Liam hesitated. “I just… I don’t want to be another guy she goes along with. She’s got a history of choosing people who don’t treat her right. I didn’t want her to feel like she had to say yes to something just because I wanted it.”
Zach raised a brow. “I’ll give you that, but maybe that’s how she used to be. But the Cassidy I know? She knows you hate Christmas and still parades around here full of jolly and holly like an elf at the North Pole. She knows you despise Christmas music, and she still sings carols whether you’re in the room or not.”
He leaned in slightly. “She’s not changing who she is to make you happy. She’s being herself. All she’s asking is that you accept her as is. And from the looks of things, you already have. If anyone’s not being fully honest in this equation, it might be you.”
Liam let the words settle. Zach wasn’t wrong.
Cassidy hadn’t changed, not once. Sure, there’d been that one time she’d worn a boring beige sweater, but that was it. She still showed up with tinsel tangled in her hair and glittery snowflake tattoos on her cheeks. Her Christmas sweater collection was enough to give Santa secondhand embarrassment. And despite her tiny apartment, she had three Christmas trees.
She sang “Baby It’s Cold Outside” while she stirred chocolate. She wore candy-cane-striped pajamas and, God help him, coordinating panties.
“Something tells me,” Zach said, standing up straight again, “you owe someone an apology.”
Liam exhaled, long and low, but he didn’t say a word.
Zach grinned. “Good talk, man. I’ll catch up with you later.”
Liam didn’t answer.
The bell over the door jingled behind him, but Liam stayed still, surrounded by the scent of cedar and beeswax and regret.
Outside, Cassidy had taken a step back. She was admiring her handiwork, and knowing her, she still wouldn’t think it was enough.
He opened his sketch pad. The drawing was rough but unmistakably her with eyes bright, striped scarf, and the cocoa on her cheek. He traced the corner of the page with his thumb.
It had only been a few hours, and he still missed her so much.
He kept turning things over in his head, second-guessing everything he’d said, wondering if there was any way to make things right.
FORTY-SEVEN
LIAM
Thursday, December 18th
Late that night, with the stars crowding the sky and a thin crescent moon hanging low, Liam went for a walk down Oak Way. The street, usually buzzing with chatter and foot traffic, had gone quiet. Not silent exactly. He could still hear the scrape of a snow shovel in the distance, a car engine starting, muffled laughter as a couple hurried down the sidewalk, but there was a hush settling in. It was the kind of hurried silence that came before a snowstorm hit. People wanted to run their errands and get home before the roads became too bad.
Liam didn’t mind. He liked having the street to himself. He’d spent the whole evening thinking about what Zach had said, and the worst part was, he knew his friend was right.
But that didn’t mean he could just walk over to Cassidy’s and blurt out an apology. He didn’t want to tell her how sorry he was. He wanted to show her. To find a way that would mean something.
But still, doubt crept in.Maybe she’s already asleep. Maybe she doesn’t want to see me. Maybe I should give her more time.
He walked on, looking at the icicles glittering under the streetlights, listening to the snow crunching underfoot and hearing nothing but silence.
At the end of the street, the town Christmas tree shimmered. Somehow, Liam found himself standing in front of it, looking up at the star on top, quietly asking for guidance.
Or maybe, just maybe, for a little of that Christmas magic to rub off on him.
Liam chuckled softly, scratching the back of his neck the way he always did when he felt unsure. Before Cassidy had come into his life, you would’ve never caught him talking to a Christmas tree star, but here he was.
“There’s this girl,” he said aloud, voice low and a little hoarse. “I care about her. A lot. More than I think I’ve let myself admit. And I keep screwing it up.”
He sighed before he went on. “She’s got this way about her. Lights up a room without even trying.”
He paused, eyes still fixed on the star.
“And now I’ve gone and hurt her. Again. Backed off when I should’ve leaned in. Said the wrong thing. Hell, maybe I’m the wrong guy. But she makes me feel like maybe I could be something better. Someone better.”
