“Yoo-hoo! Liam! Oh, lovely!” My mother calls out, sashaying toward us. She leaves behind a group of socialites and flashes a brilliant smile at us. “And who have we here?” She throws me an approving look, arching her eyebrows and dipping her chin down. I hate that it makes me happy. I wish I didn’t crave her approval.
“Mother, this is Ashley King. Ash, this is my mother, Geraldine.”
“Call me Mrs. Maguire, please,” my mother smiles.
Ashley laughs and then stutters. “Alright, yeah. Okay.” My mother waves us toward a group of people and starts walking. Ashley leans into me. “Don’t people usually say that the other way around? Like, ‘hey, skip the formalities, call me Gerry?’”
I grin. “Still enjoying walking around my childhood brain?”
“Poor little Liam,” she grins.
I introduce her to my father and his business partner, and then the wives of every single member of the golf club—or at least that’s what it feels like. Harriet, the old minx, leans in close and feels my bicep for a bit too long. After a few minutes, I finally manage to pull Ashley away.
“Come on, I’ll show you the grounds.”
“Mm, yes, the grounds,” she says, waving her hand across the estate. “I also grew up with grounds.”
I laugh and catch her hand in mine. We walk slowly, and I take her down the winding path toward the big pond where my parents keep koi fish. Music wafts down toward us, and the moon shines bright. Ashley sighs.
“It’s so beautiful here.”
“It is,” I say, turning toward her. I tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, trailing my finger along her jaw. Her eyes widen and she blinks a couple times.
“My parents like you,” I say. I drop my fingers to her neck, trailing them across her shoulder and down her arm. She gasps softly.
“Yeah?”
“Mm-hmm,” I growl. I tilt her chin up toward me, and she melts toward my body. With one hand on her chin, and the other on her hip, I pull her closer. The silky fabric of her dress crushes under my fingers as our bodies mold to each other.
She swallows, and then swipes her tongue over her lips. She tilts her head up toward me as her pupils dilate.
I’m going to kiss her. Finally, after two weeks of torture, I’m going to kiss this beautiful woman under the stars, in the most unlikely of places. Her chest presses against mine and she lets out a soft whimper as my mouth moves closer to hers.
I close my eyes, waiting to feel her perfect soft, plump lips. I’ll taste that mouth of hers and finally make her mine. I tighten my hold on her waist, pulling her close and—
Smack!
She slaps me across the face so hard I stumble backward.
“Oh, gosh, oh my goodness I’m sorry!” She exclaims, grabbing my arm.
“What the fuck?”
“I’m so sorry, Liam.” Her eyes are wide as she looks at me. “Oh, God, that’s going to leave a mark.”
“What was that for?”
She turns her palm toward me, and I see a dark smudge with a bit of blood around it. “Mosquito,” she says quietly. “I didn’t mean to hit you so hard. It wasn’t…”
She trails off, biting her lip to stop it twitching, but it’s too late. I can already see the laughter in her eyes. She starts giggling quietly, and pretty soon the two of us are doubled over with laughter.
Then, she smacks her own arm, and I feel a mosquito on my neck. I smack myself hard.
“Fuck,” I say under my breath.
“I think it’s this pond,” she says. “Do you mind if we…” She nods toward the party.
“Let’s go, I’m getting eaten alive,” I say. I smack a mosquito off her arm and she giggles again.
“I’m really sorry about that, Liam. I swear I didn’t mean to hit you that hard.”
“You don’t look very sorry.”
She bites her lip to stop herself laughing again and hooks her arm into mine. We walk back toward the lights—and mosquito repellant—of my parents’ anniversary party.
19
Ashley
I’m still giggling by the time we get back to the party. I know I completely ruined that moment, but I can’t help thinking about it, and I can’t stop laughing.
Liam’s lips are trembling, and he clears his throat to try to stop himself from smiling. His mother glides toward us and I’m still barely in control of my own laughter.
Mrs. Maguire comes to a stop in front of us and frowns when she sees Liam’s face.
