Lilly and Reed: A Kensington Family Novel

by Allie Everhart

  "How do you know all this?"

  "She told me." He wipes the tears from his eyes. "She was rambling on after she shot him. She was drunk, and high on something. I think that guy who drove her here gave her something. She was so out of it I'm not even sure she knows what she did. When the police arrived, she asked what they were doing there, like she didn't even know."

  I hug him again. "Reed, I'm so sorry."

  "My family is so fucked up. I thought I was actually getting somewhere with my dad. I thought we could have a real relationship, but then he gets himself involved in whatever shit he's involved in and my mom shows up and shoots him. Now my mom will be in prison the rest of her life and I'll have no one."

  "You have me," I say, realizing I no longer have to break up with him, at least I don't think I do. If Dean is dead, he won't be a member, which means Reed won't be either. I guess I'm not sure if that's true, but for now, that's what I'm choosing to believe.

  Reed pulls back enough to see my face. "I thought you were breaking up with me."

  I shake my head. "No."

  "Are you only saying that because you feel sorry for me after what happened? Because if that's the case then—"

  "That's not why. Let's just forget about all that. I don't want to talk about it. You're my best friend and I love you. That's all you need to know."

  He rests his forehead on mine. "I love you so much, Lilly."

  We hear talking in the living room. It sounds like my dad, but who's he talking to?

  Reed glances down the hall. "Sounds like someone just got here."

  "It's my dad," I tell him. "I called him. Right after I called the police. But who else is here?"

  "The police officer. He wants to ask you some questions. I told him I'd come get you."

  "Do I really have to be questioned? I didn't see anything."

  "I know, but you were here and you're the one who called them so they were asking about you."

  My dad walks up behind Reed. "I heard about your father," he says to Reed. "I'm very sorry."

  Reed looks down, shaking his head. "I can't believe this happened. I had no idea my mom would ever do something like this." He looks up at my dad. "I didn't mean to put Lilly in any kind of danger. I promise you, I didn't even know my mom was in town."

  "I know you didn't. We can talk about it later. For now, I need to speak with Lilly. The police officer is waiting for you in the living room. He had some more questions for you."

  Once Reed is gone, I hug my dad, relieved that he's here. "The police want to talk to me. What do I say?"

  "Tell them the truth. Tell them you were in here the whole time and didn't see anything." He steps back, looking me up and down. "You're okay? You're not injured?"

  "I'm fine. Just nervous about talking to the police."

  "You don't need to say much. Just tell them you called them when you heard the gun go off, then stayed in here until they arrived."

  "What about Reed? What's going to happen to him?"

  "The officer will finish questioning him and then he'll leave. Reed's not a suspect. The officer confirmed that when I got here."

  "What I meant was..." I lower my voice to a whisper, "What's going to happen to him with the...other thing?"

  "He won't be part of it. The deal is off. With his father dead, the contract is dead. Lilly, we can't discuss this here."

  I can't stop the giant smile that's forming on my face. Reed doesn't have to join. My dad confirmed it. Reed and I don't have to break up.

  "Lilly, you can't smile like that in front of the officer. A man just died."

  "Sorry." I shut down my smile, but find it hard to contain.

  "Let's get this over with."

  Back in the living room, the officer asks me questions about how I know Reed and if I knew his mom and dad, almost like he's implying I had something to do with this.

  My dad cuts in. "Officer, I think you've asked her enough. She came here to see Reed and was in the bedroom during the incident. There's nothing more to be said."

  The officer eyes my dad. "And why again are you here?"

  "My daughter called me after she called you. She was frightened and asked me to come here."

  "Why are you questioning them?" Reed asks the officer. "My mom did it. Her prints are all over the gun and she admitted it to you. She told you she did it, so why are you questioning us?"

  "It's standard procedure." He puts his notepad away and says to Reed, "You have my card. If you have any questions, just call. We'll be in touch regarding your mother."

  After he's gone, Reed collapses on the couch. "What do I do now?"

  "You need to call your uncle," my dad says. "He needs to be told about your mother."

  "Shit, I wasn't even thinking about him." Reed rubs his head.

  "Would you like me to call him for you?"

  "No. I'll call him."

  "Your mother will need a lawyer," my dad says. "And I imagine you'll want to post bail when it's set."

  He shakes his head. "She did it. Why let her out of jail? She'll just try to run, and then I'll have even more problems. My uncle's going to have to deal with her. I can't do it. And besides, he knows the justice system better than I do."

  My dad sits across from Reed. "What about your father? Would you like some help arranging his funeral?"

  "If you could, then yes, I could really use some help. I have no idea how any of that works. And I don't know what to do with his stuff. His apartment. His car." He sighs.

  "If you want me to take care of all that, I will."

  Reed looks at my dad. "You'd really do that for me?"

  "Of course. Whatever you need."

  "Thank you. Seriously, I was having a meltdown over here trying to figure out what to do. My uncle's my only family and he'll have enough to deal with with my mom. He doesn't have time to deal with this too."

  "Don't worry about it. We'll figure it out."

