Liam

by Alexis Winter

  Our eyes lock from across the club as if he sees me and his lips twitch like he’s going to smile, but then his eyes fall to the guy who still has his hands on me, and his face tightens up like it’s made of stone. His jaw flexes and his chest puffs-out.

  I step away from the guy I’m dancing with, making my way toward him. The guy yells from behind me, but I don’t turn back. He’s not the one my body longs for.

  Liam watches me with his eyes darkening as I walk closer, but before I can reach him, a tall woman with giant boobs and sleek, straight blonde hair steps up to his side. She places her hand on his stomach and looks up at him as she is saying something.

  I freeze as he tears his eyes away from mine and looks down at her to reply. Without another look back, they walk away together, across the club and up the stairs to the VIP section. I feel my heart crack, and everything goes silent. He does have a girlfriend.

  Once they’re no longer in view, I turn and grab Amy by the wrist, spinning her around to face me. “Hey, you done dancing?”

  “Liam is here. With his girlfriend,” I add on.

  Her eyes double in size. “Are you serious? Where?” She stands on her toes, looking over the crowd.

  I motion with my eyes up to the second story. “Up there. In the VIP section.”

  “Ugh, what an asshole. I can’t believe he’s been leading you on this whole time.” She shoves a drink in my hand and takes a sip of her own.

  “Did you know he was here in San Diego?”

  I take a long drink. “No idea.”

  A look of wicked amusement crosses her face. “Well, two can play that game.”

  “What does that mean?” I feel my face scrunch up in confusion.

  “He’s here with her, making you jealous. Go back to your guy and make him jealous.”

  “No,” I shake my head. “I can’t do that.” I take another drink. “Can I?”

  “I would.” She smiles.

  I quickly finish off my drink and find the guy I was dancing with. “Sorry for walking off and leaving you hanging. I just… needed a minute.”

  He grins. “That’s okay. I’d wait for you all night.” He reaches out and takes my hand, pulling me back to the dance floor.

  I wrap my arms around his neck and move my hips against his. His hands rest on my hips, squeezing them as he rubs against me. As the music changes from one song to the next, I spin around, putting my back to his chest as I continue to move.

  “You’re sexy. You know that?” he whispers in my ear.

  I look over my shoulder at him, giving him a shy smile, but when I turn my head back around, my eyes land on Liam’s. He’s at the bar, watching me dance with another man. Instead of walking over to him, I turn around and wrap my arms back around Dillion’s neck. He wraps his hands around my lower back, pulling me closer.

  “You busy later tonight?” he asks.

  Before I can reject his invitation, he’s being pulled away and Liam’s taking his place in front of me. He looks down at me with his eyes darkening and pulls me against his chest while moving along with the music.

  “What are you doing here, Ves?” he asks casually.

  If he can act nonchalant after what happened between us, then I can too. “Just a little getaway weekend with Amy. You?”

  “Why are you trying to make me jealous?” His voice is low and deep, and his dark eyes lock on mine, burning with anger and jealously.

  “You kissed me and then ran off without an explanation. Then you show up with another girl, but I’m making you jealous?”

  “It’s not what you think,” he clips out.

  “Really? Care to explain?” I stop dancing and so does he, but he doesn’t pull away.

  “I will, but not now. I have to go.” His eyes quickly flash over to the stairs where I assume blondie is.

  Without warning, he closes the distance between us, pressing his hot mouth against mine. His hands tangle into my hair, keeping me close while his hot tongue dives inside my mouth and twists with my own. I’m completely lost in this kiss, forgetting that he’s here with another girl, forgetting about the guy I was dancing with, forgetting everything… but him.

  He breaks the kiss but looks into my eyes while his hands stay tangled in my hair. “Come to the ranch on Monday. We’ll talk then.” Without another word, he releases me and walks away.

  I stand there unmoving, breathless from that kiss and trying to let my heart calm down. When I turn away and look up at the stairs, he’s walking up with the other woman. His hand is on her lower back as he guides her up. He looks over at me and our eyes lock. But he turns his head and continues his journey.

