Page 32 of The Love Fix (The Sunrise Cove #8)

Lexi walked into Daisy’s house, mentally exhausted. Physically exhausted too, but that was what happened when one turned into

a sex fiend, apparently.

Except... Here was the thing about sex. She liked it. A lot. But Heath... when he’d touched her, the pleasure had transcended

the physical. It hadn’t been just her body involved. It had also been her heart. Her mind.

She hadn’t known that could even happen.

Worse, she could feel a reluctant smile trying to break free. Last night—and this morning—played on repeat in her head, especially

the naughty bits, every last dirty one. There’d been something about the way Heath had looked at her, the way her heart reacted

to him, to seeing what he kept buried beneath all his smirk and smolder and easy wit.

And she’d ruined it. Just like she always did when something felt too right, too good—she self-sabotaged. It was in her Eeyore

genetic makeup.

In the foyer, she kicked off her shoes, tossed her purse to the bench, then turned to the living room, jumping a little at the sight of Ashley standing there, arms crossed, face dialed to unhappy.

Lexi’s heart stuttered. “What? What’s wrong?”

“Maybe you should tell me.”

Lexi hesitated, trying to read the room. She failed. “Look, my sister-speak is a bit rusty, you’re going to have to spell

it out for me. Do you... want me to leave? Have I outstayed my welcome?”

“Oh, you mean because you never so much as unpacked your duffel bag, instead choosing to just live out of it like you’re only

going to be here another minute, tops?”

Her head hurt too much for this. Or maybe it was her heart. “Ash, I’m staying in a room the size of a postage stamp with every

square inch filled with stuff. Where would you have me unpack?”

“You could’ve cleaned out the dresser if you’d wanted, but you didn’t bother. If it’s that hard to be here, maybe you should

just go back to that big, fancy life of yours.”

Lexi’s chest went tight. “So you do want me to leave.” She shouldn’t have been surprised. No one ever wanted to keep her, even now. “We still have three envelopes

to go. I promised to stay until we saw this through.”

“But you don’t want to be here. So much so that you lied to me.”

Lexi blinked. “What? When?”

Ashley tossed up her hands. “You can give up the act. I had a little chat with Grandpa Gus. Even though you let me believe

you’re working remotely, you’re not. You took a break from the job. You didn’t have to do that, put your life on hold for

me.”

Lexi shook her head, even as her heart pounded in her ears. “I did not tell Gus any of that.”

“No, you told Heath.”

Her stomach hit her toes at the implied betrayal, something she’d had way too much of. “And Heath told Gus?”

“No.” Ashley’s expression softened slightly. “Gus overheard Heath on the phone talking to an old friend. A friend who he thought,

along with her siblings, might have need of your services.”

A very bad feeling rumbled through her. “Is Heath’s friend named Cassidy?”

“Yes.”

Lexi sat on the foyer bench. Sat calmly too, even when she felt like screaming. “Heath called friends to ask them to hire

me? He got me a pity job?”

Ashley opened her mouth, then shut it with a grimace. “Well, I don’t think it was pity—”

Lexi stood again. She couldn’t do this. She needed a nap. Food. Booze. And not necessarily in that order. She went to brush

past Ashley, but her sister grabbed her arm.

“Wait,” Ashley said. “I’m not done being upset with you.”

“You’re going to have to get in line.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you’d taken a leave, that you weren’t working?”

Lexi lifted her chin. “I have been working.” Just, apparently, for friends of a friend. Friends of a friend with benefits...

And as amazing as those benefits had been, she was embarrassed and angry at what he’d done without telling her. She hadn’t

asked for help, which meant it had indeed been pity motivating him, and she couldn’t hate that more. “I don’t see how me working

or not working affects you at all.”

“Lexi, you lied. You kept lying. Does that remind you of anyone in our family?”

Lexi gaped at her. She’d never heard her sister say one negative thing about Daisy, not ever. “Are you saying I’m just like her?”

“No.” Ashley softened. “I’m sorry, that was... not okay of me. I’m just... I’m sorry. But, Lex, if your job’s on hold

for whatever reason, then you don’t have to leave once we’re finished with the envelopes, right?”

Lexi must have grimaced, because Ashley drew in a sharp breath. “Except you do have to leave, because you don’t want to be

here.”

Great. They were going to do this now, when she’d gotten maybe an hour of sleep last night for all the right reasons, had

picked a fight with Heath for all the wrong reasons, and then been forced to make that long-ass drive home in near silence.

Letting out a breath, she met her sister’s gaze. “It’s because I’m embarrassed, okay?”

“Embarrassed?” Ashley frowned. “About what?”

“There’s a lot you don’t know.”

