Page 98 of Backup Plan

“Well, babe, if you fell in love with him, then fight to get him back,” Everleigh suggests.

“How? He’s convinced he’s doing the right thing by being noble. He thinks it’s all-around bad press when your family is in the thick of this trial with your dad. Maybe when the divorce is finalized, we can try again,” I say.

“So you’re just…giving up?”

“What choice do I have? He’s moving to San Diego, and I won’t even find out for another month if I have the luxury of deciding to move to another state.”

“Wait…what?” she asks.

“I asked the judge to consider allowing me to relocate for work.”

“Work? What about Langford?” she asks.

“I actually had two job offers. One from you to work remotely, and Liam needs help with the baby. I guess the second one isn’t actually a job offer as much as a help offer.”

“And you’re considering both?” she asks.

“Well, now I’m considering neither, and I’m thankful I’m still at Langford, to be honest,” I say. “It was impulsive to even consider asking the judge. Liam and I…it was explosive, and it was incredible. And now it’s over. I was thinking with my emotions, and maybe with my need to hurt Brent, over logic. And you know that’s not me.”

“I know that’s not you,” Everleigh murmurs. “And that’s why I think you should do it.”

“Huh?” I ask. “But I don’t want to be a nanny.”

“Babe, sometimes our best decisions are made when we make them with emotions. All that tells me is that you were following your heart, and that’s something we don’t do enough of. Maybe I’ll never understand why you’d be attracted to my brother…but if you fell in love with him before your divorce was even finalized, then it must be something big. You can’t just let that go, and moving there doesn’t automatically mean you’ll be his nanny. Maybe you’ll help him find a nanny. He trusts you and your instincts.”

I hope this is a conversation she’ll have with Liam.

I hope.

But I also know that he’s stubborn, and even if she talks to him, that doesn’t mean he’s going to listen.

Not when he thinks he’s doing the right thing.

CHAPTER 31: Liam Bradley

Quiet

I hate how quiet my house is.

At four o’clock, it’s usually bursting with energy. Penny is telling the boys to empty their backpacks and get their homework out, or she’s telling Benji to get his shin guards out of the closet, or she’s reminding Sammy to grab his glove and hat for baseball practice while she makes them snacks in the kitchen.

Today, it’s just me and silence.

I don’t know where Penny went when she left. I hope and pray not back to Brent’s house. I know it’s not back to Brent’s house. She’s smarter than that. She probably didn’t ask Everleigh if she could stay at her place a while since then she’d have to come clean about us. Maybe her mom’s, but I know it’s too small for the three of them and it would just be a temporary situation.

I should’ve pushed harder to have her stay here.

I hate that she felt like she had to leave, but I also get it.

It would be as awkward for her to stay here as it would have been for her to stay at Brent’s place. I don’t blame her for leaving, but I wish she hadn’t.

What choice did we have, though?

We could’ve tried. We could’ve come clean to Everleigh. I wonder if that would’ve saved anything. I guess Penny not wanting to was maybe the first clue that we were heading toward the end.

The second was Brent’s words about how easy I’m making this for him.

Fuck that son of a bitch. I won’t let him win, and if staying away from Penny for the duration of the trial is one way to help her case, well, then that’s what I decided to do.