Page 34 of Forever Mine

“Why so sad then? I mean seriously. I know he’s, well, he’s Liam, but he’s not the same annoying brother we grew up with. He’s actually pretty cool. He has a great job that’s he’s really good at. And he clearly loves you and Oscar.”

I snorted. “Lily, It’s been three days since I ran into him. You can’t fall in love in three days.”

“Girl, you are blind then, and clearly you have some missing memories, ?cause that boy has been in love with you his whole life.”

I laughed, and it felt good. “What are you talking about?”

“Don’t give me that, like you never knew. Why do you think he hung around us so much at camp all those years? I promise it wasn’t because of me.”

I was laughing as we filled our plates and joined the guys at the table.

“It’s good to see you laugh. What’s so funny?” Liam asked.

I blushed, not wanting to tell him how outrageous his sister was being.

“I like it when Mommy laughs,” Oscar confessed and I suddenly felt guilty knowing how little he’d seen it in his lifetime. “What’s so funny, Mommy?” No way was I sharing that with him either.

“She had no clue you spent half your life crushing on her, Liam,” Lily said, to my horror.

He just laughed and took a bite of food, smiling but not denying it. I wanted so badly to ask him if it was true, but I couldn’t. It didn’t stop Oscar from asking though.

“Did you like Mommy when you were my age?”

“Very much,” he said, and he winked at me. My heart fluttered erratically as Oscar giggled.

I couldn’t seem to stop looking at Liam throughout breakfast, and the worst part was, he knew it too. Much too soon he and Oscar said goodbye and left for some adventure, and I had the entire day with my oldest and dearest friend. I knew it was going to be equal parts wonderful and hellish.

Sure enough, the second they were gone, Lily descended on me. “Okay, we need a place to talk. I know an old fort on the other side of the Golden Gate we could go to.”

I looked at her with sheer horror. “Any place but there!” I said much too quickly.

“Ah, so that’s the place you chose to shred my brother’s heart then.” It was just an statement, no judgment, but it made me feel so guilty. “Relax, I just want to catch up and talk. Have a little fun with an old friend. I promise not to grill you too much on all that or him.”

I sighed in relief. “Okay, so what do you want to do then?”

“First up, shopping! I’m giving you a makeover.”

“What? I don’t need a makeover, Lily.”

“Girl, you are twenty-four years old, and you dress like….a mom.”

I laughed. “I am a mom, so that’s not a bad thing.”

“But you’re still young too, just humor me, I promise, nothing too flashy, I can do conservative. Elise makes me every day for work.”

I looked over at Lily, wearing six in heels with her tight skinny jeans and crop top, sporting pink highlights streaking her blonde hair, and I could not even imagine what her idea of conservative was.

“Okay,” I said hesitantly, unsure what I’d just gotten myself into.

She drove us to a shopping area I’d never have found and we spent hours going from store to store. To my surprise, the girl had wonderful taste in clothes. She did convince me skinny jeans were the way to go. I had never even tried on something so tight, but I had to admit, they were really comfortable and I was in love quickly. Even though we were nearing the end of summer, in California it was going to remain hot for quite a while longer, so we also looked at summer clothing, too.

In the end I had a whole new wardrobe with several shirts and a few pairs of shorts that were arguably far too short for me, showing off way too much leg, but Lily was quite convincing that they were too perfect to turn down. I did say no to every pair of shoes she attempted to get me to buy. Sorry, but her cute heels were just not practical for me trying to keep up with a seven-year-old, but we did agree on a pair of cute flats that I fell in love with and a new pair of Chucks.

She also convinced me to try on some lingerie. I had never even looked at such things. My plain white cotton panties and sports bras had always been practical and sufficient. I had never had a girlfriend to discuss such things with and it was definitely a new, educational experience shopping with Lily. The new bras fit great and didn’t make me look so flat chested. I loved them. I felt taller and more confident in them. Who knew something so simple could affect me so much? I didn’t want to admit it, but the lacy sets I had picked out also made me feel pretty and a little sexy. It was like opening up a whole new side of life, one I didn’t like to think much about.

As we headed back to the hotel, I was exhausted, but I also couldn’t remember the last time I’d had so much fun. I should have known Lily wasn’t through with me. When she said makeover, she meant it. As if the clothes weren’t enough, as I let us into my room and dropped off the bags, she informed me she had booked us at the spa.

I usually went to a local chain haircut place where Oscar and I could both get cuts for twenty-five dollars or less when they had sales. I almost had a heart attack at the prices when I asked. I worked part-time at a local pizza place in the evenings, so I could be home with Oscar. Annie and Jacob afforded most of our life and I was grateful to them for it, but also felt like some things I needed to provide myself and insisted on working, even if only a few hours while they were home to watch him.

---