Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
Liam's breath stops.
He stares at the text from Tori.
Seven little words.
Would you like to come with me?
He responds immediately. Do you mean that?
I do .
Instead of texting again, he calls her. She picks up right away.
"I'd love to go away for the weekend with you, rubia."
"Is it crazy that I'm asking you to come?"
"Who cares if it's crazy. Let's do it."
She laughs. "I never knew you had a wild streak."
"You bring it out in me."
He can sense her smiling.
"But can you get the time off work this quickly? There's also Miss Fancy Pants to think about." Tori sounds stressed. "Maybe this is a bad idea."
"Let me handle it."
"Blair and Road will be upset if they find out. My mom too. They all hate you."
Liam has to admit it pains him to hear this. He doesn't want the people in her life to hate him. "Maybe so, but this isn't their vacation. It's yours."
"I know."
She goes silent. He worries she'll change her mind but doesn't add anything more, figuring this has to be her decision.
"You're right," she finally says. "It is my vacation, so I should get to do whoever I want."
He chuckles. "That's one way of putting it."
"I mean whatever! Oh my God, I can't believe I just said that." She laughs. "I hope you're not getting the wrong impression of me."
"Don't worry, it's fine."
"First an afternoon of lust and now I'm inviting you away for the weekend. You must think I have hot pants."
"I'm not sure if I even know what hot pants are. It doesn't matter though, because I like everything about you."
"You do?"
"Absolutely."
She goes quiet, and her voice is soft when she finally speaks again. "You know what? I think we're going to have a nice time."
He closes his eyes. To his surprise, tenderness wells up in him. "So do I."
When they get off the phone, he lies back in a daze. After not hearing from her all week, he figured that was it. She wanted nothing more to do with him, especially after that episode with Blair and Road on her front porch.
He's never been so glad to be wrong.
Fancy, who's at the foot of his bed, comes up to sit beside him. He pets her soft coat. "Except you'll be staying here, furball. I’ll have to figure out what to do with you."
The next day at work, he convinces his ASAC to give him the time off. It's last minute, and he didn't exactly follow procedure, but luckily he has some goodwill on his side from the recent Rizzo arrest. It turns out the guy's been running quite a criminal enterprise, way beyond what they initially suspected. It’s been making the papers and has been good PR for the bureau.
He texts Tori after his meeting. I just got the time off .
Yay! What about Miss Fancy Pants? Should we bring her with us?
I'm going to ask Elena to come over and dog sit for the weekend.
Are you going to tell her you're going away with me?
He's been debating whether he should tell his sister the truth and has come to only one conclusion.
Not if I don't have to .
Because she doesn't like me?
He pauses, not wanting to hurt her feelings.
Tori messages. It's okay. I already know she doesn't .
It's complicated. She has the wrong idea about you .
If she says no, we can bring Miss Fancy Pants with us. I don't mind.
It probably sounds selfish, but he does mind. He wants Tori all to himself this weekend and doesn't want to share her, even if it's with a dog.
He thumbs in a reply. Let's see what Elena says first .
Luckily his sister has no problem coming over to watch Miss Fancy Pants.
"Sure, the boys and I would love to come over and watch her. It’ll be like a mini vacation for us. "
"Just make sure they’re gentle with her," he says. "She’s only a small dog."
"We’ll treat her like a queen. "
"All right, then. I appreciate it. Thank you."
"Where are you headed, anyway? Or are you allowed to tell me?"
He rubs his jaw. "It's best if I don't." He knows she assumes he's working on a case and sees no point in dissuading her of that notion.
The next morning, he meets Tori at her house. They need a place to park the car she's borrowing from Blair, since they can't leave it at either of their houses. Apparently she asked a friend from work if she could leave it at her house, so he's going to follow her over there.
"I don't think I've ever had to sneak around like this before," Tori says to him. They're both standing in front of the silver Honda.
"Me either." It's not his style, but he doesn't care. He's ready to do whatever it takes to make this weekend happen. A rare excitement’s ignited in him since Tori asked him on this little adventure.
