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Now my mouth was dry as a desert.
My heart rate kicked up another notch as I reached for my glass of water.
“See? Told you.” Layla shrugged, and the other women nodded.
I peeked over at him, then back to the group, my neck heating. “That’s just because we’re putting a lot into the project for the boys.”
“But he’s not here to work on any projects,” Calla said, cocking one brow.
“It’s a coincidence?” The statement came out more like a question.
Because if it wasn’t a coincidence, if Liam truly was leaving work early to see me, then it wasn’t like it meant anything. It couldn’t mean anything. I refused to allow it. At best, Liam and I could become friends. Any implications made by the delusional women around me were not worth contemplating. No thank you.
Liam was now at the bar, patting Nathan on the back and dropping onto the stool beside him. He glanced over his shoulder, catching me watching, and dipped his chin. My pulse quickened and my cheeks flamed. Ugh. And every woman at this table was watching for my reaction.
I sent a small smile back, then spun around. I was an adult. I paid quarterly taxes. I was a parent of two, and the owner of matching kitchen appliances. I could at the very least look at a man, albeit an incredibly attractive man who knew me inside and out, and not spill every secret I had to the women at my table.
“I’m just saying it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world for the two of you to hang out without a reason.”
Wouldn’t it? Maybe not…
Clearing my throat, I stood. “Does anyone else need a refill?”
Their tiny, wicked smiles weren’t enough to stop me from stupidly walking up to the bar.
I was being ridiculous. There was no doubt about it. Attempting to be friends with Liam would never work. Even thinking of flirting with him was downright anserine. But I wasn’t the kind of woman who always made the best choices. Why start now?
Empty glass in hand, I weaved around tables, homed in on the exact place I ought to be running from. I looked ever-so-casually at the TV hanging on the brick wall behind the bar, as if I gave two craps about what was happening with the hunky orange football players chasing a ball.
It was a pointless gesture, considering Liam knew that I didn’t care a bit about football, but I needed to focus somewhere other than on him. With each step closer, my heart rate ratcheted higher. Usually, his flirtatious attempts left me miffed. The way his eyes trailed over me and left heat in their place would rile me up, and not in a good way. But that was when I assumed he was doing it to annoy me. It worked, it always did.
Because although I was happy with the way I looked, carrying and birthing twins at a young age had changed my body. I’d accepted that I could no longer wear tiny bikinis without showing cellulite and stretch marks too.
That was why I’d assumed he’d kept up this charming nature. To bother me. I was certain the compliments he slid my way were less heartfelt and more meant to needle me. But over the last week, I’d realized that Liam looked at me like he really enjoyed the way I looked. Maybe even more now than when we were young and naive to the kind of damage eating a whole box of Little Debbie cakes in one sitting could do.
That thought had my attention sliding back to him. He was still openly watching me, without an ounce of shame in his expression. The slow pull of his lips alone had my skin tingling. Would there ever come a day when I could look him in the eyes and not feel this undeniable chemistry? Would we be making eyes at each other across the multipurpose room at a nursing home when we were old and gray? Would he be checking out my new cyan cardigan, unbuttoning it with his eyes, while I gripped the handles of my walker in shock? Or would I give him a saucy wink and toss my Jell-O at him, then fall into a fit of laughter alongside him?
I shivered. No, this would die out eventually. It already had once before.
But for now, the appreciation in his expression as he took me in, surveying my dress from the hem that hit at my knees up to where it hugged my hips and on to the pretty bows at my shoulders, kept me moving toward him. When his eyes met mine, I felt like a deer caught in headlights. I was mesmerized, being pulled closer by an invisible string connecting us.
From here, I could see him mouthing to himself. Like a mumble, a little reminder to do something later. I couldn’t make it out, but I was dying to know what was on his mind.
Steps away, I was formulating the words to ask him, but before I could, there was a quick tug on the thick strap of my dress, yanking me back slightly. I turned around and came face to face with a blond man. He was about my height, with kind eyes looking down at me.
“Marigold? Marigold Harper?”
Ahh, jeez. A pang of nostalgia hit me then. It had been a long time since I’d heard that name. I tilted my head and regarded him, trying to piece together who I was looking at. Had to be someone from the first couple of years of high school, middle school even. Everyone I graduated with knew I was a Wells. Liam used to broadcast that fact everywhere we went. We’d run into our fellow alumni, and the first thing he’d do was grasp my arm and flash my ring like I was his most prized possession.
This man’s smile turned a little awkward and pitiful. “It’s been a while,” he said. “Jared Goins? Summer camp in ’05? I made you, like, fifteen bracelets out of paper straws.”
The memories clicked into place, then. A painting formed in my mind, all bright colors and broad strokes. A summer full of dancing, rope climbing, gossip sharing, and obsessing over boys. I had a huge crush on Jared, though he was almost the opposite of my type. Blond hair, blue eyes, and a soft and sweet smile. A real golden retriever. But cute like one too, nevertheless.
“Oh my gosh, Jared!” I smiled, and relief washed over his face. “How are you?”
He nodded. “Good, really good. In town for a bachelor party. You should come have a drink with us. I promise they’re all good guys.” His smile turned impish. “Well, most of them, anyway. Groom can be a bit of a jerk, but I guess all brothers have their moments.”
I chuckled and thumbed over my shoulder. “I was actually headed to the bar to get a drink.” I didn’t want to be rude, but meeting an entire crowd of men I didn’t know did not sound like my kind of fun. Especially because my goal for tonight was to relax.
