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Chapter 21
Istood next to Liam on the porch and watched Bruce and Willow drive away.
“That sucked,” Liam muttered.
“Yeah.But it’s done.”
It’d been three months since Liam and I had kissed at Rattler’s and the town exploded with speculation and gossip.Some of the talk was hurtful.Had Liam and I been dabbling together while I was with Derek?Just plain ignorant.How could I move on so quickly?And encouraging.We both deserved to be happy, and if it’s together, all the better.
I was happy.Liam was home every night.His new job was going well, and his pieces had been selling within a week of Hattie stocking them.I had sold my house and put the money toward renovating this one.Liam, the boys, and I had had a bonfire when I’d moved out.We’d burned the couch I had spent so much time on.
I’d even gotten a teaching position at the school in Center, a town a half hour away.But I’d had to turn it down.Mr.Gilding had learned about the offer and called to beg me back.After many of the staff had heard I was leaving, they’d approached Mr.Gilding.Headed by Aspen, they each outlined several instances when they felt Mrs.Z was doing more harm with the kids than good.They argued that a workplace that drove off good employees while nurturing problematic employees wasn’t where they wanted to work.Then they cited the openings for teachers in Hazen, New Salem, Mandan, and Bismarck.Basically, there was a job opening for each teacher who’d complained.Mr.Gilding could listen, or he could try to replace five teachers immediately before the first day of school.
It was a helluva bluff.Aspen swore it wasn’t, but either way, I was in their debt.When Mrs.Z had found out what had happened, she’d quit on the spot and moved with her mom to Arizona.A little bit of employee shifting before school started, and Aspen was the new kindergarten teacher while I got my fifth-grade classroom back.
Aspen said I’d earned it, but it was a gift from excellent coworkers who cared about the kids they taught.
Eli and Owen were going to love Aspen.They called her Miss Whitfield even when she came to the house.She and Laney had helped me move to Liam’s.Laney sometimes rode her horse out for a chat, or Aspen brought Lyric over and Liam grilled.
After Bruce’s pickup disappeared, Liam swooped me into his arms.I cuddled into him.Since we weren’t hiding anymore, he never quit touching me.
“Think he’ll live up to what he said?”Liam kicked the door open.Grandma Gin had taken the kids for ice cream while Bruce and Willow had been over.The heaviness of the conversation wasn’t meant for interruptions.
After Bruce had apologized for what he had said, he and Liam had talked about the land lease and Derek and Liam’s friendship.They’d traded stories about Derek that included the real story behind the four-wheelers in the river, in the water holes, and in every other place the guys had gotten stuck with something that had wheels.Bruce had asked about the barn and Liam told him the truth, but he asked that Bruce keep it to himself.Grandpa Bob was gone, and it didn’t matter.
Bruce said he’d talk to Cameron about leaving Liam the hell alone, that it was the best way he could show Liam he hadn’t meant what he’d said.
“He will.”Cameron was already losing power over Liam’s life.Liam’s new boss had already had a phone call from Cameron he’d promptly ignored, muttering something about howgood welders don’t grow on goddamn trees.
I nuzzled his neck as he carried me straight through the house to our bedroom.“Isn’t everyone going to be back soon?”
“Nope.Grandma offered to take them overnight.”I popped my head up, and he smirked.“I packed their bags when you were making breakfast and put them by the garage.”
I adopted a clueless expression.“Whatever are we going to do with our time together?”
He bent to set my feet on the floor.“How ’bout you turn on the lamp and I’ll close the door.”
Grinning, I turned to the lamp, the one I’d replaced with the piece he’d done when I moved in.“You know, we don’t need to close the door if—”
A ring was hung around the switch under the lamp shade.A small gasp left me when I saw the golden band filled with diamonds.I picked it up, the metal cool on my fingertips.“Liam?”
By the time I turned, he was kneeling.Tears sprang up in my eyes.
His smile was gentle.“Kenny, will you marry me?”
My mouth still hung open, my eyes glued to the simple band full of small diamonds.It was different from what I’d worn before.So was the proposal.It was me and Liam.It was perfect.
This was the easiest decision I’d had to make in a long time.“Yes, Liam.I’ll marry you.”
He grinned and rose.I swung my arms around him.We didn’t kiss or jump around.I hugged him, hard.And he grounded me as waves of feelings splashed through me: guilt, elation, anticipation.
Excitement won out, and I pulled back, holding the ring between us.
He touched the top with his finger.“There’re a few things we can do.That’s a wedding band.You can wear it by itself.Or you can wear your wedding ring and add this.”I stared at him, eyes wide, and he lifted a shoulder.“Derek’s always going to be a part of us, and I know you miss wearing your ring.But if you want to get a separate engagement ring for us, we can pick one out.”
I glanced at the special jewelry box in which I kept my wedding ring on the shelf above the dresser.I hadn’t worn it for six months, but I did miss it.“You don’t mind?”It seemed…fitting.And like always, Liam had sensed what I needed the most.
“The thing about Derek being my best friend is that I knew where he got your set, so I found a matching band.They’ll go together, just like the three of us did.”
Could this man get any more perfect?“I love you, Liam.”
“I love you too, Kenny.”His grip tightened around me.“Did you shower today?Because I want to shower with you.”