“Darling, what…” She reaches up to touch the big red mark that my fingers left on his cheek and I lose it. I start laughing so hard I snort, and then that makes me laugh harder. Liam, who was doing so well to keep a straight face dissolves into a fit and has to sit down on a nearby chair.
Tears start streaming down my face and I wipe them away… along with my carefully applied makeup. I pat at my face, wiping around my eyes as I continue to laugh. Liam glances at me and then we’re laughing all over again. I snort, and his mother makes a horrified noise which only makes me laugh harder.
His mother stands in front of us with her hands on her hips, frowning.
“Did I say something?”
“No, Mrs. Maguire. It’s not you at all, it’s—” I giggle.
“Mosquitos,” Liam finishes for me, and we both laugh again. Finally, I take a deep breath and somewhat regain my composure. I’m careful to avoid Liam’s stare, because if I look at him, I might burst out laughing again.
“My makeup…” I take a deep breath. “Is there a bathroom nearby?”
“I’ll show you, dear,” his mother says. She glances at Liam once more and shakes her head, and then leads me toward the house. When she points down the hallway, she looks at me curiously.
“I haven’t seen Liam laugh like that since he was a child.”
I’m not quite sure what to say to that, so I just nod. “Oh.”
She stares at me for a few moments, and then nods toward the hallway. I duck into the bathroom and check the damage on my face.
It’s not so bad. My eyeliner is a bit smudged, but luckily, I brought it with me for touch-ups. I take my time, taking deep breaths and touching up my makeup until I look nearly put together again.
By the time I head back out to the garden—excuse me, the grounds—a photographer is setting the whole family up to take a picture near the gazebo. I hold my purse in front of me and smile as I watch Liam. I can see the frustration in his face as the photographer moves him to one side and then the other. A smile floats over my lips and I shake my head.
Mrs. Maguire spots me, and waves at me vigorously. “Come! For the pictures!”
“Oh, no thank you,” I say, shaking my head. “It such a beautiful family photo, I shouldn’t…”
“Nonsense,” she says, stomping toward me and dragging me toward the gazebo. That’s when Liam’s brother, Adrian, looks at me.
Recognition flashes across his face, and then confusion, and then anger. He glances at Liam and then at me again, and my heart starts to thump. He looks furious.
Why would he be mad that I’m here?
“Right, over here,” the photographer says, dragging me over to Liam. Liam smiles at me, shaking his head.
“Should have stayed in there for five more minutes. You almost avoided the pictures.”
“Rookie mistake. The bathroom was so nice and private.”
“I should have joined you,” he growls. His breath tickles my ear as he says the words, and a current of heat zips down my spine. My desire soaks my panties and my eyes widen as Liam pulls me close to him. I rest my hand on his chest, feeling the broad, strong muscles beneath his fine shirt. His pulse is strong, and he glances at me with a wink.
“Say cheese.”
I catch his brother’s eye right before the flash goes off. He’s glaring at me, his thick eyebrows drawn together. Then, I turn to the camera and put on my best smile.
When the photos are done, Liam leads me toward the drinks table. He puts a flut
e of champagne in my hand and grabs one for himself. Then, Adrian appears beside us.
“Little brother,” he says, his eyes dark and menacing.
Liam frowns. “Mr. Future Mayor,” he mocks. “This is Ashley. Ash, this is my brother, Adrian.”
“I need to speak to you.” Adrian doesn’t even look at me as he drags Liam away. My heart thumps, and dread knots my stomach. As inconspicuously as I can, I slide closer to them. They’re frustratingly close to the small string band, but I try to listen as best I can.
“Police Chief White… The election is in less than a month, and I can’t have anything get in the way of that.”
“Get in the way of the election? What the fuck are you talking about?”
I duck behind a tree and inch closer.
“You know how important this is. Get rid of her.”
“Fuck you, Adrian.”
“Remember where your paycheck comes from. What are you going to do if mommy and daddy cut you off?”
