“Cancel your Uber.” I repeat, my arms remaining crossed and my eyes still firmly fixed on hers. “Cancel it now, and then, I’ll grant you your wish.”
“Grant me my wish.” She mutters underneath her breath, glaring at me hard as she furiously types into her phone. “Please. The only wish I want granted is to undo all of this.” She shoves her phone back into her pocket, and huffs again. “There, it’s done. Now spill it, Worth. My patience is running thin.”
I can’t even keep the smile from tugging at the corner of my lips. Everything may have changed, and we may have fast forwarded six years, but Abby’s accident wasn’t enough to take her personality away. She’s still the exact same person. A head injury wasn’t enough to take her smart mouth away.
And, as much as her attitude drives me crazy, I’m so fucking happy to see it.
“Drink.” I hand Abby the large coffee, made exactly the way that she used to love it, and then pull out of the coffee shop drive thru line, and motor down the street towards her hotel. “That’s got enough caffeine in it to ward off another migraine. Trust me, I know. I’ve been hit in the head enough times that I shouldn’t even be able to remember how to tie my own shoes. I can get one hell of a headache, and that cup right there is always the sure fire fix.”
She takes a long sip, and then relaxes back against the seat in my truck.
“Thanks.”
She falls silent, staring out of the window and taking long sips of her coffee, before finally, her voice fills up the cab of my truck.
“So, you’re a boxer, yeah?”
I nod.
“Yeah. Basically. I’m an MMA fighter, although, I haven’t fought in almost two years. I hit the circuits really hard for four years, made enough money to live comfortably, and then bought my gym. I do a lot more training now than my own fighting. I love fighting, don’t get me wrong, but it just wasn’t really conducive to my lifestyle.”
“Lifestyle?” I’m met with a curiously raised eyebrow. “Please, elaborate.”
“I have full custody of my younger sister. I mean, technically, she’s an adult now. She just turned eighteen. But she’s a senior in high school, so it’s not like she’s able to move out on her own. Not that I’d let her, at least. Traveling around the country for fights was tough for me, because it meant pulling B out of school, or scrambling to find sitters. I did it because I had to, but now, I don’t. I’m more content to stay home and keep her on the straight. Plus, I’m able to help a lot of kids from my old neighborhood find an outlet. Paying it forward, so to speak. My trainer, Rex, did that for me growing up. He saw desperation in me and gave me a fighting chance. There’s still a lot of kids around here growing up exactly the same way that I did. Absent parents, responsibilities that they aren’t prepared for. I’m giving them hope and teaching them how to survive. That’s more my calling then fighting ever was.”
Abby’s quiet, sipping her coffee, and weighing my words. I know she has a million more questions. I can basically see the wheels turning in her head. But she doesn’t ask anymore.
I pull up in front of her hotel, leaving my car idling at the curb. She doesn’t make a move to exit my car, for which I’m grateful. As much as having her show back up into my life put it in a tailspin, still. I’m nowhere near ready to let her walk away.
“I know that you want to hear our story.” I turn my body towards her, leveling my eyes with hers. “But I saw how hard it was for you last night to piece together other people’s accounts of things. I could tell you my memories, but honestly, those would just be mine. If you’ll let me, I’d rather just show you. That way, the memories can be yours.”
She blinks, staring at me with her wide, beautiful eyes. Her face immediately softens, and for the first time since she barged back into my life, I see that old familiar flame flicker beneath her baby blues. My girl. She’s still in there. And I’m so fucking happy to see it.
“Yes,” she breathes, her hand falling onto my wrist, squeezing just once, but it’s enough to send shivers down my entire spine. “Yes, Liam. That sounds fantastic.”
“Ok then. It’s a deal.” Her entire body relaxes, and she reaches for the door handle. My hand flies out, grabbing ahold of her elbow, and keeping her in place. “On one condition, though, Abby.”
“Condition?” She blinks in confusion.
