Chapter 7
SAbrINA
I wasn’t sure if it was my nerves or the time zone change, but I was wide awake at five a.m. I’d hoped I might sleep in after tossing and turning all night, but I hadn’t been successful at relaxing my body or quieting my mind long enough to actually fall asleep.
It didn’t matter that the mattress was the softest I’d ever slept on or that the sheets were both cooling and warming at the same time; sleep had evaded me.
My eyes were wide open as I lay on my back, staring up at the ceiling. There was no way I was going to fall asleep now. I might as well get up and start my day.
I slipped into the bathroom and showered without waking Samuel. I was so grateful that he’d become such a sound sleeper. Even though I’d thrown him into a whirlwind of travel these last few days, he was taking the constant change in stride.
With my hair wrapped in a towel, I stepped out onto the plush bathroom mat and shut the glass shower door behind me.
I made my way over to the mirror, where I wiped the steam with my hand.
I slipped in my earbuds so I could listen to the newest Drifter song, which had been uploaded last night, while I started on my skin care.
I’d never really cared too much about my appearance. Harmony was a small town with very few people to impress. After scrolling through images of rock stars and their assistants last night, I’d realized that I not only didn’t know the part, but I didn’t look it either.
The last thing I wanted was to embarrass Liam by looking like a sleep-deprived, overworked mother. I was determined to make an effort.
With my makeup on and my damp hair brushed, I turned off the bathroom light and slipped into the bedroom. Thankfully, in my doomscrolling last night, I came across an article that highlighted Liam’s likes and dislikes. Things as mundane as his coffee preferences and how he liked his eggs.
For fans, it was fun information that made him look relatable. To me, it was a gold mine of information that I was going to use to my advantage. My job as his assistant was to make his life as easy as possible. Knowing what he wanted before he knew he wanted it was a necessity.
I could hear Liam’s soft snores from the living room. My lips tipped up into a smile, noting that Liam’s snoring had not been included in the article. It was strange, but I liked that there were parts of Liam I was going to discover that the world would never know.
Once I was dressed in a pair of jeans and a white linen shirt, I started to get Samuel ready.
He scrunched up his little body as I lifted him from the bassinet that George had brought up last night.
Samuel kept his legs tucked up to his body and his arms near his face until I laid him down on the bed.
He then promptly stretched out, his little face contorting into a look that said he was fighting to stay asleep.
I leaned forward and caged him between my arms as I brushed his dark hair with my fingertips. “Good morning, my love,” I whispered, plopping some kisses on his chubby cheeks.
He slowly opened his eyes, blinking a few times before his gummy smile emerged. The one that spread from ear to ear and melted my weak mommy heart.
“Did you sleep good?” I asked, my voice rising an octave but remaining hushed so I didn’t wake up Liam. Samuel shifted his gaze to meet mine and began pumping his little legs up and down, which just made me giggle.
I focused on changing his diaper and dressing him in a pair of black sweatpants and a green dinosaur sweatshirt that said, “Let the world hear you roar.” Then I made him a bottle.
We sat together in front of the bedroom window while Samuel ate.
I’d cracked the blinds so we could see the bustling world below us.
I’d never been to Chicago before. It amazed me that cities never slept.
This lifestyle was a far cry from the one I had in the small island town of Harmony.
If this was what Liam’s world looked like, was I the right person for this job?
Thankfully, Samuel finished with his milk before I could spiral further.
I rinsed out the bottle and shook it to expel the excess water before putting it in my purse.
I made sure to pack an extra water bottle that George had sent up last night and the formula dispenser in case Samuel got hungry again.
I slipped on my baby sarong and situated Samuel so he could look out at the world around us while I walked.
I’d done some research last night, and there was a local coffee shop just down the street that served a cold brew concentrate heated with hot milk—Liam’s favorite—and then a few streets away from the coffee shop was a highly rated sausage-and-egg croissant—also Liam’s favorite.
I’d grab his breakfast and then head back to the hotel to make sure he was up and ready for the 9 a.m. rehearsals that Bonnie had texted me about last night. I wasn’t quite sure how to read her text. There was no punctuation or emojis, so I was stuck trying to interpret:
Rehearsals at 9 get Liam there if you can
I’d texted her a thumbs up, and then let her know that I’d signed up for Master Tour and what my handle was, but she’d never responded.