I stumble out from behind the tree when Liam comes marching back from the conversation. His face is dark, and his eyes are stormy.
“Hey,” I say, trotting up to him. He glances at me.
“Hey.”
“Is everything okay? What was that about?”
Liam spins toward me, his face inches from mine. “Everything’s fine.”
My eyebrows arch. “It doesn’t look fine. What’s going on?”
“Forget it. Come on, we’re leaving.”
My jaw drops, and I watch Liam stomp toward the house for a few seconds before scampering after him.
“What the heck just happened, Liam?”
He stops in his tracks and grabs my arm. “I don’t know, Ashley, you tell me.” His voice is deeper and more menacing than I’ve ever heard it before. His face is so dark that I hardly even recognize it. His eyes don’t have their usual lightness. His hand is gripping my bicep and I wince.
“You’re hurting me, Liam,” I whisper.
He drops his hand and the anger seems to fall from his face. His eyes clear and he looks at me, shaking his head.
“Fuck, I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Ash. My brother… he was saying… forget it. Let’s get out of here. These people are toxic.”
I stare at him, and all I can see is Randy. The grabbing, the apology, the blaming other people. Fear creeps into my heart and I feel like I’m on the edge of a precipice.
Am I about to make the same mistakes all over again? Have I learned nothing from marrying Randy? Have I learned nothing from his death?!
My breath catches in my throat and my lip trembles. Liam runs his fingers through his hair and looks at me with pain in his eyes.
“Can we go now? Please?”
I’ve never heard him ask for anything like that. It’s like he’s begging me, and I’m not sure if my heart is melting or if I hate every minute of it. I just nod my chin and bite my lip and follow him quietly toward the limousine.
We ride back in silence. When we stop outside my house, I clear my throat.
“I’ll have the dress dry-cleaned and bring it into the office.”
“What?” He frowns, looking at me as if I’m crazy. “No… it’s yours. Keep it.”
I open my mouth and take a breath. “I can’t, it’s too much.”
“It’s nothing.”
“Maybe to you,” I snap. Liam stares at me for a second until I can’t take it anymore. I slip out of the car and rush toward my front door, not taking a breath until I’m safely inside. I lean against the door and try to still my beating heart.
I have no idea what just happened, but whatever it was, it broke my fragile heart.
20
Liam
I know I fucked up. I could see it in Ashley’s eyes. Something changed inside her, and for the first time, I realize she’s a lot more sensitive than I thought.
When I grabbed her arm, I saw complete betrayal in her eyes. The depth of her pain was so overwhelming that it made me realize what I was doing. What’s wrong with me?
I trusted my brother’s word against hers… the brother that I know is engaging in some less than ethical negotiations with Ashley’s old boss. The boss that fired her without as much as a second thought!
And I took their side without even thinking of the beautiful, smart woman in front of me? She’s the only person that has made me laugh. The only person that has made me feel like I’m not a deadbeat jock.
I sit in the limousine for a few minutes, until the driver looks at me in the rear-view mirror.
“You ready to go, boss?”
My heart squeezes, and I take a deep breath. I’m not ready to go. I don’t want to leave things like this. I don’t want Ashley to look at me like that ever again.
She’s not like other women. Ashley is different. I take a deep breath and open the limousine door.
“Take the rest of the night off. I’ll find my own way home.”
The driver frowns. “You sure?”
“Yeah.” I shut the limo door behind me and watch him drive away. Then, I turn toward Ashley’s building. My mouth goes dry and I wipe my hands on the front of my suit. I fiddle with my hair and take a deep breath.
I’m more nervous than I was before the Heart Start race. Every step I take toward the doors makes my whole body shake. I find her name next to a buzzer and I ring it.
The seconds tick by until I hear the receiver click.
“Hello?”
“Ash, don’t hang up.” I inhale sharply. “I… I’m not sure what I’m doing here. I think I’m groveling. Can I come up, please?”
There’s a pause, and I wonder if she’s still there. Then I hear a small sigh.
