Page 35 of When It Rains He Pours

Chapter Seven

Liam

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Standing outside, Ileaned against the building and waited. Glory was inside her shop, painting the walls to cover up all the graffiti. She looked like she was almost done, putting the cover on a can and sticking it into the closet.

She had been the only thing on my mind.

I had never felt so completely powerless before. She had the biggest hazel eyes I had ever seen, littered in gold and bronze sparkles. Her hair was a striking shade of brown, almost the color of copper.

And her body. . . fuck that body of hers was enough to drive any man crazy. She had curves on top curves. Her ass jiggled in the cutest way when she was walking, her legs were lean and strong, wrapping my waist perfectly.

She hadn't noticed me in the window, so I decided to just let her finish up before I tried to talk to her. I felt bad for being so cold to her, I was an asshole and she didn't deserve that.

I just wanted her to see what I could. I wanted her to imagine the people that could fill up her shop if they had to walk by it every night to get home, the new eyes for her work, the new money that could flood through her door.

When she shot it down, making it sound like it was nothing more than a flashy idea, it pissed me off. If there was one thing I knew, it was people and how they worked, it was business and the growth new developments could bring.

And then I realized that as much as she needed the money, it didn't mean everything in her eyes. There was something in her voice, a softness that made me understand she had more on her plate than what I was seeing.

Stepping out onto the sidewalk, Glory was facing the door to lock it up. She still hadn't noticed me standing a few feet away with my hands tucked in my pockets.

“Hey, it looks good in there.”

Jumping, she threw her hand to her chest and sighed loudly. “Holy shit, you scared me. Don't do that, don't sneak up on me like that.”

“Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you.”

“Startle me? You know what happened, you didn't just startle me, you scared the shit out of me. You're lucky I didn't kick you in the balls right off the bat.” Shaking her head, she rechecked the door to make sure it was locked, then turned to face me, crossing her arms protectively. “What are you doing here?”

Her tone was so flat, slicing a small piece of my heart off. Cringing to myself, I knew what she was thinking, what she was feeling, what she thought about me.. .

I'm an asshole.

“I came to see if you needed help, but you were basically done, so. . .” Arching her brows, she waited for me to continue. “I waited out here.”

“Right, okay.” Adjusting the bags on her arms, she started to walk past me. “I haven't heard from you in three days.”

Dragging my hand through my hair, I held the back of my neck. “I know, I'm sorry. I just, I had to figure some shit out.”

Glory kept walking, her eyes set forward. She didn't respond, simply brushing by me with her bag, her feet hitting the pavement hard.

Standing still, I wasn't sure what I was waiting for. Was I waiting for an invitation to walk at her side? Was I waiting for her to give me a look that told me it was alright to follow her?

I didn't have a fucking clue what was going through her head. But the longer I stood there, the further away from me she was getting.

“Hey, wait!” I called out, jogging up beside her. “Let me make it up to you, let me take you out for dinner.”

“No, I don't think so.” Shimmying her bag higher up her shoulder, she shook her head, her lips pursed tight.

She still wouldn't look at me, refusing to let her eyes connect with mine.

Grabbing her forearm, I forced her to turn and face me. “Let's start over, how about that?” Trailing my fingertips up and down her arm, I titled my head a hair. “I was a big fucking jerk, I know. I want to make it up to you.”

“You're right, you were a big fucking jerk.” Her eyes drifted around my face, circling my lips, gliding over my cheeks and dropping to my chest. “Why should I let you? Give me one good reason that I shouldn't walk away and forget you instead.”

“Because you won't ever be able to forget me. You and I both know that.” Curling my arm around her back, I tugged her into my chest.

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