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“Well. I was an idiot for ever thinking badly of you.” Sam gathered his sleeve in his fist to finally rub her cheeks clean. “No more tears. I won’t have you crying over me anymore.”
She pursed her lips, and he had to resist the urge to kiss them. “I’ve kind of never cried over you, if you think about it. Only over Catriona.”
The sound of her name made him grit his teeth. “Good point.”
Maya glanced away, fingering her charm bracelet and running her thumb over the moon he’d given her. His beautiful, funny girl, who’d loved the moon and the stars and who’d stolen his heart.
Sam stood, determination setting in.
Maya snapped her gaze up as he pulled on his jacket and lifted his ski boots. “Where are you going?”
He bent to kiss the top of her head, pausing briefly to inhale her scent and bolster his intentions. “I need to speak to Cat, and this time I’m not taking no for an answer. I’ll call you later.”
“Okay,” she said, an anxious edge to her voice.
“Don’t worry,” he called as he left the area to go in search of his snow boots. “Everything’s going to be fine.”
Pacing the room, Sam checked his watch. He’d messaged Cat, making her believe that he was preparing them dinner as if it were a peace offering. On impulse, he lifted his phone to video call Liv. She connected immediately, and he could see in her eyes that Maya had already contacted her. “All right, bro?”
“Did Maya call you?”
She frowned. “Yeah. I’m so sorry about what happened.”
He ran a hand through his hair. “I’m the one who’s sorry. I should’ve fucking listened to you.”
“It’s okay, Sam. You trusted her and she manipulated you. That’s not your fault.”
His heart ached. “What about Maya? She ended up hurt because of my naivety.”
Liv shook her head. “Being naive isn’t a crime, Sam. In any case, Catriona’s had us all fooled at some point. Me included.”
“But you saw through her a lot more quickly than me,” he muttered.
“It’s different when you’re outside the narcissist’s bubble,” Liv said. “On the inside, you’re subjected to trauma bonding. It’s how they tether you to them, emotionally.” She took a breath. “Have you spoken to her?”
He glanced down the hallway toward the front door. “Not yet. I’m waiting for her now.”
Liv bit her lip. “Remember that she won’t admit it. She’ll try to lie her way out.”
“I know,” Sam said on a sigh. “I just need to tell her that I know, and make sure it hits home that it’s over between us. Forever.”
Liv was silent for a second, and when he met her gaze, there was relief in her eyes. “I’m so glad to have you back.”
Sam sat heavily on one of the kitchen chairs. “I’ve always been here, Liv.”
“Not really.” She winced. “We had to walk on eggshells with you a lot of the time. Mum and me. We didn’t want to alienate you by criticizing her.”
“Ugh.” Sam rubbed his forehead, trying to massage away the pain of imagining his mother and sister tiptoeing around him. “I’m sorry. What a mess.”
Liv sighed. “If only I’d found out about what happened between you and Maya in the past. If I’d questioned you both a little more, then I would’ve worked out the lie.” Her eyes were sad. “But you were both too polite to tell me.”
Sam laughed despite himself. “Neither of us wanted to slag off the other one to you. So maybe we still secretly cared about each other the whole time.”
Liv smiled softly.
He brought the screen closer. “Do you want to do something at the weekend? We could ask Maya, Arran, Nico, Elise.”
Her eyes lit up. “I’d love that.”