“I think that’s one of the only times I’ve heard you say please.” She sighs. “Apartment 307.” And the door buzzes.
Ashley is already waiting in the doorway when I get there. She’s leaning against the door frame with her arms crossed, a fluffy bathrobe wrapped around her body.
“Didn’t take you long to get out of that dress.”
“Why are you here?”
I inhale. “Can I come in?”
Her mouth is set in a thin line and she stares at me for a second, and then steps aside to let me through. She locks the door behind me just as I hear a kettle boiling in the kitchen.
Ashley waves to the couch. “Tea? Coffee?”
“I’m good,” I say, watching her walk to the kitchen. I take a seat on her armchair and interlace my fingers as I wait for her. A spoon clinks against a mug and then Ashley reappears in the living room. Her face is drawn and her eyes are watery.
She sits down on her couch as far away from me as she can and sets her tea down on the coffee table. Then, she crosses her legs and lifts her eyes up to mine. Her eyebrow arches and she nods as if to say, speak.
I take a deep breath. “Ash, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been rude to you.”
“No, you shouldn’t have. But you were. I didn’t have to go to that party with you, you know. You asked me to accompany you. I was doing you a favor.”
“I know.” I drop my head in my hands and take a deep breath. This is all wrong. This is going all wrong! “Look,” I say, lifting my head back to look at her. “I was an asshole.”
Her eyes are hard and she scoffs. Anger flares inside me—why am I putting up with this? Why do I care?
Ashley reaches for her tea and blows on its surface. She puts it down on her knee, playing with the tea bag string as she shakes her head.
“Men are all the same,” she says, and I don’t know if she’s telling me or telling herself. “You’re angry, impulsive, violent creatures. Then, you apologize. Tears, promises, groveling.” She scoffs again, shaking her head. Her eyes drag up to mine and I see the same pain in them I saw before. “I’m not going to go through that again. I’ve seen what you are.”
“Ash…” My heart squeezes. I don’t want her to think of me like that. I lean forward in my chair but her face stays hard. “That’s not me. I… I care abo
ut you.”
“Right.” She sips her tea.
“I would never hurt you, Ashley,” I whisper. “Tonight… I wasn’t myself. My brother—”
“It’s always someone else’s fault, isn’t it?” The anger is making her shake. “It’s always someone else who provoked you, who was unreasonable, who made you do it. Is that right? Why don’t you try taking responsibility for your actions?”
She shakes her head. “I was married to a man like you, Liam. And I have no interest in going through that again. I’ll hand in my resignation tomorrow.”
She gets up and my stomach feels like I’ve just been punched.
“No!” I exclaim. “You’ve got me all wrong. Let me explain.” She stands on the other side of the couch and waits, and I take a deep breath. “My brother wants to win this election at all costs. Somehow, he found out that you were friendly with the police chief, and he tried to tell me to get rid of you. He’s got people paying into his campaign, and I think the police chief… um… wouldn’t approve. But I don’t want you to leave, Ash! You’re… you’re…”
“I’m what?”
“You’re different.”
She sighs, putting her head in her hand. She shakes her head, and when she speaks, her voice is quieter than it was before. “I’m not friendly with the police chief. If I never saw the man again, it would suit me just fine. All he does is remind me of my late husband, and I have enough scars to remember him by.”
I stand up and try to moisten my lips. Everything is shaking. It feels like I’m standing on a cliff, and one wrong word will see me tumbling down to the bottom. There’s only a couch between us, but it feels like a chasm. Slowly, I take a step toward her. When I get to the other side of the couch, her lower lip starts to tremble. I take the tea from her hands. There’s nowhere to put it, so I just set it on the floor.
Tentatively, I put my hands on her arms. She’s not looking at me, and I take a step closer. With the tips of my fingers, I tilt her chin up toward me.
“Ashley, I’m nothing like your ex-husband.” Her eyes start to mist, and her lip trembles harder. “Whatever he did to you, I will never do. I would never hurt you.”
Love/Hate: The Complete Enemies to Lovers Series Page 28