“Yes.” My face turns grim. “My instincts are telling me that the story you told me, isn’t really what happened to you.”
I hate how her face falls and how her breath catches. I hate the look of fear that overtakes the fire that was just a few seconds ago, simmering beneath the surface.
I might be wrong, and dammit, I hope that I am. But my gut is telling me that someone hurt Abby, and tried to cover it up, to make it look like an accident. And if that’s true, if someone did hurt her, then they’re going to have to deal with the devil. And the devil is me.
“Liam…that’s insane.”
“I need you to trust me.” It’s idiotic of me to even ask for her trust. I don’t deserve it. I certainly never did. But I’m man enough now to protect her trust, and even more, protect her heart. I just need her to give me one chance. And this time, I’m going to prove myself worthy.
“I…” her voice trails off. She looks torn. Confused. My heart aches for her, not knowing who she is, and surely not knowing who she can trust.
“What does your gut say, Abby?” I grab ahold of her hand, the feeling of her skin on mine almost unbearable. Touching her was always like touching a live current. We were so meant to be, so electrically charged for each other, so absolutely perfectly matched, that it seemed impossible that we wouldn’t have ended with forever.
But the timing just wasn’t right. Maybe it never will be, but that doesn’t mean that I’m not going to do everything in my power to keep this girl safe. She’s my heart, the part of my heart that walks around outside of my body. And I know that she still feels it, too.
“I don’t know. It’s hard to tell, honestly.” She casts her eyes down. “But I know that I feel safe with you.”
Her words are perfection to my ears. I cut the engine and crank open my door, taking wide strides over to her side of the vehicle. I open the passenger side door with one thrust, and then reach down, taking her hand in mine and lifting her out of the vehicle.
“That’s all I needed to hear. I’ll come in with you, make sure your room is secure, and then you’re packing your shit, and moving into my guestroom.”
“Liam!” She gasps. “I can’t do that. I mean, that’s insane. This hotel is perfectly…”
“Perfectly unsafe. The only way I know how to keep you safe, is to keep you by my side, Abby. And meanwhile, I’ll show you our story, alright? You give me your trust, I give you our story. That’s the deal.”
We stand like this, on the sidewalk in front of a busy hotel, with snow falling all around us, staring into each other’s eyes. I’m not budging, not until I get a final answer out of her. But then, all of the pieces fall into place, exactly as they always should have.
“Ok.” She shrugs, a hesitant smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. “My gut is telling me to trust you, so…”
“So, in return, you get our story.” My eyes lock with hers. “I’ll tell you what you want to know, Abby. I can’t promise you that it’s going to be what you want to hear, but I’ll show you how we came to be.”
“I’m positive that I’m not going to like what I hear.” Something inside of me shifts at the look in her eyes. When her teeth find her lower lip, and she begins to nibble on it, I can tell immediately that she’s nervous for what she’s about to learn.
“Obviously, I know that we didn’t work out, so I think that you’re going to walk me right back through getting my heart broken.”
Mine too, babe. Mine fucking too.
10
Abby
A few hours later, I’m showered, well caffeinated, and the few bags of belongings that I brought with me are tucked securely i
nside of Liam’s guest room. I’m once again in the passenger seat of his truck as he drives me further out of town. I’m a little bit nervous, the closer that we get to my parents’ house.
Here I am, worried about the new me being true to my word, when in all reality, I lied right to both of their faces, and told them that I was going to try yet another four week brain camp. I guess, in a way, it wasn’t a total lie…after all, I’m here to learn about my past. It’s just a wee bit different than the way that I had told them I would be trying to discover myself.
This is definitely the craziest option that I could have picked. I mean, seriously. I’m trusting a man who I don’t know, based off of a letter that he wrote to me years ago. He could be the most dangerous person, and I could have very well walked right into his trap. I just don’t think that’s the case, though. Sure, his eyes are brooding, his demeanor is cocky, and he’s bossy as hell. But buried underneath all of that, is goodness.
