by Sean Platt
“Should I have let her win? Let her have the damned cart?”
“No. That’s what she wanted.”
“And what ended up happening … that’s not what she wanted.”
“You bet it’s not.”
“And that’s worse for me. Her not getting what she wanted.”
“I’d guess she’s plenty pissed.”
“You think she’ll get them to evict me?”
“Probably,” Len said.
Lily rolled up to look at him again.
“You’re supposed to tell me it’s going to be okay.”
“It’s going to be okay,” Len parroted.
“You don’t believe that,” she said, turning back.
Len paused. Then: “Quick: tell me how I’m supposed to respond.”
She sighed. “I don’t know, Len. I’m tired of dealing with it. I’m tired of dealing with her.”
Len gave Lily a waiting sort of quiet.
“Penny for your thoughts?” said Lily.
“I’d rather talk about my didgeridoo.”
Something moved in the fork of his crotch.
“Seriously.”
Len sighed. “I think you may have to get dirty.”
“Answer my question first.”
“I mean you may have to get dirty with Kerry.”
“Gross.”
“Do you seriously not understand, or are you being sexy?”
Lily sat up and met his eyes. “How am I supposed to play dirty with her, exactly?”
“I have no idea. But she broke into your store, stole your cart, and shut down your fridge.”
“Cooler.”
“It’s all about power over there. You’ve made her look powerless, if just for a bit. That’s going to piss her off. Maybe you have to do something that will hurt.”
“That’s just sinking to her level, Len.”
“She doesn’t seem willing to let you play at hers.”
Lily stared long and hard into Len’s eyes.
“That’s not who I am.”
“Well, that’s a good point. Let it not be said that I have a problem with who you are.”
Len’s hand strayed to her breast. Lily wondered if she should push it away, because the conversation was hardly a suitable entree for seduction. But it felt good, so she let it stay.
“I got a daily order from Bella.”
“That’s good, right?” His hand, given permission to stay, made slow, pawing circles. Lily felt her nipples harden.
“Sure, if I stay in business.”
“Such doom and gloom,” said Len. “Let’s look on the bright side.”
Lily looked over at him. He had the stupidest little smile. She felt torn between wanting to continue beating this dead horse, endlessly discussing Kerry, La Fleur, and the politics of rich-snob shopping plazas. She wanted to shift gears entirely. Len’s hand felt great, and she’d led him here for a reason. It was out of character for Lily to touch herself while driving, but she’d found herself squeezing her legs together, enjoying the seat’s vibration beneath her. Whatever was prompting her to talk shop was a higher-level advisory sort of mind, blue nosing its way into her love life. It was as if part of her felt that detouring into distraction while an important matter remained unsolved was somehow irresponsible.
“Bright side,” said Lily, feeling her voice soften.
Len’s other hand went behind her neck, under Lily’s hair, to the back of her head. He pulled her toward him and pressed his lips into hers. The pressure on her breast increased. He’d somehow opened a button, and now his fingers were under her shirt, skirting the line where bra met bare skin.
Their heads parted and a hanging aura of urgency seemed to descend. Lily had been stifling her desire, forcing it to stay quiet. Len’s had probably always been there. Now both hands were unbuttoning her shirt, reaching back to unclasp Lily’s bra. She pulled his shirt off, and he kissed his way down her neck, to where her collarbones formed a V.
“Get these off,” she said, yanking at his jeans.
“Romantic,” Len said.
“I’m being lusty. Now get them off.”
Len did, but didn’t ask her to do the same when he sat. Instead, he slithered down the couch until he was on the floor. He unbuttoned her, dragging Lily’s lower half nude as cool air kissed her bare skin.
“Get up here,” she said when he finished. As before, full arousal had sneaked up all of a sudden. Lily felt swollen, in need of release. His fingers trailed her body, bringing shivers when he came close to her hot spots, up one inner thigh and down another.
“Why?”
“You know why.”
“Say it. Say why.”
