Enticing (Red Lips & White Lies Book 3)

Adelaide finally falls asleep sometime around two in the morning, and I spend the next few hours doing a deep dive on my phone, learning everything there is to know about Gavin and his piece of shit father. Maybe if I hadn’t grown up in the family I did, his would seem impressive. But they don’t. They seem like cowards, afraid of giving control to Adelaide and Coraline. Cowards who hurt women.

Who hurt my woman.

Lennox cries out from her bedroom, and I scramble out of bed to get to her before she wakes her sleeping mother.

“Hey, baby girl.” I scoop her up and hold her against my chest. “Shh . . . It’s okay. I’ve got you. You’re okay.”

I wait until she’s calm to lay her down on the changing table and switch out her diaper, then she and I decide rocking on the glider sounds like a great way to spend the morning. Lennox smacks my cheeks with her palms and mouths my nose. “You hungry, baby?”

She giggles and tugs at my ear before curling up on my chest and cooing the sweetest sound I’ve ever heard. “Not hungry yet, I guess.”

She babbles herself back to sleep, and I realize just how much my life has changed in the past six months and how there’s not one single thing about it I’d do differently because it all led me here.

“No one is ever going to hurt you, baby girl. Not you or your mom or your sister. I’ll make sure of it,” I promise her as she sleeps soundly, without a care in the world.

I pull my phone out and shoot off my next message before opening a new window and doing a little shopping. Addie may be pissed when I’m done, but pissed and safe, I can handle. Her being scared and nearly frozen almost broke me last night, and I’m sure as hell not going to let it break her.

Addie

My head is killing me when I finally force myself out of bed the next morning. Leo’s side is long empty, and his sheets are cold, and I can’t help but wonder if I finally did it. Did I finally manage to scare him off?

I wonder if it was the broken version of me or the boatload of drama that comes with my life . . . baggage is baggage, whether it’s Louis Vuitton or Walmart brand. And I come with a lot of baggage.

I pad out of my room and realize my mistake when I find Lennox and him both asleep in the glider rocker in her room. His feet propped up on the ottoman, and her tucked against his chest. His eyes open slowly, and I force a smile, looking between my husband and my baby, not missing the protective hand he has on her back.

“You seem to be making this a habit, Sinclair . . .” I tease him softly, then drop a kiss on his lips. “Thank you for taking care of me last night.” I smile. “And last week. And last month. Maybe that’s the habit you’re making, Leo.”

His gaze is heavy on my face as he reaches up and cups the back of my head with his free hand. “One day, you’re going to accept that you’re mine to take care of, wife.”

I run a finger along his scruff. “I think maybe I have.”

“Good.” He stands and hands me Lennox, so I can sit and nurse her. “Because I’ve done a little homework and made a few calls. I’ve got a security system being installed this afternoon.”

“Leo—” I stop him as Lennox latches on, effectively cutting off any attempts I may have made to raise my voice. “I can’t afford that.”

“Yeah well, I can, and we need it.” He crosses his massive arms over his chest and lifts a brow, daring me to correct him. “Don’t argue this one with me, Addie. I don’t give a shit about what money you have coming to you. I never did. You could put every cent of it in a trust for the girls, and it wouldn’t matter to me.”

“Fine. Thank you. A security system will make me feel safer. Especially when you’re not here,” I admit. “But you should have talked to me first.”

“You might not like this then.” There’s no remorse on his face, and I’m left suddenly concerned for what I’m not going to like. Apprehension clings to the air between us.

“What did you do, Leo?” I harden, not at all prepared to guess what his answer could be.

“A new G-Class should be delivered to the house early this afternoon too.”

I open my mouth to argue, but Leo’s teeth grind together, effectively shutting me up. “You need a car, Addie. Mrs. Murkey will be back any day now, and you still don’t have a reliable vehicle to get you and the girls around. I thought about giving you my car, but I want you in the newer vehicle. You need something safe that’s yours. You can use mine whenever you want, but you need your own. Don’t bother arguing with me. It’s already done.”

“Leo . . .”

“They didn’t have mint green, so I got you emerald green.”

“Why did you do that?” I ask, confused why he would think that would make this better.

“Because mint green is your favorite color. I figured emerald green would be the next best thing.”

My mouth hangs open, shocked. “I never told you mint is my favorite color,” I argue.

“You didn’t need to. You’re laptop is mint green. Your favorite blanket is mint green. Izzy’s jacket is mint green. Even I can tell a pattern when I see one, sweetheart. And you have a favorite color. Unfortunately, Mercedes doesn’t make mint-green cars.”

“I’ll only take it if you let me pay you back once I get access to my trust,” I push, trying to maintain some dignity and maybe just a tiny bit of control over my life.

“We can talk about that later. After we meet with Hunter.”

My head spins. “Who?”

“My agent. He’s a lawyer, and he’s signed a nondisclosure agreement, so anything we discuss can’t go anywhere.” He squats down next to the chair and brings himself to my eye level. “We need someone to give us our options, sweetheart.”

“Our options,” I repeat back to him.

“Yeah, Addie. Our options. Because you’re not in this alone.”

“I’m not sure why you’re so patient with me, Leo Sinclair . . . But I’ve never been so glad for a broken-down car a single day in my life as I am for mine the day I met you.”

Leo leans forward and kisses me, then Lennox. “I love you, Adelaide. You. The girls. You’re everything to me, and I fight for what’s mine. We’ve got this. I promise.”

“Leo . . .” I whisper, his promise warming my blood from the inside out. “I trust you.”