Page 37 of The Focal Point

But now it was my turn to surprise Liam because as my fingers twined through his, I saw his expression dart toward me before it turned back to the road. But he didn’t pull his hand away, and we lapsed into a comfortable silence, our hands twined together as Liam navigated through the city to the highway.

“So why did you stay in Sacramento? Build your company here instead of where the other big tech companies are? It’s only a couple of hours away.”

The question had come out of my wandering mind as I watched the hills covered by brown grass pass by on my side of the highway.

“Sacramento is starting to join in on the tech,” Liam replied. “It’s so close, there’s starting to be a lot of spillover. I mean, we have the economy to support it. But it was also cheaper for a start-up—in some cases, up to 40 percent.”

“Oh. That makes sense.” I wasn’t sure what I was expecting, but Liam’s answers surprised me for some reason.

“That, and Sacramento is my home. I grew up here, and my life is here. I didn’t want to move, and I wanted to add to it, somehow. My company does that, with tech as well as jobs, so the money stays in our local economy.”

There. That was the answer I had been expecting from Liam. He always seemed to be thinking about others in a way that was as astonishing as it was admirable and rare. Russ had never shown anything close to that.

Words worked their way up and stayed on my tongue while I decided whether to air them.

“Well,” I finally said, “I’m glad you stayed.”

When Liam looked at me, a shadow of astonishment edged his smile, but he squeezed my hand again. The look was still on his face when he looked back at the road as though he hadn’t expected anything like that to come out of my mouth.

We drove for about an hour and a half before Liam took the exit off the highway to a small town.

“We’re near Napa, aren’t we?” I asked, stopping beside Liam as he paid the meter.

“Napa County,” he answered, then looked down the street. I didn’t know whether he had something specific in mind or if we would wander until dinner. “There. I think it’s that way.”

He took my hand, and my heart thrilled as he led me across the street and down the sidewalk. The town was cute and touristy, with galleries and other niche shops. But when we stopped in front of a particular gallery and I looked up at the sign, I knew exactly where we were.

“How did you know I’ve always wanted to come here?” I asked Liam, clasping my hands in joy like a little kid.

“You’ve never been?” Liam sounded genuinely astonished when I shook my head.

“No, never. I’ve always wanted to come, though. It’s famous for its art,” I replied, dragging him through the door in eagerness to get inside. Liam only laughed.

He let me explore the space to my heart’s content without a single word or any show of impatience. Fifteen minutes in, Russ would have been sighing and making veiled comments that he was getting bored. I half expected Liam to do the same, but he trailed me around the gallery, listening politely as I gushed over his painting and that sculpture, even though I knew he had little interest.

“I’m sorry I’m taking so long,” I said, finally unable to wait for him to grow tired of the experience. But instead of relief, his mouth screwed up into a confused quirk.

“Why are you apologizing? I brought you here because I knew you would love it. Take as long as you like.” The quirk became a quiet smile. “Besides, watching you mesmerized by all the pieces is completely worth it. I love watching your face light up.”

I flushed and looked at the floor, unable to hold Liam’s gaze anymore. But I didn’t apologize again, and when we stumbled across one of the most beautiful necklaces I had ever seen, I wasn’t afraid to gush about it.

“Hold up a second.” Liam disappeared and returned a moment later with the gallery owner in tow as he indicated the necklace. “I would like to see this piece.”

The owner took the piece out and presented it on a soft leather pillow. “A local artisan makes these.”

It was an incredible work of art, a pendant on a white-gold chain. The delicate pendant echoed much of the art in the gallery and reminded me of the sea, swooping and swirling around a diamond and an aquamarine that shimmered in the specialized lighting.

“It’s beautiful,” I breathed, my hand hovering over the piece as I fought myself not to touch it.

“Why don’t you put it on?” Liam asked.

“Oh, no.” I took a small step back. “Because then I’ll want it, and there is no way I can afford it.”

“Put it on,” Liam urged, his hand on the center of my back pushing me forward.

Wavering already, I didn’t need much convincing to pick up the pendant and secure it around my neck. Just as I had imagined, it was stunning and perfect, and entirely out of my price range when I asked.

I reached to undo the clasp, but Liam’s hand on my wrist stopped me. “We’ll take it.”