Page 20 of Lost in You (The Monroes 3)

She closed the space between them and kissed his cheek. “Thanks.”

He hugged her good night and left out the patio door, the motion lights instantly kicking on and lighting his path down the drive toward the back of the garage where his apartment was. The thousand-square-foot add-on wasn’t too large or too small. The space was perfect for him and Macy figured he was finally glad to have his own space. At least, that’s what she kept telling herself. For the first time in forever, he was living on his own. He’d married her mother right out of high school, then when she’d passed, Macy had moved back into the hardware store apartment, so he’d never truly been alone.

This whole new chapter in their lives would take some getting used to, but this was for the best. She needed space and he did, too. Granted she’d never brought a man back to her house because this was her space and nobody had impressed her enough to deserve to come here.

She’d actually only been on a handful of dates since Liam came back. Suddenly, the appeal just wasn’t there. But she needed to figure something out. Either she needed to be bold and make a move, forcing his hand, or she needed to move on before he completely turned her world inside out.

A sliver of giddiness spread through her as she realized that she was quite possibly turning him inside out, too. He wouldn’t be so cranky, yet caring, and confess his need to kiss her if she wasn’t getting under his skin. More than once she’d seen him barely hanging on to his control. What she wouldn’t give to have him snap and just tell her what he truly wanted.

Macy crossed back to where her phone lay on her limestone countertop. She loved every aspect of her new home, loved even more that a friend had helped design and build it. Zach was definitely the only person she would’ve considered for the job.

Leaving her phone to charge, she thumbed through her texts. One was from a guy asking her out, and the other was from Sophie, wondering if Macy wanted to get together for girls’ night one day next week.

Only one of those messages received a yes . . . which just proved how wrapped up with Liam she was. Really, it was absurd to allow her mind to focus on one man for this amount of time. This wasn’t like her, but she couldn’t help but wonder. There was so much energy surrounding them whenever they were together.

She’d always found him to be intriguing in high school, in that quiet, mysterious way. Now more than ever she wanted to dig deeper, to find out what made him tick. Macy wasn’t one to throw herself at a man, and being flirty didn’t count. All of that was superficial. She refused to be that clinging, I-need-attention girl, too. What she wanted from Liam was so much more. She wanted into his world for reasons she wasn’t ready to explain even to herself.

With a sigh, Macy pushed away from the counter and turned. Her gaze landed on the calendar hanging on the side of her refrigerator. In bold, red letters she’d penned in her father’s birthday. She should do something for him. Going out to dinner wasn’t new for them, considering she couldn’t boil water without setting off her smoke alarm. Besides, just taking him out to dinner wasn’t special enough for a sixtieth birthday.

The idea hit her so hard, so fast, she wanted to squeal and jump up and down. A surprise party. That was so the answer. Phil Hayward was such a loved man in the community of Haven. He and their store were staples in the center of town. People would no doubt love to come and celebrate. But she was limited on planning time. She had no idea where to have the party, but worse yet, she had no idea what to serve. Store-bought cake and chips with dip were not options.

That initial idea snowballed into another because she knew someone who did cook. He was phenomenal, actually. But she didn’t want to use this party as a way to get closer to him. That would be seriously pathetic, and the surprise wasn’t about her trying to get Liam to face whatever feelings he may or may not have. She legitimately wanted to throw her dad an amazing celebration.... She just needed a little help.

One glance to the clock and she figured now would be as good a time as any to get this ball rolling. Excitement bubbled within her. She couldn’t wait to plan this party and see her dad’s face when he realized how many people wanted to share his special day.

Macy would definitely have to enlist the help of Sophie, who was a whiz at planning things. In addition to being a real estate agent, the woman was a meticulous organizer. Plus, she’d been diligent in getting the word out about Bella Vous, so spreading the word around town about a party shouldn’t be a problem. Macy just needed everyone to keep it under wraps because she wanted nothing more than to catch her father off guard and surprise him.

But her entire plan all started with catching another man off guard.

* * *

Was Liam ignoring her? His black SUV was parked behind the store, but she’d knocked for a while now. Maybe she shouldn’t assume she was welcome. He’d tried to keep his distance and maybe he didn’t want to associate with her any more than necessary.

Well, too damn bad. Macy had a party to plan and a father to surprise. Her fist pounded once again, until the door flew open and—

Oh. My. Word. Whatever she’d come here for had completely slipped her mind because right now Liam Monroe stood in his doorway wearing black running shorts. Only black running shorts. Earbuds dangling around his neck, hands wrapped in tape, and a sexy amount of sweat all over that bare, broad chest completed that mouthwatering view. That ink across his pec and up to his shoulder glistened, rendering her speechless. Seriously, when someone was built like this, shouldn’t spectators take the time to appreciate the entire package?

Her eyes traveled with the bead of sweat that trickled from the side of his neck, down his collarbone, and directly over perfectly toned muscles.

His heavy breathing only led to thoughts she shouldn’t be having, not that scolding herself changed anything. The images were still there. Sweat never looked so good on a man.

“Macy?”

She shifted her gaze up to his. He swiped his forehead with his forearm and tipped his head slightly to offer the smooth side of his face.

“I didn’t mean to interrupt,” she told him, but she wasn’t about to apologize. Mercy sakes, she wasn’t one bit sorry she’d persisted in getting him to open the door. This sight alone would fuel her dreams for weeks, months.

“I’m done now.”

Which would explain why he hadn’t answered the door before. Clearly he’d been working out with his punching bag, if the tape on his knuckles was any indicator, and the earbuds had been in place. Oh, yeah. This was definitely worth the wait of knocking for several minutes.

“I just needed to borrow some recipe cards or cookbooks. Whatever you have that you can loan me for a few days.”

Liam’s brows drew together, his fingers wrapped around the edge of the door as he shifted his stance. “Recipe cards?”

Why was he looking at her like that was an absurd request? He was a chef, wasn’t he? Although right now he looked like he could do more heating up in the bedroom than the kitchen.

Okay, that was a cheesy thought, but her brain was malfunctioning at the moment due to the half-naked hottie before her.

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