Page 47 of Falling for my Brother's Best Friend

Fourteen

Liam

She’s asking me to share with her something that no one else knows about, and I don’t know if I’m ready. But she’s putting trust in me with this experiment. If I accept her terms, I’ll be putting trust in her too.

A bet might seem stupid. But I’m smart enough to know that if you want Savannah Bailey to do anything she’s not on board with, you have to challenge her.

Still, how can I pull out the Savannah Bailey she was before her parents’ deaths? We can’t time travel or be visited by past, present, and future ghosts. We don’t live in a movie or a book. But it’s a challenge I want to take on because between last night and this morning, I’ve figured out that I care for this woman, whether I’m her future or not. I want her to be happy, and I’m convinced this is what she needs to find it.

“So?” she presses.

“Sure, but if I’m right, you go on a real date with me in town at Terra and Mare.” This goes against everything I talked about with her brothers, but the fact is if I’m right, everything they’re concerned about is no longer valid.

She inhales deeply and stares out at the water for the thousandth time since we sat down.

“Well?” It’s my turn to press.

She turns back my way and holds out her hand for me to shake on it. “Deal.”

I take her hand as the waitress comes over, apologizing for taking so long to get to us.

As simple as the bet sounds, I’m going to have to do some research if I want to be eating a steak at Terra and Mare across the table from her.

We end up ordering crab legs, hushpuppies, potatoes, and beer. I’m enjoying the Beatles cover band, but I’m not sure about Savannah. If I can pull just one laugh out of her tonight, I’ll call it a success.

“I hear you’re moving in with Juno.” I spin my beer bottle in my hands.

“I was, but I think I’ll stay with you a little longer if that’s okay.” She picks at the label on her bottle.

Does she really not know how much I love having her in my space? I mean, it’s borderline torture, but I’d rather that than go weeks without seeing her.

“It’s fine. You’re welcome as long as you need.”

“Thanks.”

I sip my beer. “Kingston back in town?”

A smile creases her lips, but it’s a slow creeping smile that pulls out my own because I can tell she’s amused by something. “No.”

“What then?”

She bites her lip, clearly trying to push back her enjoyment. “Grandma Dori moved in. She says she has termites, which we all know is a lie, but who’s going to call her out on it?”

I lean back in the booth. Grandma Dori is a meddler extraordinaire, but I’m not going to argue if it grants me a little more time with Savannah.

“She amazes me.” I take a pull from my beer.

“Amazes?” Savannah relaxes, her eyes on me and not the beer bottle or the water anymore. “How so?”

“Just her attitude of ‘I do what I want and to hell with you.’ She doesn’t mean it to be a bad thing. She honestly thinks she’s doing a good thing.”

She nods. “I know. There’s no way I’d be where I am if not for her. You’d never imagine the patience she had with me when I first started at Bailey Timber. I think she’s trying the same thing with Phoenix, but Phoenix doesn’t want to work in business.”

“What do you think you would’ve done if not for Bailey Timber?” I’ve wondered that since the announcement of her departure from college to run the family business.

Her mouth twists, and I hate that nothing immediately falls off her tongue. “Honestly, I’m not sure I even knew at the time. I was only in my sophomore year of college. Though my major was business, I hadn’t a clue what I was going to do in life. I’m not a creative person at all. Maybe I always knew I’d work for my dad.”

“You just got there a little faster then?”

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