  I'm standing next to the couch watching this, so grateful to my dad for offering to help. He always thinks he's not the greatest dad but he totally is, even to kids that aren't his, like Conner and Reed. He's being very dad-like right now, taking charge and stepping in to do what needs to be done. It makes me smile. I love my dad.

  Reed calls his uncle, then packs a bag so he can stay there tonight. After all that's happened, he shouldn't be alone, and staying in the apartment where his dad was shot would be kind of creepy.

  My dad and I follow Reed to his uncle's house, then my dad takes Reed's uncle aside. I don't know what they talked about, but afterward Reed's uncle seemed grateful for whatever my dad said or did or offered to do.

  Reed's uncle tells Reed he can stay there until school starts. I was hoping Reed could stay with us, but then decided it'd be too awkward. My dad would be constantly checking on us, making me keep my door open to make sure Reed and I weren't doing anything.

  So it's better if Reed stays with his uncle. Time with his family will be good for him, and school isn't that far away. It won't be long before we're together again. And now, there's no end date to our relationship. No deadline. Reed won't be part of that group and neither will I.

  But my dad is still part of it. I'm trying to accept that but it's been hard. I don't want to think of my dad that way, as someone who would do those things. So for now, I'm pushing it out of my mind, pretending the organization doesn't exist. My dad may belong to that group, but he's not one of them. He's not like that. That's all I'll let myself believe.

  Chapter Thirty

  A Month Later

  Lilly

  "It seems like we just did this," Garret says as he sets some boxes on the floor of my dorm room.

  Jade laughs. "Is time going that fast for you? It's been an entire year since we moved her into the dorms."

  "Then I guess time is flying by because I feel like I did this just a few months ago."

  "You moved me out a few months ago," I say. "Maybe that's what you're thinking."

  "No. I was t
hinking about when we moved you in." He slings his arm over my shoulder. "Back when you were a scared little freshman, begging us to bring you back home." He laughs.

  "I did not beg you to take me home. And I wasn't scared." I smile. "Okay, maybe a little, but that's normal."

  "And she's fine now." My dad walks in with a big plastic bin that holds my art supplies. He sets it down by my desk. "It's hard to believe she's a sophomore. Before we know it she'll be graduating."

  "And then it'll be time for this one to go to college," Garret says, grabbing Abi and tickling her.

  She giggles. "Dad, I'm not ready for college."

  "Good," he says, kissing her cheek. "Because I'm not ready for you to go."

  Miles and Ethan are running around my room and then Ethan suddenly takes off out the door.

  "Ethan, wait," Jade says.

  He's already gone. She goes to follow him but then stops.

  "I got him," Reed says, walking in holding Ethan. He loves my nieces and nephews. "You can't be running off like that," he tells Ethan, "especially around here with all these college girls."

  I laugh. "You think they'll ask him out?"

  "They might," Garret says. "He's a total flirt. Always blowing kisses at girls."

  "I still don't know where he learned that," Jade says.

  Reed puts Ethan down and he runs over to my dad. "Grandpa, can we stay with you tonight?"

  He smiles. "I suppose you could but you have to ask your parents."

  "You can have them," Garret says.

  Jade kiddingly swats at him. "Don't say it like that." She smiles at my dad. "You don't have to. You can tell him no."

  "We'd love to have them," Rachel says, picking up Ethan.

  "We get to stay at Grandma's house?" Hannah asks, jumping up and down in front of Jade.

  "I guess so." She looks at my parents. "You sure about this?"

  "We're happy to take them," my dad says, as Abi goes over and hugs him.

  "Awesome," Garret says. "We get a free night," he says to Jade. "We should go somewhere."

  "We totally should." She sounds as excited as Hannah just did. When you have four kids, a night without them is very exciting. "Where should we go?"

  Garret thinks a moment, then smiles. "I got some ideas. I'll tell you later."

  She smiles back as he kisses her. I don't even want to know what those two are going to do. After all these years of marriage, they're still like newlyweds. If they're not careful, they're going to end up with another kid.

  "Let's finish up here so we can go," Garret says, anxious for his night alone with Jade.

  "You're not going to stay after we're done?" I ask.

  "Yeah, right," he says. "We know you're dying to get rid of us."

  It's true. I love my family but I want them to hurry up and leave so I can finally be alone with Reed.

  I haven't seen him much since his dad died. He's been too busy trying to deal with the aftermath. My dad was a huge help. He hired people to clean out the apartment and get rid of Dean's stuff. He also hired someone to help with the funeral. Reed was able to have input but the details were taken care of by someone else so he didn't have to worry about it.

  Reed's mom is in jail, awaiting a trial. From the evidence, it's obvious she killed Dean, but she refuses to plead guilty so now Reed will have to endure a trial and serve as a witness against his mom. It's more stress that he doesn't need but his mom doesn't care. She'll do anything to try to save herself.

  As for my own mom, I haven't heard from her since that day she asked me to go shopping. That was in July so it's been a while. But I've made it clear I don't want to talk to her so maybe she's finally listening. Or maybe she just can't find a use for me anymore so has decided to pretend I don't exist. When she thinks I can benefit her again, she'll call me up.

  An hour later, all my stuff is in my dorm and my family heads home.

