Chapter 50
FIFTY
LIAM
He heard Cassidy’s footsteps, quick and steady, as she jogged to catch up with him. He glanced over his shoulder right as he reached the front door of his shop.
“You came,” she said a bit breathlessly.
“I wasn’t sure if I should,” he said, not meeting her eyes.
“No, you should’ve,” she said quickly.
Liam glanced up and congratulated her before he could stop himself. “I’m glad I did. It looked great. Congratulations.”
He turned back around to unlock his shop’s door.
“I was wrong last night. Even before I found out the Gingerbread Jerk was raccoons,” Cassidy blurted out.
He blinked. “Raccoons?”
She nodded, cheeks flushed from embarrassment. “That’s who’s behind all the damage. I caught them on camera. Zoe’s trying to figure out how to trap them, but… I owe you an apology. It wasn’t fair of me to accuse you. I know you’d never sabotage my shop.”
She paused. Her voice softened. “I said those things because I was hurt.”
Liam looked down the street. There were too many people milling about. Lights glowing in windows, tourists passing by, chatting. People admiring Cassidy’s display.
He wasn’t about to pour his heart out on the sidewalk.
“You want to come inside?” he asked, keeping his voice low.
She glanced through the window, then nodded. “I’d love to.”
He unlocked the door and held it open for her.
Inside, the shop was quiet, the air warm and filled with the soft, spiced scent of the simmering pot sachets stacked by the register.
Wax candle kits lined the far shelves. Honey gift sets shimmered in their jars, arranged with care beside rows of seasonal jam.
The lights were soft and low. Comforting.
He watched her as she took it all in. She paused by a display of hand-poured candles and glass-blown ornaments, fingers tracing the outline of one.
This was his place. A reflection of everything he loved. His family. His roots. His work. He wanted her to see it all. To feel it.
“I owe you an apology too,” he said, leaning against the counter. He crossed his arms over his chest and let his eyes settle on her.
She turned to face him, still holding the ornament, her expression wary.
“You were right,” he said. “I got scared. I thought I was pushing you too fast. That I was asking for too much. I told myself I was giving you space, but really, I was running.”
She stayed quiet, eyes locked on his.
“You’re not the same woman who dated Jean-Paul. You’ve never once backed down from who you are. Not even when I rolled my eyes or refused to go caroling or acted like a grinch about your sweaters. And for the record, I still won’t go caroling.”
A hint of a smile tugged at her lips.
“But decorating cookies with you? Watching those cheesy movies while drinking cocoa in your Christmas pajamas? Cuddling up under way too many blankets? I actually want all of that. I can’t promise I won’t be scared again and I can’t promise I’ll ever be as into Christmas as you are.
But I swear to you, I won’t run. I will listen to you. ”
He uncrossed his arms and reached out his hand.
“I want that too,” she said quietly, stepping closer. “I know how hard this time of year is for you…”
He let out a breath. “I figured you did. I wanted to tell you about Avery myself. Not because I’m still stuck in the past but because I needed you to understand the fear that comes with trying again.”
She opened her mouth, but he held up a hand.
“You don’t have to fix it. Just… let me say this. Avery died on her way to Maple Falls. We were going to spend the holidays together anyway, but I told her I missed her, and she left early, driving through a snowstorm to be with me. And she never made it. That’s a fact I have to live with.”
The silence stretched. The weight of it was still sharp.
“I didn’t think I’d ever feel anything close to joy at Christmas again. But that night you asked me over, the night Jean-Paul proposed? All I could picture was decorating a tree with you. Hanging stockings. Sending out the cheesiest Christmas cards.”
His voice dipped. “You made me want those things again. And sometimes I want them so badly it terrifies me. I start thinking I’ll lose it all again, that I don’t deserve it. I know that’s not how life works, but it’s hard to shake.”
Her voice was soft when she finally spoke. “I know you’re scared. So am I. I’ve made plenty of mistakes. But you’re not one of them. You undo me, Liam. You see me. There’s no one else like you. And I don’t want to lose what’s just starting between us.”
Liam stepped forward. Slowly. Carefully.
And when she didn’t pull away, he leaned in and kissed her.
It wasn’t urgent. It wasn’t rushed.
Just the soft press of his mouth against hers, warm and steady and sure. It was the kind of kiss that said, I’m still here.
She swayed toward him, her hand brushing his chest. Her fingers curled into the soft flannel on his shirt.
That was all the permission he needed.