Lily rolled her eyes. She tried to tug him up to her but he stayed where he was, kissing between her breasts, across her nipples, down past her belly button.
She tugged him again, but with less effort.
“Oh, fucking sit back already, will you? Have the courtesy to let a guy make you feel better.”
“I feel … ”
Lily dissolved into sighs, wondering how well sound traveled, and what Dusty might think if he’d seen them go up. But then all of that was gone, and Lily felt only the movement of Len’s tongue.
She came loudly, not caring. Her need wasn’t sated; she craved him more. Now she pulled him for real, bringing him up even with her. He kissed her breasts but didn’t wait, sliding inside with no friction.
“Come for me.” Len’s face changed, more filled with lust, more burning with need.
So she did. And he did. And then, together, they collapsed.
“You’re so good to me,” she said after a while, her eyes closing, legs slightly parted, spent.
“Someone has to be,” he said, coming up to spoon Lily on the couch.
They fell asleep that way, not caring of any mess they might make, and slept with the lights on until morning.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
CAMERON DEAK
Lily opened La Fleur feeling content, wondering if it was possible that things might be fine after all. She was just a girl running a flower shop. She wasn’t selling drugs in a hostile ghetto; she wasn’t running a marketing scam that would inevitably attract attention from the Federal Trade Commission or the IRS. The drama that had unfolded so far — especially given that only her existence had provoked it — was pretty absurd. Maybe it couldn’t get any more absurd than it already was. Lily had her squabbles with a bitchy fellow tenant, but in the end they were both trying to run their businesses.
Lily’s troubles with Kerry were likely larger in her head than they were in real life. They’d had it out. Lily had stood up for herself, and bullies didn’t expect their victims to do that. Kerry had flexed her muscles while Lily held firm. Maybe, just maybe, it was over. She had her order from Bella, whether Marcello had gone quiet and reclusive or not. She had a growing base of customers. Lily was on the hook for a sizable lease, but things were looking up.
Maybe she’d be just fine after all.
Allison had beaten Lily to the shop every day over the past week, but as opening hour dawned, Lily found herself alone, fluffing roses in a cobalt-blue vase. Behind her were rows of scented candles. The sun was shining; the courtyard looked peaceful; gulls were cawing. Lily was surrounded by gorgeous white flowers, arranging blooms to enhance their aesthetic, the night after a strong man with an accent had made her feel safe and beautiful. She realized that afterglow had turned her into a Disney princess, and that her optimism was likely overblown. But for the quiet, peaceful honeymoon between then and now, Lily was content to feel it anyway.
By 9 a.m., Allison still hadn’t arrived. Lily shrugged to no one, checked the K-cups for the Keurig coffee maker by the furniture that Kerry had implied was so inferior (but which still looked cute and homey to Lily), and opened the door.
Five minutes later, Cameron Deak entered La Fleur wearing a tight shirt that managed to show his abs through the fabric. Cameron wasn’t nearly as large as M
att Vitale, but he had a scrappy, wiry kind of body that looked both natural and eminently practical. Matt looked like he could lift heavy objects and grace the cover of a brooding romance novel, but Cameron had a more relatable physique. He looked like a high school jock, graced with a body shaped through use rather than training, and that he himself probably didn’t realize was as sexy as it was.
Cameron, according to Allison, spent the time he wasn’t working at Abercrombie & Fitch surfing. He moved a little too quickly, as if always looking for the next wave. Lily saw him as both fumbling and adorable, the two attributes twined like a braid.
He entered her shop with a half spin as if stumbling. Lily looked over, wondering if he’d even meant to come in or had been shoved by a passerby.
“Whoa.”
“Hey, Cameron.”
“Lily,” he said, giving her an effortless smile and tugging on the loops of his long shorts, his hips cocked in her doorway as if posing. Lily thought he might be in his mid-20s, but he had a sixteen-year-old’s grace and maturity. He stood after saying her name, still smiling, still just existing as his down-home charming self.
