His hand plunged into my hair as he claimed my lips in a desperate kiss, his tongue tangling with mine roughly before he pulled away.
“So she was testing me?”I asked.“I did not know Nana was so conniving.”
He snorted a laugh, his eyes sparkling.“Come on, Maya.We should both know by now that Nana always gets her way.By any means necessary.I’m just glad that this time, what she wants coincides with what I want.”He pressed a kiss to my forehead and pulled me into a hug.“Because I’m so happy with how this turned out.Carlisle Creek feels more like home with you in it.”
forty-eight
if Alan Rickman could see me now
Maya
Wequicklysettledintoregular life after that.Liam worked from Nana’s kitchen table and joined us for dinner every evening before going back to the apartment he shared with Kai and Greg.Together, we got Nana’s paperwork in order and applied to the assisted living facility.We kept to the schedule, and Nana hadn’t gone on any more late-night walks.When we were alone we watched and listened to every Alan Rickman performance we could find, but those evenings frequently wound up with us naked, wrapped in each other’s arms.Hell, I’d even told off my parents, with Nana shouting insults helpfully in the background, of course.
All things considered, life had been pretty much perfect.
Now, after months spent on a waiting list, we’d finally received the call that an apartment was ready for Nana.And what an apartment it was!
“Wow, Nana.This is way nicer than the unit we toured.”
“Have you seen this view?”Nana fanned herself dramatically, grinning like a kid on Christmas morning.“Phew.Nowthat’swhat I’m talking about.”She whistled long and low.“Check out that scenery.”
The enormous windows flooded the space with natural light, making the apartment feel airy and bright, but the real highlight?They faced the local fire department’s training yard.The training yard where, at this precise moment, Carlisle Creek’sfinestfirefighters and EMTs were being absolutely drenched in baby oil by enthusiastic volunteers.
We had our own personalMagic Mike, but with fewer tearaway pants and more turnout gear.Also, an abundance of shirtless, greased-up first responders.
“Must be time for the annual calendar photo shoot,” I said, watching the action for a moment before turning back to unpacking.
“If I’d known about this view,” Nana said, “I’d have moved in the instant my memory started acting up.This is so much better than watching all the hunks parade down Main Street.”She paused before adding in an exaggerated tone, “I’ll have plenty of great fodder for my spank bank—more than enough to last me until next year’s photoshoot, for sure.”She gazed dreamily at the firefighters.“Do you think they need an extra pair of hands?”She flexed her fingers.“Should I go down there and offer my help?”
I choked on air.“Jesus, Nana.”Even after years of listening to her inappropriate comments at book club, somehow she still surprised me.
“Come on, Nana.Have some respect for the neighbours,” Liam grumbled, stepping inside with a stack of boxes teetering in his arms.“The least you could do is leave the spank bank talk for when I’m not about to walk in with half your stuff.”
“See, Maya?Didn’t I tell you Liam didn’t have the stomach for running the book club?Just another of the many reasons we’re all glad you stayed.”Nana smirked and turned to Liam.Teasing, she said, “That speech was for your benefit, by the way.I could hear your huffing and puffing all the way down the hall.Maybe you should go ask the firefighters if you can train with them?I’m worried about your cardiovascular health.”
“Hey,” Liam protested, clutching his barely-there belly protectively.“It’s not my fault that I’ve put on some weight.I can’t stay away from the cheese balls that Maya stockpiles.They call to me.”
I laughed.“It’s true, Nana.Liam can’t resist those crunchy little balls of cheesy goodness.And I can’t resist throwing a barrel into the cart every time we go shopping.It’s a vicious cycle.”
“You mean vicious circle.As in vicious circles of crunchy cheese that are impossible to stop eating.I can’t believe I ever thought I didn’t like them.”
“It will be so much worse now that we’ll be using the smaller apartment for storage,” I said to Nana.“I know he’ll want at least one entire shelving unit dedicated strictly to cheese ball storage.That’s the last thing he’ll want to run out of if a zombie apocalypse happens.”
He gasped and clutched his chest, feigning shock.“Never speak of that again.Running out of cheese balls?Heaven forbid.”
Sure, he’d filled out, but I knew with certainty his eleventy-billion-pack abs were still very much intact.I’d had a front-row view this morning in the shower, in fact.Besides, Ilovedhim like this.Those half-naked firefighters outside had nothing on Liam Bishop.
“You’re perfect to me,” I murmured, patting his stomach.“You could turn into a cheese ball, and I’d still love you.”
Liam grinned.“Aww, Pipsqueak.I told you I’d make you fall in love with me.”
I glared up at him.“Listen here, Bishop.Loving you won’t stop me from marching you to that training ground, jamming a fire hose up your butt, and turning on the water.I wonder if you’ll explode like a water balloon or fly into the air like you’re wearing one of those water jet packs.”
“Or,” Greg chimed in, peeking out from behind a towering stack of boxes as he walked into the apartment, “there’s also a third option.”
I perked up.“Oh?Do tell.”
He set the boxes down, pausing to rub his lower back.“If you build up enough pressure with the hose, you might just launch him into the sky.”