  16

  Amy and I spend all of Saturday laying on the beach and drinking strawberry daiquiris. We sleep late into Sunday, and then board our plane, not arriving back home until Sunday night. By the time I get home, I’m so tired from all the drinking and traveling that I don’t do anything but shower and sleep.

  I wake up Monday morning feeling energized and ready for the day. I look forward to getting work done, so I can go out to the ranch and find out exactly what Liam has to say. His behavior is confusing me. He kisses me, then leaves. He shows up with another woman but finds me to tell me it’s not what I think and kisses me again. It leaves me wondering if the woman he was with, really his super model girlfriend or maybe she was just a family member or someone he works with. They never really touched inappropriately. After that last kiss and having to wait days for an explanation, I’m amped up. I’ve thought of him all weekend, and at least one hundred different scenarios have run through my head.

  I quickly feed Ace and head out the door. As I walk into the clinic, the waiting room is full of people patiently waiting with their pets. “Good morning, everyone. Let me set my things down and I’ll be right with you,” I say, walking through the waiting room and behind the counter toward my office.

  I turn on my office light and put my things behind my desk. As I pull on my white coat, I start up the computer. Amy pops her head in. “Hey, you have several emails from people wanting to fill your position. What’s up with that?”

  I pull my hair out of the back of my jacket and turn toward her. “I told Liam I would take the full-time vet position until Lucy gave birth and he could find someone else. It will only be for a few months.”

  “I can’t believe you’re ready to leave your own business to help him out, Ves. What the hell!?”

  “I’m not leaving. I’ll still come in and manage the clinic. It’s good money, Aims. I mean, a lot of money. I could open five more clinics by the time that horse delivers.”

  She rolls her eyes and leaves my office without another word. I follow her back into the waiting room. “Okay, who’s first?” I ask, looking around the room.

  A woman with short dark hair raises her hand.

  “Right this way.”

  She stands up, picking up a small plastic tank that holds a rat.

  My eyes dilate, just from thinking about having to touch that thing.

  I love animals. All animals. But some are better when I don’t have to touch them.

  When the day is over, I rush out to the car and make the trip to the ranch. When I pull in the drive, Liam’s shiny red sports car is there waiting, like I hoped it would be. Instead of tracking him down, I head into the barn and over to Lucy’s stall.

  “Hi, girl. How are you feeling today?” I hold out my hand and she brushes against it with her nose.

  There’s a basket of carrots sitting on the hay bales. I grab one, feeding it to her while I run my hand over her head and down her mane.

  “You must be Ves,” a woman says.

  I turn my head toward the front of the barn and see the blonde woman from last weekend. Her long, blonde hair is straight and sleek, hanging half way down her back, and she’s wearing a tight red dress that hugs her curves and showcases every asset. Her makeup is flawless, and her body is adorned with diamonds; earrings, necklace, rings, and bracelets. Immediately, I
know that she must be the supermodel girlfriend. Nobody else would be able to afford the look she’s styling.

  I step down from the gate and nod my head while taking a few steps toward her. “I am. And you are?”

  She smiles and holds out her hand to shake. “I’m Tessa St. Claire, Liam’s girlfriend.” She shakes my hand and my blood runs cold.

  “I’ve heard a lot of nice things about the work you’re doing with the animals,” she says as she pulls her hand away.

  “That’s nice. I haven’t heard a thing about you.” I know I’m being rude, but how could anyone expect me to be nice to her? I step back up on the gate and pet Lucy, hoping she gets the hint that I don’t want to talk and goes away.

  She lets out a soft giggle instead of getting offended. “Well, that’s probably because Liam doesn’t talk much with the help. Plus, he’s almost never here. We spend most of our time in California.” She leans her back against the gate I’m standing on.

  I look down at her brown eyes. I can see the anger and jealously burning bright in them. I want to say something else, but at the same time, I don’t want to give her any firepower, so I keep my mouth shut.

