Page 33 of Lexi Lets Go

He took her hand once they were deeper in the woods.

"Oh yeah? talk to me about what?" She hoped she didn't sound as nervous as she suddenly was. She knew this was all too good to be true, but she at least hoped to have sex with him later tonight. If this was all a dream she didn't want to be woken up until then.

"I just wanted to tell you that my life is a mess. I don't want you to get caught up in all of it. If I lived a more normal life, I would want to date you and see where this goes, but the scrutiny I live under isn't something I'd wish on anyone. It has done a lot of damage in my past relationships and after the last time I promised myself I wouldn't date anyone seriously until I was ready to step out of the public eye. And I think that the space I’ve created among fans to be themselves is important--"

"Liam, that's all fine. I know this is just a weekend thing. And if you need it to be done now, I get it," she said, trying to keep her voice as even as possible.

He stopped and pulled her hand to stop her too. She turned and saw him. The look on his face was a new one she hadn't seen before. His sexy smirk, his friendly smile, even his sultry gaze were all faces she had seen before This was not one of those. It was more earnest than she had seen before. Her heart pounded in her chest seeing him like this. His star power was truly something, the magnetic draw she felt was palpable. She hoped he didn't want to finish this now.

"No, that is not what I want. I just wanted you to know that this is complicated. I wanted to be upfront with you. I didn't want to toy with your emotions or lead you on to thinking this could be something it can't be. My life just doesn't allow for it."

"I get it. I never expected more. Honestly, I never in a million years would have expected this. I would be lying if I said I wasn't drawn to you, but hey I guess that's why they pay you the big bucks, you have that star quality."

"Let's not talk about that right now. I’m just Liam with you. Liam Sheffield from Athens, Ohio. Not Liam James. Okay?"

He looked at her with eyes that sparkled, and it was all she could do to not kiss him, but they needed to get this all sorted out before that.

"Okay, Liam Sheffield. You wanna see those falls?"

"Lead the way."

They made their way down the trail to a bench that overlooked the falls. They weren't the biggest waterfalls, but they were pretty. The sound was peaceful. Lexi had spent a lot of time here when she was little. Her mom always used to take her to the falls. They would have picnics and camp in the state park. For that reason, she didn't come to the falls very much anymore. They were bittersweet. They brought good memories, but also dug up the not so good ones and the thoughts of what could have been if things hadn't gone so wrong.

"This is so beautiful! I would love to get a --" he turned and looked at her and stopped. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Lexi said, trying to regain her composure.

"It is clearly not nothing, I've never seen this face before, you look like you’re about to cry." Stepping closer to her he rubbed her arm.

"You've known me for two days. You clearly hold infinite knowledge of the faces I make," she bit back at him. Sarcasm… defense mechanism best served ice cold.

Hurt danced across his face as his hand fell. Fuck. This is what she did. She kept people from getting to that side of her. That hurt side that had to be strong for so long, but maybe, since this wasn't real, she could let her guard down. It would feel good to let go of her hard exterior and let someone in, and it would feel safe knowing the deadline exists. He was already leaving, that was not the same as abandonment. Maybe that made no sense, but in some weird way it did.

"I'm sorry. That was rude of me." It was now or never. Be brave or explain it away. The thought of telling him without the pressure of having him in her life if things got weird helped her choose. "It’s just hard sometimes to come here. I used to come here with my family. We would camp down at the camping ground and hike to the falls." He looked at her with eyes that held such a depth of kindness she felt comfortable to continue. "When I was fifteen my mom died in a car accident, it was sudden and flipped my life upside down. Seeing the falls reminds me of her... which is good... but it also makes me wonder what my life would have been like if she hadn't died."

He guided her to the bench, and they sat down. "I'm so sorry. Losing a parent that young must have been really hard." He raised his hand and wiped a tear from her cheek. It felt good to share, so she decided to go ahead and tell him the whole story. One she had only told to a handful of people before.

"Yeah, it was hard. I was fifteen and my brother was only twelve. After she died, my dad started drinking. He was never violent, but he was sad and stopped caring. He lost his job that year. That's when I started at the inn. I was fifteen and I started coming in and doing laundry after school. That is also when my dad started to disappear. At first it was just for a few overnights, and I would get my brother and myself ready and to school in the morning. Then he started staying away for a couple days. Then that turned into staying away for a couple weeks. And finally, after over a year of that I was just done. One night, when he came back after being gone for eight days, I told him he either needed to come back for good or stay gone. When I woke up the next day he was gone, and I never saw him again." She took a shuddering breath. It felt good to say all of that out loud. "I’ve never told that last part to anyone, not even my brother. I think I’ve always felt guilty. I was so angry. I never really wanted him to leave and never come back."

That last confession did it. She had never said those words out loud before. The tears started to fall in earnest, and she found herself swept away in big emotions, grief, shame, anger. They were all there threatening to overtake her. Liam's arms wrapped around her. He held her tight, and her face found the space in the crook of his neck and shoulder, and she cried. She couldn't stop it now if she tried. And he just let her cry. He sat there holding her, rubbing her back, anchoring her to reality.

Finally gaining some composure, she sat up and wiped her eyes. "I'm sorry. I don't know why I dumped all that on you."

"Hey," he said with a look filled with such kindness it almost broke her heart. "I'm glad you told me. I'm sorry those things happened to you. You were just a kid and that is a lot to deal with. You did the best you could."

Those words threatened to break her again. The words she had been dying to hear for so long, but no one ever said because she never told her story. Sharing herself and her story with someone like Liam felt good.

"Thank you," she managed to get out as she wiped the last few stray tears. "After all that happened, I was almost eighteen. Grace, who owns the inn, helped me to get custody of my brother. After I finished high school, I started working here full time. It has just been me and my brother for a long time. He got married a few months ago. I adore Poppy and I'm so glad that they found each other, it's just been a bit lonely since he's been gone."

They sat on the bench in silence after that, Liam's arm draped across her back, rubbing her arm. It felt so good to get that all out. After a few moments Liam leaned over and kissed her temple.

"You, Alexis Turner, are a remarkable person. I hope you know that."

She didn't have any words left in her, she just rested her head on his shoulder, and they sat on the bench looking out over the waterfall for a long time. She had no idea how much time had passed, but she was content. His fingers traced lightly up and down her arm and her hand on his knee. That connection between them pulled them together. They may just have this short weekend together, but she would make the most of it. As long as he still wanted her after the outpouring of emotion from a near stranger.

After a while her phone beeped in her pocket.

Josh- You better not back out! I will see you in an hour at our house. Is Liam coming?

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