CHAPTER TWENTY #2
“Are you okay?” I ask.
“Not really.” He puffs a breath, his messy dirty-blond locks fluttering with the wind, and my heart plummets to my stomach.
Liam’s emotions wreck me, partly because I know his rocky childhood shaped him far more than he’d like.
He’s more fragile than he lets on, but there isn’t anywhere to share that—not when he works so hard to be the quick-witted bad boy who isn’t fazed by anything.
This probably has nothing to do with me and everything to do with him feeling lonely or something.
I can’t imagine how hurtful it was to be shuffled from family to family, never feeling chosen.
His eyes land on me. “Sometimes, I wonder if things would’ve been different if I’d met you first.”
Fuck. Not expecting that.
My stomach knots, but he’s obviously dealing with something.
He’s the one who told me I belonged with Wells back in September, so none of this makes sense.
Wells would be furious that I’m not decking him, but I also know he loves Liam like a brother.
I’m not going to shut him out. We have to work through this so I have a positive spin to offer my husband.
“What do you mean?” Despite the stress, I try to keep my tone gentle.
“You and Wells are amazing together, but we could’ve been—”
“Don’t.” I twist so I’m facing him, mimicking his straddling pose, his hands resting inches from my knees. “Nothing good will come of this discussion, Liam. There’s someone out there who is perfect for you. You’re quite the catch , but this conversation will only complicate things.”
His face is uncharacteristically crestfallen, making my bones ache, and his voice is strained. “You can’t even humor me? Tell me if I would’ve had a chance.”
I steady my breathing and squeeze his hand before letting it drop back to the bench.
Bending my knees up to my chest, I clasp my hands over my shins—my body language screaming that I’m closed off while my words attempt to secure a life raft for the two of us.
“I’m not sure how much you know about the day I met Wells, but I saw Ty first. Wells might have known me, been watching me, had feelings for me, but my experience is that I literally ran into two beautiful men, and when I lifted my head, it was Ty who my gaze landed on.
I immediately thought he was gorgeous and had kind eyes, but it didn’t matter because Wells had this magnetic pull on me from the first second.
Once I turned my head, I couldn’t look away.
Ty and I share something special. I adore Ty, trust him.
He’s become a part of me. But it could have never been more because he’s not Wells. ”
I heave a deep breath, doing my best to keep my gaze trained on Liam while his hazels search me.
“If I had met you first, Liam, I would’ve known how incredible you were.
We might have hit it off because there was some chemistry between us.
And like Ty, you’re gorgeous and we absolutely share something special.
Surprisingly, your cockiness is endearing.
Even when you were a bit of a dick in the beginning, I liked you. ”
I laugh, and so does he. And when he tucks a flyaway hair behind my ear, I resist the urge to clobber him because I’m delivering a blow. “But no matter what I had thought when I met you, when Wells showed up, I’d have gravitated toward him. I’m his. I belong with him.”
“I’m not denying that. But like you said, you’re also Ty’s and Gage’s. And you are most definitely mine too, Ivy.” His eyes are so heavy, so regretful; it’s breaking me. “Surely, you see how you’ve changed all of us.”
My hand crawls up to my throat, the doughnuts mushing into a giant dough ball clambering its way back up. “Liam, I love you all. You know that. But I’m married to Wells. I’m—”
He grunts, rubbing a hand down the side of his face.
“I deserved a goddamn shot. I told him I wanted one, but I stepped aside.” He lights a cigarette, dragging on it aggressively and puffing a frustrated plume of smoke away from me.
“Do you have any idea what it’s been like watching you fall for him? ”
My patience and comfort with this are dwindling fast, my fingers diving into my hair.
“It’s too late. This isn’t how or when you shoot your shot.
Fuck. It’s ruining everything. Don’t you see that?
Wells is going to freak, maybe kill you, and if he doesn’t, he’ll ostracize you.
” I drop my face into my hands, unshed tears pricking my eyes.
“And I can’t bear the thought of that because I know we’re all you have.
And I need you, Liam. You might not have me the way you want, but you do have me.
Jesus , this is going to destroy us all. Why would you do this?”
The more I think about it, the more panic sets in. I’m up, pacing, nearly hyperventilating, and he’s watching me, remorseful.
“Fuck, Ivy. Goddammit,” he hisses, smashing his half-smoked bud into the grass. “You and the guys mean everything to me. I get it—”
“It’s a little late for that! God, you fucked everything up. Don’t talk to me right now. We have to get back.” I pluck the keys from the table and chuck them at him. “Just drive and let me figure out how to handle this. Shit. I kinda hate you for this.”
On the thirty-minute drive back, we don’t speak. Liam mutters a few apologies, but I don’t respond, too focused on how I can salvage this for all of us. These men mean everything to me; they’re my family. I won’t allow this to break us, and I won’t let them lose each other over me.
As we wait for the wrought iron driveway gate to open, he glances my way. “Can we please smooth this over before they get back? ”
I clear my throat, composing myself to word this the best I can as he prepares to roll through the nearly open gate.
“You’ll never lose me. Family means everything to me, and you are my family in every sense of the word.
I don’t give up on someone because they have a moment of temporary insanity, so you’re stuck with me. Forever.”
He stops the car with a jerk even though we’re at the end of the drive. His jaw falls slack. “You’re really something, High Society.”
Wells is going to flare into an unbearable rage, but that shock on Liam’s face tells me enduring it will be worth it. I can pacify Wells because he’ll know I chose him, but now, Liam sees he’s chosen too.
My hand tugs at the door handle, swinging it open, but before I step out, I peer over my shoulder at him.