I see it inside of him, even though he tries to hide it. That much is obvious, even to me. I mean, he is raising his little sister, for fuck’s sake.
How bad can the guy be?
“Tell me about your family.” I break the silence, turning towards him, and studying his silhouette as we motor down the road. Good god, the man is so gorgeous. I can’t believe that I used to have that body wrapped around mine. I mean, at least I think I did.
Hell, I fucking hope that I did. I hope that I got to use his body as my own personal playground. If our story doesn’t include that, I’m going to be very disappointed in my past tense self.
“My family?” He glances at me for only a second, before turning his eyes back on the road. “There’s not really much to tell. My family consists of just my younger brother, Luke, and my sister, Bianca. Our parents both died when we were little. I don’t have any grandparents or aunts and uncles. My siblings and I grew up getting bounced around from one shitty foster home to the next. It was fine for a while, because I was there and able to keep them safe. Mostly B, though. Luke was old enough to protect himself. But some of those foster parents…” His grip on the steering wheel becomes so tight, that his knuckles turn white. “Let’s just say, there are some dirty motherfuckers out there, dressing up as saints. I’d have died before I let one of those dirtballs get his hands on my baby sister. Once I turned eighteen, I aged out of care. The only choice that I had to keep her safe, was to take on full custody of the two of them. Shit was a struggle, to say the least. That’s how I started fighting to begin with.” He shrugs, as if what he told me is no big deal. In fact, it’s the biggest deal of all.
“I was already used to fighting. Getting paid to do it seemed like a no brainer. We had a few really tough years, while I was working on getting myself to the professional level. But then, things all fell into place, just like they were supposed to. Luke followed in my footsteps, and now, is an even better fighter than I ever was, even at my prime. He helps out at our gym when he’s not on the road fighting. Bianca’s smart as hell. She’s her classes Valedictorian.” He beams with pride. “She came out of a seriously shitty childhood completely unscathed. She sees the world as good and has a solid future in front of her. She’s got a full ride next year to Indiana State. I’m super fucking proud of her.”
“You sound like a pretty amazing guy, Liam Worth,” I tell him honestly. His entire body stills.
“You shouldn’t be so quick to pass judgement on people, Abs.” His nickname for me catches me off guard. I haven’t heard him call me anything other than Abby yet. He does it so naturally, so nonchalant, that I don’t even think that he realizes that he did it. At least, not until I mention it.
“You called me Abs.” I study him. “Is that what you used to call me?”
He snickers, and then turns his truck into the parking lot of a park sitting directly on the water.
“Mostly, I called you a pain in the ass.” His arrogant smirk is back in place. “But yeah, the rest of the time, you were just Abs.”
My eyes narrow, but I can’t find it in me to be irritated. Maybe I was a giant pain in the ass back then. I suppose in a way, I still am. After all, he didn’t ask me to show up on his doorstep. He didn’t invite me back into his life, six years after I left it. I’m the one who burst back in, demanding answers.
I suppose the old me and the new me have a lot in common. Not only with my attitude, but also with my taste in men. I mean, hello? Liam Worth is smoking fucking hot. Old me had chosen wisely, that’s for damn sure.
We park, but Liam keeps the engine idling. He points to a bench sitting on the boardwalk that borders the lake. “See that bench right there?” I follow his finger, my eyes settling on the single, desolate bench that sits on a small, cement pad, in front of the break wall.
“That was your spot. You stopped at it almost daily. You’d go there when you were having a bad day, or even when you were having a good one. It’s the very first place that I saw you. I came to this park often, but I’d always come in on the other side. The side that borders my part of town. One day, though, I had a lot on my mind, and needed to burn off some steam. I jogged this entire strip. That was the day that I laid eyes on you the first time.”
