after they met her

thirtyseven

i v a n a

The next day, I was surprised to see Lily along with Asher and Logan coming to pick me up from the hospital. As soon as she saw me, Lily rushed over and hugged me tightly. I returned her hug.

"What are you doing here with them?" I asked, raising an eyebrow and eyeing my brothers suspiciously.

Logan kicked the air in his typical carefree way. "We just thought you might be happier to see us if we brought her with us."

Lily smirked. "They texted me yesterday to be ready at 9, so here I am."

"Oh, but I'm getting discharged now," I said, feeling a twinge of disappointment. "We won't be able to spend much time together."

Lily's smile also dropped a little, but then Asher coughed to get our attention. "Matthew told me you can come home with us if your parents are fine with that."

We both squealed in delight. Lily immediately called her mom, and after some persuasion, she agreed. The excitement of spending the day together was a much-needed distraction.

I signed some papers, and finally, I was free to go. Lily and I sat in the back of the car, engrossed in our conversation from the moment we got in, barely noticing Asher and Logan's attempts to join in.

"Can you believe they actually agreed to this?" Lily asked, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

"I know, right?" I laughed. "It's going to be so fun."

"Well, you deserve it after everything that happened," she said, squeezing my hand. "And I have so much to ask you."

Asher glanced back at us from the driver's seat. "You know, we're here too. You could include us in your conversation."

"Yeah," Logan added, twisting around from the passenger seat. "We're not just your chauffeurs."

Lily and I exchanged a look and burst out laughing. "Sorry, boys," I said, still giggling. "We're just excited."

"Excited about what?" Asher asked, his tone curious.

"About everything!" Lily exclaimed. "We have a lot of plans for today. Manicures, movies, maybe even a visit to the fridge for the biggest ice cream bowls the world has ever seen."

"Sounds fun," Logan said, a hint of envy in his voice. "Too bad we have to miss out."

"You could always join us," Lily teased. "If you think you can keep up."

"Oh, we can keep up," Asher said confidently. "But we have other things to take care of today."

"Like what?" I asked confused.

"Just some boring adult stuff," Logan replied, waving his hand dismissively. "You wouldn't be interested."

"Right," I said, rolling my eyes. "Because you're so mature."

They laughed, and for a moment, the atmosphere in the car felt light and carefree.

Lily and I arrived home. As we walked up the driveway, Logan and Asher waved us goodbye from the car, their smiles lingering as they drove off. Stepping into the house, we were immediately met by a heavy atmosphere.

Matthew and Gray stood in the hall, flanked by several of their men. All of them had dark, serious expressions, their usual casual demeanor replaced by something more ominous.

"What's going on?" I asked, surprised by the sudden tension.

The moment Matthew heard my voice, his stern expression melted away, replaced by a warm smile. "Princess, Hi," he said, striding over to hug me tightly. "Oh, and Lily, nice to see you again," he added, pulling her into the hug as well.