  “Hopefully we won’t be here much longer anyway. I’ve finally talked Liam into selling this dump. He really doesn’t need the stress of it. He’s already got his hands full with running his company.”

  I can’t keep my mouth closed any longer. “He’s selling the ranch?” I quickly look back down at her.

  She smiles wide and looks up at me. “That’s right. I hope you have another job lined up. I can’t guarantee that the new owners will keep you on.”

  I step down, leaning in closer to her. “I run my own practice. I don’t need this job. I was only doing it because Liam begged me several times to take it.” I step back and slide my hands into my back pockets. “He just couldn’t bear to see me go.” I smile and shrug before walking out of the barn and getting into my car.

  I turn over the engine and hit the gas with a little too much force, anger surging through me. I can’t believe this. Liam is selling the ranch? Is that what he wanted to talk to me about today? If it is, I’m glad I didn’t see him. He’s been doing nothing but lying to me from day one. He never mentioned he had a girlfriend, for one. And he’s always claimed to love the ranch. Why would he sell it?

  Does he love her so much that he would sell his family’s ranch? He can’t love her if he’s been making out with me. Or maybe, this is exactly what Tyler was warning me about. He is a playboy. She has his heart and I’m just some broke country girl that he plays around with in his spare time.

  When I get back into town, I need to let off some steam. But I don’t go to Amy to hear her say, I told you so. I swing by the local bar and order drink after drink, in an attempt to wash him down and these past couple months from my mind.

  The week passes by slowly. So slow. Every day I have to force myself to live my life. I get up, go to work, and come home to lay on the couch and ignore the rest of the world. Liam still plagues my mind endlessly. Every time he slips through, I bite the inside of my cheek to try and train myself to stop thinking about him. He hasn’t made any attempts to see me or ask why I haven’t been at the ranch to do my job. It only leads me to believe that he never had any real interest in me at all.

  Anger and annoyance are the only things I’ve felt this week. And it’s heavy. It puts me in a bad mood and I’m short tempered. Nothing can keep my interest long. Not even my favorite tv shows. My mind is just an endless swirl of thoughts.

  My phone rings from beside me and I sit up on the couch to answer it, thinking it’s probably Amy because she’s been relentless this week. She knows something happened to upset me, but I haven’t opened up to her about it. It’s embarrassing, and I’d rather try and forget about it than to understand it.

  “Hello?” I answer, without looking at the caller ID, instead, keeping my eyes on the tv.

  “Ves?” Liam asks.

  I take a deep breath to try and simmer down the anger that’s boiling over. “Yes?”

  “Is everything okay? I haven’t seen you all week. I’m worried.” His deep voice is sexy and causes my skin to prickle with goosebumps. My heart picks up, beating faster from hearing my name fall from his lips. In my head, I’m pissed at him. Apparently, my body didn’t get the memo.

  “Everything is fine. Listen, Liam. I’m not going to be able to take that position after all. I just can’t leave my practice. But I do have several interviews lined up. I can forward you their information if you’d like to interview them yourself.”

  “Oh?” He sounds disappointed. “Ves, I don’t understand. I thought you wanted the position?”

  “Listen, Liam. I have to go. I’ll forward you my top picks. Okay?” Even I can hear the hurt in my voice.

  “Okay. If that’s what you want, Ves.”

  “Goodbye, Liam.” I hang up the phone without another word. My eyes fill up with tears, but I don’t let them fall. I’m annoyed with myself for getting in this to begin with. I didn’t want a relationship. So, why do I feel so let down? Why is this bothering me as much as it is? We kissed two times. He never confessed his love for me. He never even said that he liked me. The only thing he did was, led me to believe that there could be more between us, and kept me on the hook like Amy said. Typical playboy fashion.

  17

  The week passes by and I forward all potential candidates over to Liam’s email, so he can go through them and hire someone directly. I finally realized my mistake; I subconsciously got my hopes high about Liam. It’s nobody’s fault but my own. I didn’t want a relationship, I should have reminded myself of that when I felt myself get close to him. He wormed his way into my life, and left me hanging, filled with holes.