I felt silly for being disappointed. To her, my job was to take care of Liam, and it seemed like she doubted my ability to even fulfill that basic requirement.
It frustrated me that I wanted praise from a woman I’d only just met.
I just wanted to do a good job. I’d failed so much in other parts of my life, I wanted this to be different. I was determined to make this different.
The air was crisp and I inhaled sharply when Samuel and I stepped out onto the sidewalk.
Thankfully, I was a nobody, and the staff at the hotel seemed content to let me leave on my own.
The bellhop nodded in my direction as I passed by him, but no one seemed to think I needed help with going anywhere, which I appreciated.
I liked being invisible. The last 24 hours with Liam had been exhausting. I could only imagine what it felt like to be him. Everywhere he went, eyes were on him. It had to be a lot.
I played with Samuel’s feet as we made our way down the sidewalk in search of the coffee shop, Wind and Bean.
It was a few blocks down and to the right.
There was a line coming out the door, so I found the end and joined.
Everyone was either on their phone or glancing around, never making eye contact, like social interaction was the last thing they wanted.
Another stark difference between a bustling city and a small town. There wasn’t a place I could go in Harmony where someone didn’t know me, even if only as “Abigail’s sister.” Everywhere I went, I lived under scrutiny. Here in Chicago, no one looked at me. No one paid me any mind. It was…freeing.
Once I got inside, I ordered Liam’s drink and then waited for my name to be called.
Samuel started to fuss, so I moved to a corner where I could bounce him up and down without accidentally shouldering someone.
Thankfully, it didn’t take long until I had the drink in hand and had to dip and turn to keep from having it knocked onto the ground from the other patrons.
Stress left my body as I pushed out the door and joined the throngs of people on the sidewalk.
Samuel’s whines had turned to all-out screams when I finally got to the breakfast joint. I had to find a free table outside to set down Liam’s drink so I could quickly make up a bottle. I bounced my son as he guzzled the milk down.
When he finished, he spit up, so I located an abandoned napkin on a nearby table and wiped his face and the front of the baby carrier. With him settled, I retrieved the coffee and headed inside The Scrambled Diner.
They moved faster than the coffee shop, and five minutes later, I was walking out the door with a brown paper bag in one hand and the coffee in another.
I got a little turned around on my way back to the hotel and had to eventually stop to ask for directions.
Thankfully, I wasn’t too far away and walked through the sliding doors of the lobby right at 6:30 a.m.
The doorman raised an eyebrow at me as I walked past him. I could only imagine what I looked like. My cheeks were warm, and I was tired of lugging a fifteen-pound baby around with me. It amazed me how he got heavier and heavier with each passing minute.
I’d never been so happy to see a solid wood door as I stood in the hallway, fishing for my key.
Once the soft sound of the door releasing filled the silent air, I quietly pushed the handle down and slipped into the room.
From the steady snores coming from the couch, Liam was still asleep.
Relief rushed through me. I was going to have a minute to unload Samuel and make sure that I was presentable before I woke Liam up.
I set the sandwich and coffee down on the small sofa table and tiptoed into the bedroom, shutting the door behind me.
My shoulder muscles sang when I pulled Samuel from the carrier and laid him on the bed.
I unhooked and shimmied out of the carrier.
With it folded up, I made my way into the bathroom to check on my appearance.
It felt silly to care what I looked like. After all, I was just Liam’s assistant. My entire job was to remain in the shadows, unseen. But I wanted to look the part even if I didn’t feel the part. Liam had given me a chance, and it felt ungrateful not to put my best foot forward.
I changed my shirt and my jeans—Samuel had gotten spit-up on my left leg—before I pulled my hair up into a ponytail and then freshened my makeup. It was nearing seven when I flipped off the light in the bathroom and stepped into the room.
Samuel had been all coos and giggles but had fallen asleep in the last five minutes. Not wanting to wake a sleeping baby, I quietly made my way to the bedroom door and slipped out. Samuel could sleep while I got Liam up and ready for the day.