"It feels like we're criminals or something."
He chuckles. "Did you pack everything you need?"
"I think so." The scent of tangerines wafts toward him.
Their eyes meet, and he can't resist reaching for her hand to pull her in closer. "I'm going to kiss you now," he says in a low voice. "Because I can't help myself."
"Okay," she whispers.
Her lips are soft and minty. She kisses him back with desire, and he's enjoying it, until there's a coughing noise beside them.
They both turn toward the sound.
"Aren't you two a couple of lovebirds."
"Hi, Mrs. Waligorski," Tori says. "Do you need something?"
Liam waits and watches as Tori's next-door neighbor thanks her for some recent baked goods she brought over. They discuss where he and Tori are going and exactly how long she'll be gone.
He's amazed. He doesn't think he's ever had a conversation this long with any of his neighbors, even if he added them all together.
"You two kids have fun," Mrs. Waligorski says. "And don't worry. Mum's the word." She puts her fingers to her lips like she's turning a key. "I won't say a thing to anyone."
Apparently Tori explained their need for subterfuge. "Thank you," she says. "I appreciate it."
"It's so romantic. You two are just like Romeo and Juliet!"
Tori climbs into the Honda and makes sure Liam is behind her as she heads over to Peyton's house. Thank goodness Peyton agreed to let her keep the car there. Liam suggested a park and ride, but after having Mable stolen, she's too paranoid to leave the Honda someplace public for the entire weekend.
"Thank you for this, and everything else too," she tells Peyton after pulling the car into her garage. "Also tell Lamont I said thank you."
"Oh, girl, it's fine. Don't worry about it." Her gaze goes out to Liam, who's standing in front of his truck, checking something on his phone. "And I have to say I sure do approve of the company you're keeping these days."
Tori laughs with embarrassment.
"Guess you're getting over Dr. Adrian just fine."
"You could say that."
"Seriously though, I'm excited for you. It's about time you let your hair down and had some fun." Her eyes go back to Liam, watching admiringly as he walks toward them in jeans and a baseball T-shirt. "And you're definitely going to have some fun with that ."
Tori watches him too. A part of her is in disbelief that this whole weekend is even happening. It seems surreal.
Liam comes over and tells Peyton he appreciates her letting Tori keep the car here and thanks her for setting up the cabin.
"Oh, it's no big thing." She's smiling at him. "Make sure you take good care of my girl here."
He grins. "I promise I'll do my best."
Peyton nods with approval. "I'm glad to hear that." She hugs Tori goodbye. "Have a great time, honey."
Tori hugs her back, thinking it's nice to have at least one person who knows the truth and is happy for her.
When they're finally on the road headed toward Truth Harbor, Tori looks out the front window, giddy with excitement. Nothing can dim the happiness she feels right now. Not even the discovery that Liam listens to country music.
" This is what you play in your truck?" She gawks at him as some twangy-sounding song comes on. "It's country and western."
"Yeah, I know. It's what I like."
"But how can that be? You look like a normal person."
He laughs. "I don't know why you're so shocked. This is good music."
"It's… country music."
"What do you listen to?" He glances at her. "Oh wait, all those eighties hair bands, right?"
"Yes, that's right. I believe eighties hair bands are a highly underappreciated art form."
"Let's both keep an open mind. I'll give your hair bands a chance if you do the same for my country music."
Tori listens as some guy with a southern accent sings about heartache and being broke. It could be worse, she decides. It could be soft jazz.
"We'll take turns on the drive there," he says. "You might discover something you didn't know you enjoyed."
"I suppose." She glances over at his handsome profile. She can't imagine enjoying country music, but then she could never have imagined enjoying Liam either.
As they leave Seattle and head north, he tells her he spoke to the detective in charge of Mable's case yesterday.
"I would have told you sooner but wasn't sure when it would be a good time."
Tori studies him. "What did he say? "
"They'll be releasing the van to you next week." He glances at her. "He said a ring of thieves used it. They rob retailers, then use minivans to transport the stolen goods."
