Chapter 30
Emma
It was strange how different a place could feel after just a couple of weeks. The last time Liam and I were at Dina’s Restaurant together was the day that Bridget had revealed her fake marriage plan. I had still been angry with Liam for leaving, and he had been confused as to why.
But now we sat here as newlyweds, devouring burgers dripping with all the toppings our mouths could physically hold, dunking french fries into chocolate milkshakes, and laughing like old times. His foot kept pressing against mine beneath the table, and Dina gave us sly looks from the corner, but I barely noticed. I was too lost in the happiness of this moment.
It might have been just like old times, but something felt different. Better.
Neither of us had managed to brave the feelings talk yet, which was the only thing dampening my spirits, but it was easily pushed aside. Something was different between us, and I hoped that in time, Liam would be honest and open up about how he was really feeling.
Maybe then I’d be brave enough to tell him what I’d wanted to tell him for years.
I love you, Liam.
We had to talk about it at some point. We couldn’t keep acting like this, stealing kisses, and behaving like a real couple without having that conversation. Could we?
I tried to push it from my mind, at least for now. I didn’t want to ruin this moment of bliss we were living in. It would be too easy for reality to come crashing back in, and I wasn’t ready for that. I liked our little bubble of mushy gushy mixed with denial.
I brushed my hands on my napkin in my lap, noticing the tickets I had shoved into my pocket earlier in the day. My heart skipped a beat, and I pulled them out, setting them on the table. Liam eyed them, raising a brow.
“So, uh…” Why was I even asking him about this? He would absolutely hate it and be so bored. It was not his thing at all. But I also didn’t want to go with anyone else, not that I really had anyone else I could bring with me anyway. Plus, the tickets were too expensive to let the other one go to waste.
He waited patiently for me to continue, slurping up the last of his shake.
I started talking before I lost my nerve. Why the heck I was nervous to ask my husband to attend a convention with me, I couldn’t tell you.
“So, there’s this exhibit this weekend, the Storm Chasing Convention, and I have two tickets”—I pointed to them on the table as evidence—“and I know it’s not your kind of thing and you’ll probably hate it, but I was wondering if you’d—”
“Of course I’ll come with you,” Liam interrupted. A smile spread across his face, his green eyes crinkling in the corners.
“You will?” I didn’t know what I’d expected, but it wasn’t for him to agree so easily. I searched his face, trying to find any trace of hesitation or proof that he didn’t actually want to come.
Liam leaned forward over the table. “If it means that much to you, Em, I’m happy to come with you. I wouldn’t miss it for anything.”
A smile curled at my lips. “Really?”
“Really.”
Before I could erupt in squeals of happiness, Dina appeared. “Can I get you two cuties anything else?”
Liam laughed at whatever expression was on my face and then said to Dina, “I think we’re good.” He handed her a wad of cash, which definitely looked like too much for what we had eaten, and Dina’s eyes widened as she took it. “Keep the change.”
She smiled at him, winking at me before she sauntered back into the kitchen, a pep in her step.
When I finished my milkshake, Liam asked, “Ready, Beaver?”
I didn’t have buck teeth, but I tucked my upper lip into my gums and said in a goofy voice, “Ready!”
Liam laughed again, and I felt the sound all the way to my toes.
We left Dina’s without touching, but the moment we stepped into the hot summer sun, he grabbed my hand and pulled me into the shade next to the building.
Liam stepped toward me, leaving mere inches between us. Heat emanated off him. He took my hands and held them between his, lifting them to press a kiss to them before holding them against his chest.
What is happening?
And then Liam released my hands, drawing me against his chest. My arms went around him automatically. We had hugged so many times throughout our friendship, but this felt different. The way his hands traced gentle lines against my back, the way his heart thudded beneath my head.
I wasn’t about to argue or fight it. I’d been waiting my whole life to be hugged by Liam like this. After a few more moments, I felt him stiffen. I braced myself for him to pull away, tried to hold inside the words just a little bit longer.
Liam started to pull back, but instead of letting go, he cupped my cheeks with his hands.
“Emma,” he whispered, staring into my eyes.
Had yesterday’s bubble not popped after all? There was no one around to pretend for, no reason for him to press his lips to mine.
His thumbs traced lines across my cheeks, and I was frozen. And then, because my heart had a mind of its own sometimes, I leaned onto my toes, kissing him first.