“So fill me in.” Ashley paused, weighed whatever she saw in Lexi’s eyes, which was likely far too much. “We’re sisters, Lex.

We share our burdens.”

She’d never been good at that. In fact, she’d never really even tried.

Now or never... Nerves jangled in her stomach and her voice.

“There was a guy. A guy I thought maybe might be the One someday. We worked together for several years, he as my direct supervisor.” She paused, because she knew how stupid she’d been.

“We sort of secretly dated for close to six months before I was accused of stealing from a client. There’s an ongoing investigation, but I didn’t do it, so they won’t find any evidence.

” She hesitated again. “I’m pretty sure he did it.

Dean stole from a client and blamed me, and because I’m so.

..” She gestured to herself. “You know, cold and closed off and all that, they took his side. I’m not on a leave or break. They fired me.”

“Oh, Lexi...” Ashley looked horrified, and Lexi braced herself to be asked if it was true. Braced herself for it, so much

so that when her sister opened her mouth, Lexi started toward the hall to pack.

“I’m so sorry,” Ash said as Lexi started walking away. “But they must not have known you at all.”

Lexi froze, her back still to her sister.

“You’d never steal, not from anyone,” her sister said emphatically.

She hadn’t realized how much she needed those words, but she shook her head. “That’s not even the worst part.” She turned

to face Ash again. “After it happened, I realized that I didn’t have a single person in my life who knew me enough to stand

by me or vouch for me.”

Ashley looked stunned for a beat, and then moved closer. “ I would’ve stood by you, you amazing, wonderful, beautiful idiot. You don’t have to go through things like this alone!”

“Alone is the only way I know.”

“Why didn’t you hire a lawyer and sue the pants off them?”

“I just wanted it to go away.” Lexi scrubbed a hand over her face, feeling stupid, hating to admit this stuff to herself,

much less anyone else. “And I know I’m difficult, I do, but I don’t know how to change it, or me. I don’t know how to open

up like you do so effortlessly. And speaking of that, I need you to promise me something.”

“Of course. Anything.”

Just those few words had a lump growing in Lexi’s throat. “You can’t tell Heath about any of it.”

“Why?” Ashley asked softly. “He’d be furious for you.”

She wasn’t actually sure that was true right now. “I don’t want him to know how stupid I was.” And here was when her mouth disconnected from her brain. “Especially after last night.”

“What happened last night?” Ashley gasped. “Oh, wait! Oh my God! I saw it but then I got distracted. You have a glow! Like,

an all-over glow! An all-over I’ve-been-screwed-against-a-wall glow!”

“Well, this is embarrassing.” Lexi covered her face with her hands. “The glow is accidental!”

Ashley laughed so hard she had to bend over and brace herself on her knees.

“I first noticed it when I was brushing my teeth this morning,” Lexi grumbled. “And I can’t get rid of it! Same with the stupid

smile.” She felt it spread across her face even as she said it, and clapped a hand over her mouth. “Seriously, what is that?”

Ashley was laughing so hard now that she was no longer making any noise.

“And it wasn’t against a wall.” She paused. “Well, maybe once...”

“Oh—excuse me,” a male voice said from the still-open front door.

“Cole,” Ashley said, wiping away tears of mirth.

Of course it would be Heath’s brother, whose eyebrows had risen so high, they’d vanished beneath his hair. Lexi groaned and

covered her face again.

Cole winced. “Sorry. I’ll... come back later.” And he bolted.

“Well,” Ashley said. “You got your wish. I won’t be telling Heath. Cole will.”

“Oh my God. Maybe he won’t—”

“If you’re harboring some hope that Cole can actually keep a secret, let me assure you that you’re wrong.”

Lexi rolled her eyes so hard they almost fell out of her head. That was when she caught sight of the opposite wall, which had been empty the last time she’d looked. Someone had hung a framed drawing.

The one she’d done of Heath. “What? Why?”

“Just accept it,” Ashley said. “It lives there now. Oh, I’m going to need you to sign it.”

“It’s practically a stick figure. You can’t even tell it’s Heath.”

“Of course you can. You drew little lines for his disgustingly perfect abs, even over his T-shirt.”

Lexi groaned. “We are not keeping that.”

Ashley beamed. “ We! You said we ! And we most certainly are keeping it.” She tilted her head. “You know, that glow is a really good look for you.”

Lexi pushed past her sister and slumped on the couch.

Ashley sat at her side, but turned to face her. “Look, clearly you’re... besotted, so—”

Lexi choked on a laugh. “Are you thirteen, or ninety-three?”

Ashley just stuck her nose in the air and continued. “So I was thinking... Maybe you take this time to stop and smell the