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"You’re one of us, and we take care of our own." Weston smiles. Amelie blows me a kiss.
"Solene wanted me to convey that she misses you and wishes she could be here. But she’s on her first concert across the States, so… You know."
Tears prick the backs of my eyes. "Thanks, guys. It means a lot to me—all of it."
"We didn’t do this to make you cry," Zara says softly. "I know first-hand just how much your life has been affected by this condition, and how much it impacted, not only your physical but also your mental and emotional state. You faced it with grit and determination. You didn’t allow it to rule your life. You found your way through it. You didn’t stop it from letting you get out of bed. You didn’t let it stop you from pursuing your goals. You didn’t let it come in the way of your living life to the fullest. And now, with Liam at your side, I know you’re only going to reach new heights."
"Thank you," I whisper. "This… All of this is incredible and overwhelming. I couldn’t have asked for better friends. Or" —I glance up at Liam— "a better husband, truly."
"Anything you want." Liam bends and kisses my mouth, and of course, it doesn’t stop at just a brush of our lips. He deepens it, and I know I need to stop it, that people are watching. But when I’m with him, in his arms, surrounded by him, feeling his heartbeat in tandem with mine, his breath intertwined with mine, his gaze holding mine, the rest of the world, as always, fades. It’s only me and him, him and me, and this new state of mind we’re building together.
When he finally releases me, I look about the room to find the rest of them grinning at us.
"I think that’s our cue to leave, folks." Hunter drains his glass and pushes away from the bar. He prowls over to Zara and holds out his hand. "Why don’t I give you a lift home?"
She lifts her chin. “No, thanks, I have my own car.” She rises to her feet and walks over to kiss my cheek. Then straightens and stabs a finger at Liam. "Hurt her in any way, and you’ll have to deal with me."
Liam laughs. "I can’t hurt myself, can I?"
"Aww," Summer gushes. She rises to her feet and Sinclair leads her over to us. "You guys are sooo cute together."
Zara holds her thumb to her ear with her little finger stretched out, and mouths, "Call me."
I nod.
She leaves, and Hunter follows her anyway. Gosh, the man doesn’t take ‘no’ for an answer, does he? The rest of them say their goodbyes, with the women blowing me kisses. And just like that, we’re on our own. For a second, we sit there as the silence settles about us. It’s a comfortable quiet, a stillness that percolates deep into my blood…my body…my mind…my soul. For the first time in my life, I feel like I’ve stopped running. It feels like I’ve arrived home.
"Liam," —I wrap my arms about his neck— "will you fuck me?"
"No," —he shakes his head— "but what if I make love to you?"
49
Liam
I carry her up to my—ourroom. I’ll never stop loving that word 'our' ever again. I’ll never get used to it. Never take it for granted. There was a time I was been sure that I’d never find my woman. I didn’t think she existed; perhaps, I never even looked for her. Now I know, I was simply waiting to find her. Thank god, she told Lila not to marry me. I’m glad I pulled my head out of my arse and recognized her and did everything possible to bind her to me. Maybe that’s why I proposed the entire fake marriage scenario which, come to think of it now, is laughable. I never intended to toe the line. I wanted to find a way to tie her down while I figured out my shit, which is why I came up with this proposal, in the first place. Now, I carry her into the bath and lower her to her feet.
"What are you doing?" She glances about her.
"We’re going to take a bath together."
She looks taken aback, then nods. "There was a reason I didn’t want to shower with you before."
"The wig."
"The wig," she agrees. "It was a double-edged sword. When I wore it, I felt I could face the world. But I was always so worried that a strong gust of wind would knock it off kilter, or I’d pull at it and end up displacing it, and I tried to avoid getting it wet because then I’d have to take it off and dry it."
I pause halfway to the bathtub then glance at her over my shoulder. "Wait, what about the time when we fell into the pool?"
She laughs, "Oh my god, you have no idea how stressed I was then. I wear synthetic wigs, which are supposed to be secure enough that you can go swimming in them. I also use wig glue to fasten my wigs but you never know when there’s going to be an accident. I was so on edge—"
"And I thought that was because of me."
She rolls her eyes. "Yes, Mr. Egomaniac, it was… because you held me back from coming. But the stress of trying to act like it was natural also, no doubt, contributed. Thankfully, Zara had packed me my backup wig."
"Hmm." I drag my thumb across my lower lip.
"I don’t like the sound of thathmm."
