Page 91 of Unfinished

“Take the hint and stop fucking fighting for me then.”

“No, that is the one thing I will never stop doing. We’ve been through hell. I made mistakes and I'll spend the rest of my life trying to make it up to you. Now it’s time for you to listen to my reasoning, forgive me, and come back to me.”

“I don’t have to do shit, I’m not under any obligation to you.”

“I needed to keep you safe!”

“And I needed honesty!”

“I couldn’t tell you because your father asked me to keep it from you!” He yelled and I blinked.

“What do you mean my father asked you? Keep me from what?”

“Your father was doing work for my family in Pittsburgh. He still is, and there were major threats coming from all around us. Until we got it under control, we needed to keep you safe. I wanted to tell you but your father convinced me that it would be better if you were kept in the dark and had men watching out for you.”

“Why is my father working for your family?”

“Because he always had and after what my mother did, my uncle wanted to make sure that your father would be okay and taken care of. He worked for my family's company out in California. His boss had no idea that my mother wasn’t allowed to request anything, so when she told him to fire your dad, he did. My uncle fixed that mistake and now your dad manages the Pittsburgh projects.”

“Holy shit,” I breathed.

“Yeah, I had hoped your dad would have come clean about it all when the threat passed years ago and you would have reached out, but he didn’t come clean, did he?” Liam asked and I sighed. My dad tried to come clean often and I always shot those conversations down because they were about Liam.

“He tried, the moment he said your name I told him I didn’t want to hear anything,” I confessed, and Liam looked at me with a bit of sadness.

“Everything I did was to protect you so you could chase your dreams and accomplish everything you did. And it was you who did it,” Liam said, and I closed my eyes and tipped my head down. He was chasing a ghost. Hardening my expression, I looked up at Liam.

“Liam, I’m not the same woman you knew and I seriously doubt you’d appreciate exactly what I’m capable of now.” I turned and shoved the door open. I left Declan’s office and headed back to my office, where I grabbed my coat and bag and left to finish up the work day at home.

I probably shouldn’t have worn the red dress. It was sleeveless but the thick straps made an X over the upper back, leaving the rest of my back exposed to the top of my ass. The front dipped down in a scoop but it was lower so my cleavage was on full display. The dress at least came down to mid thigh but it hugged my curves and I was wearing black pumps with the red b.

I thought Derek would think the black dress meant I was attending our funeral once I broke the news to him that this wasn’t going to work. So here I was in a red dress and it didn’t feel appropriate for a break-up. Of course, I shouldn’t be all that concerned about what my stalker thought about my outfit.

Liam showed up with his cousins shortly after we arrived and if this place didn’t require reservations well in advance I’d swear he was following me. I tried to ignore them. Derek, thankfully, hadn't seen them or he’d be pissed. Liam immediately picked me out in the crowded restaurant, like I had a beacon on me, his eyes meeting mine but his expression almost unreadable when he glanced at Derek.

Our dinner had arrived and Derek was talking about his work. I could break up with him out of boredom for this conversation alone. How had I listened to this for six months? I had a hard time concentrating on what he was saying because my mind was so consumed with the impending conversation. I worried about how he would react to the break-up. Was he going to be angry? Did he know this was coming? Was he going to start stalking me again? Was he going to think it was because of Liam?

“I want to buy a house with you,” Derek said, and I choked on the wine I just took a sip of.

“What?” I heard him. The word came out in shock more than anything else.

“I think we should buy a house together. I was thinking about Jersey, it’s cheaper.”

“No.”

“No to Jersey or no to buying a house?”

“Both.” I sighed, “Derek, I don’t know how to say this.”

Derek sat back in his booth, “You’re breaking up with me?”

“Derek, I don’t think we want the same things out of life.”

“Is this because of Liam?”

“Actually, partly,” Derek went wide-eyed at the admission, “You showed up to my client’s place of business to harass him.”

“I don’t know what he told you but I know —”

---