Without breaking the kiss, he walked her to the door, pulled down the shade, and felt along the wall for the latch. A soft click echoed as he turned the lock on the front door. The sound felt final, like shutting the world out.
Cassidy was breathless, her cheeks flushed pink. “What are you doing?”
He cupped her jaw, his thumb tracing just beneath her bottom lip. “Making sure I don’t lose you again.”
“Here?” She looked around, realizing that the front windows were covered, and no one could see in. She relaxed.
“Is that okay?” He backed up, giving her space to decide.
“It’s more than okay.” She smiled seductively.
His hands slid to her hips as he guided her backward, her body bumping gently into the wooden counter. The scent of beeswax and cinnamon hung in the air, wrapping around them.
He kissed her again. It was slower this time, with a hint of reverence, like he was tasting something he thought he might never have again.
“I missed you,” she said. Her voice was steady, but her hands trembled slightly where they rested on his chest. He covered them with his own, pressing them flat over his heart.
“Feel that?” he said quietly. “That’s what you do to me.”
Liam leaned in and kissed her again, her mouth, her cheek, the soft skin of her neck. “Let me help you feel.”
Cassidy nodded breathlessly.
He took his time undressing her. Not rushed. Not greedy. Just gentle, deliberate movements—the brush of his knuckles against her side as he slid the zipper down, the soft rustle of fabric pooling at her feet.
His own clothes came next, piece by piece. He wanted her to see him, to know there was no part of himself he was holding back from her now. When they were bare, skin to skin, he cupped her face again and kissed her like he’d been waiting years for this moment.
Her breath came faster, her skin heating under his touch. “Liam…”
He trailed one hand down her spine, slow and sure, anchoring her with every inch. “You feel incredible,” he whispered. “All soft and warm and mine.”
He helped her up onto the counter, kissing her thighs, her stomach, her collarbone, all the places that had gone unnoticed for too long. When he finally reached between her legs and touched her, it made her gasp with desire.
“You’ve been wanting this, haven’t you?” he murmured against her skin.
She nodded, eyes fluttering shut. “So much…”
“Tell me how you want it, sweetheart.” His fingers slid against her, slow, coaxing. “Soft and slow? Or hard and fast?”
Cassidy whimpered, her back arching. “I just want you. All of you.”
Liam’s control nearly cracked, but he held on because this was Cassidy. And she deserved more than just release. She deserved to be seen.
He reached into the drawer beneath the counter where he kept emergency first-aid and seasonal extras, finding the small foil square he had stashed months ago.
Cassidy watched as he rolled the condom on, her pupils dilated with desire.
And when he stepped between her legs, hands firm on her thighs, Liam looked into her eyes. “Are you ready?”
She wrapped her arms around his neck. “Yes. Liam, please.”
He entered her slowly, shuddering as she took him in. Every inch felt like a promise—one he wasn’t afraid to accept anymore.
Liam held still once he was fully inside her, his forehead pressed to hers. “You feel like home,” he whispered.
She kissed him, sweet and deep.
He started to move: long, slow strokes that dragged soft sounds from her lips. The counter beneath her creaked faintly with each thrust, but neither of them noticed. It was just the sound of connection, of something real being built between them.
Her legs wrapped around him tighter, pulling him closer.
Liam could feel her getting closer. The way her breaths came faster. The way her body clenched around him, already fluttering with anticipation.
“You’re doing so good,” he whispered, his voice thick. He slid one hand between her legs, his thumb circling gently. “Let go for me. Let me feel you fall apart.”
Her hands gripped his shoulders, nails biting into his skin as the pressure inside her coiled tighter and tighter.
Liam held her through it, slowing only slightly as he watched her come undone in his arms. “That’s it,” he murmured. “You’re so beautiful like this.”
He didn’t last much longer. The feel of her still pulsing around him, the sound of her voice, the way she held him so tight—he couldn’t hold back.
“Cassidy,” he groaned, burying himself deep one last time as he came, his whole body tensing as pleasure surged through him. His forehead dropped to her shoulder, his arms wrapping around her like he never wanted to let go.
For a long moment, they just breathed.
She ran her fingers gently through his hair, still catching her breath. Liam kissed her collarbone, then her neck, then finally her lips.
He was quiet for a beat, then smiled and brushed her damp hair from her face. “You know, the first day I met you, I pictured this.”
“This?” she asked, motioning to the counter.
He nodded, still a little breathless. “Yeah. Right here.”
“Oh really. What about now?”
“Now?” He grinned. “Now I want every surface. Every damn one.”
She laughed. “That sounds like a challenge.”