Page 87 of A Violet Obsession

“Yep. I said, ‘Look cat, neither one of us has a family so we might as well make one of our own.’”

“And you named her after a vengeful goddess because you didn’t think she was scary enough?” I lift an eyebrow.

She smirks. “How was I supposed to know she was going to grow up to be such a badass?”

“Just have to look at her mom.” My cheeks heat immediately, unable to believe I’d actually said it, but when Lily’s face softens and she smiles up at me with glowing eyes, any embarrassment I feel is totally worth it.

The door opens from the deck. “What’s all this?” Lily asks, letting Hera jump from her arms.

Suddenly, inexplicably nervous, I spin the dial on the radio through several more stations of static before the faint sounds of music come through. Some sort of older country, I think. “Ha! Who says I can’t entertain you without electricity.”

“I never said I wasn’t thoroughly entertained.” She waggles her eyebrows. “And we need music because…?”

“Dance with me.” I take her hand and pull her into me.

She cocks her head. “To this?”

It’s an older song, about heartbreak and a pickup truck and far too fast a beat for how I want to hold her.

“It’s a classic.”

“You’ve never heard this in your life.”

She laughs as I attempt to maneuver us in the small area between the sofa and coffee table and the hearth. We trip over each other and almost fall at least three times, but when she throws her head back and laughs, I know it’s one of the best moments of my life.

The first song ends, and the second one is even faster. I spin her out from me, her braid flying, before I catch her against my chest when she stumbles, and then dance her in a circle until we’re both breathless from laughter. When a slow song finally comes on, I pull her in and press my hand over hers over my heartbeat.

It’s the perfect moment to tell her how I feel. But I’ve never known how to do that with anyone, and I’m content to continue to sway in front of the fire with Lily in my arms.

The song fades out, and another fills the cabin. I hum along, low, against her hair. I’m slow to realize that Lily has stopped moving.

She pulls her hand from mine and steps back.

“Lily?”

Instead of answering me, she stares at the short hall leading to the bedroom and then over to the kitchen cabinets. Her forehead bunches so hard I worry she’s in pain.

“Lily?”

She doesn’t answer.

Walking straight to the cabinets, she opens and shuts them. She’s getting more agitated by the second, her breath short and shallow. When she turns back, she looks confused.

That makes two of us.

I step closer. “What are you doing, baby?”

Even though I’m standing right in front of her, she doesn’t look at me. Her eyes move over the room, searching for something.

“Where—” Her voice comes out flat. “It’s supposed to be— I can’t find—” She squeezes her eyes shut and shakes her head.

“Hey! Hey, look at me.” I take her shoulders. “Find what?”

“The Veridian Amethyst.” She opens her eyes, but turns in my hands, pulling away from me. “I can’t let them down.”

Fear clamps around my heart. “You aren’t letting anyone down.”

She doesn’t hear me, and there’s a vacancy behind her eyes that is scaring the hell out of me.