Chapter 12
Emma
ME
Help
SOS
Mayday
Helllppp
The number of text messages I’d sent Maya was probably excessive, but she was still on her honeymoon with her husband, Oliver, and I didn’t want to bug her with an actual phone call. So, a bajillion text messages it was.
I was sprawled on Jameson’s couch, Luna lounging on the floor by my feet, the faint scent of this morning’s coffee still lingering in the air. Jameson was at work, and Elsie was at the local coffee shop working on her next book, so I had the house to myself. After a couple years of roommates and couch hopping, I was beyond ready to have my own place. If I married Liam and Bridget paid me, I’d be able to afford an apartment of my own and get out of Jameson’s way.
Don’t be silly, Emma. If you’re marrying Liam, don’t you think that means you’ll have to move in with him?
At the thought, my stomach roiled. Live with Liam? Years ago, the thought of being so close to him would have made me excited. After we graduated high school, there had been a time where we considered getting an apartment together so he could get out of his parent’s house, but it never happened. That was probably for the best because there was no way I would’ve been able to keep my feelings for Liam hidden if we’d been roommates.
Now the thought of sharing the same house only filled me with dread. Sure, I still knew the small little things about him, but overall, he’d become a stranger to me now. It was easier to stay angry at him than risk getting close again only to be abandoned. It was hard enough the first time. I didn’t wish to repeat the experience.
My phone pinged a moment later, snapping me out of my thoughts.
Maya
Who am I beating up for you?
I snorted. I loved Maya. We had grown close after her parents abandoned her. There wasn’t a single person on earth that knew me as well as she did—well, maybe my brother, Jameson, but he didn’t count right now. I wasn’t about to call him and tell him I was considering signing my life over to marry Liam.
I winced at the thought of telling him. Jameson had always liked Liam, and he had told me he didn’t believe Liam had changed into the person the tabloids made him sound like, but I still had a hard time believing my brother would be okay with me fake marrying my best friend regardless.
Maya was brave and loud and strong, and I loved her fiercely. She’d totally beat someone up for me—no questions asked. That’s the kind of friend she was.
Me
You’ve missed a lot these last two weeks.
You’re not allowed to leave the country again.
Maya
Sorry to inconvenience you with my honeymoon :P
Who am I beating up?
Me
*sigh* It’s Liam.
Maya
Oooh. What has the bad boy done this time?
I braced myself as I typed out the letters that spelled my fate.
Me
So, um.
His manager came up with a plan to fix said bad boy reputation.
Maya
Oh, this should be good.
I huffed a laugh. Just you wait, Maya.
Me
It’s a pretty schemy scheme. It’s actually right up your alley. A harebrained idea you and your meddling ways would have come up with.
I was stalling. I knew I was stalling.
Maya
That sounds epic. Schemy schemes are the best kind. I’m failing to see the problem here...
A long breath worked its way between my lips, my fingers hovering over the screen.
Maya
Spit it out, Em.
Me
I MIGHT BE MARRYING LIAM NEXT WEEK.
I barely hit send when the three dots flashed on the screen.
Maya
EXCUSE ME?!
The text had barely come through when my phone started ringing.
“I told you it was an SOS,” I whined in hello.
“You’re marrying Liam? What? Details, Em. Start at the beginning. Tell me everything. Why are you marrying Liam?”
I sighed, making the phone crackle. “Because I’m an idiot who makes bad decisions?”
“Try again.”
I flung an exasperated arm over my face. “It’s not set in stone. I haven’t officially decided anything yet, but…I’ve been asked to sign a contract which requires me to marry Liam Walker.”
“But…why?”
In as few words as possible, I filled her in on my loan, the loss of my internship, Bridget’s scheme to fix Liam’s reputation, and the contract sitting in my inbox at that very moment—including the large sum of money that would allow me to pay off my storm chasing gear and truck.
For a moment, all Maya said was, “Wow.”
It took a lot to make my cousin speechless.
“You really love storm chasing that much that you’d shackle yourself to a country music star for a year?”
Or I love Liam that much.
No you don’t. Knock that off, Emma!
“Something like that.”
“Em, I love you, but this is nuts. Marriage is a big deal.”
I sighed again. “I know.”
“As much as I enjoy a good meddling scheme, this one is a little…much.”
I nodded in agreement, though she couldn’t see me through the phone.
“And what happens when the year is up? You get divorced and pretend the year of marriage never happened?” Her voice was coated in skepticism.