I was scared he might push me away, but instead he didn’t miss a beat. His arms went to my waist, pressing me into him as he deepened the kiss.
I had the strange urge to giggle, but his lips halted any sound—any thought in my brain. When he swung us around, my back hit the wall, and he pressed even closer. I kept waiting for him to realize he was kissing me, Emma, his nerdy best friend, and then break off the kiss and walk away to cool down, but he didn’t. Instead, he held me tighter, not relinquishing his hold on me for even a second.
As ecstatic as I was to have Liam kissing me, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of foreboding. What would happen when his reputation was restored, and our marriage was no longer needed? Would he be all too happy to sever ties and go on his merry way?
The way he kissed me made me feel otherwise, but Liam was so difficult to read, even after all these years of friendship.
I think I love you too.
His confession played on a loop in my head. Had I imagined all of that? Had that confession been the result of my sickness warping my brain? I’d always wanted Liam to say those words to me, but there was so much doubt in my head now that I had no idea what was truth and what was concocted by my imagination.
It could’ve been minutes or hours that passed, and I would’ve been none the wiser. Everything was lost in the feeling of Liam’s hands on my skin, his lips on mine.
At least until a bunch of lights started flashing.
Wait, flashing? In broad daylight?
My eyes snapped open, and every romantic feeling in my body instantly shut off.
We were surrounded by at least a dozen strangers, all with cameras glued to their faces, taking pictures of Liam and me. They all shouted questions at us, but I didn’t hear them. All sound felt like it was being filtered through a tunnel, muffled and far away.
Liam immediately sprang into action, turning so that I was directly behind him, out of sight. My lips still tingled, but I forced it from my mind, especially as Liam’s hands clenched into fists and his body language went from relaxed and at ease to defensive and ready to take someone out.
“Liam, is this your new bride?” one of the paparazzi shouted at him even though he was only a couple of feet away.
“Liam, when are you going back to California?”
“Will your wife be moving with you?”
“Why haven’t we seen any new music from you?”
“Is your wife keeping you too busy? Is she a distraction?”
The questions were loud, all running over each other, so it was hard to pick out what they were even asking. Liam continued to get tenser and tenser, but he wasn’t moving. I wasn’t sure if he was frozen out of shock or if it was something else. Grabbing his hand, I tried to infuse reassurance into him as I squeezed it. It seemed to snap him out of whatever haze he had been in.
Liam tightened his grip on my hand before walking straight through the crowd, shoving several people out of his way. He said nothing as he speed-walked back to his truck, yanked open the door, and stood there so I was hidden as I climbed inside.
A moment later, his truck roared to life and the tires squealed as he raced out of the parking lot. A few minutes later we pulled into the driveway of our home, but my heart was still racing. Liam’s chest was rising and falling in a way that made me think the same was happening to him.
“I’m sorry,” he finally said, covering his face with a hand. “This is what I was afraid of. I didn’t want you dragged into this mess.”
I took his hand, lowering it from his face.
“Hey, it’s okay. I told you I can handle it.” I squeezed his hand and felt my spirits spiral downward when he didn’t return the gesture. “I promise it’s fine, Liam. Don’t let them ruin our good day.”
He was quiet for another moment before he let out a long breath and nodded. Silently, he got out of the truck, and opened my door for me. I hoped being back at home, where he was most comfortable, would snap him out of it, but he remained silent.
I was just about to ask if he was all right when he jogged up the stairs and I heard the bathroom door close a second later. The sound of the shower started a moment later. Clearly that was how he dealt with stress.
I let out a shaky sigh, my nerves ratcheting up. We had barely begun to explore what a relationship between us could look like—even though we hadn’t admitted our feelings. I felt like we were finally getting somewhere, especially with how he’d kissed me outside of Dina’s.
But now I feared that the run-in with the paparazzi had spoiled everything, that it was making Liam rethink all of this. Had we just been living in a dream the past few days? Was it some alternate reality we’d fallen into, and the flashing cameras finally snapped us out of it?
I didn’t know where Liam’s head was at, and that had my stomach sinking to the floor.
Unsure of what to do with myself now, I threw my hair into a ponytail and headed toward the garage, where I could be with my weather instruments.
At least out there I knew what reality was.