Free French Kiss (Silver Cove Series Book 2) by Jill Sanders Page B

him to help her stand. He pulled her into his arms.
    “Take a walk with me,” he said after a moment of silence.
    “A walk?” She blinked a few times.
    “Sure, I need the fresh air.” He stepped back, taking her hand, and started towards the door. She glanced back at the desk with a frown. “Paperwork can wait.”
    She turned and locked up the office, then followed him down the back stairs and outside. When the cool night air hit him, he sighed. “It never gets old.” He closed his eyes and took several deep breaths, then reached down and took her hand in his and started walking towards the back pathway that circled the island.
    “I’ve always loved the air here,” he said, glancing down at her.
    “Is it different than France?” she asked.
    “Some. I don’t really remember much about my homeland. I was very small when I moved here.”
    “How old where you?” she asked.
    “Nine.”
    “Did your parents move here for work?”
    “No, my parents are still in France.”
    She stopped so he turned and looked at her. “Who did you live with then?”
    “My grand-mère, Sonya.” He smiled, remembering the first time he’d seen the woman’s kind face.
    “Since you were nine?” she asked.
    He nodded, feeling the lump of love in his throat.
    “Why? Why didn’t you stay with your parents?”
    He took her hand, moved to the dock, and sat on the bench that overlooked the boat docks. There were always boats docked there, but now it looked like a millionaire’s island. Every boat was a yacht, no doubt some of the most expensive ones to ever be tied up there all at once.
    “They sent me to live with my mother’s mother to see if she could save me.”
    “Save you?” Lilly turned towards him, so he wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
    “Yes.”
    “From?”
    He shrugged. “I suppose myself. I was a terrible child.” He chuckled.
    “Still, to send a nine-year-old halfway across the world.” She shook her head and he could see the anger cross those lovely eyes of hers.
    “Don’t be mad. Actually, it’s because my Nana raised me that I had the freedom to get where I am today. My father…” He paused and tried to figure out how best to say the next statement. “He’s very high up in the government over there. If I had stayed in France, I would have been led down a different path.”
    She was silent for a while, then leaned back against his arm. “Well, then I’m thankful.”
    “Oh?” He smiled as his fingers tangled in her hair.
    “Yes, it would have been a shame to waste your talent in the kitchen.”
    He chuckled and she laughed in response.
    “Is that the only reason then?”
    She turned and looked up at him. “That’s all I can think of.” She smiled as his fingers gently ran over her chin, pulling her face up to his.
    “Then I’ll have to give you more reasons,” he said before his lips brushed over hers.
    He’d never experienced a kiss that shook him to his core before. He felt like he could spend the rest of his life sitting under the stars, his arms wrapped around Lilly, their lips playing slowly over one another’s.
    When he pulled away, she rested her head against his shoulder and sighed. He closed his eyes, wishing he could hold onto that moment, wanting to remember it for the rest of his life.
    “What about your family?” Instantly he felt her tense and wished he could take his question back.
    She sat up, her back straight as her hands gripped her knees. “My folks are out of my life too.”
    “I’m sorry.” He reached over and started to rub her back, but she quickly stood up and walked over to the railing, looking out into the dark night. Moving to stand by her, he waited, watching her facial expressions. “How did they die?” he asked after a moment.
    She turned to him. “They didn’t,” she responded. “I did.”
     

Chapter Seven
     
     
    L ilith could see the shock and confusion on Adam’s face. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and decided that she