Page 76 of Trusting Liam (Taking Chances 2)

“My girl, mine, girlfriend . . . whatever you prefer, as long as it’s clear that you are mine.”

“All of the above?” I offered.

With a nod, he agreed, “All of the above, then. Let’s get ready and go.”

THIRTY MINUTES LATER, we were walking up to his parents’ door. I was wearing my clothes from the night before. I had no makeup on because it looked better than the half-smeared-off look I’d been sporting when Liam woke me up. And I was wearing Liam’s deodorant. I. Felt. Fabulous.

“You do realize this is my first Sunday with your family, and I look like I spent the night in your bed.”

“You did.”

I smacked Liam’s stomach as we continued walking. “Yeah, but they don’t need to know that.” I groaned and rubbed at my eyes. “Oh well, they probably already figured it out when you told them I was coming.”

Liam glanced at me with a confused look. “I didn’t tell them you were coming.”

“Fuck this, I’m not going.” I turned to go back to his car, but he caught me around the waist and started carrying me toward the door. Ass first. My hips were against his forearm, my arms and head were hanging down next to his butt, and the tips of my toes were just barely scraping along the cement so it was giving me a tease of being able to regain control if I could just put my feet down. I looked like a damn rag doll.

“Put me down!” I hissed when he rang the doorbell.

“Hell no. If I do, you’ll leave.”

“Since when do you ring—” Brandon’s deep voice cut off as he started laughing. “Never mind. Understood.”

“I’m starving,” Liam mumbled as he walked us inside.

“Well, you came to the right place,” Brandon said, his tone still light with the hint of laughter. “Is she misbehaving again?” he asked his son.

“I hate you both,” I grumbled, but the defeat was clear in my tone. I knew this was about to be the worst day. Never mind that I looked like I’d been fucking their son all night, I was also being dragged into the house like some kind of object.

“I’m so glad—” A woman, who I was almost positive was Liam’s mom by the sound of her voice, began saying, but cut off as she started laughing just like Brandon had done.

Within seconds there were numerous other people laughing too.

Fan-fucking-tastic.

“Well then, back to what I was saying. I am glad you showed up today, and I love that you came with him, Kennedy!”

“It wasn’t voluntarily!” I called out.

“I can see that.” Liam’s mom sighed, and I listened to her light footfalls as she approached us. From the way Liam bent, I assumed she was giving him a hug, but then I heard a smack and Liam cringed. “Put the poor girl down! Gently! Gently put her down.”

As soon as I was on my feet, I straightened and blew out a frustrated breath, then turned to see everyone watching me with amused expressions. “Hi,” I said awkwardly. But no one said anything back; they just kept smiling as they looked between Liam and me. “Um . . . huh. So . . . the pancakes smell good.”

“So you’re in love with this loser, huh?” Liam’s aunt Bree asked.

A startled laugh bubbled past my lips, and my eyes darted over to Kristi and then Brandon, who were both smiling patiently, and I could only assume from their looks that they’d told the rest of the family about my decision. “Uh yeah. Yeah, I am.”

“And the ex?”

“Bree,” everyone said at once, and gave her a look.

Konrad, her husband, pulled her back and put a hand over her mouth as he shrugged. “Don’t listen to her.”

There were mumbled words coming from Bree, but all I could catch were the words dog bed when Konrad dropped his hand.

“Don’t you shush me,” she bit out at him, then looked back at me. “Well, I still want to know.”

I looked at Liam’s parents and sister, and both sets of his aunts and uncles, and tried to find the right words. I knew Liam was close with his family, so I wouldn’t have doubted that they all knew what had been going on between us over the past month. But he’d also told me about last weekend and the huge blowup over Thanksgiving and me on our way over here, so I felt like I owed them some explanation. I just couldn’t figure out how much of an explanation I wanted to give them—not to mention that this was an incredibly awkward situation.

---