AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She was the truth that might set him free.
13
Callie
Callie examined the flight requests and shook her head.
She leaned to Liam. “I’m sorry, but our request for immediate departure has been denied. If we want to put in a rush request, it’s another $10,000.”
Sam leaned back in his chair, crossing his hands behind his head, and then dropped one behind Meg’s chair. “Screw that! You’re here. Tomorrow will be sunny. I can take you on a little tour of my town.” Sam struck Callie as the real player in the family.
Liam had been quiet after returning to the table. She’d heard him greet Trent on the phone, and the curiosity inside of her was bubbling like a hot spring. She wouldn’t ask. It wasn’t her business.
“I’d love that.” Meg stood. “I was thinking of exploring the resort a little. You wanna?—”
“Definitely. I could use the exercise.” Sam joined Meg, sliding his chair in.
Cancer presented in different ways, and from experience, men tended to fight in their own way, but Sam seemed to be more energetic than even Callie’s father had attempted on a good day.
“See you later, bro.” Sam chin jerked to Liam, but Liam said nothing. His own world seemed to cocoon him. Something was off, but Callie wasn’t sure she should ask. Maybe just spending time together would flesh out what had happened on the phone.
They were alone. But she didn’t feel lonely.
“You want to go see about that movie?” Callie asked.
“I don’t think I’m in the right mood, Callie. Plus, not sure that’s a great place for us to be.”
Callie understood. It would be like walking back into a memory.
“Okay, how about?—”
“I think I’ll just go back to my room and get some rest. It’s been a long day.” He pushed back from the table. “I’m sorry about earlier, but I’m just in a shitty place right now.”
“You want to talk about it?”
She could see him fighting with himself. He stood, and she matched the move.
“Liam, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about Trent, but I have to be honest, I’m not sure it should matter.”
“Everything matters, Callie. It’s just whether it’s of importance to someone.”
She reached for his hand. “You said you could be my friend. I can be your friend, too.”
It wouldn’t be enough, but she could pretend. She was good at pretending to be a guy’s friend when her heart went down a different path.
His gaze came up, and that blue lit a part of her soul on fire.
“Liam?” Callie’s head tipped as the blue got a little darker. “Are you okay?”
“I need a drink.”
“I can have a drink, since we won’t be leaving until Friday now.”
“My place or yours?”
“Yours, please. I had the resort clean out our mini bar because Meg could drink us out of profits.”
He started off, and she stayed back a little. How his head hung a little and his shoulders rolled forward dug into her. It couldn’t all be about what happened in the movie theatre. Whatever Trent had said, Callie imagined it had half-truths and partial lies. The man could take a person down quickly with his twisting of words. It was a talent that didn’t need to go on his resume.
