Page 10 of The Fractured

“Really?”

“Yes.” She straightened and walked across the hallway to her apartment. “Tell Lily I hope she feels better soon.” She hurried inside.

I folded my arms and settled against the wall, watching Susan’s door as I slowly counted to five in my head. At the three-second mark, her door opened enough for her to poke her head out, eager to attempt to eavesdrop again until she saw I hadn’t moved.

I flashed her a smile, and she promptly shut the door again, flicking every lock on the other side.

My smile dropped as I pushed away from the wall and let myself into Lily and Kira’s apartment using Lily’s key.

Lily hadn’t hinted she wanted me gone yet, even if she had been emotionally distant. She explained last night, as we lay in bed, that the reason for her distance was only because of her self-consciousness of the scars. She thought I would see her differently once I had a good look at them.Thatwas a thought I wanted to make sure never bothered her again.

The smell of toast filled the apartment, and I could hear someone quietly moving around the kitchen as I walked down the short hallway. Coming up on my right was Kira’s bedroom door, and seeing as it was still closed, it meant Lily was awake and making breakfast alone.

I walked into the living room, tossing the keys onto the countertop.

Lily, buttering two slices of toast with raspberry jam, looked up and smiled warmly. The way her eyes quickly took in my bare arms didn’t go unnoticed either.

“Morning, again,” she whispered.

Her eyes were shinier today compared to last night. All of her looked shinier. She was in her work clothes with her hair brushed back into a low bun. Her crisp white button-up top was tucked loosely into a pair of skinny jeans, and she had rolled the sleeves up to sit beneath her elbows, revealing her slender wrists.

There was no use hiding the grin spreading on my face as I walked into the kitchen, stepping in behind her while I eyed her figure in those clothes.

“Morning,” I hummed, bracing my hands on the countertop on either side of her.

“I’m guessing the run was good?” She peered over her shoulder, licking jam from the knife she used. The corner of her mouth curved up.

The only response I could muster was to kiss my favorite part of her neck. The soft area above her pulse. When my lips parted and brushed against her skin, she tilted her head, exposing that side of her throat. I held the rest of me away from her, keeping my sweat-soaked shirt off her clean clothes.

“You smell so good,” I murmured onto her skin.

She let out a little laugh. “It’s just fabric softener.”

“You taste good too, but I don’t think that’s fabric softener,” I smiled, leaving lazy kisses wherever my mouth wandered.

Kira’s bedroom door clicked open, reminding us we weren’t home alone, before she stepped into view. Her fiery red hair was stacked in a messy bun as she yawned and stretched.

I pulled back from Lily, turning down the PDA but keeping my arms on either side of her as I offered Kira a nod in greeting. And briefly glanced down to make sure I wasn’t revealing too much beneath the fabric of my black knee-length shorts.

Kira rolled her eyes as she smiled. “You know you don’t have to stop doing the cute relationship stuff around me.”

“Are you sure? It’s not too awkward?” Lily started to move away with her toast, but I gently grabbed her waist to hold her in place. She glanced back with a frown and then pressed her lips together to keep from smiling when she realized why she couldn’t move yet.

My body was just a little excited…

Kira hadn’t noticed as she continued. “It’s a distraction fromhe-who-does-not-deserve-to-be-mentioned.” She visibly forced back a shudder.

His name wasn’t spoken out loud, but it was enough to subdue the mood.

“And you two are cute together, so don’t stop because of me,” Kira continued before she swiped a piece of toast from Lily’s plate and headed to the couch.

“By all means, help yourself,” Lily drawled, lifting the second piece of toast from her plate.

I couldn’t help myself when I took a bite, making her suck in a quiet gasp.

The smile in Lily’s eyes betrayed her attempt to seem annoyed as she jabbed my stomach lightly with her elbow. “Go have a shower, toast thief.”

I chuckled and backed away. “Yes, ma’am.”