Chapter 33 – Book Club
Rosalie
We don’t talk through breakfast, both of us soaking up the newness of being out together, just the two of us. It’s all I can do not to stare at him every second and mentally stamp “mine” across his chest. All the fluttery feelings I’ve been suppressing for months are throwing a party.
He knows my preferences and I know his. I pass him the salt and pepper for his eggs. He asks for mustard because he knows I like it with my hashbrowns, and as soon as my French toast arrives, he hands me a little plate so I can scrape off the little mountain of butter.
But we still haven’t worked out the details of where we are now, and Liam is a details guy.
I can sense when he’s finally ready to talk about it.
He carefully sets his fork down and grows still.
I think he rehearses things in his mind before he says them.
I’m more of a blurt-then-clarify kind of talker, hence my tendency to run away from conflict before I say something dumb.
Lightly bumping his shoulder, I say, “Don’t ask for a team meeting.”
“No, I think not. I won’t talk to you like I’m your boss.”
“I meant it as a joke. Not my best.” It’s already happening. I’m saying all the wrong things. “This is going to be weird, Liam. I think it’s supposed to be weird.”
He smiles. “Would you like a pen and paper to make this less awkward?”
“No.” The stinker. Although, I didn’t get a letter from him this morning, and I’m strangely sad about that.
“Can I make a request?” he asks.
“Shoot.”
“I’d like you to come with me to my mom and dad’s anniversary party tomorrow night.” He stacks our plates and slides them out of the way so he can rest his head on his palm and look at me fully.
My reaction tells him everything he needs to know, but he continues to wait patiently for me to say it. His gaze is warm chocolate. Understanding. Thoughtful. I thought Trey was a salesman. He’s got nothing on Liam. If Liam asked me to go to the moon with him right now, I’d say yes.
And yet, I don’t want to go with him to his family’s swanky party. “What we have is too new for the scrutiny of your parents.”
“I don’t know if you’re aware, but we already have it.”
“I know. Dinner was… interesting.”
“I didn’t know if I you wanted me to stay quiet or jump in. You seemed mad at me either way.”
“I was mad.”
“Tell me why.”
I fiddle with my fork. “Because I find I like staying in the background of things. I don’t like feeling like I need to prove my worth to anyone.”
“Do I make you feel like you need to prove your worth?”
He sounds so worried that I reach out and touch his cheek. “No. You’ve always made me feel like everything I do is amazing.”
“It is.”
“Liam.”
He grows serious the longer he looks at me, reading me so easily. “When I act impressed by the things you do, it’s because I am.”
I duck my head. This man. “Okay, we should talk about you now.”
He laughs. “No thanks. But I’ll change the subject if it makes you feel better.”
“Yes, please.”
“So, Heidi is your favorite book, huh?” One side of his mouth quirks up.
“You know me. Only the classics.”
He reaches across me slowly and pulls a book out of my purse. I was not prepared. He’d make an excellent pickpocket. Women will be too distracted by his charm.
He studies the cover carefully while I blush. “Hmm. The Vampire Huntress and the Bookshop Owner. I like his reading glasses, although he seems kinda stacked for someone who stands behind a counter all day.”
“He chops wood for his fireplace.”
“I’ll bet.” Liam carefully slides the book back into my purse, taking his time.
I like this game. He smells like maple syrup and my favorite of his colognes.
He has two he switches between. Years ago, in a rare, non-job-related request, he asked me which ones I liked, bringing the bottles down and setting them in front of me.
He was dating someone at the time, and I felt like I was doing him a service by giving him honest feedback.
I was flattered when he got rid of the one I said I didn’t like as much.
Little did I know, I was helping my future self. Thanks, me.
“Do you bring a book with you on all your dates?” Liam asks. “That one looks even better than the cowboy romance novel you were reading on your date with Trey.”
“You were watching us for a long time!”
“Not that long.” He shrugs. “For about a minute. I don’t know if I can compete with a vampire book. Does he turn into a vampire? Is she hunting him?”
“So many good questions. I’m inviting you to book club.”
“Who’s in it?”
“So far, you and me. It’s very exclusive.”
His eyes sparkle. “I’d love to be there.”
“But no book club today. You have my full attention.”
“Good to know.” The mischief in his expression drops just slightly, and he looks down at the table. “My mom reads romances. Sometime, when it doesn’t feel like an interrogation, you two should talk books.”
He found a connection for us, however unrealistic it is that she and I could someday be friends.
It makes me want to cry again. Instead, I finish off my orange juice and picture Liam as a bookshop owner, surprised by a woman who looks an awful lot like me breaking into his place in the middle of the night.
Little does he know she’s there to save his life.
I read the first chapter while I waited for him to arrive, hoping to keep my nerves at bay.
All I managed to do was imagine us in it, even though I’m the furthest thing from a vampire hunter.
Liam doesn’t need to worry about me getting lost in a book and forgetting about him.
He’s the first and last chapter, and all the ones in between.
And we’re about to write the rest of our story.
When he notices me watching him, he says, “Oh, I meant to ask. Who’s Mr. Emoji?”
“It’s the contact name I gave Trey when he first started messaging me. I never changed it.”
“He’s still texting you. Figures.” He sounds amused, not jealous. Trey is no competition. Not even a little bit.
“I think he just likes to always have someone to talk to. But I should probably tell him there’s a new man in my life. Or, I guess, an old man.”
Liam’s jaw drops. “I’m only a year older than you.”
“Yeah, but he’s twenty-five,” I whisper.
“Is that a deal-breaker for you?”
“It is when I’m in love with my boss.”
He smiles, and I reach out and run my thumb over the little cleft in his chin, making him raise one eyebrow.
His gaze drops to my lips. If we weren’t in a busy restaurant, I would make this booth a lot cozier than it already is, and I can tell he feels the same way.
It gives me the courage to admit what’s really bothering me about going with him to the anniversary party.
He’s right. I need to stop gauging my worth against what other people are doing or what they might think of me.
Unfortunately, that’s not the only issue I have with showing up as his plus-one. I’m not afraid of his parents, but I am afraid of making his relationship with them worse. After all, a woman has driven a wedge between them before.
“If we go together tomorrow night, people will ask how we know each other.”
A small wrinkle appears in his forehead. “You think they’ll get smirky when we tell them you’re my kids’ nanny?”
“Yes. Not only that, your mom will get asked by her friends. Who’s that girl with Liam? And then she’ll downplay our relationship, as she should, because we’ve only been together for, like, five seconds. But I’ve met some of your relatives, so they’ll know who I am.”
I’m getting carried away, but Liam doesn’t call me out on it.
He takes my hand, rubbing his thumb over it while he ponders.
Finally, he says, “I’m not afraid of other people’s assumptions.
And I’m not worried about my mother’s embarrassment.
She’s a pro at handling gossip thrown her way.
But I do care about your happiness an awful lot. If you don’t want to come, it’s okay.”
“I care about your happiness, too,” I whisper. He doesn’t ask for much, but he asked for this. Now I’m torn.
Our waitress comes by with the check, and after going to the front and paying, Liam holds the door open for me. We walk out into the bright sunshine. “What did you plan to do with your day off?” I ask.
“I cleared my schedule, and yours I guess, but that’s as far as I got. I just knew we needed to talk without Callie asking clarifying questions.”
“She’s very good at coming up with those. So, you’re not headed into work?”
“No. And since my hints aren’t working, I’ll be direct. Rosie, will you spend the day with me?”
I pretend to consider it for a second. “Yeah, I think I will.”