Page 53 of Liberating Lily

“Me? Nothing. Why?”

“Don’t be scared to tell me what you’re thinking, Lily. I’m not going to get upset at you for your thoughts. I’ll only get upset if you put yourself in danger.”

Okay, good to know.

“I guess I was just thinking that their names are very different from yours.”

“Ahh, you’re right. My father was Irish, and my mother was born here. My father insisted the first two children have Irish names, but I was called Harvey because it was my mom’s maiden name,” he said.

“That makes sense. What about your younger siblings?”

“Next is Bea. She’s super smart, our Bea. Her full name is Beatrice after our maternal grandmother. But she’s always been called Bea. She’s actually a research scientist. She’s trying to find a cure for breast cancer.”

Wow, that was amazing. They really were a group of overachievers, weren’t they?

“And my youngest brother’s called Patrick, but we call him Paddy. He’s, well, he’s a scoundrel. Smart, but hasn’t quite got his life together. When he was younger, he got into a lot of trouble because he was too smart. School bored him. Once, he hacked into the school system and gave everyone A’s. My grandfather had to pay handsomely to keep the cops out of that.”

“Your grandfather?” she asked.

“Yeah. Now, there’s a grumpy old fart, Conor Gallagher. We had to live with him when our parents died in a car accident. I think Ronan was about sixteen. Which meant that I was twelve. And Paddy was just eight. Wasn’t easy. For any of us. I would have understood if the old man had turned us away, but he’s big on family. Took us all in and raised us the best he could. He and my father were actually estranged. Dad didn’t want anything to do with the family business. He wouldn’t be happy that Ronan was now the head of it and that Paddy and I are involved.”

She wasn’t quite sure what to say to that. “Are you happy to be involved?”

He shrugged. “It is what it is. And it makes the old man happy. We owe him.”

“I’m sure he would’ve looked after you no matter what. Family shouldn’t owe family.”

His lips quirked up in a smile. “I’m not so sure about that.”

“Can I have my phone and handbag?” She finished eating.

“No,” he said cheerfully.

“No? Why not?”

“Because I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to have your phone.”

Her temper stirred. “Why not? Are you worried I might call someone and tell them that you’re holding me prisoner?”

Harvey smiled like he thought she was the funniest thing ever.

“Would you do that? After I took care of you these last few days? Bathed you, cleaned you up when you’d been ill, cooked for you. I even gave you a bell to call for me. Although you did disobey me and walk down the stairs on your own. That was rather naughty.”

“No, I wouldn’t call the police,” she said.

He tilted his head to the side, studying her. “I wouldn’t blame you if you did, Lily. I don’t think you fully understand how much I care about you. And what I would do to keep you.”

A shaft of fear ran up her spine. She believed he meant every word of that.

And no, she didn’t know the depths that he’d go to in order to keep her, because she didn’t understand how he could be so obsessed with her. It wasn’t normal, this obsession, was it?

It couldn’t be healthy. But if he was mentally ill, then he’d hidden it well.

And Lord knew it wasn’t like she was that healthy herself.

“That isn’t the main reason I don’t want you having your phone,” he told her. “I don’t think you would call the police on me. I think you want answers about what happened to you too much and you know that I’ll be the one to find them.”

Did that mean she was using him? She bit her lower lip.