“Don’t breathe easy yet, Liam. I won’t keep this from Wells, so prepare for a rough road ahead.
I may need to put some space between us while we work out the kinks, but we’ll be okay.
Promise. We just need time.” With that, I hop onto the driveway, prepared to sprint to the house and hide while he parks in the garage.
Liam throws the car in Park, springing off his seat, rounding the hood, and hooking a finger into my belt loop to keep me stationed. “I fucked up, Ivy. I don’t want you burdened with this. You’re too good for all of us, and, fuck , I’m so sorry. I’ll handle it with—”
A startling bang splices the chilly air, separating the sky and ground and Liam’s humble voice.
He smashes into me, throwing me to the crushed-stone driveway.
It knocks the wind out of my lungs with a stabbing jolt, my ears ringing, the world tilting.
I’m weighted and frozen, but Liam is army-crawling, dragging me to the front passenger wheel while my puffy coat snags on the rocky ground.
He coils his body around my head and chest, his gun drawn.
Blood. Everywhere.
Fuck.
There’s a trail of blood from where he hauled me. It’s all over me. And him.
All over Liam.
Something smells burned, but the world is soundless and still. Paralyzed. Until it isn’t. When every noise bombards me at once. Yelling and shrieking in the distance, trees rustling, the idling car, dogs barking, and Liam.
His bloody hand grips my jaw so tight that it throbs. “Ivy! Fuck! Listen to me!”
My eyes find his, bloodshot and determined but laced with fear. “What?” I squeak. “There’s blood. Am I shot?”
“I am,” he says flatly, still gripping my jaw. “Fucking run. I’ll cover you. Go to the safe room in the basement. If you can’t get in the house, there’s a storm shelter beneath the shooting range. Go! Wells will find you.”
A commotion in the woods around the house pulls my attention. A fight. What the hell is going on?
Liam fires several deafening rounds at a figure in front of the trees while screaming, “Ivy! Goddammit! Run!”
Time feels stretched out yet rushed. My scrutiny returns to him. His face is pale, ashen, not at all like my arrogant golden boy.
“Why aren’t you coming with me?” But as the words leave my lips, my brain hammers home the reality of the situation.
Liam pants, grunts, and lies down. His long-sleeved sky-blue Henley is soaked through, crimson now, and blood trickles from his nose.
I lift his shirt, and his body trembles. “Oh God. No! Fuck, Liam!”
As I try to find the source of the bleeding, my fingers only seem to smear it. He grips my wrist to stop me, his eyes glossy and red-rimmed.
“I’ve lost too much blood. I can’t move fast enough. You need to go. Now.” His voice is raw and husky, the strength waning with every word.
“No.” Sobbing, I shake my head, my mind made up. “I won’t leave you. I can’t. I’m so sorry, Liam. I’m so sorry for everything. Please don’t leave me. Please—”
He coughs and sputters, his thumb dusting gingerly over my hand—a dichotomy to the terror encircling us.
“You did everything right, gave me more, were worth it all, baby girl. My gun. Go …” His eyes are so stern, even as I see the life draining from them.
“They’re here for you,” he rasps, and a chill skitters up my spine.
I weep into his chest and kiss his forehead. “You are so loved, Liam Graves. My forever family.” Prying his bloody fingers off his gun, I move to a stooping stance.
And I run. And run.
The driveway seems to have lengthened. Seconds morph to days.
And my senses stack from overwhelm. All the sounds meld to mine—my ragged breaths, my thrashing pulse, my pounding steps.
My sobs. The smell of Liam’s blood coating me and the sweat dripping between my breasts and down my spine. The salt of my tears.
The gothic mansion—home—blurs to a horror house.
I don’t have a fucking key. Why didn’t I grab the keys? I glance back at the car. It’s too far, so I sprint around the garage and break into an Olympic dash to the shooting range.
Damn grains of sand.
It’s all slipping away. Falling through the cracks.
In a blink, I’m at the obstacle course, the shooting range finally in sight.
Almost.
A hand on my mouth. A bump on the head.
“Fucking hell,” someone snarls.
Everything is spotted and muffled and black.
I’m floating. Cloud surfing. Or drowning. Maybe sailing, rocking in waves. Can’t be sure. But there’s a steady motion to it and voices I can’t make out.
Angry or anxious.
Distressed.
My brain is fuzzy.
Someone must be carrying me.
Who the fuck has me? Am I being saved or being taken?
I can’t scream. Why can’t I scream? Or think straight?
Liam .
Did they find Liam?
My eyelids are glued shut. They won’t open, no matter how hard I try. And the motion is making me nauseous. Seasick. I cry out for Wells, wailing about Liam, but all that comes out are garbled moans.
Where are we going? Why won’t they stop and tell me what’s happening?
What’s wrong with me?
Time muddies, but eventually, the rocking stops.
The voices quiet.
There’s only Wells. I sense him.
His presence. His concern. His love.
His sugar and scotch mingle with bleach and blood, making my nostrils itch.
He smooths his palm over my hair, his lips close to my ear, breath wetting my lobe and inducing goose bumps.
Classic Wells. “You wanted to be a pebble, Ivanna, shaking the surface of the pond, but you are so much more. You can fill it up or empty the whole goddamn thing simply by the direction you choose. You’re the storm, baby. Be the fucking storm.”
I knew it was you, Wells. My masked heartthrob, skipping stones and sharing dreams.
He sweeps a thumb over my cheekbone and kisses my forehead, but then he’s gone.
A cool sting rushes through my veins, numbing my limbs and spinning my body until it’s weightless.
Hazy.
Vacant.
And my world goes silent.