shortly after I arrived. You can always call me. I want to be that person you lean on, Lily,” I responded as I leaned forward and rubbed the side of her cheek with the backs of my fingers. She leaned into my touch, bringing the cup to her mouth and taking a sip.

She finished half of the cup of soup before she handed it back to me and pulled the covers up to her chin.

I handed her the cold medicine along with the bottle of water that was already on the table. She scrunched up her nose and reluctantly took the pills.

“We’re going to go in the other room and have some daddy/daughter time. Get some rest. Call out for me if you need anything,” I said as I held up Hali so Lily could see her.

She smiled up at me before she scooted down in the bed. She shut her eyes, and I took that as my cue to leave the room.

I didn’t think she’d comply, but she had without any argument.

“Alright, little lady. Are you going to take it easy on your old man?” I asked as I lifted her from the carrier. She made some noises as she looked up at me, and I couldn’t help but return the smile. No matter what went on during the day, that smile alone would make the day better.