“Can I help you?” Lily found herself unable to stifle her smile. She was with Len now, but Cameron had a way of tugging at her heart like a puppy. Everything Allison had said about him and his thoughts about Lily were crass, but she knew Allison well enough by now to realize that like the proverbial camera, Allison’s filter always left ten pounds of innuendo behind.
“Uh, yeah.” Cameron turned, picked up one of the candles, looked it over, then raised it to his nose. “These smell nice.”
Lily fluffed the roses.
“I’ve never been in here before,” he said. “It’s pretty.”
“Thanks.”
“All you got is white?” Cameron looked around at the stock, now pacing the aisles in his sandals. He looked supremely out of place, but Lily could still only smile.
“The name means ‘The White Flower.’”
“Yeah, I guess I knew that.” Cameron was admiring a bucket of freesia, his nose curling up at their sweetly peppery scent. “It’s kinda obvious. Even if Allie didn’t keep telling me how one color could be pretty and whatever, I saw you in here enough, and you never had nothing else.” He turned from the freesia, picked up a stem of hydrangea, and deeply inhaled, looking sincerely like he wanted to appreciate the flower and what it stood for, but wasn’t quite equipped. He smelled the hydrangea again, harder, as if he could force it into fragrance.
“S’nice,” he said. “I guess that way, you don’t have to deal with people bugging you about which color to get, right?” He smiled that sideways smile again. A joke, meant to be playful. But to Lily, it came off as uneasy. Was Cameron planning to ask her out? It had seemed that way for a while, judging by the looks he sometimes gave her when passing. But as confident as he sounded in Allison’s stories, he’d never managed to give Lily much more than hellos.
“Not really.” Lily’s eyes strayed to the window behind him. The center was already starting to stir. She’d acquired a fairly regular roster of clients, due in part to harvesting nouveau house’s outflow, and any minute now they might start to arrive.
“Huh,” he said, nodding. Cameron returned to the freesia and smelled it again, seeming to put maximal effort into appreciating its scent and appearance. Then he returned it and looked back the way he’d come. He had charm to spare and was delightful to look at, but this was awkward. He seemed unwilling to leave, but somehow compelled to stay. Maybe he was waiting for Allison. Lily knew they drove separate cars even when they worked the same shifts, partially because every ludicrously expensive Benz needed regular driving.
“You waiting for Allison?”
“Well, no,” Cameron said. “Look. See that’s the thing. I need to tell you something.”
“Oh?”
“Allie won’t be in today. She wanted me to tell you.”
Lily felt her heart sink. She’d grown used to Allison’s bubbly, irreverent presence, and although the fact made her uncomfortable, she had to admit she’d also come to rely on Allison as a first line of defense. Allison had solved the cooler problem; she’d stood behind Lily in every encounter with Kerry; she’d agreed to work for free simply because she was amazing. They’d become like sisters, and Lily felt naked without her. Especially today, the day she’d felt so sure things with Kerry were finally finished. Because they might not be, and if they weren’t, she’d need her sister to hold her up and have her back.
“Oh.”
“She’s real sorry,” said Cameron.
“It’s okay.” She wanted to ask if Allison was sick, but it felt like prying. Allison was a volunteer, clocking endless hours without pay. Lily was afraid asking anything further would come across as interrogation, like forcing Cameron to justify his sister going AWOL.
“She wants to be here. Really.” He shifted. “She made me promise to tell you that.”
“Well, thanks.”
Cameron stood with his eyes to the side. Still holding something back, or maybe just nervous. Anxiety sat strangely on Cameron’s shoulders. Lily had so many of Allison’s stories in her mind and so many casual glances of Cameron’s fearless interaction with pretty young women in the courtyard. He didn’t seem to be the jittery type. Maybe he really did like her — in a different way, perhaps, than he liked the girls whose screams of pleasure Allison frequently described.
