Page 66 of A Violet Obsession

Somewhere in my head is a voice saying something’s off. Lily isn’t normally this bold, but when she spears her hands through my hair and grinds down, whispering. “Please, Finn,” against my lips, my cock overrides rational thought.

I pull her hips down hard against me as I thrust up, my mouth devouring hers. The smell and heat of her are overwhelming.

“Does this feel okay? Tell me if I’m not doing it right…”

Something about her words doesn’t sit right. I press my forehead to hers to catch my breath. “Wait, baby.”

“Please. I need you to show me.” Her hips roll against me, and I clench my back teeth, but it’s her tone that gives me back an ounce of control.

I pull back a little to look at her face. “Lil—” My hands frame her jaw. Her pupils are blown, too wide to be only desire, and there’s a dreamy, unfocused softness to her expression that hits me like a cold shower. “Did you take something?” My voice is harsh.

Is this another one of her secrets?

“What did you take, Lily?”

She blinks, confused, and then leans forward to kiss me again. I angle my head back.

“After you came inside, what did you do? I won’t be mad. I just need to know.”

Her face folds into an adorable pout when I dodge her a second time. “I didn’t take anything. I made dinner.”

“Yes,” I coax. “But you did something else, too. You can tell me.”

She scowls. “Fine. I ate a cookie. Are you happy? Ugh.” She pushes at my chest, and I help her get off my lap. “Just my purse cookie, okay.”

“Purse cookie?” Despite everything, I can’t help a smile as she pads toward the sofa.

Lily isn’t unsteady, exactly, but she moves in a loose-limbed way that isn’t normal. She flops onto the cushions and stretches out, resting her head on the arm. “I had one of the cookies Dawn made me. Still delicious.”

Red flags go up inside my brain. “When did Dawn give you the cookies?”

Lily yawns. “The night of the auction.”

A slow boil of anger starts in my gut as the pieces slide together. “Dawn Vale? Your boss?”

“Yeah, but we knew each other before,” she mumbles. “She and her husband Trevor are my friends.

“My friends don’t drug me.” I don’t mean for her to hear it, but she bolts upright. “You think the cookies were drugged?” Her hand goes to her temple. “That would explain—Damn it, Trevor.”

“Why would Trevor drug you?” I keep my voice level by sheer will.

“Not for a bad reason. He’s been after me for ages to try micro-dosing mushrooms for my anxiety. He says it’s good for all kinds of problems.”

Now that she says it, I can see the signs of psilocybin. She’s right that it’s used to treat all sorts of things. But the fact he dosed her without her knowing burns hot in my chest.

“Did you eat the cookies the night of the robbery?”

She grimaces. “Three. They were so good,” Lily stares at the fire. “Is that why I can’t remember that night?”

“Possibly.” I nod. “Do you think Dawn and Trevor might be involved?”

Lily lifts her hand and studies it, fascinated, before looking back at me. “I’m high, aren’t I?”

If I weren’t so furious, I’d let myself enjoy how serious she looks about it.

“Yeah.” I give her a reassuring smile. “But I’ll take care of you.”

Her face brightens. “You’ll teach me? I can see by your scrunched-up face you think I only asked because I’m high—and, okay, yeah, I am, and I probably would’ve said it differently—but I was already thinking about it.