While Benson was out of town tending to his family, Liam was dealing with something else in the city. And all the better to get this out of the way before Benson came home, probably muttering about his parents, his sister, and his sister’s good-for-nothing husband and two grown “idiot” children who relied too much on him for help.
(Same as it ever was.)
He knew this had to be done… delicately. And nobody, especially Benson and Eden, could know about this.
And maybe Sydney, too. That would be a headache. The womanhatedLiam.
So, a coffee shop was out of consideration. He probably shouldn’t go for some other loud public space, either. A casual Mexican place on the corner would do.
To her credit, Drew pretended to be ecstatic to see him when she arrived without her cabal of friends. Well, maybe shewasexcited. She certainly didn’t hesitate to order something from the counter before slamming her butt down in the booth Liam had held down for them in the back of the dining area.
While mariachi music played above their heads, he offered her his selection of chips and salsas. Drew helped herself while waiting for her order of tacos and Spanish rice, all the while babbling about the train ride from Providence.
Liam started light. He asked her about school, her classes, and the Italian major she had recently declared. That was enough to get Drew rattling off every little thing that happened in college, and – dare he admit it – he forgot to ask about Rush Week! Everyone would be soooo happy to know that Drew had gotten into her first-choice sorority. Actually, those girls he had seen her with were some of her new sisters who found out how much she loved zoos and decided they should all go when they had an afternoon off from class.
“I remember,” Liam said, keeping things light. “I used to hold you up so you could see the lions.”
She lightly gasped. “Youdoremember?”
“Of course. That was a great day.”
Drew’s visage grew more serious, more mature as she sat with that while staring down at the Formica table.She really has grown up.Men like Liam didn’t need such obvious passages of time thrown in his face. Because while Benson could dye his hair and act the same as always, his daughter couldn’t stop growing taller, heavier, and more weighed down by the realities of the world.Poor kid.Liam had been more optimistic about things the last time he saw his future stepdaughter.
“I’ve got questions,” she said.
“Undoubtedly.”
When they unceremoniously bumped into each other at the zoo, Drew had been aghast – mostly at Eden, whom she had already decided she didn’t like for whatever arbitrary reason.Too young to be dating her father, I guess.Liam had stepped in to say hello, introduce himself to her sorority sisters, and to explain that her father knew what was going on and she shouldn’t concern herself with gossip –especiallysince her aunt was in the hospital, didn’t she know? (She did. She had hoped the red pandas would take her mind off it.)
He also promised they would discuss this later and got her number. That same evening, he asked Drew to meet him for lunch at this Mexican place as soon as she was back in town.
So, here they were. Sitting awkwardly. Because, unlike Benson, Liam wasnotold enough to be this girl’s father.Not unless I had her at like… fifteen.No way. Suddenly, those weird age gaps made sense from Drew’s perspective.
“I’m dating Eden,” he told her when she returned with her order. “So is your father. Yes, he knows about this.”
Drew pretended that this was a very mature discussion for her to have as she added salsa to her tacos. “I see. Daddy certainly has his… appetites.”
She said that so cutely, yet Liam couldn’t help but wrinkle his nose. Suddenly, his enchilada sucked. “What do you mean by that?”
Drew glanced up at him before rolling up her taco to take a bite. “I know a lot more about your engagement than either Mom or Dad thinks. I wasn’t exactly blind, Liam.”
That bite sure was… big.
“Well, what did you know, exactly?”
She methodically chewed while looking up at the palomino sconces. After swallowing, she said, “I know he was still dating women while with you. Saw the same chick a few times.”
“I was probably dating her, too. Your father never cheated on me.”
“Oh, I got that. Took me a hot minute because I didn’t get into romance novels until I was in high school, but you guys were hooking up with the same girl, weren’t you?”
“Well… we are both bisexual, Drew.”
“Doesn’t mean you date both men and women at the same time! Way to be a couple of stereotypes.”
Yes, Liam was very familiar with the stereotype. No, he didn’t think it was his problem, as long as he was fair with the people he dated.
“Are you and my dad back together or something?”