Her mouth falls open. "They rob retail stores?"
"You'd be surprised how lucrative that can be. Stealing jewelry, electronics, and even furniture."
Her gut churns as a horrible suspicion dawns on her. "What do they do with the stuff they steal?"
"Sell it to people who'll fence it. If it gets smuggled across state lines or up into Canada, then the bureau gets involved."
Her eyes go out to the highway, to Mount Baker rising in the distance, but she doesn't see it anymore. All she can see is her mom's new sofa and television in the living room. That expensive sapphire ring.
Is it possible Wayne's a thief? That he's the one who stole Mable? But why would he steal a vehicle that could be traced back to his girlfriend's daughter?
And then she has an even worse thought.
What if her mom knows?
That can't be though. Her mom seemed as upset about Mable as she was.
Liam glances at her. "Everything okay?"
She wonders if she should say something. She couldn’t care less about Wayne, but she doesn't want her mom to get in trouble. "No, everything's fine. I'm just taking all this in, trying to make sense of it."
"I know it's hard to hear."
"It is." She gulps, feeling nauseous. She prays she's wrong and Wayne really is a tire salesman who works in a salvage yard. One who travels out of state for work.
"What's even crazier is it turns out this whole thing may be linked to one of my cases."
"Really?" Her stomach twists into an even bigger knot. "How so?"
Liam tells her about some guy he arrested recently who they thought was only running a pyramid scheme, but turns out it’s part of a much larger criminal network. "He's got ties with crime rings all over the city, including smuggling and retail theft."
"What a weird coincidence."
He shrugs. "Sometimes it happens. You pull one thread and a hundred others unravel."
Tori nods, her heart racing.
She senses Liam glancing at her. "Are you really okay?" he asks with concern.
"I think I need to open the window for some air. I'm getting carsick."
"Of course."
She pushes the button until the glass is all the way down and lets the breeze blow on her face. She closes her eyes. There's some country song on the speakers about letting your troubles go.
That's what I need to do. Let it all go.
Eventually she rolls it up.
"Feeling better?"
"I think so."
By the time they arrive in Truth Harbor and head toward Treasure Lake, she's calmed down. It helps that she's enjoying the battle with Liam over whose playlist to listen to.
The more she thinks about it, she has no evidence against Wayne. Maybe he bought all that stuff from a pawnshop. Maybe it is stolen, and that's how he got a great deal on it. It doesn't mean he's the one who stole it.
And her mom would never let him take Mable. There's no way she'd be okay with that.
"Should we stop and get groceries first or drive to the cabin?" Liam asks her.
"Let's go to the cabin first. I can't wait to see it."
She helps him navigate there using her phone. Soon they're driving down a narrow road with lavish million-dollar homes. They're nice, but not really Tori's taste.
When they finally reach the end of the road, it stops in front of the cutest, coziest little cabin. She saw photos online, but they mostly showed the view.
"This looks great," Liam says, parking the truck.
"Wow, it sure does."
They both get out, and it's like she's stepped into an alternate reality. Here in this beautiful place with an equally beautiful man.
In that moment, she decides to forget all her problems.
They'll still be there next week.
She takes a deep breath. The air feels sultry in her lungs, and she can smell the water. "I already love it here," she declares.
They walk around the outside of the cabin and discover it has its own private sandy beach right on the lake. There's a small firepit with a group of logs around it.
Inside they find the house is equally as cozy and inviting. Downstairs has a kitchen, bathroom, and living room with a wood stove. A black spiral staircase leads to a sleeping loft.
Tori climbs the stairs to peek at the loft. A half-moon window looks out onto the lake from the head of the bed. There's a large skylight window above it. The ceiling is kind of low, but she can still stand. She crawls onto the mattress. "This is so cool. You have to come up here and see this."
Liam climbs the iron staircase but accidentally hits his head on the rafters. "Ow." He crawls onto the bed and flops beside her. "I hope I don't concuss myself in the middle of the night."
