Gilded Lily(14)
No matter how Tony found his happiness, Lily would be supportive. Even if it meant she would never know the true extent of his feelings. Lily began to wonder if anyone ever would.
Lily ran across the back lawn and into the kitchen. She took the blanket from the chest in the mud room and a brush from the downstairs bathroom. Quickly, she ran back across the lawn and flipped the blanket out on the grass and handed Renee the brush.
Lily crawled onto her belly and crooked her knee out to the side. Renee rested beside her and glided the brush through her long hair. Lily moaned at the sheer bliss of the feeling. Soon enough she drifted into a restful slumber, where her thoughts calmed, and the vision of Nicholas’s brother slipped inside her sleepy dream.
* * * *
“Ms. Desclose?”
The deep voice came through the phone, making Lily shiver. “Yes?”
“This is Adam Stark—Nicholas’s brother.”
Lily shifted the phone to her other ear. “Oh, yes. Have you decided to come?”
“My flight leaves tomorrow at eight in the morning. I should get in town by the afternoon. I’m going to rent a car and—”
“I can pick you up from the airport,” Lily offered, thinking she sounded a little bit too eager to get him to her house.
“Are you sure?” he asked. “I don’t want to trouble you.”
“It wouldn’t be trouble at all.” Lily smiled. Adam’s voice was deeper than she remembered. Much deeper than Nicholas’s. “I don’t have any plans. What time does your plane land?”
“Around eleven.”
“I’ll be there by ten thirty then. You know, Mr. Stark, the South is much different than New York City. Are you sure you’ll be able to handle it out here for a couple of days?”
“I’ve been all over the world, Ms. Desclose.” Lily could sense a bit of that brooding temper Nicholas was so fond of. “I think I can handle the South.”
“Yes, I’m sure you can.” Lily covered her mouth to muffle her snicker. “It’s just that it took Nicholas a little bit to settle in. But I’m sure you can withstand it for a few days.”
“Do you mind if I stay at Nicholas’s place while I’m there? I can pay you.”
“You can stay as long as you need, and I won’t take your money.”
“If you change your mind—”
“I won’t,” she said.
“Well, I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“See you then.”
NICK WAS RIGHT, Adam thought as he watched Lily drive. She did look like a little girl in the right light. He studied the way the loose hairs had fallen from the bun fixed on the back of her head. She looked at peace, such a stark contrast to when they’d first met at his brother’s funeral. He’d watched her enter through the side of the parlor room, looking so nervous and out of place. He’d been unable to concentrate on his aunt’s comforting words as he watched Lily sit down in the chair at the back of the funeral hall.
“Nicholas really liked the stable house,” Lily said, breaking his thoughts. “He suggested having the large windows placed on the west wall. Watching the sun set was one of his favorite ways to spend the evening. He’d always mention the colors, the way the simplest things were the most beautiful.”
“I’m eager to see what he was working on,” Adam said as he watched the cars go by.
“Nick wouldn’t let me see. He said it wasn’t ready yet.”
Adam looked over. He couldn’t help but notice the delicate slope of her pouty lips and how they were shaped perfectly for smiling—or kissing.
“Nicholas was such a perfectionist,” she said.
Adam turned to look out the window again. The last thing he needed was for her to notice him staring at her mouth. Nicholas had definitely picked the perfect muse. “You noticed that, did you?” He rubbed his hand against his forehead, feeling the scarred flesh as he tried to rub the memories away. The ache in his chest spiked every time he envisioned his brother’s face.
She turned the car down a gravel lane lined with dangling willows and towering oaks. “When was the last time you talked to Nicholas?”
Adam’s mouth went dry. Now, the reasons he’d made up not to visit Nick were bullshit. Every letter, Adam had told himself, seemed to say Nick was content and happy, excited about the projects he was working on. The gallery was prosperous, and his muse was keeping his artistic hands busy. Adam hoped his silence wasn’t an admission of guilt. He was a horrible big brother and hadn’t kept in contact with Nick the way he should have.
“Here we are.”