"No," he answered without a beat. "I love my parents. They invested in me. They gave me a home, their name and love. I will forever be an Aquilani."
So he was able to say the word, just not to her. Lily"s heart sank.
The pretty woman beamed at him. "And who would you like to dedicate this thrilling win to? It was a close one."
Adam chuckled. "It definitely was. We have some great drivers on the scene. This win is for my parents, of course. And for Liliana and our baby."
Lily"s heart stumbled.
"Who"s Liliana?"
Adam chuckled and ran a hand through his wet silky hair. "My fiancee. I"m in love with her."
"Oh wow! Congratulations," she said smiling.
He said the words. She stared at the television screen but no longer listening. She missed him. She loved him. She wanted him to shout his love to the world and he gave that to her, leaving no room for doubts. Talk about a public service announcement. Her heart did that little dance only reserved for Adam as happiness washed over her. He had officially given her everything she ever wanted from him.
Her heart pounded in her throat. She grabbed her cell phone on the coffee table and checked the time. Four a.m.. d.a.m.n, too early to call anyone for some distraction. She turned off the television, lay back on the sofa and pulled the blanket all the way up to her chin. In the dark, she stared at the ceiling, listening to her thundering heartbeat, wondering how quickly she could get back to the island. And sadly admitting sleep had eluded her once more, but this time for all the right reasons.
After jamming on Lily"s doorbell several times, Adam dug in his pocket for his keys and opened the entrance door to Lily"s condo. He rushed up the stairs, taking two at a time and nearly broke down the door when it swung open. He came face to face with Rafa.
Really, he wasn"t in the mood.
"Out of my way," he growled, walking past Lily"s brother.
"She"s not here."
He whipped around to face Rafa. "What do you mean? She has a doctor"s appointment."
"Exactly what I said, she"s not here."
"Well!"
"Well what?"
Adam raked a hand through his hair. At this point, he was ready to pull off his entire head of hair. "Where the f.u.c.k is she? Jesus, you"re an a.s.shole."
Rafa shrugged. "Are you here to tell her you love her?"
"My relationship with Lily is not your business." He looked around the room, searching for some indication where she might be. He checked his watch. They still had one hour before her appointment.
"Actually, she will always be my business. She"s my baby sister."
He surveyed Rafa"s chiseled face. He recalled the conversation between the siblings, the mention of Lea and how he had reacted to it. Don"t go there, Adam, sensitive topic. Eventually they"d be family, so for now he took it easy on the big goof. Besides, everyone had a story. Who was he to judge? "Fine," he said in a reluctant tone. "I"m here to tell her."
Rafa smiled. A f.u.c.king smug one at that too.
"Good, because I was about to come back to that awful island of yours and kick your a.s.s silly or until you were able to declare your undying love."
Somehow Adam believed Rafa. Well, at least the try to kick his a.s.s part...actually succeeding at it that was another matter.
"Treat her well."
Adam smiled. "I intend to."
An awkward silence fell in the room. An accord reached. Neither moved but the tension that had been thick around them since their first meet dissipated.
"What is going on here?" a male voice asked from the door.
Rafa and Adam turned to the lean, athletic, Ken-like man standing by the open door. Adam looked back at Rafa. Lily"s brother shrugged.
"Who the f.u.c.k is that?"
"That"s Ken, also known as Nate," Rafa answered with barely a glance in Nate"s direction.
Adam made a mental note to share a beer with Rafa soon over the Ken comment. "You mean the cheating ex?"
Rafa nodded.
Adam walked up to Ken, AKA Nate. "What do you want?"
"Who the f.u.c.k are you?" Ken asked in a surprisingly brave tone.
"Liliana"s fiance. You should leave if you don"t want your face rearranged."
Rafa chuckled. "I"d help, but I promised my sister I wouldn"t touch him. I signed my name in blood."
"Well, I"m too smart to make such a stupid promise. Get out!"
Ken-Nate squared his shoulders. "I"m here to see Lily."
"She"s not here," Rafa informed the cheating b.a.s.t.a.r.d. "You should leave or you can"t say I didn"t warn you."
"I"m not leaving. I want to speak to Lily."
Rafa snorted.
"Liliana is not here. Leave."
Nate walked past Adam into the living room. "Stop calling her that. Her name is Lily. Everyone calls her Lily."
Adam grabbed Nate"s shoulder and spun him around to face him. "I"m not everyone. I"m the guy who can keep his d.i.c.k in his pants when he makes a promise to a woman. Now get the f.u.c.k out." Nate tried to stare him down and failed. Adam crossed his arms over his chest. "I met her right after she found out you cheated on her. She put up this faade, but I also saw her broken down and sad. How could you do that to a woman you claimed to love?"
Nate shoved his hands in his pockets. "I want her back."
This time Rafa"s deep laughter filled the room. "You"re not getting her back. She"s in love with him." He pointed at Adam. "I mean the crazy, pa.s.sionate kind of love that only happens once in a lifetime."
Adam pulled his phone from his jacket. He scrolled to Lily"s number and texted.
Where are you?
At the doctor. Why?
