Until Lilly (Until, #3)(13)

“And Asher gave you this advice?” I do not doubt this, but seriously, what the f*ck does that even mean?

“He did. And it worked, so there you go.” He pats my back shaking his head, leaving me standing in the middle of the barn wondering how the f*ck he and Asher ended up married.

*~*~*

My GPS tells me I have reached my destination, and I look around the apartment complex. I come to realize that they live in an area known as ‘High Row’; the whole areas is infamous for its easy access to drugs…and my daughter and woman are living here. I shake my head when Trevor’s advice comes to mind. After parking, I get out of my truck and slam the door. The doll I got for Ashlyn is in my hand as I walk up the two flights of stairs and knock on their door. I can hear laughter coming from the other side. When the door opens, Lilly takes a step back.

“Sorry, we just got up so were making pancakes,” she says as I close the door behind me. She’s wearing a black tank top that is completely form fitting, and her legs are covered in tight, black spandex. I growl when she turns away from me; her perfect ass is on full display. She might as well be wearing nothing with how much her pants show off. She looks over her shoulder and my eyes fly up; I can’t help but smile at the look on her face.

“It’s no problem.” I shrug, and her eyes narrow slightly. We walk around the corner into the living room/kitchen; the space is small, and most of the items in it have seen better days. Ashlyn is sitting on a barstool stirring a bowl of pancake batter. She is still in her pajamas, her hair is all over the place, and when she sees me she smiles, showing off one little dimple in her right cheek.

“You came!” she says happily, looking at me, then her mom.

“I told you I would.” I smile.

“I know, but...” She pauses, looking back at her mom.

“I told you he would be here,” Lilly reassures her, and Ashlyn shrugs, going back to mixing.

“Is it time to add eggs?” Lilly asks her.

“Yes, can I crack them?”

“How about if Cash helps you crack them while I start the bacon?”

“Okay.” She smiles, and all I can think is how much I love her already. “Is that for me?” she asks, pointing to the doll that’s still in my hand.

“It is,” I tell her, sitting the doll on the counter. “How about if she watches while we make breakfast?”

“Okay,” she says, looking at the doll as I place it on the counter in front of her.

“Here you go.” Lilly hands me three eggs and a bowl. “We don’t want to eat egg shells, so this is easier,” she says quietly before walking back to the fridge, bending over. I have to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from groaning. I haven’t been with anyone since my divorce; I learned a hard lesson when that shit went down. It wouldn’t matter though; even if I had been f*cking everything that walked, Lilly had always done it for me. She is the perfect package of sweet and sexy. Watching her with our daughter is completely different than watching Jules with Jax. When we lived together, I may as well have been a single father. The only time Jules had anything to do with Jax was when it was time to show him off like a new handbag, but the minute he served his purpose, she would hand him back to me. I shake my head and turn, just as I see Lilly’s head come up.

“You ready to do this?” I set down the bowl, hand Ashlyn one egg, watch as she taps it lightly to the countertop, and when she gets it to crack, she lifts it over the bowl. Both of her small hands wrap around the egg and her hands squeeze, crushing it. I laugh, looking at the bowl that is now full of shells and egg.

“I did it!” She smiles, and it’s just like her mom’s, bright and blinding.

“You did.” I nod, handing her another egg. She follows the same steps two more times; I take the bowl away from her, along with one of the egg shells so that I can fish all the broken pieces out of the bowl. I feel the weight hit my chest and look up to see Lilly watching us. She’s smiling, but she also looks sad. I reach over, running my finger down her arm; she shakes her head, looks away and puts more bacon into the pan.

“Now we hab to mix it.” I finish removing the shells and hand her the eggs so she can dump them into the mixing bowl.

“Here.” Lilly hands me a measuring cup full of milk, and I dump it in while Ashlyn stirs.

“Where are the pans?” I ask Lilly, my hand at her waist. I feel her shiver as my fingers flex against her.

“What?” She looks over her shoulder at me and I spread my fingers out, putting slight pressure on her waist. “What are you doing?” she asks.

“Asking where the pans are.” I smile when she gives a slight growl, stepping out of my grasp.

“Does your wife know you’re here?” She covers her mouth, looking over at Ashlyn who is not paying any attention to what we’re doing; she is still happily stirring the batter.

“My wife?” My fists clench. She clears her throat.

“Never mind. The pans are next to the sink.” I grab her hand, forcing her to follow me. We’re going to get this shit settled right now. “Now what are you doing?”

“We’re going to get a few things straight.” I turn her so her back is against the wall, and she presses against my chest, trying to shove me away. Her size compared to mine makes it impossible.