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It makes me laugh how much Liam loves Katy. He really does adore him. He does have his friends, but I think she might be his best friend ever. That hasn’t changed at all in the six months she’s been living in our home. If anything, their bond has gotten deeper.
“You know that Katy would have loved to be here but she had a meeting that she couldn’t miss. It’s all linked to her brand new business so it’s all very exciting…”
“She’s not going to start being at work all the time, is she?”
“No, no.” I hold Liam’s shoulders so he’ll look at me as I answer this. “The reason that she’s starting her own business is so she doesn’t have to work all the time. It might take a little while to get it all set up, but once she’s done it’ll all be good. I promise that you’ll see her all the time. And don’t forget we’re having our birthday dinner for you in a moment.”
“Will she have a present for me?” Liam’s eyes lit up as the thought of more toys cheered him right back up again. “Do you think she will? Did she say that she will?”
“I’m sure she does.” I ruffle his hair again. I don’t seem to be able to stop myself from doing that. “But don’t forget that we have a present for her too. Are you still up for doing that?”
I bring the small box out of my pocket and I show it to Liam meaningfully. We’ve been talking about this for weeks so I know he’s aware of what I’m on about. He’s always spoken so positively about it, I just hope now he doesn’t ch
ange his mind. The only thing that will stop me from going ahead with this is Liam. I’m pretty sure he’s happy, but I need to be certain.
“I remember.” He nods slowly. “You’re going to ask Katy to marry you. Then you’ll have a big, white wedding. And then… and then she’ll be my new mommy.”
That causes my breath to catch in my throat. I wasn’t expecting him to say that at all. “Oh, right well I don’t know about that. You do already have a mommy.”
“But my mommy is in heaven.” I do feel much better that he knows more about Victoria now. It makes things much easier, but it hurts me still every time we have to talk about it. Liam takes it all with so much maturity, but it isn’t fair. He doesn’t deserve this. “And everyone else has a mommy. I want a new mommy for my birthday.”
I don’t know how Katy will feel about that, but considering how well she’s handled everything so far, I’m sure she won’t mind. “Oh well, she will be like your mommy because she’s married to your daddy.” I’m trying to handle this as tactfully as you can. “But you’ll have to talk to Katy about what you want to call her, okay? That’s up to you and her.”
“Oh well, Katy won’t mind. Me and her have such fun. She will like it.”
I smile, knowing that he’s right. I’m sure she will but I don’t want to put words in Katy’s mouth. What happens between her and Liam is between them.
“Right.” I clap my hands together, snapping into action. “Shall we get the party tidied and get dinner sorted? Of course, you don’t have to do anything since you’re the birthday boy, but someone needs to. So why don’t you go and watch TV while I get everything set up?”
“No, no, no, I want to help! Let me help you sort it out. I want to. I want to do it for Katy.”
Sometimes my boy blows me away with his attitude, at moments such as this. He’s such a brilliant child, I’m so glad that I know him now. There’s been so much that I’ve missed out on, but I won’t ever make that mistake again. Now I’m fully on board with this parenting thing.
“Okay, Liam. You are an awesome kid. Let’s do this.”
***
“Was that her?” Liam whispers secretively to me. “Was that Katy?”
“You don’t have to be quiet,” I chuckle. “We aren’t doing this as a surprise. Or are we? Actually, that might be a good idea.” I cock my head thoughtfully. “Actually, yeah let’s do it. Let’s hide.”
Liam dives behind the couch and I join him, giggling madly. It hasn’t escaped my attention that I’m completely the opposite man that I used to be. I used to be all bravado, making business deals and caring only about the office, all the while everything was slipping through my fingers, having meaningless sex with my PA. Now, I’m laughing like a loon with my boy, waiting for the woman that I love, with a big diamond ring in my pocket. What a turn around of events.
“Yep, that’s her,” Liam whispers loudly to me as the door swings open. “She’s coming.”
“Let me know when you’re ready to jump up, will you?” I reply. “Say the word.”
“Hello?” Katy calls through the house. “Is anyone there? Hello?” We can hear her moving through the rooms. She’s probably wondering what the hell happened at Liam’s party and why we’re suddenly nowhere to be found. I feel a bit mean since I know how much she wanted to come to the party, but I’m sure she’ll forgive me by the end of the night. “Hello? Liam? Evan?”
“Let’s go now,” Liam whispers. We both leap up rapidly and yell “surprise!”
“Oh my God.” Katy clutches her hand to her chest in shock, dropping all her papers as she does. “You scared me there, guys. Are you two completely mad?”
Luckily she’s laughing, and as Liam wraps his arms around her, her face completely melts. I shoot her an apologetic look but she doesn’t seem to need it.
“So how did your meeting go?” I ask her over Liam’s head. “Was it positive?”
“It was, really positive. I mean it was awesome, I’m really happy about it.” She blows out a deep and weary breath. “So, I mean I’ll tell you all about it in the morning I think. Right now, I just want a drink. Oh!” She reaches into her bag and pulls out a nicely wrapped gift. “I suppose I better give this to the birthday boy as well.”
