Taming Lily (The Fowler Sisters #3)(68)

I glance up to find my sister staring at me, her expression serious, her entire body still. “You need to go home and see if there’s anything else in Pilar’s emails,” Rose says gravely, her gaze locked with mine. “And then you need to talk to Daddy and Violet.”

I wince. “They’re going to be furious.”

“Not at you. Never at you,” Rose says in a rush. “All of their anger will be channeled toward Pilar, and it’s justified. What that bitch is doing …”

“I know. She deserves every bit of their anger. Every bit of our anger. But …” I pause, chewing on my lower lip as I contemplate what I’m going to say next. “I don’t want to tell them yet. I need to confirm first that she’s being shady.”

“Right. Confirm away. But the minute you confirm, you need to tell them. Hell, this could blow up in our faces, Lily. Jayne Cosmetics could run with this information and make Fleur look terrible. They could release the colors before we do, with the same names and everything, and make Fleur look like they copied them. This could get bad. Really, really bad.” Rose leans back in her chair and rubs a hand over her belly. “The faster you tell them, the faster we can put a stop to all of this.”

“I need to talk to Pilar.” That is the last thing I want to do, but I must. I need to tell her she has to resign from Fleur and get out of our lives before I tell my father what she’s doing. That might make her think twice before she launches into another one of her schemes.

“That will be a complete waste of your time and you know it.” Rose sits up straighter, her eyes going wide. “What if that guy you met in Maui … what if he’s working for Pilar? Maybe he grabbed the laptop for her. Did you ever consider that?”

Yes … no. Fine, yes. I so considered it. “I don’t know what to think about him.” I hate him. If he were to walk into this bakery right now I’d probably body slam him to the ground and kick him in the nuts.

I seem to be rather bloodthirsty for his nuts.

“You’ve only told me a little bit, but from what I see, your meeting him, his taking the laptop from you before he disappeared … it doesn’t feel random.” Rose studies me. “You liked this guy, didn’t you? I can see it your eyes.”

“I did. He was different.” He made me feel, made me want … too much. I clear my throat, feeling like the world’s biggest fool. “But he betrayed me. If he was working for Pilar … there’s no way I could ever forgive him.”

Ever.

Chapter twenty-three

Max

I WAIT INSIDE Lily’s apartment, pacing the length of her bedroom, which is impressive. I keep one ear cocked toward the front door, waiting for the sound of her key in the lock. She won’t see me back here and I’ll wait for her, try to gently surprise her so she doesn’t try and kick my ass the second she sees me.

Not that I can blame her, after what I did. She’s going to be furious with me for breaking into her apartment, too, but I couldn’t risk approaching her outside, in public. God knows what she’d do. Make a scene, chew me out, call the cops. I didn’t want her to run in the opposite direction when she spots me for the first time.

I’m taking a risk by being here, but it’s one I need to take. She could call the cops on me here, too, but I think I can convince her otherwise.

Hell, I hope I can.

Stuffing my hands in the pockets of my sweatshirt, I glance around, noting the giant iMac on her desk. I go to it and wiggle the mouse, the screen coming to life with no password protection log-in appearing.

Nope, instead I’m looking right at Lily sitting on her bed, gloriously, beautifully naked. Her legs are spread, her * on blatant display and a seductive smile curling her lips. Seeing her like this makes my blood burn. Knowing she took these photos for another guy makes me want to kill him.

No one can look at her like this but me.

Growling low in my throat, I tear my gaze away from the monitor, catching my reflection in the giant mirror above her dresser. I look like hell. I’m wearing old jeans and a black sweatshirt, and I haven’t shaved in days. My eyes are bleary and my mood is for shit.

Dealing with Pilar yesterday afternoon had been nothing short of exhausting. Like a chicken shit, I’d made Levi stay at my office so I wouldn’t have to face her alone. Not that I’m particularly scared of the woman—though Levi reaffirmed after she stormed out that she was indeed mean as hell—I wanted a witness to the madness that was Pilar Vasquez.

When I told her I didn’t have the laptop after all, she’d ranted, she’d threatened me, she waved her fist in my face, and she tried to grab hold of my shirt. That’s where I drew the line, telling her she’d better keep her hands off me because though I didn’t hit women, she was pushing her luck.

My threat barely fazed her. The woman is out-and-out nuts. And hell bent on taking all of her rage out on Lily.

I didn’t reveal I knew what was on that laptop, the incriminating evidence. I kept my lips shut about that and told her I’d grabbed Lily’s bag, mistakenly thinking the laptop was inside. I only discovered the laptop was missing once I was mid-flight.

The skeptical look she gave me called a silent bullshit and she accused me of being a total moron. Wanted her money back, so I told her I would credit her fees immediately. I’d rather take the loss than be responsible for whatever trauma she inflicts on the Fowler family.