Page 51 of Wants and Needs
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I whisper the question.
He shrugs. “No one outside the industry really knows. I’m credited with an alias in all those songs.”
“Not even...” I trail off, feeling like my friends don’t really deserve to know this. Yes, I’m being petty, I know that.
“No, he doesn’t know.”
“How is that possible?” I press, my voice slightly higher this time. They just said he helped them with their first album which came out almost twenty years ago... when they were all teenagers.
God, they’re all such overachievers.
It’s as annoying as it is inspiring, but I regress. If he’s been doing it for that long, then he was for sure doing it while he was in a relationship with the grave robber.
“My parents told me it might be best to not tell anyone,” he says, like it’s that simple.
Something about that has my heart racing.
Maybe it’s the fact that even all those years with the Dick didn’t give Liam enough trust in him to be completely honest.
Okay, maybe it doesn’t bother me. It’s actually a good thing, unless...
“Is that why you didn’t tell me before?” I nod my head in the general direction of the living room.
“Honestly, it didn’t even occur to me because my life is mostly filled with ESoothe. I doubted this would come up, but now I know it will.”
“So you knew they were coming?” I nod at my friends.
“I did, but I didn’t—” He stops himself and looks pained. “I didn’t connect the dots, that you would see them or talk to them. I never thought about it, sorry.”
I can barely hear that last word with how low he whispers, and I feel like an arse.
“It’s okay,” I assure him, and pat his hand on top of the table before I can stop myself.
I even squeeze it.
“Soooooo,” Hawk draws out the word in his patented little shit voice. “What’s going on withyou guys?”
I don’t turn away from Liam. I wish I didn’t have to ask out loud, but we’re not at the mind-reading stage of our friendship yet.
“Is it okay if I tell them?” I ask quietly.
“Yes.” He nods once, and I pull my hand back, straighten in my seat and look at them all with their stupid-arse faces.
They get stupider the more I talk, and by the end I’m half laughing at them while I finish the story.
“So, we’re going to this ball thing on Monday to show that arsehole that Liam’s better off without him. Liam’s gonna get his deal done, and then he can put the grave robber behind him for good.”
Wolf bursts out laughing.
“Grave robber,” he repeats between chuckles. “That’s priceless.”
“It’s what I’ve been calling him in my head since yesterday,” I admit.
“I’m going to call Aunt Lyla. I bet she can get us some tickets to that thing,” Hawk declares and stands as he gets out his phone from his hoodie.
“Yes,” CJ speaks again. “We’ll be there to support you, Liam.”
“And help sell the story that Carter has been your boyfriend for two years,” Derek adds drily.