"Just remember to duck next time."
They both lie on their stomachs, gazing out at the view. The water shimmers, reflecting the sky in various shades of blue.
She sighs. "I really had no idea it would be this amazing."
"Me either," he admits. They both watch an eagle fly low.
It's not lost on her that they're in bed right next to each other, his warm forearm pressed into hers. When she glances at him, she discovers he isn't gazing at the view anymore but at her.
"What? "
"Nothing." But then he seems to change his mind. "I can't believe I'm here with you."
"What do you mean?"
He seems embarrassed. "Maybe I shouldn't admit this, but I had the biggest crush on you in high school."
"You did?" She's taken aback but can't help feeling pleased. "I never knew that."
"Why do you think I asked you to homecoming?"
Tori tries to remember those days, before the whole milkshake thing happened. "I guess I never thought about it too deeply."
"It took me weeks to get up the nerve to ask you."
"Really? That's so sweet." She considers him. "Is that why you did it?"
"Did what?"
"You know, poured it on me. Was it because I upset you?"
His eyes remain on hers, his gaze unflinching. "Tori, I did not pour that milkshake on you."
She studies him, and a part of her wants to believe him.
"It was a freak accident. I just went over to say hello to you. One of my teammates was goofing around and kept trying to grab the cup from me, so I was holding it up. He bumped me, and the next thing I knew, you were drenched."
"But everybody said—"
"I know what everybody said. Everybody was wrong."
She tries to remember the details. "What about all the laughing and pointing?"
"The guys laughed. I never did."
"I want to believe you. I really do."
"You should, because I'm telling the truth."
She doesn't know what to say. It's hard to let go of a memory that's so ingrained.
"Want to hear something else?" He rolls onto his back and gazes up at the skylight. "Even afterward, when you hated me, and your brother was threatening to do me bodily harm, I still liked you. I couldn't stop myself."
She takes this in and feels bad, though she did nothing wrong. "If it's any consolation, I wish I'd said yes when you asked me to the dance."
He turns to look at her. "You do?"
She nods. "Maybe we would have been teenage sweethearts." The words come out before she has time to think about them. It's an odd notion, but not hard to imagine. "I never had a real relationship in high school."
His eyes stay on hers. "Me either. I'd like to think we would have had something special."
They regard each other. The golden afternoon sun shines through the window. A wonderful energy slides through her, moving through her limbs before curling down her spine.
"Let's take our time this weekend, rubia . " His voice rumbles between them. "I don't want to rush things. I want to enjoy you."
"Okay," she whispers. She doesn't know what to say. No guy has ever spoken to her like this.
His gaze drops to her mouth.
Her eyelids fall shut when he pulls her in for a kiss. Soft lips. She inhales his scent, his taste. Everything about Liam is delicious.
But then something occurs to her, and she draws back. "Did you listen to country music in high school?"
"Not really. I mostly listened to rock." He strokes her back, then slips his hand beneath her T-shirt to caress bare skin.
"It's too bad we didn't date back then. I could have saved you."
"Saved me?" He chuckles. "You haven't given country music a real chance yet. Trust me, you'll learn to love it as much as I do."
She snorts. "Only if I'm lobotomized first."
"You don't know what you're saying."
"What I'm saying is you have terrible taste in music."
"Oh, really?" There's a mischievous grin on his face. Before she knows it, he flips her onto her back. She lets out a little shriek. "So you think I'm the one with bad taste?"
She giggles, bracing her hands on his shoulders. "Yes, it's awful. But don't worry, it's not too late. I can help."
"By forcing me to listen to all those fluffy-haired male singers and their endless screaming?"
"They're not screaming. Well… I guess they sort of are."
"Every song sounds the same."
She turns indignant. "They do not!"
"How can you tell them apart?"
"Because they sound different, that’s how!"
His large body rumbles with laughter against hers, and she has to admit, she's enjoying herself. Enjoying the solid weight of him. Enjoying his good humor.
She's glad she invited him.
Even if he does listen to country music.