  Instead of thinking about him and the ways I messed up, I keep myself busy with work. I go in early and stay late. I put more time at the animal shelter and spend almost every night with my family. If I keep myself busy, I don’t even think of him. It’s when I lay down at night that he slithers into my thoughts.

  It’s going on nine p.m. when I leave my parents’ house and walk into my apartment. I feed Ace, then take a long, hot shower. When I step out, I quickly brush my hair, leaving it wet and hanging down my back. I wrap my towel tighter around myself and step out of the bathroom to find some comfy clothes in my room when someone knocks on the door.

  Thinking that it’s Amy stopping by, to talk me into going out with her, since it’s Friday night. I open the door with my mouth open, preparing to tell her no, but freeze when my eyes land on Liam.

  His blue eyes look me up and down. Suddenly, he reaches for me, his hands wrapping around my waist as he pulls me against him where his lips meet mine. His tongue slides into my mouth as he takes a step forward and forces me to take one backward. One of his hands leaves my hip, running up my body to cup my cheek and hold me to him. He kicks the front door shut with his foot, and the second it slams, I push him away.

  “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I yell, wiping my mouth to get the taste of him off my lips. My body wants to keep going, but no way will I let myself get attached to him again. I’m almost back to normal. I just got my thoughts back.

  “Tyler told me what happened,” he admits.

  “What?” My brows scrunch together as I study him. I suddenly realize that I’m only wearing a towel and my hand comes up to the top, holding it so it doesn’t slip and fall away.

  “I broke up with Tessa a week before we even kissed. I went there that weekend to pick up my belongings from her apartment, and she cried. I felt bad for breaking her heart, and that’s when she talked me into going out for dinner, so we could talk.” The words are rushing from his mouth like a dam broke.

  “I don’t want to hear it, Liam.” I close my eyes and rub my temples.

  “Please, let me finish.” His blue eyes are pleading with me, and I can’t deny him.

  “During dinner, she said she didn’t want to talk yet, just wan
ted one last normal meal to share and we ended up running into old friends that invited us to the club. I didn’t want to go, but she was relentless. So, I gave in, just so I could get it over with and leave. When I saw you there, you took my breath away. I thought I was dreaming. I never expected to run into you there. Then when I saw the guy you were dancing with—when I saw his hands on you instead of mine, I knew you were the one I wanted. I left and came back here, but she followed me. I didn’t know you came by the ranch. I didn’t know you met her or that she talked to you.” His blue eyes are wide with fear and anger. Is he afraid that he’s lost me? Is he angry at me or with her?

  “Tyler was out back of the barn and heard your whole conversation. He was pissed when he heard that I was selling the ranch. He thought I was just going to fire him without any notice. He didn’t tell me about it until today, when he told me he found another job. I was completely surprised. I have no intentions of selling the ranch, and then suddenly, our phone conversation made sense. I didn’t know why you changed your mind about the job. I thought you had changed your mind about me. If I had known sooner, it wouldn’t have taken me this long to come. I thought you were done with me.”

  I take a deep breath and look up at his blue eyes, and the way his chest is heaving. He looks so nervous, like he’s standing on the edge of a cliff, preparing to jump. “So, you’re not with her anymore?” I ask, leaning against the counter.

  He shakes his head. “I haven’t been with Tessa in weeks.”

  “And you’re not selling the ranch?”

  He takes a step closer and shakes his head again.

  “What do you want from me, Liam?” I’m holding on to the counter, my fingers wrapping around it for dear life. I’m not sure if I’m holding myself up or holding myself back. Either way, I’m holding on and not letting go.

  “I want you, Ves.” He takes another step. “You’re beautiful, and kind, and smart. You love the same things as I do. When I’m with you, I’m the man I want to be. I’m not billionaire CEO of O’Connor Oil. I’m not Hollywood’s most eligible bachelor. I’m just me. I’m Liam, the man that wants a simple life of running a ranch with a beautiful veterinarian that deserves more than I could ever offer.”