Chapter 45 #2
Liam clears his throat, his eyes flitting to me before he starts. "Tess and I," he eases in. "We…"
I watch as Ruthie blinks slowly, innocently, as she waits for him to continue.
"Well, we…" His eyes dart back and forth between the two of us, his jaw tightening as the words get stuck.
Ruthie leans in as if to say Spit it out, Dad, and I sit forward in my seat.
"How would you feel if maybe your dad and I spent a little time together?"
Liam inhales a full breath, and Ruthie furrows her brow.
"Guys, we do that all the time already." She turns to her dad. "Why are you being so weird?"
Liam huffs out a laugh that's part amusement, part relief, then drops his hand onto her knee. "You're right," he admits. He sits up straighter. "But we mean just the two of us."
"Like… on a date?"
"Yeah, something like that."
Ruthie stares at him blankly for what feels like an eternity, then suddenly perks up. "Wait!" she cries. Her eyes fly to mine. "Does this mean you love him back?"
"Wha—"
"Um…"
Liam and I respond at the same time, our gazes colliding. His is full of confusion, mine is pure surprise.
"Oh, please, Dad." She rolls her eyes. "You're so obvious."
He opens his mouth to argue.
"But…" she cuts in, facing me, her expression sincere. "Do you? Love him back?"
Liam freezes, and my heart nearly stops seeing hope fill his eyes.
I think of everything we've been through, from that first awkward interview to finally giving myself to him at Jo's—in more ways than one. I think of how far I've come, settling for less—searching for it even—to holding myself accountable for more.
I look Ruthie in the eyes. "Would that be okay with you?" I ask, letting her know without words that her opinion matters.
She nods immediately—eagerly—and the relief that rushes through me might be the best I've ever felt.
"Then, yeah," I say, turning to Liam. "Yeah… I think I do."
Her face lights up as her head swings toward her dad. "This is so cool. All my friends are gonna be so jealous. I can't believe…"
Her words fade as my vision tunnels on Liam. His smile is soft, but his eyes speak volumes.
"Hold on," Ruthie says suddenly, pulling both of us back to her chatter. "Does this mean you're not my nanny anymore?"
I defer to Liam, both of us still reeling from my confession—from all of this.
"Not necessarily," he says, his words half-question, half-optimism. "We're still figuring things out." He slides further up on the cushion as if to get as close to me as he can without moving completely. "But hopefully, it just means she'll be more than that too."
"She always was," Ruthie says, lifting her book. Her words are so casual, and yet, they completely steal the air from my lungs.
Liam blows out a slow, steady breath, his eyes glazing over, and Ruthie picks up her pencil and goes right back to drawing as if none of this happened.
Liam and I stare at each other—processing it all with eye contact alone. Energy buzzes between us as his jaw works with emotion, and it takes everything in me not to jump into his lap. Eventually, he peers down, tearing his gaze away from me.
“What are you drawing?” he manages—clearly still trying to hold it together.
“This week Nellie told me to draw my people. You know… the ones I can count on.”
His throat moves up and down, and I don’t understand why until I lean forward to see the full picture.
“I’m on the last one now,” she continues.
My eyes trail over the people already drawn and labeled—Dad, Uncle Levi, Aunt Alex, Uncle Mack. Then they land on the last person in the group.
“I like her braid,” Liam says, his voice thick—broken.
I gasp, pressing my lips together, tears building as he looks at me.
“Thanks,” she says. "I'm almost done."
I watch his throat move up and down as mine does the same. And when he reaches his palm out, I leap for it.
"Ya know, Roo," he says, his eyes still on me. "I think we might have the same people."
I squeeze his hand, beaming as Ruthie's smile grows.
"You think I could add Sammy?" she asks without looking up.
The dog's head pops up at the sound of his name, and a laugh escapes all three of us—breaking the tension and grounding the moment.
"Not to mine," Liam quips, his brows high with sarcasm.
Ruthie rolls her eyes playfully, shaking her head, and Liam ruffles her hair, brushing his thumb across mine.
I glance down at Sammy, his tongue falling from his mouth exactly as it was the first time we met.
"Hey," I say, an idea coming to mind. "What do you guys think about grabbing some ice cream?"
I look up just as Ruthie springs off the couch, tossing her drawing to the side. "I'm in."
The dog wiggles off the chair to join her as she runs toward the door. I smother a laugh as my gaze trails to Liam. "What do you say, Two-Three?" I stand, and he joins me. "You down for a cone?"
He grins, wrapping his hands around my waist. "You sharing, Hastings?"
"Yeah, with the dog."
We both chuckle as I drape my arms around his neck, then Liam's face grows serious.
"What?" I ask.
He shakes his head and sighs.
"What?" I repeat, my heart rate increasing.
"I just realized," he groans. "I technically have that damn dog to thank for introducing us."
The metal clasp of Sammy's leash jingles against his collar as the door crashes open with a bang. A smile tugs at my lips, and I rise onto my tiptoes, pressing my forehead to his. I let out a slow breath—the kind that only comes when you finally feel at home.
"He led you to me, didn't he?"
Liam's eyes fall shut in mock annoyance as he pulls me closer. When he opens them, he smiles. "Turns out he was worth chasing after all."