Tears welled up once more. Ugh. I was over feeling this weak. I’d wanted to come back home, apologize to my sister, and move on with my life. The last person I wanted to talk about was Liam.
But I wasn’t going to leave my sister hanging. She deserved to know.
“He, um…” Emotions rose up in my throat, so I swallowed hard to push them down. “He fired me.”
Abigail frowned. “He what?”
I swallowed again. Why was she making me say it again? “He fired me. I woke up this morning to find that he’d left without telling me. When I called him, he had his manager tell me that he, quote, ‘won’t be needing my services anymore.’ ” I forced a weak smile, but I knew Abigail saw right through it.
“Did something happen?” Her tears had dried up, and there was an angry spark in her gaze.
I needed to shift this conversation. This was not the direction that I wanted it to go in. I didn’t want to dissect what happened between Liam and me because I knew, no matter what I said, Abigail was going to hate him. And even though I was so desperately trying to hate him myself, I still wanted to protect him from my sister’s wrath. She didn’t know him like I did.
“Not really…” I started out, but from the intent way that Abigail was staring at me, I knew she wouldn’t be satisfied with that answer. I took in a deep breath, and I told her everything. I told her about how kind Liam had been to me. How sweet he was with Samuel. I told her about Katie showing up and what she wanted. I told her about how lost Liam seemed and how happy he’d made me. The only thing I didn’t tell her was that he was Drifter.
That was a secret I would keep no matter how much he hurt me.
When I finished, Abigail just sat there with her back resting against the chair and her arms folded. Her eyes were wide, and I could see her digesting the story in real time. I wasn’t sure if I should keep talking, or let my words linger. I finally settled on just waiting until Abigail spoke first.
“Wow.” She paused. “Do you think he’s getting back with his ex?”
Her question startled me even though I knew it shouldn’t. Deep down, I knew that was a possibility and the rational side of my brain told me that I should be happy if that were the case. After all, Ana deserved to have her parents together. Liam should do everything in his power to heal his little family. But that didn’t mean it hurt any less to think about it.
“I hope so,” I lied.
Abigail glanced over at me. Her head was slightly tilted, and her lips were drawn into a flat line. Her expression said, “liar.” Leave it to my sister to see right through me. I was lying, but that was all I could do. Liam was gone. My only option was to pick up the pieces of my life and move forward.
It was what Samuel deserved. It was what I needed.
Abigail didn’t change her expression, but thankfully, she didn’t say anything. Instead, she just pulled me into a hug once more and told me that she was thankful I was home.
Samuel’s wail sounded from the bedroom. We both jumped up and, within seconds, Liam and what had happened between us was a distant memory. Abigail went into auntie mode as she hurried to her room and scooped him up. She showered him with kisses, telling him how much she missed him. Then she glared at me and made me swear on the spot that I would never take him away again. She declared Liam dead to our family, and she promised never to speak his name again.
I smiled and nodded even though I was dying inside. I’d fallen in love with Liam, and I doubted he would ever be dead to me. No matter how hard I tried to forget him, I feared he was always going to be a part of me.
Forever.
25
LIAM
“Stop, stop, stop,” Bonnie yelled as she emerged from offstage with her hands up and a clipboard pinched between her ribcage and her right arm.
Each band member slowly stopped playing at different times as she marched up to me.
“What the hell, Liam?” she asked, her voice low. Her gaze was on fire as she stared at me.
I dropped my arms to my sides. The mic made a scratching noise as it hit my jeans. My shoulders slouched with dejection as I glared at her. This rehearsal sucked. Fading Atlas sucked. Living my life without Sabrina sucked.
“I don’t want to be here,” I said, matter-of-factly. I glanced around at the auditorium and sighed. I hated Seattle. I hated the Climate Pledge Arena. I hated my situation.
I wanted to be happy. I wanted to care about my performance for the band’s sake. I wanted to forget the one woman who kept invading my thoughts no matter what I did. But all of my wanting was in vain.
I was in love with a woman I couldn’t have. With a woman who should hate my guts right now. I was attempting to live my life post-Sabrina, but it was impossible.
My couch and a six-pack of beer was calling my name, and it was getting harder and harder to ignore it.
Maybe if I just walked off, I’d finally be fired.