“I don’t know. I guess so. Liam’s never expressed any type of feelings for me outside of friendship and I can’t imagine he’ll enjoy being stuck with me and having to turn down all the women that no doubt want him.” The thought had a lump rising in my throat. “I don’t know what to do.”
Maya hummed. “You guys have been friends forever. You don’t think there’s a chance that he harbors any feelings for you?”
An unattractive snort came out of me. “This is Liam Walker we’re talking about. Why would he want me when he could have literally any other woman out there?”
“Because you’re incredible and you’re his best friend. No one gets him like you do.”
“Was his best friend. I don’t know what we are now.”
“You’re about to be engaged, that’s what.”
I groaned, shoving my head into the pillow on Jameson’s couch.
“This might not be a bad thing,” Maya said after a moment. “Maybe this is the push Liam needs to see what’s been right in front of him for years.”
“Ha!” Like that would ever happen. “I’ve been in the friend zone forever.” I was a lifer at this point.
“I’m serious.”
“Don’t you think if that were going to happen, it would have by now? Liam’s never seen me as anything but a friend, probably more like a sister. This marriage of convenience won’t change that.”
Though I couldn’t see her face, I could hear the gears turning in her head as she said, “Living together is pretty intimate. I would think that would be the perfect time for Liam to start waking up.”
“So you’re saying you think I should sign the contract? Marry him?”
“I think that’s a decision only you can make, Em. Yes, it sounds like there are a lot of benefits—for both of you—if you agree, but marriage is a big thing. I know this probably isn’t how you envisioned getting married someday, so really think about if this is something you can live with for a little financial security. If you decide it’s worth it, I will support you one hundred percent. And if you decide to say no, then I’ll be here to help you figure out another way to pay down your debt.”
A swell of gratitude filled my chest at her support. Maya was right, this was no small decision. This could impact the rest of my life. The fact that she was willing to stand by me no matter what I decided meant more than she could know.
A faint smacking sound came through the phone. If I knew her, she was probably punching her fist into her other hand. “And my offer to beat him up still stands.”
I huffed a laugh. The mental image of Liam and all his six-foot-two glory and Maya’s petite frame going head-to-head was too comical.
“I’ll let you know if I need Karate Master Maya.”
“I thought it was Love Guru,” Oliver’s voice said in the background, and we all laughed.
“Okay, Love Gurate Master—see what I did there?—I’ll let you know if I need you to use Liam as a punching bag.”
“Good. Give it some serious thought, Em, but don’t be too quick to dismiss it either. No, the situation isn’t ideal, but this could open a door to Liam finally recognizing that he has feelings for you that might not have otherwise been there. Maybe the reason why he was shopping around for women in Cali was because none of them were you.”
My first instinct was to deny that thought, but it didn’t stop the flutter of hope that started in my stomach, slowly warming me from the inside out.
I thought about arguing, but I had already interrupted her honeymoon enough. Besides, if I did say yes, Bridget would be calling Maya soon to get her home in time for the ceremony. That would be one of my stipulations for marrying Liam—that Elsie and Maya had to be my bridesmaids. Even if all of it was fake, I wanted at least a little bit of real.
“We’ll see,” I finally said. “I’ll let you know what I decide.”
A knock at the door sounded then and Luna perked up, running over and wagging her tail, waiting to greet whoever was on the other side.
“Gotta go. Someone’s at the door,” I said, holding back a groan as I sat up. Why hadn’t Jameson invested in a video doorbell yet?
“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” she sang before the line dropped.
Shaking my head at my ridiculous friend, I tossed my phone onto the couch and went to open the door, freezing when I saw Liam standing on the other side.
“What are you doing here?” I wanted the words to be demanding, to show him I didn’t want him there, but instead they came out as a hopeful breathy thing, and I winced as soon as the words left my mouth.
Liam gave me a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes, his hands in his pockets and his shoulders tense.
“Can we talk?”
I crossed my arms over my chest, trying to make it clear I wasn’t about to let him inside. “About what?”
Liam’s shoulders hunched higher. “You don’t have to do this, Em.”
I fought the urge to roll my eyes. “Bridget sure made it sound like I do.”
“Bridget can get over it. I would never ask you to be a part of this life.”
“Because I’m not good enough to be part of it, right?” I didn’t know where the words came from, but they were out of my mouth before I could stop them.
Liam blinked at me, and his lips parted. “What? Of course that’s not—”
“Because why would you want to marry me, the girl you grew up with and did everything with when you could have one of those flawless, beautiful California girls?”
What are you doing, Emma? Stop saying this stuff. You’re going to reveal your feelings to him!
