Page 6 of Enthrall Shadows
“It’s my café.”
“Right.” She gave me an endearing smile. “Can we have tea?”
“Sure.”
I could see it now, her resemblance to Reese.
Or maybe this was a cruel hoax on a man too blinded by emotion to see it, who wanted to find similarities in her mother.
I led the way and patted my leg. “Dex!”
Obediently, he stayed close.
“He’s cute,” she said.
Dex was so much more. Cameron had given him to me as a puppy upon my arrival back in the States. Dex had been with me through the hardest times. Now, I intended on spoiling him through the good.
Lilly seemed calm considering the news she’d imparted.
Maybe I appeared uncommonly reasonable.
Or maybe her mom had told her she’d be meeting with a decent man, a dangerous assumption. I’d radically changed from the college student she’d once known.
Had I once loved a woman who had disappeared of her own volition?
None of this made sense.
In the café, a barista scurried around preparing two cups of Earl Grey.
I considered texting Shay, but thought better of it. I was already keeping my head of security super busy. If I messaged Cameron about this, he’d tell me to walk away.
That would have been the wiser choice.
Two venti Earl Grey’s were set on the counter. Lilly carried hers over to the condiment table and added a dash of milk.
I joined her, pouring a packet of sugar into mine.
My hands were surprisingly steady.
I directed Lilly into a corner booth.
Dex scurried beneath the table and promptly lay on my feet. I let him; we both needed the reassurance.
I ignored the curious glances from the staff and zeroed in on my visitor.
Running through all the possibilities of what someone would gain by doing this, I scanned Lilly for traits similar to Reese’s. She had her mother’s features—the way her face brightened when she talked. Her earthiness. The same lithe frame.
Reese had been into running track—as had I.
We’d met in college on the field, with her sprinting counterclockwise and me chastising her for going the wrong way. I’d found her rebellious nature alluring.
I glanced at the envelope. “What’s in it, exactly?”
“To be honest, I don’t know.” Lilly surveyed the marble foyer. “I was instructed to hand it to you, then leave.”
Yet here she sat having drinks with me.
I recognized her stubbornness. She had Reese’s temperament. Lilly appeared just as curious about me.
