Page 69 of Something Forever

“I wasn’t?—”

“Don’t lie. Just don’t box me out. It’ll be hard enough when I’m on the road with Shane. Then you’ll really miss me.”

I wipe at my eyes. “Stop. I actually will.”

“I know,” she says, pulling me tighter against her.

By the time I get home, I’m exhausted and half-drunk. The wine has gone to my head as I stumble up the stairs and let myself into the apartment. I’d foolishly assumed that Liam wouldn’t be home because it’s a Thursday night, and he tends to be at work until the early hours of the morning.

Not tonight.

Tonight, he’s standing in the kitchen, shirtless.

I try to keep my expression neutral as I kick my shoes off and toss my keys onto the counter, mumbling something close to a hello.

“Y’alright?” Liam asks, leaning against fridge with a glass of water in his giant hands.

Hands that have touched every part of me.

“Yep. How are you?”

“Good, yeah.”

Great. So it’s going to be awkward between us until the end of time.

“Listen, about my dad coming to visit… ”

I’d almost forgotten about that. I felt too bad to turn him down, but I don’t do very well with parents. I’ve never met my dad, and my mom comes around once a year if I’m lucky, so I don’t have much of a frame of reference for how to behave.

With a jolt, I realize Liam is still talking.

“I figure I’ll move my stuff into your room tomorrow and try to make mine look like a guest bedroom.”

“What?” I squeak.

“My stuff. Into your room. Since my dad is staying in my room?”

“Wait, you told him?”

“Yes. I just told you that?—”

“You shouldn’t have told him about us.” I swallow. “It’s just overcomplicating things.”

He frowns, the first frown I’ve seen in a while. “Yeah, because us getting married to fulfill your highly specific inheritance clause isn’t complicated at all,” he deadpans. “It’ll be fine. It’ll be just like Vegas.”

I don’t want to argue with him, and I really don’t want to think about Vegas lest I spiral even more, so I nod. “Alright. I’ll be around tomorrow if you need help moving your stuff.”

“Okay,” he says quietly. “Thanks.”

Before I can say anything else, he slips out of the kitchen and down the hallway towards his room. I realize I left a pile of dishes in the sink from breakfast this morning, so I clean up a bit and start washing them. After a few minutes, Liam comes back into the room and opens the fridge, pulling a beer out.

“You want a La Croix?” he asks.

“Sure, thanks.”

“Don’t know how you drink that stuff. Tastes like fizzy piss.”

I snort and roll my eyes, holding my hand out for the can. He hands me a lime-flavored one and his gaze falls to my hand with a scowl.

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