Page 3 of Orlando
“Which is why I got a cat and not something that needed more attention.Parsley and I spend plenty of time together when I get home in the evening.Don’t worry.”
That wasn’t exactly true.Usually, when Liam came home in the evening, he barely had time to eat, shower, and fall into bed.Sometimes, he thought his life was too busy, but what was he supposed to give up?He needed his job to pay rent and feed himself, and he loved the community garden too much to want to stop going.The few hours he spent there every day were what put a smile on his face and made the rest of the week easier to deal with.
“I still think you could make gardening a full-time job.”
Liam sighed as he continued rolling the hose.He and his mother had talked about this many times.While he would’ve loved to make gardening his full-time job, he didn’t see how he could make money from it.His parents had offered to have him move back in with them until he got a business off the ground, but he didn’t want to do that.He loved them, but he needed his own space, and he had it.
His job in construction was reliable.Opening his own gardening business wouldn’t be, especially not in the beginning.Unfortunately, that meant that he was stuck with construction, but it could be worse.At least he had a job.
His mother sighed.“I’m just afraid that you’re overworking yourself.You work almost every day, Liam.That’s not good for you.”
“Gardening isn’t work.”
“Maybe not, but you spend so much time doing it that it might as well be.You need some rest and relaxation.When was the last time you went on a date?”
Liam put down the hose and straightened his back.His spine cracked, making him grimace.“So that’s what you were going for,” he told his mother.
“I wasn’t going for anything.”
“I don’t need to date to have a nice life.”
“No one said you had to date, but don’t you want to find love?”
Right now, Liam wasn’t sure where he’d fit love into his life, even if it found him.He didn’t have enough time in the day to meet someone, date them, and give both of them the time to fall in love.It would be great if he could end up being someone’s mate because that would take some of the unknown out of the equation, but he wasn’t holding his breath.What would be the odds?
Besides, where would Liam meet his mate?He knew everyone who came around the community center.He worked in different places, but the only people he had regular contact with were the people he worked with, not whoever they worked for.He might bump into his mate at the grocery store, he supposed, but again, what were the odds?
He’d made his peace with being alone, and that was fine, even though some days, he yearned for more.He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been on a date, but he was sure it had been years since he’d last kissed someone.It had been just as long since he’d had sex with anyone, but that didn’t bother him as much.He missed the intimacy and feeling loved more than he missed sex.
He wasn’t planning on telling his mother any of that.She’d start cooing over him and trying to find him dates, and that was the last thing he wanted.If he changed his mind about dating, he’d take things into his own hands.In the meantime, he might not be completely happy, but he was content, which was more than a lot of people could say.
“Maybe I should start dating Martha,” he teased.
“Well, you could do worse.”
Liam barked out a laugh.Martha was one of the other gardeners who frequented the community garden.She was in her eighties and often needed help, which Liam was happy to provide, even though she hated to ask.“I suppose I could.Look, I have to go.”
“You just don’t want to listen to me worry about you.”
“Well, I can’t say it’s nice, even though I know you do it because you care.”
She sighed.“Exactly.Your father and I both do and want you to be happy.I know you keep telling yourself that you are, but I’m your mother.I know you, and I know this isn’t happiness.”
“I guess I’ll have to try harder, then.”
His mother tsked but didn’t say anything.Liam was relieved.
No one was supposed to be happy all the time.Hell, he wasn’t sure anyone was ever truly happy.Maybe millionaires.They didn’t have to worry about money, so they could focus on what made them happy, but something told Liam that having so much money also brought problems.
It wasn’t a problem he would ever know.He had a stable job, but it was getting harder to pay rent and everything else with his paycheck.Maybe his mother’s idea about opening his own gardening business wasn’t a bad one, but he should do it along with continuing to work in construction.It would be even more work, but what else did he have to do?As his mother had pointed out, he didn’t have anything else.He certainly didn’t have a boyfriend.He had his job, his plants, and his cat.That was all he needed.
Or at least, that was what he told himself as he and his mother hung up.He pushed his phone into his jeans pocket and glanced around the community garden.As always on Saturdays, it was crowded, but it was one of the reasons Liam loved it.He didn’t have a lot of people in his life, but he never felt alone here.
Actually, now that he thought about it, he only had his family, which was a little sad.All of his friends had drifted away in the past few years, mostly because he didn’t have time for them.That was probably one of the reasons his mother was so worried.Maybe heshouldmake an effort to find more friends.
He just wasn’t sure how he was supposed to do that.
He shook his head and pushed away a strand of hair that had fallen on his forehead.The temperatures were getting cooler, which unfortunately meant he didn’t have a lot of time left.He still gardened in the winter, but it wasn’t the same.It also didn’t occupy as much time as it did in the summer, so maybe he should find a winter hobby.His mother would probably cry from happiness if he told her he’d joined a book club or something.
