Page 213 of Waiting For A Girl Like You
I win.
It might have been evil, but those two little words made Liam smile even now, and while he admired many things about his friend, Samuel’s pettiness was his favorite trait in the man.
“The bastard won’t care about Zanmi, but when he finds out it was Sinclair behind their deaths and that Sinclair had been the one to end Taylor’s life, he’ll lose his mind,” Samuel said. “The piece of shit will know she suffered.”
“And you’re good with that? Taylor worked for you for years, Samuel. The betrayal—”
“I’m good with it,” Samuel cut him off. “Sinclair was pressed for time. I get it, but what he gave her was an easy death, in my opinion.”
“An easy death? Sinclair put a bomb in her mouth and taped it shut. Have you ever seen what phosphorus does to human flesh?” Liam raised an eyebrow when Samuel nodded. “You know, I think you might be getting vicious in your old age.”
“Fuck you. I’m not old.” Samuel lifted his leg out of the water and tried to knock Liam off his board with the flat of his foot. “And you’re only a few years younger than me.”
Keeping his balance, Liam waved at Jamison when she came out of the back door of their townhouse. Already in her bathing suit, she looked good enough to eat, and he thought he might do just that once he finished talking to Samuel.
A few houses down, Evie appeared on the rear pool patio of their home, settling into one of the loungers to nurse Albie. Outright sighing, Samuel watched his wife. “God, don’t let me fuck this up.”
As Samuel’s closest friend, Liam figured it was only fair that he told him the truth. “You probably will.”
Peeling off the top half of his own wetsuit, Samuel scooped up some cool water to drop on his overheated body. “Stop me if I do, and I’ll do the same for you. Marriage and kids—”
“Gilbert told Jamison kids weren’t possible.”
Liam let those words sit between them, the low roll of waves causing their boards to rise and fall.
“Do you believe him?”
“Yes.”
“Does Jamison?”
“Yes.”
Samuel finally took his eyes off his wife. “And how is she processing it?”
They had spent these past few days hiding away at the townhouse, doing what honeymooners do. After the new year, Liam thought he would take her back to Paris for a real honeymoon, or maybe somewhere tropical, so she could wear that thong bathing suit for him again.
But between the sex and the laughter were the tears. They tackled the tough stuff, discussing a future that would have a piece missing in it. It was true that having kids scared him, but he still wanted them. Lots of them, and with her. Jamison would make a fantastic mother, giving their children adventures and fun filled days. On the other hand, he was aware he would make only an okay-ish dad. The type who would freak out if a kid sneezed wrong or burped too loudly after eating.
They would be loved, though. Any child who came into their lives with either too much gas or anything else thrown into the mix would have been given an insurmountable amount of love.
“She’s taking it one day at a time, but I don’t think it’s settled into her brain completely yet.” It hadn’t settled into his brain either if he was honest. Gilbert might have been a sick pervert, but he was an expert in his field and had no reason to lie to them. “We discussed other avenues to eventually take.”
“Blood doesn’t make a family, Cohen.”
Liam met the gaze of the man who had become a brother to him. “So I’ve learned.”
“You know we’ve got your back, whatever you two decide.”
He knew the Fairweathers would support them, as would his parents. Will and Bernie Cohen as grandparents would be an awesome thing to see.
“And listen, while it’s just you and me out here, I want to say one thing.” The water’s surface had gone nearly flat, and Samuel placed his hands behind him to lean back on the board. “Thank you for being willing to risk it all for what I wanted. Toby isn’t your fight, and I should have ended him in the graveyard.”
“Yeah, maybe follow through next time.”
“Kiss my ass.” Samuel nodded at Jamison, who was stretching out on a lounger. “And thanks for taking on that, even after everything. I know she put you through hell there for a few months, and yet you never gave up on her.”
That made Liam laugh. “Imagine what you would do if Evie pushed you away? Sit down and say no thanks the second she opened herself back up to you?”