“So I’ll see her tomorrow. Thanks for telling me, Cameron.” Lily didn’t want to rush him out, but he seemed so clearly uncomfortable — not to mention out of place in her Parisian-style shop. She needed to give him an out, then let him to take it. But despite Lily’s open door, Cameron stayed rooted.
“She can’t come in tomorrow either.”
Lily met his eyes. Finally, he met hers.
“Why?”
“She’s real sorry, Lil.”
Lil. It’s what Allison called her. And still, despite the assumption in Cameron’s instant familiarity, Lily found she didn’t mind. On the contrary; the endearing expression made her suddenly nervous, made her next words want to tumble out unabated.
“What’s she sorry about? What’s wrong, Cameron?”
He shook his head, looking away again.
“It’s our dad. He won’t let her work here.”
“She’s an adult!” said Lily. But not only was saying so presumptuous; it was self-serving. She sounded, to her own ears, as if she felt entitled to her free worker, and wanted to scream out against the man who seemed to be taking her away.
“He’ll cut her off,” said Cameron. “He was real firm about it, apparently.”
“Apparently?”
“I don’t know all the details,” said Cameron.
“Why can’t she work here? I thought he just wanted you to clock in and out?”
Lily realized she was prying. This was their family business and didn’t involve her, but if the idea of one day without Allison, especially now, had felt uncomfortable, the idea of losing her help forever was unbearable. Her mouth was suddenly sand dry. She could handle the shop by herself, sure. She’d done that before and could do it again. But it wasn’t just about having extra hands. It was about having another mind, another person who understood, watching her back. Antonia was on Lily’s side, but she had her own business to run. Having Allison around, here in the store, had made Lily feel bold. Practically bulletproof. She couldn’t imagine arguing so strongly without Allison behind her. Lily doubted she’d have had the stones to cross the courtyard and reclaim what was hers. And the thought of receiving another blow from Kerry or the leasing office without her sister around? It made Lily feel nothing like the strong person she was so sure she was slowly becoming.
“I … I just know she can’t. She asked me to tell you.”
“So … what? She’s just never coming back?”
“That’s all I know, Lil.”
“Stop calling me that!”
Lily looked at Cameron, seeing
his face wrinkle with hurt. She knew Allison exaggerated his exploits, and had already formed a much kinder, much sweeter impression of Cameron Deak. He struck her as a boy who’d always been pretty and rich, and who’d therefore always been in effortless demand. But he also struck her as someone who’d grown insecurity under his confident exterior, probably convinced that nobody thought he was smart enough, clever enough, or worthy enough on the inside. While his sister stretched to be more, he surfed. It wasn’t kind to knock his affection just because she, herself, felt hurt and angry.
“I’m sorry. I’m just upset. I didn’t mean that at all.”
“It’s okay.”
“I just don’t understand. She was here yesterday. End of the day, I assumed she’d be here today. And now, without warning, she’s forbidden to come back? Ever? It doesn’t make sense!” She wanted to add more: Is your dad a huge asshole? Does he resent his children exploring and enjoying their lives? Is he a tyrant who uses his money like thumbscrews, holding control for control’s sake? But Lily pressed her lips together, fighting a brewing eruption.
“Dunno, Li … Lily. He’s like that sometimes. Always has his reasons, I suppose.”
“What about you? Does he meddle with you and what you want to do?” It was too aggressive, definitely crossing the line. Lily didn’t know Cameron well enough to ask him that, and the question itself was loaded against a man she’d never met. But someone had taken something away from her and she was tired of having swords held to her neck without so much as a peep in protest.
“He made me get the job at A&F … or anywhere, really. But he made me finish my degree when I wanted to quit because I didn’t think I could do it.”
“What degree?”
“I got one in business. From UCSD.”
Lily felt her head cock. She couldn’t ask the obvious question. She’d gone far enough, and asking why Cameron had earned a degree just to clerk at Abercrombie by day and surf his afternoons away was ten steps too far. But still Lily wondered, and felt the hot creep of guilt at her presumptions.
“Look, I gotta go,” he said. “Don’t blame her, okay?”