I took a deep breath, pressing my palms into my sides. I needed to calm down before I said something I couldn’t take back.
Liam’s face fell. “Em, that’s not it at all.” He took a step toward me, and I was helpless to stop him as he took one of my hands in his. “I’m trying to protect you, that’s all. I care too much about you to let you be thrown to the wolves. This life…it can be brutal and I don’t want that for you. You deserve to marry someone you love, and be here, in Meridel, happy and safe and not constantly in the public eye.”
“What about all those other women?” I retorted. “Are you sure you can live without them for a year?”
When I had first seen the tabloids about Liam Walker being a womanizer, I couldn’t believe them. There was no way that the boy I grew up with, shared my secrets with, spent nearly every moment with, could be that. He certainly wasn’t like that in Meridel. But when the tabloids kept coming, kept shoving photos in my face of Liam kissing other girls, or in scandalous places, there was only so much I could do to fight the doubt creeping through my veins.
It was like being punched in the face repeatedly. After a while, I just didn’t have the strength to fight anymore and started believing them.
And with Liam’s family always ignoring him, why wouldn’t he relish being in the spotlight for once? Why wouldn’t he enjoy himself?
He didn’t belong to me. He wasn’t mine.
I shouldn’t have even been angry about it.
But that’s the funny thing about love. It’s not always rational; it doesn’t always make sense.
Liam sighed, running his hand through his hair. “That’s not me, Em. You should know me well enough to believe that. I just…when I moved out there, I was so desperate for someone to see me, notice me, especially after being invisible at home my whole life, that I started searching for attention in the wrong places. It felt…good to have women want me. And when I started appearing in the tabloids, even though it was negative attention, it still felt like people were finally seeing me.”
His green eyes met mine. “I know it was the wrong kind of attention, and eventually it just evolved into me being in the wrong places at the wrong time. But I just wanted people to see me, Em. I never cared about those girls. Not like I care about you.”
Something about his words cracked through my anger and hurt, and for the first time, I really looked at Liam. I could see it in his face—the loneliness, the sadness. I had seen firsthand what his childhood was like, how his family ignored him, so it made complete sense that he had felt that way. I mean, hadn’t I always silently begged Liam to see me?
Yes, he was chasing his dream of making music, but at what cost? I thought he didn’t want me involved in this scheme because I wasn’t good enough to fit the bill of Liam Walker’s wife, that the public would never believe I could be his wife.
But what if he was telling the truth? What if he really was trying to protect me?
Didn’t I owe it to him, and the friendship we used to have, to do the same? Bridget made it sound like Liam really needed this marriage to continue making music. He had worked so hard to get where he was, and even though I was still upset with him, I knew deep down I’d do anything to help protect him.
As that realization settled into me, the decision was made in my mind.
I was going to marry Liam if that’s what it took to help him.
I couldn’t meet his eyes as I said quietly, “I’ll do it, Liam. I’ll be your wife.”
When I said those words, something flared in his eyes, but it was too quick to decipher what it was.
“Are…are you sure?” The expression on his face was somewhere between happy and regretful. I tried to silence the fear attempting to swallow me whole.
“Yes, Liam. I’m sure.”
Liam pulled me into his chest and wrapped his massive arms around me, resting his chin on the top of my head.
“I’m going to make this up to you, Em.”
I swallowed down the tears burning in my eyes, wishing Liam knew just how much it meant for him to be holding me like this. Wishing he felt the same as me.
When he finally pulled back, he ran a hand over his styled hair, messing it up even more. “We should probably talk about what comes after the wedding.”
My mind immediately jumped to the wedding night and my face burst into flames.
Liam’s eyes widened. “N-not that. I mean—” He trailed off, his hands messing with the hem of his shirt again. There were few times I’d seen Liam flustered, but I had to admit the pink tint on his cheeks was a good look for him.
I tried to hide my smile as I opened the door wider. “Come inside.”
His shoulders loosened a fraction at the invitation. He gave Luna a loving pat as he stepped inside, and she thanked him with a mouthful of slobber.
“Want some tea?” I asked, going into Jameson’s immaculate kitchen. Normally I wasn’t a tea drinker, but it was far too late in the day for caffeine, and Liam was already making my heart race enough. Tea would have to do it this time.
“Uh, sure.”
I tried not to snort at his answer. Liam was strictly an energy drink or coffee drinker. I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen him consume tea—unless it was sweet tea. Basically, caffeine was his middle name.