  "We're finally alone," I say, lying on my unmade bed.

  Reed stands next to it. "What do you want to do? Get something to eat? Go to the bookstore? Unpack your stuff?"

  "Are you kidding? We're finally alone!"

  "Meaning what?"

  I laugh and reach up to yank on his t-shirt. "Get down here and kiss me."

  He smiles as he lays over me. "There's no rush. We have all year."

  "You seriously want to wait?"

  "Hell no." He breathes the words over my lips, then kisses me as he presses his body into mine. And moments later, clothes have been tossed aside and we're finally together again. Without worrying about parents walking in. Without worrying about them coming home early. Without worrying they'll hear us. There are many perks of going to college, but being alone without parental supervision? That might be the best one.

  When we're done, Reed holds me in his arms and we lie there, enjoying the fact that we don't have to race to get dressed like we did last summer with the parents around.

  He kisses me. "I love you."

  "I love you too." I snuggle closer to him.

  "You know what?"

  "What?"

  "A year ago today, I met you. You slammed that door into me. My arm hurt for days."

  I sit up. "It did? Why didn't you tell me?"

  He smiles. "I'm just kidding. I was fine."

  "That was so embarrassing. I can't believe you still wanted to date me after that."

  "It was love at first sight. I had to date you."

  "Yeah, you're funny."

  "Why is that funny?"

  "It wasn't love at first sight."

  "Sure it was. That's why I drew your picture that day."

  "If you loved me, then why'd you go out with that girl?"

  "It was one date, and it wasn't really a date. We had dinner. That's it. We didn't even kiss."

  "You still went out with her."

  "Because you weren't available. You were dating that asshole, Preston. And besides, I didn't know it was love back then. I kept telling myself it wasn't because that's not what I wanted. Like I told you last year, I didn't want a girlfriend. I was just here to get my degree and move on. I had no idea I'd meet my future wife the first day of college."

  "Future wife?" I smile. "I still haven't agreed to that."

  "That's fine," he says casually. "I have three years to talk you into it."

  "And then we're getting married?"

  "Or engaged. Whatever you're most comfortable with. But eventually we're getting married." He kisses me. "Because I love you more than anything and there isn't anyone in this world I'd rather be with than you."

  I feel the same way about him. But I'm not ready to get married. Maybe I won't even be ready in three years. But at least now I have the option. The choice is mine and not some secret organization's.

  This past summer has changed me. Knowing what I know has made me see the world differently, just like Garret said it would. But it hasn't changed the fact that I love Reed, even more now, after almost losing him. So marrying him? It'll happen. I'm just not sure when.

  When we do get married, I know Reed will be a great husband. And a great father, but we're definitely not having four kids like Jade and Garret do. I laugh just imagining that.

  "What's so funny?" Reed asks.

  "I was thinking how crazy it would be to have four kids like Jade and Garret."

  "Really? Because I was thinking five or six would be good."

  "What?" I look at him, shocked.

  "You know I love kids."

  "But—"

  He kisses me. "I'm kidding. Agree to marry me and you can decide on the number of kids."

  "What if I don't want any?"

  "None? Not even one?"

  "I'm joking. I want kids. But not for a really long time. I want some years where it's just you and me."

  He smiles. "So it sounds like you're planning a future with me."

  "That was never in question."

  Actually it was, but Reed doesn't need to know that. That's all in the past. Now, the future i
s mine. And I want that future to be with Reed.

  Thanks for reading Lilly and Reed! If you enjoyed it, please tell a friend and leave a review. And if you'd like more books about the Kensington family, be sure to include that in your review!

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  Find me online at allieeverhart.com, Facebook, or Twitter.

  BONUS Excerpt from Still Love You

  Lilly's friend, Willow, has her own book! It's the story of Willow and her former boyfriend, Silas.

  Here's Chapter One...

  WILLOW

  I cannot believe Silas is standing in my dorm room. Driving me home. Back to Berkeley. Where he is now living...and working for my dad! How could my dad hire him? Out of all the people he could've chosen, he had to pick Silas?

  What is Silas even doing here? He's supposed to be traveling the world, hiking up mountains, doing volunteer work.

  "Willow?" He's standing in front of me now. The door is closed and it's just the two of us. His full lips—the ones I know so well because they've touched every single part of my body—slowly slide up into a smile. "Are you going to say something? Maybe a hello?"

  I swallow, my eyes diverting back to his. "Oh, um, yes. Hello. Sorry. I'm just surprised to see you here."

  "I thought your parents told you I was moving back."

  "Yeah. They did. I just didn't believe them."

  His eyes remain on mine. "Why wouldn't you believe them?"

  I glance away from him. "Because you have a history of not following through on things."

  I shouldn't have said that. He just got here and I don't want to start fighting with him before we even get in the car.

  Silas and I used to fight about a lot of things. The fights were intense but short-lived, always ending in a passionate kiss, followed by clothes being ripped off and our bodies colliding. Just the thought of that has me sweating even more in this sweltering hot room.

  "They turned the air off," I say, fanning myself. "That's why my room is so hot. I guess they thought we didn't need it since everyone's moving out today."