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Maybe that’s what I needed to make peace with now.
I could no longer pretend that I didn’t want those things. I just didn’t know how I was supposed to have them either. Not without ruining everything.
Chapter Eighteen
ZOE
Rolling over the next morning, I was pleasantly surprised that I wasn’t immediately greeted by a pounding head and a dry mouth. What Iwasgreeted by was a rambunctious Mira crawling up into bed with me.
“Good morning,” I whispered, opening my arms as she pushed herself under the blankets.
“You sleeped for so long,” she said.
I kissed the top of her head. “I know. I went to bed later than I usually do.”
She pulled back from my embrace and gently tugged at the hairs around my face. “You see some friends?”
I smiled. “Yup. They were very nice,” I told her. “We laughed and talked and had a girls’ night.”
“I’m a girl,” she proclaimed. “I come too.”
“Maybe when you’re older.” I tapped the tip of her nose with my finger. “Did you have a good sleepover on the couch?”
Mira nodded, then leaned in close and dropped her voice to a whisper. “I hold Liam,” she told me.
My heart squeezed, warmth seeping into my veins. “Did you?”
She nodded again, her fingers gently twirling a lock of my hair.
If I had seen a parade of naked men walking through the house, I would’ve been less shocked than by what I saw on that couch when I sneaked quietly through the front door.
I would’ve been less turned on too.
Why was it so stupid attractive that he was slowly letting her in? It had been easier when Liam fit into a tidy little box. When my definition of him was clear and crisp and left no room for negotiation.
But everything felt just a little muddier today. A bit more unclear.
From the outside, it didn’t look like much had changed. He had taken charge when I didn’t realize I needed a push, and he had given this precious little person a bit more space in the heart he kept hidden. But my entire perspective was altered. Again.
It was almost like someone had dialed in the focus on a camera. The details, hidden before by all the other things blurring my view, had become more precise.
“Did you have breakfast yet?” I asked Mira. A glance at the clock on the bedside table had my eyes widening a bit. I hadn’t slept past eight in months.
She nodded. “Liam made me cereal.”
I smiled. “What kind did you have today?”
“Toasty Crunch,” she said.
I leaned in to blow a raspberry on her neck, and she giggled. “Yum,” I told her. “Maybe I’ll have that too.”
Mira returned the gesture, attempting her own version, and I ended up with far more spit on my skin and much louder laughter. When I tickled her enough that she pulled back, I realized we weren’t alone anymore.
Liam was standing in the doorway, one broad shoulder braced against the frame and his arms crossed over his chest.
His face was inscrutable, and something about his eyes had my cheeks going warm. I thought about what Rochelle had said the night before.
Liam is a tough nut to crack because he never wants anyone to see what’s on the inside. You’ll know what that man feels when he does his damnedest to hide it from you.
