“Wait, were you reading my book?” I asked, smiling at him.
“No,” he replied, obviously lying.
“You know this book is full of smut, right?”
“Oh believe me, I know,” he said, laughing awkwardly.
“Why are you even reading it?” I asked.
“Because you like the book, so I thought I’d read it too. See what bookworm Molly McKinley likes to read. Apparently, it’s stories about Mafia bosses with sex sprinkled in at every chance.”
“That’s really sweet of you,” I said, planting a kiss on his cheek.
“What? Stealing your books?”
“No, noticing what my hobbies are and trying to be interested in them.”
I dropped the book back into his bag. “You should finish it. The ending caught me completely off guard. And don’t worry, I won’t tell Colt and Jace your dirty little secret,” I said, winking at him.
“Fuck it, tell ’em,” he countered.
That made this moment even better. Liam was leaning into a not-so-manly hobby and didn’t care if anyone knew about it.
After we made the boys call a truce and put away their water guns, we all sat in the living room, talking for a couple of hours—the girls drying off—until everyone decided it was time to retreat back to their own houses.
As I cleaned up, putting dirty dishes into the sink, I looked out the back window. Liam was lying in the grass in the middle of the backyard with his arms crossed over his chest. He lay there still as a statue, gazing up into the night sky.
I pushed the back door open and stood on the porch.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Looking up at the stars,” he said, staring up into the black sky.
“Why?”
“Do you ever think shooting stars are people from another place trying to say something to us? Someone we can’t talk to anymore?”
As soon as Liam asked, I put the puzzle pieces together. I walked down the porch steps to join him, the cool grass squishing beneath my feet, and sat next to him.
“You wonder if it’s your brother, don’t you?” I asked softly.
“Yeah,” he admitted, his eyes glassing over. “Every time he’s heavy on my mind and I start to miss him more than I normally do, I see a shooting star. Every time, without fail.”
“I think your brother loved you very much, and he knew how much you loved him too. He’s in heaven watching over you every day, and I think he’ll take any chance he has to show you he’s still up there protectingyou and missing you. When I was little, my papa always told us shooting stars are a sign someone in heaven—someone you love—is listening to your prayers. Have you been praying lately?”
“Yeah, here and there.”
“Well, whatever you’re praying for, I bet your brother is up there listening and trying to answer them for you.”
“He’s already answered some of them,” he said, looking over at me.
“Like what?”
“Convincing you to give me a second chance after I broke your heart and gave you every reason not to.”
Chapter 30 – Liam
My palms were slick against the steering wheel of my Jeep as Molly and I made our way out to her family ranch. Jace had texted me this morning needing some help, while Colt was gone for the day hauling cattle down to south Montana.