He isn’t looking at me, just focusing his eyes straight ahead. I too, am staring at the bench, aching to remember this place, and what it used to mean to me. Without another word, I feel myself moving towards it. The snow is falling hard outside, and the temperature is frigid. With every step that I take towards the bench, the temperature only drops.
I slip and slide through the snow, until finally, the bench is underneath me. I breathe in deep, letting the scent of the water mixed with the blowing snow invade my senses. I close my eyes and imagine what it must have been like for me to sit here and let all of my problems just dissipate. No memory comes, but a peace falls over me, as if all that my subconscious needed was to be here, to finally relax.
I sit for a while, not even bothered by the cold, until finally, I hear Liam’s voice behind me.
“Has anyone ever told you, that you are the most beautiful creature on this Earth?”
I turn, finding Liam standing just a few feet behind me. His eyes are dark and fixed on mine. The heat from his body crashes into me, instantly warming me and causing my breath to leave my mouth in a rush. My cheeks flush, and my heart races a bit faster in my chest. I stand suddenly, turning towards him. Instinctively, I smile.
“Honestly, I don’t think so.”
“Well, then, it’s about time that you heard it. What is your name, beautiful?”
I pause, just long enough, that Liam takes a step towards me, and sinks down next to me.
“You told me that your name was Abigail, but that all of your friends called you Abby.”
He stares out at the water, a wistful smile on his lips.
“I called you Abby, and then you immediately corrected me. You reminded me that your friends called you Abby, and that I wasn’t your friend.”
“That was mean of me.” I chuckle softly, still not gaining his attention. His eyes remain fixed forward.
“I told you that was alright with me, because I had no intention of being just your friend. I knew right then and there that you were going to be my everything. I told you that.” His eyes finally swing toward me, and the air stills between us. “I told you that you were going to be my everything, and that I was going to be everything to you. I also told you that I planned on taking all of your firsts. I made good on that part.”
“Oh, thank God.” I breathe a sigh of relief. Liam raises a brow in question.
“I was honestly worried that our love story didn’t involve sex.” I feel my face redden as Liam snorts. “I mean, we were young and all, so I didn’t know. I’m really glad that we did, ah…” Liam’s face is now in a full blown, cocky grin. He rolls his eyes at me, and then leans back on the bench.
“Yeah, Abs. We had sex, alright? A lot of sex. In fact,” a devilish smile replaces the cocky grin, and he leans towards me, nud
ging me gently with his shoulder, “we actually did it right here, a time or two.”
“Right here?” My eyes are wide. I glance around the park, a blush spreading across my cheeks, knowing that I not only had sex with this gorgeous man, but I also did it on a park bench, in a public park.
Old me was freaking wild.
“Well, yeah. Right here.” He points down to the bench. When he nods his head towards the break wall, my face becomes so hot that I swear, the snowflakes sizzle as they fall onto my skin. “Right there too. I bent you over those bars more than once. Also, right over there…” as he points down the boardwalk, I hold up my hand.
“Alright. I get the picture.” The tension between us immediately dissolves. “We had a lot of sex. I’d really love to keep my dignity though, so can you please tell me that we at least didn’t do it on the first day?”
Liam’s laughter is a beautiful sound. It’s one that I haven’t heard yet, and honestly, it’s pretty spectacular.
“We definitely didn’t do it on the first day,” he assures me, and I feel myself start to relax.
“We did it on the second day.”
“Oh my God.” I hang my head in my hands. “We had sex on the second date.” I feel ashamed, even though I can’t remember it. It sounds so different than the story that Max told me, about how we began dating. According to him, we didn’t sleep together until after months of dating. And here, Liam is, telling me that my eighteen year old self gave up her virginity on date number two.
“Basically.” Liam shrugs, and then begins to stand. “Anyhow, that’s enough of memory lane today. We should probably get going. The snow’s going to start to get really bad soon.”
Worth Repeating (Worth It All Book 1) Page 8
