I pulled the dress from the closet and laid it on the bed.I took a deep breath.It was just dinner with my family…and Liam.Who looked at me like I was the only person in the room even when we were surrounded by people.Who made me feel things I wasn’t sure I was ready to name yet.
I slipped into the dress and looked at myself in the mirror.Whitney was right.My boobs looked fantastic.And the fit was perfect, hugging my curves in all the right places without being too much.
I looked good.More than that, I felt confident and beautiful.
I left for my parents’ house, and when I arrived Parker and Becca were already there, but Liam’s car wasn’t in the driveway yet.My stepmom, Faith, greeted me at the door, her kind brown eyes lighting up as she immediately pulled me into a warm hug.
When my father married Faith just three years after my mother’s death, I wasn’t exactly thrilled.It wasn’t just that a short period of time had passed, that had worried me.I’d been eleven at the time, and I’d been afraid of how the family dynamic would change.I had a close relationship with my father, and he was all I had.I’d been wary that Faith would come between us.
But that didn’t happen.She wasn’t the evil stepmother that Disney movies had taught me to fear.Faith was kind and patient with me.She didn’t try to replace my mother, but she filled the emptiness that was left behind in the best way she could.She became my friend and mentor, someone that helped me through the difficult years of puberty and all of the drama that came with growing from a girl into a woman.
Nowadays, we still had a close relationship.
“Look at you,” she said, her gaze taking in my outfit as we broke apart.“Are you trying to impress someone with that dress?”
Maybe our relationship wastooclose.It clearly allowed her to see too much.It didn’t help that she was a psychologist; her profession made her great at observing a person’s behavior and deriving meaning from it.
“No,” I said, smoothing down imaginary wrinkles in my dress.“It’s a dinner party, Faith.Isn’t that a reason to look nice?”
“Of course,” she agreed with a soft laugh, though her eyes twinkled with unspoken suspicion before she headed to the kitchen to check on dinner.
I walked into the dining room to greet everyone.A moment later the doorbell rang and Gracie ran by me on her way to answer the door, her curls bouncing while my dad chased after her.
“I get the door!”she yelled.
My dad laughed, loving his role as a granddad.“Slow down, young lady.You’re too young to answer the door.”
I couldn’t stop my smile.If the new baby ended up being as rambunctious as that little girl, Parker and Becca would have their hands full.
Moments later, my father guided Liam into the dining room, and just like that, the air shifted and butterflies fluttered in my stomach.
Gracie stared up at him like she’d discovered a superhero.“You’re tall,” she announced, her little voice full of awe.
Liam laughed softly, and the sweet and kind look he gave my niece was enough to melt my heart.But then his gaze lifted to mine.
The way he looked at me wasn’t overt.It wasn’t inappropriate.But it was undeniably appreciative, his eyes sweeping over me in a single controlled pass, like he was trying not to stare but couldn’t help himself.A shiver raced up my spine and my pulse seemed to trip all over itself.The intensity in his eyes reminded me of every charged moment we’d shared since that make-out session in his car, making me ache for more.
He cleared his throat lightly and glanced away, but not before I saw that same awareness I’d been trying to ignore for weeks.
“It’s lovely to meet you, Liam,” Faith said as she stepped forward to shake his hand.
Liam smiled at her.“The pleasure is all mine.Thank you for having me.”
Becca entered the dining room a moment later, also introducing herself.I wondered if she’d remember seeing him at the bar the night of my birthday party, but there was no recognition in her eyes.
Liam clearly remembered her, but he didn’t say a word as we all settled in for dinner.Gracie loved meeting new people and boldly grabbed Liam’s hand, insisting that he sit next to her at the table.Parker was already seated on the other side of her booster seat, and Becca raised an eyebrow.
“You don’t want to sit by me?”Becca asked in a playfully teasing voice.
“You sit by Daddy,” Gracie said as Parker strapped her into her booster seat.
There was laughter around the table, and I slid into a chair across from Liam.Once dinner was on the table, Faith sat next to me with my dad on her other side.It was like any of the other countless family meals we’d had, but it felt completely different because Liam was here, and every time I looked up, his eyes were already on me.
Gracie chattered most of the meal, directing her questions and observations toward Liam.I doubt that he expected to spend this whole meal engaging with a toddler, but he was patient and kind with her the whole time.
“Why do you have brown hair?”she asked randomly, and he smiled as he thought about the answer.
“I guess it’s because my dad has brown hair,” he said, and Gracie’s eyes went to Parker.She looked shocked, as if it never occurred to her before that her own brown hair might have come from him.
