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A few moments later, a tall man followed Cora into the living room. He had blond hair, a strong build, and he was saying something that made Cora laugh.
Liam hated him on the spot.
“Don, this is my roommate, Liam,” Cora said, gathering her coat and purse.
Don’s grin showed too many teeth, and his blond hair had unnaturally bright streaks in it. He walked over to Liam and held out his hand. “It’s nice to meet you.”
Liam shook hands, imagining punching the man’s lights out if he tried anything with Cora. Don’t even think about hooks and eyes, or blind date is going to take on a whole new meaning.
“That’s...quite a grip you have there,” Don said, pulling his hand away.
Liam kept his voice deceptively mild. “What are your plans for the evening?”
“Don’t answer that,” Cora said in exasperation. “My roommate’s just being nosy. Come on, let’s go.”
They were out the door and gone a heartbeat later.
Liam drew the curtain and watched the man lead Cora to his black convertible. It was one of those sleek sporty cars that flew like the wind. Now he really hated him. Watching Cora go off with another man not only felt wrong, it was wrong, considering that man wasn’t the illustrious Finley Walsh. But how was he to stop her from doing what she wanted? This new version of Cora was so different from the woman he remembered. She was headstrong and opinionated, and while a large part of him loved seeing her become the strong woman she’d always wished she could be, another part of him felt at a complete loss. How was he ever going to coerce her into falling for any man, let alone a milksop like Finn?
Liam stood at the window for a long time after they drove away.
Angel brushed against his legs, and he glanced down at the cat. “Now what do we do?” He supposed there was nothing left to do but wait for Cora to return. This was his life now. Reduced to hovering at windows like a dried-up old lady’s maid.
His phone rang and he pulled it from his pocket. Margaret. Of course. She’d been calling him on and off for days. He had to break things off with her, and he couldn’t put off the conversation any longer. Sighing, he walked back to the couch and slumped on the overstuffed cushions.
“Hello.”
“Liam, where’ve you been? I left messages.”
“I know, I’ve been busy with work. I’ve been meaning to call you so we could talk.”
“Good. Because John leaves tomorrow afternoon for his trip. I was thinking you could come over around six and we can try that new restaurant down the street. You know, the steak house near the university bar that everyone’s raving about? I went ahead and made reservations for us. They say it’s impossible to get in at the last minute on a weekend.”
“Margaret, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Why? Too crowded? I guess we could try that hole-in-the-wall Italian place around the corner again. I heard it’s under new management and the food’s gotten a lot better. But we just have to be careful with PDAs because I don’t want anyone talking.”
“PDAs?”
“Public displays of affection. If we’re eating out so close to home, it has to look like a business dinner.” She lowered her voice to a sexy purr. “That’s not to say we can’t play footsies under the table, though.”
“I’m sorry, Margaret,” Liam said with reluctance. He searched for a way to let her down easy, but he couldn’t think of a way to do it. “I can’t.”
She was quiet for a few moments. “What do you mean?”
Liam took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. “Margaret, I’ve been thinking about this thing we’ve been doing.”
She let out a shaky laugh. “This doesn’t sound good.”
“I think we should take a break for a while.”
“From me?” Her voice was softer and higher pitched.
It made him feel worse, but he couldn’t carry on with her any longer. It wouldn’t be fair to her or him. He was in love with Cora. That hadn’t changed, even though everything else had. When you loved someone—truly loved them—the entire world could crumble down around you and that love would still be standing strong. Love always survived, even when nothing else did. He was living proof of that. “I’m sorry, Margaret.”
“You don’t...want to see me anymore?”
“It’s not that I don’t care for you,” Liam said. “I truly do. I want you to be happy. It’s just with this move and my new job, I have a lot of other things to focus on, and I can’t do with the distraction right now.”