“Is that another thing that California changed about you?” I called. He had taken a seat on the couch, Luna—all seventy-five pounds of her—curled up on his lap as if she were a lapdog. “You drink tea now?”
I could hear Liam’s sigh all the way in here. Maybe I should stop poking him about California and how much he had changed, but my heart often felt like it was bleeding in his presence, and it made me feel infinitesimally better to hurt him back.
Yes, I was aware how horrible that made me sound.
Love wasn’t rational and neither was heartache.
I supposed it would probably be a good idea for me to try to be nice, to get along with him again, even if I hadn’t quite forgiven him yet.
A tense silence settled between us when he didn’t deign to respond, and I fixed us both a cup of chamomile tea, hoping it would calm us down so we could discuss what came after the wedding.
My hands shook at the thought, my ears burning beneath my hair. Surely, he couldn’t want to talk about that, right?
I brought the mugs over to the couch, trying not to shake as I handed one to him and sat on the other end of the couch, leaving plenty of space between us.
Luna looked at us, her ears flopping as her head went back and forth. Did she feel the tension building? Did she sense my anxiety about Liam being here? About this conversation?
It was so frustrating because it never used to be like this with him. Liam was the easiest person to be around—the one person I was the most comfortable with, the person I could be my complete self with. But ever since he left, it was like something cracked between us, and in its place was a ten-foot-thick wall that was impenetrable. I didn’t know how to be around him anymore. Was being me even acceptable to him after all the women he’d been with?
I wasn’t about to pretend I wasn’t me. I wasn’t about to change to please him.
Though, he’d never made me feel like I had to before, and I didn’t know why I was suddenly feeling like that was the case. Those tabloids had gotten in my head and made me feel insecure when it came to Liam—a foreign feeling after decades of friendship.
I met Liam’s gaze and felt heat rush into my cheeks. I took a sip of tea for something to do, scalding my tongue in the process.
“So,” he started, wincing at his own sip of tea. “After the wedding.”
I waited, unsure of where he was going to go with this, not wanting to embarrass myself further.
“Bridget says that it’s important to make this appear as a legitimate marriage, which means we need to live in the same house.” His eyes stayed on Luna’s head the entire time he spoke, his hand stroking down her back in soothing motions.
Like the first time the thought had occurred to me, my stomach dropped to the floor.
“A-all right,” I stuttered, knowing I didn’t have much of a choice. “But I’m not living in your parent’s house, Liam.” This was going to be challenging enough as it was. I didn’t need his parents throwing an even bigger wrench in this whole thing.
Liam chuckled. “Neither am I, Em. Bridget already took care of living arrangements. There’s a townhouse on the edge of Meridel.” He paused, clearing his throat, a slight red tint rising in his cheeks. “It’s nice. Cozy.” Then he met my gaze. “It’s ours.”
I should have expected Bridget to make sure we were set up to maintain the marriage front, but for some reason the words “It’s ours” did strange flippy things to my insides.
Liam and I had a home…We were going to live together in the same house.
It was something I had never allowed myself to dream about. I couldn’t quite decide if I was happy or terrified.
“So, if you’re really sure—”
“I said I’d do this, Liam.”
He put his hands up in surrender. “Okay. We can start moving your things in this week if you want. You can do the decorating. It’ll be your home as much as mine. I want you to feel comfortable there.”
Not likely.
“Then after the wedding, we’ll live there as a couple.” His cheeks reddened further. “Unfortunately, it’s a one-bedroom townhouse though.”
His words trailed off slowly, and with them, my stomach sank even further.
“I can put in a murphy bed or something in the office nook and you can have the bedroom,” he hurried to add. “Whatever makes you the most comfortable.”
I’d have to not only live with Liam…but also live in a place with one bedroom?
“Did Bridget do that on purpose?” I blurted, suspicion flooding through me. It wouldn’t surprise me if his manager had done this as a way to meddle and force us together.
Liam looked sheepish. “She claimed that it was the only one available, but…” He let out a long breath. “It wouldn’t surprise me. But maybe it’s a good thing, Emma. If people found out it was a two bedroom, then they might question us, but with a one bedroom, no one would wonder whether this was real because who would live in close quarters unless they loved each other?”
“Right,” I replied, at a loss for words. Silence fell until I blurted, “Is there a garage?”
Liam’s brow rose. “Yes, two cars.”
“Good, good.” My brain went to all the equipment in the third stall of Jameson’s garage. I needed a place to put it all, and it didn’t sound like the townhouse itself was going to be big enough.
“Why do you ask?”
I met his green eyes. “It’s probably easier if I show you.”