Divine Phoenix(Divine Creek Ranch 10)(62)

“I do okay.”

Lily looked at him skeptically. “You look a little worse for wear, Del. How are things at the ranch?”

“I have my work cut out for me, I’ll say that much. There were lots of structural repairs to make. It’s probably good that I didn’t plan to go to auction early, Clay, because the place is so run down. The fences are in sad shape, too.”

Lily handed him the stuffing. “Maybe you could hire someone to help you.”

“I’ve been thinking about it, but…”

“But what?” Lily persisted.

“I’d rather work on my own for now. There’s no hurry, really. I just need the time alone, I guess.” At another doubtful look from Lily, he added, “It’s okay. I’ll get someone to help eventually. I’m enjoying the work. It’s quiet out there.”

Del was grateful when Clay changed the subject and asked, “Lily, did you want to go visit your dad?”

Lily cringed slightly and slowly shook her head. “You know I would, Clay. But with the problems Mr. Duffield is having nailing down JT for paperwork, it’s best if I stay out of Durst. And Dad doesn’t want to leave right now. He said the chemo tends to make his motion sickness worse. Maybe in January or February, after everything’s settled, I’ll visit him. I’m just not sure it’s a good idea to stir up that hornet’s nest. Dad said he could wait until then. He doesn’t want me in town either. He seems to think JT would get wind of me being there and make trouble.”

The meal and conversation continued until they were all stuffed. Del noticed little glances and unspoken communication between Clay and Lily every so often, but he didn’t say anything. Lily started a sink filling with hot, soapy water and insisted they go relax in the living room by the lit fireplace and let their food digest.

As Del settled on the couch, he quietly asked, “So how is Lily, really? She’s lost more weight since the last time I saw her, hasn’t she?”

Clay nodded. “Besides what she does at the shop, she’s studying and working out an awful lot. I’m not sure she’s sleeping well, but she seems really happy. She aced her final exams and she’s having fewer nightmares. That’s a big deal to her.”

Bracing for the answer to the question he was about to voice, Del asked, “And things between the two of you? How are they?”

Clay sat quietly for several seconds, seeming to debate how much he should say. The sounds of water running and Lily busying herself in the kitchen could be heard.

“We slept together one time last month, the night of the storm. Same night you got back. When the storm really got going she came to me. One thing led to another.”

Del had assumed as much, based on the way they had acted that day he’d come into the jewelry shop. Lily had blushed profusely when Clay had come out of the shop’s restroom with no shirt on. “You haven’t since then?”

Clay shook his head. Knowing Clay as well as he did, Del recognized the torment in his eyes and his attempt to hide it behind an almost nonchalant tone. “No. I’m going to tell you the reason why, but you can’t say anything to her about it. I’m respecting her privacy and her boundaries right now. I think she’s beating herself up for sleeping with me when she’s technically still a married woman—”

“What a load of shit. That bastard—”

“Not to her, it’s not. She values the vows she made, even if he didn’t, and we don’t acknowledge them because of how he treated her. But that’s not the only reason. Her ex-husband had a mark put on her.”

“A what?”

Quietly, Clay replied, “It’s a tattoo. More of a mark of ‘ownership’ is how JT put it the day I met him in the hospital.”

“He came to the hospital?”

Clay filled him in with all the details, including the description of the horrible mark she bore. Del was ready to drive to Durst and kill the bastard. His poor Lily. He wanted to cuddle her and wrap her in safety and never let another man near her. But that wasn’t meant to be because Clay obviously already had those bases covered. He was curious about why Clay would reveal something that was so private that it was unlikely he’d ever see.

“Can you understand why she doesn’t want us to know about the mark?”

Del nodded, still wanting to crush JT King like the cockroach that he was.

“If she knew that we were aware of its existence it would hurt her. That’s why I haven’t pushed her to sleep with me again. I told her I understood she had issues and there’s no pressure on her. Of course if she comes to me I’m going to give her whatever she needs. The only reason we had that night was because I agreed to keep the lights off and my eyes closed. I can tell she’s scared to risk it again, no matter how much she may want to.” Del was willing to bet those were precious memories. Clay paused as though weighing his words carefully. “I know we talked about it, but you haven’t had a chance to meet any of our friends yet, so you may not understand…”