Adam shoved the phone back in his pocket and fixed his eyes on Nate. "She told you to let her go. I heard her. I was standing right next to her. You should. And I"m not saying that because I"m threatened by you. I"m saying it because you"re her past, not her future." And just because he was a guy he added, "That"s where I come in."
Lily flipped through the magazine appropriately t.i.tled Pregnancy. Hard to believe two weeks ago, she sat in the same room with her heart in her throat with angst. She looked at Adam"s text again, and her bare finger where his ring once sheathed.
A soft knock came from the door. "Come in," she called to Paige and Dr. Mason.
Paige entered the room. "Dr. Mason will be here soon."
Lily studied the nurse. There was a slight tension behind her smile. "Is everything okay?" she asked with concern. She had done the usual urine thing before her visit and wondered if something showed up.
Paige"s eyes rested on her left hand for a second. "You"re engaged. Where"s your ring?"
"I"m not engaged." No point asking Paige how she got the scoop of her love life. She"d bet her savings where the nurse got her information and Lily would win. Her nosy, pain-in-the-a.s.s brothers. "I mean, I am but I"m not."
Paige smiled. "Which one is it?"
She sighed. "I guess I am, but we"re not together." At least not yet, he was still in Russia.
"Is his name Adam Aquilani?"
Puzzled, she met Paige"s gaze. "How do you know his name?"
Paige smiled. "Beside the fact I"m a big Formula One fan." She grinned. "He"s also in the waiting room demanding to be in here with you."
Lily"s heart took a leap. "He"s in Russia," she said in an effort to keep herself calm.
But the nurse shook her head. "He"s here. Of course we have to protect our clients and refused to let him in until you approved it."
She recalled Adam"s promise to not miss any of her appointments. He must be exhausted. The effort, the thought, the act, made her heart squeezed. "He can come in."
Paige squeezed her hand and headed for the door. "A little bird told me he met all three of your brothers."
Lily rolled her eyes. "It was a sight."
"Who gave him the hardest time?"
"Guess."
"I"d bet my savings on Rafa."
"You"d win."
Paige laughed. "I"ll bring him in."
As soon as the door closed behind Paige, Lily jumped off the doctor bed, grabbed her compact powder and applied a stroke of lip gloss on her bare lips. She had bags under her eyes and truth be told, she looked tired, but she could blame that on the pregnancy, not the fact she hadn"t slept much since she returned home because every night she reached for him.
And d.a.m.n it, why had she already changed into that wretched gown?
They had to be the most unattractive thing ever created. She ran a hand through her hair, fluffed up her bangs and lightly patted her cheeks in hope for some color. It didn"t work. So she sat back on the gurney with her socks down to her ankles, in the hideous, flimsy gown tied to her front, and tried to look as calm as possible when the soft knock came on the door again.
She cleared her throat, and edged some distance between her and the stirrups. The last thing she wanted Adam to think about was her spreading it wide for her obstetrician. "Come in," she called with her best I"m in control voice, only it cracked at the end.
The door pushed open. Paige appeared first, and then Lily"s heart stammered as her eyes went straight to the tall, rugged man with a few days" old scruff and face set in a hard determined expression.
"You have ten minutes," Paige said, then left them alone.
He stood there for a minute. He scanned her from head to toe, his eyes stayed a moment too long on the pink and blue socks scrunched to her ankle then his gaze met hers, a soft smile curved his lips. "I came here straight from Russia," he said in a quiet voice.
"You must be tired," she said, heart pounding so hard she couldn"t hear herself think. "You didn"t have to come." But inside she was grinning like a ten-year-old with delight. Never mind the bags under his eyes were a dead giveaway he was tuckered out.
"I promised I would. But more importantly, Liliana, I want to be here."
She watched him walk across the room to the chair. He picked it up and brought it next to where she sat. He plopped his big body down and looked up to her.
"What are you doing, Adam?"
He took her hands in his and placed a kiss on the back of her hands. "I"m giving you my heart. If you still want it."
She was going to cry again, she could feel the tears burning the back of her eyes. She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. "I can"t cry here."
He let out a low laugh. "Open your eyes, Liliana, and look at me."
Slowly, she did as he asked and saw all the emotions she knew he felt in his heart reflecting in his eyes. "I"m looking, Adam. I"ve been looking and I"m scared that what I see may not be what you feel."
"I"m in love with you, Liliana Serrano," he said quietly. "So much I f.u.c.king ache."
Her heart skipped. It had been surreal to hear him declare his love on television in front of millions of viewers. Still, it didn"t compare to this private moment between them. Love, affection, and need rushed through her.
"That day I saw you walk by the Shanty with Minka, you took my breath away at that moment. Then the night at the beach, I lost myself in you, to you then." He smiled. "I"m forever yours."
With her heart in her throat, she let the tears flow.
"I can"t tell if you"re happy or if these are "You"re too late, Adam" tears."
Between the tears, she laughed at his words.
"I"ve been very careful not to say those words to a woman other than my mother and my extended family. But you"ve changed that. My mind is still f.u.c.ked up somewhat, but the idea of losing you..." He shook his head. "I"d say it over and over for you."
"I love you. I tried to fight it. I was scared to love you, but my heart flipped on me and I fell really hard."
Adam rose to his feet, cupped her face in his hands and kissed her. "So I"m not too late."