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Amelia stood in shock for a long moment after Liam left. Then her knees gave out and she sank onto the sofa behind her, tears welling up in her eyes. One errant tear spilled down her cheek.
How could she have been so misguided?
Over the last week, she’d done everything she could to take care of Grace and keep her happy without her father around. She’d explained that Liam loved her and that he’d be back as soon as he could. She’d spent extra time reading to Grace and cuddling her and taking her on fun outings.
Amelia had done all this with a broken heart. She had to, because Grace deserved all the love and care in the world — even though Liam had slept with Amelia and then promptly shown her that he didn’t care about her one bit.
Yet what Grace had said today, about Liam being with her mommy, had been too much. Grace really seemed to think that Liam was never coming back, and Amelia couldn’t let that happen. So, she’d waited up. The whole time, as she’d sat on the couch or paced the living room, she’d repeated what she’d wanted to say. She’d wanted to be firm and clear and constructive. And she’d expected, hoped, that Liam would be ready to listen — after all, he’d listened to her about parenting before.
Yet his reaction had been the opposite. His words, about how Amelia would do well to remember that she wasn’t his wife or Grace’s mother, hurt more than Amelia could admit, even to herself. They were true, of course. Amelia knew that she was neither Liam’s wife nor Grace’s mother. But she could hardly blame herself for imagining that she was, when Grace lifted her arms to be picked up, or Liam looked at her with a depth of expression in those blue eyes that he would never be able to put into words.
In the end, though, it seemed Amelia had been nothing more than another of Liam’s flings — with a little childcare added in as well.
There was a sound at the end of the hallway, and Amelia swiped her palms across her cheeks to wipe away her tears. She didn’t want to cry in front of either Liam or Grace.
No one appeared in the hallway, but it was still a sign that she needed to go to bed. She got to her feet and tiptoed down the hall to her room. Over the last few weeks, she’d changed it from a soulless gray-and-white guest bedroom into a place that felt like home. Snapshots of her and Grace, sometimes with Liam, hung on the walls. The bed was made with Amelia’s comforter from her apartment, which she hadn’t returned to in over a month. There was a soft green carpet on the floor and floaty white curtains on the windows.
The room felt like home. In fact, the whole penthouse had begun to feel like home. Amelia had grown used to cooking in the kitchen, sometimes running into Liam’s private chef, playing with Grace in the living room, and sharing meals and conversation with Liam in his study. And she’d fallen head over heels in love with Grace — and with her jerk of a dad, too.
Amelia knew she should walk away. She’d made the mistake of staying at her last job too long and giving up too much for her work. And she knew now that Liam would never feel for her what she felt for him. Staying here was painful.
Yet she couldn’t bring herself to leave. She didn’t want to hurt Grace like that. And deep inside, she held out hope for Liam, too.
Some part of her thought that Liam would come to his senses and apologize, but he didn’t. A few days of no communication turned into a week, then two. Amelia cried more than once at night, which was strange for her, as she was usually quite levelheaded. Even her usual self-possession wasn’t enough to keep her tears in check in the face of a broken heart.
The few times Amelia did see Liam, mostly arriving home from work or leaving, she didn’t try to talk to him. She was torturing herself enough by staying in his house without actually have to speak with the man who had broken her heart.
Liam didn’t try to speak with her, either — not to apologize or to ask her to leave. Perhaps he understood, as Amelia did, that no matter how bad things were between them, it wouldn’t be fair to Grace for Amelia to go.
Amelia thought they might continue like this forever, avoiding each other but coexisting. Until, that is, she woke early one morning and ran to the bathroom, her stomach in terrible knots. As Amelia knelt on the cold tile floor, feeling miserable, she realized that there was no way she could be a good parent to Grace in this condition. As well as what seemed like the stomach flu, Amelia was exhausted and at the end of her rope.
Her stomach twisted harder as she realized what she needed to do. Liam would have to step up and take care of Grace.
She brushed her teeth, washed her face, and went to find Liam. Luckily, he was still home — he was in the kitchen grabbing a bagel. Amelia’s stomach turned at the sight of the food, but she took a deep, calming breath.
“Liam.”
He turned, his eyes widening and his mouth opening slightly. He seemed beyond surprised that Amelia was speaking to him — and she couldn’t blame him. She was surprised herself.
“Amelia. Are you okay? You look a little pale.”
“Thanks.” The word came out more sarcastic than Amelia had intended, and she forced herself to calm down. “Look, I think I have the stomach flu or something. I need you to take care of Grace today.” She held up a hand before Liam could say anything in reply. “This isn’t about our conversation a couple of weeks ago — or about us at all. I just… I need your help.”
She hated admitting that, but it was true. Amelia needed Liam’s help today.
“Of course.” Liam nodded. “Go back to bed. I’ll get Grace up and bring you some mint tea or something.”
Amelia was touched that Liam was thinking of her, but she shook her head. “Don’t worry about me. I’m fine. Please just look after Grace.”
Then she stumbled back to bed, where she promptly fell asleep.
When Amelia woke, a now-cool mug of mint tea was sitting on her bedside table, along with a sleeve of plain crackers. Amelia wished that the sight didn’t make her feeling like crying all over again.
CHAPTER 20
LIAM
Liam reopened the book about a caterpillar in search of food for what felt like the hundredth time. Grace was snuggled up beneath his arm, giggling and wiggling as Liam read her the story.
