“And maybe your shop could have gallery walls for someone to hang their pictures.”
I raise my eyes to meet his; he has a proud smile fashioned on his face.
“Just a thought.” He shrugs.
“I’ll think on it.” I smile tight and lie. After this week, what I need is to go back to my apartment in Paris and sleep, breathe, and think about all these things much later. Because this past month has been an absolute whirlwind, and after approximately five years of living stagnantly, I’m more than overwhelmed with all the sudden twists and turns of everything. I don’t do pivoting well. Never have.
“Wouldn’t complain if it meant we had grandkids running around over here instead. Nat’s been wanting a little one for a while.”
Oh, for the love of children, why does everyone keep mentioning them?
Also, I don’t know . . . Maybe it’s because everyone has weddings on their mind, but Liam and I have been feeling out a relationship for less than a month. So everyone needs to chill. I’ve had periods that lasted longer than that. Were they healthy? No. But still. And I love Liam, I always have—but who’s to say that’s enough for life, for all the hits and setbacks? We’ve never tested our relationship, like at all, because it’s still so damn new.
Is he undeniably sweet and the man of my dreams?
Yup.
Does he make my toes curl and is one hell of a kisser?
Also yup.
But a life? Together? When I barely know how my body will behave the next day? I’ve been so content staring at the immediate present for so long because when I looked ahead and tried to make goals, I usually ended up disappointed and unfulfilled. What makes me think life will grant me a freebie, and thisone thingwill work out?
I shift in my seat, going to stand. I don’t know where else to hide. Maybe my old bedroom, but clearly, this wasn’t the right spot. “Excuse me—I should—”
“You know, when Nat told me she was pregnant, it felt like I had been punched in the gut. I had been so jealous of Will from a very early age. He could do a lot of things I couldn’t—I developed hypogonadism in my pre-teens that made me scrawny, and he was tall and made Nat blush. But he was also a scumbag who didn’t deserve to breathe the same air as her, and I knew it—”
I settle back in the glider, unsure where Mr. Kelly is going with this. But the man is usually very stoic and silent, and here he is telling me an incredibly personal story.
“I assume you’ve picked up I’m not Liam’s biological father—”
“He told me.” I nodded.
“But that doesn’t mean he isn’t mine. Life found a way.” He chuckles to himself. “I didn’t know then for sure, but one of the complications of this condition is that it can make you sterile. So hell, I saw an opening to have a family with my dream girl, and I took it—best thing that ever happened to me. Can’t imagine life unfolding any other way, you know? Even if I had to make some quick irrational decisions at a young age. And I’m not going to lie to you, it gnawed on me that I couldn’t give him a sibling; it did—but then he found you and Caleb, and maybe he wouldn’t have turned out the same, been the same solid guy I’m wicked proud of.” Mr. Kelly shrugs, looking out over the horizon of pine trees looming in the distance. “All I’m saying is I wouldn’t stress the unknown. Once you know it, it usually turns out it was pretty good, and there were things you wouldn’t change about it for all the world.”
“Thank you for sharing.” I rub my hands on my dress. They’ve collected with sweat in the time I’ve sat out here, shaking. “Truthfully, it’s not my regrets I’m worried about.”
“Kellys move the world for the ones they love. He’ll be fine.”
“But who’s going to move the world for him?” I sigh. “Mr. Kelly, honestly, I respect you for your choices. Clearly Liam’s selfless streak comes from you, but I don’t know if I have it in me to let him make these sacrifices for me this early in our relationship. It’s not about regrets; I want to protect him too.”
“What would I need protecting from?” Liam’s baritone voice jumpstarts my heart. I pick up my gaze to meet his crooked smile, hands stuffed in his pockets.
Mr. Kelly shoves another pastry in his mouth and wipes his hands. “That’s my cue. The introvert has recharged. He can go back to being the life of the party.”
He raises a hand, patting Liam’s shoulder as he walks by. “You never did have a figure for a tux. You look like shit,” he says, beginning his trek to the tent.
“Your voice carried down the field, by the way—” Liam hollers over his shoulder. “Secret’s out that you’re proud of me.”
“Don’t let it get to your head,” his dad calls back. “‘Course I’m proud of you. Love you, too, you complete pain in my ass.”
Liam snorts, turning his gaze to me. “Evie O’Shea on my porch. You are a sight.” He whistles, climbing the stairs. “Whatchu doing out here?”
“I just needed a second to breathe.”
“In the middle of our speeches?” He sits beside me on the glider and nudges me with his knee. “Come on, I know you better than that. Don’t close up on me now.”
I look at him, a nervous energy settling on me, and I swallow. I don’t know what the next few months will bring between my visa and Maria, but I know I don’t want Liam to make a life-altering decision based on me. No matter what Mr. Kelly just said. I’m not together enough for that. And he should take more time to think about everything he’s going to take on. “I don’t think you should take the job in Paris. At least not right now.”
