Page 37 of Izzy and Her Off-Limits Love

Dad rolls his eyes, but I can tell he’s pleased. Mostly. And why shouldn’t he be? Liam is everything I could ever want, probably more than I deserve. Merritt, maybe sensing the need to give us a moment, tugs Dad up and out, leaving us alone. Loud family sounds still filter in, so it’s not exactly private, but I’ll take whatever I can get.

“Already what?” Liam asks as he tugs me a little closer.

“Already I love you,” I say, more quietly now. “And you love me.”

He leans down and presses a quick kiss to my lips. “That I do.”

I’m tempted to grab him by the pajamas and tug him down for a not-so-quick kiss, but Mandy appears in front of us, new picture book in hand, and Liam is already shifting to make room for his little sister.

When she’s settled on the couch, half on his lap and half on mine, the three of us take turns reading the story, creating a new voice for every single character. We’re all laughing by the time we finish, and Mandy closes the book with a sigh, then leans her head back against my shoulder.

“I like you, Iz,” she says, simple and sweet. Then she scrambles off our laps and darts after Davy and Danny who have roped Eloise into making them some hot chocolate. Mostly,it sounds like they’re just squirting whipped cream into each other’s mouths while Eloise tries half-heartedly to stop them.

“I like you too, Iz,” Liam says, nuzzling his nose into my neck.

“Is that so?”

He murmurs his assent, then presses a kiss against the skin just below my ear.

“Well I like you too,” I say. “But I do have some feedback.”

He stiffens the slightest bit. “You do?”

I turn and look at him, trying—and failing—to hold back my grin. “I do. But I’m saving it for your performance review.”

“I’m still getting one of those?” He looks far too excited by the prospect, and it makes me smile.

“Of course you are. I have a professional responsibility.”

“Okay. I’ll take it seriously then.” He presses a hand to his chest.

“As my first full-time employee, your opinions matter, so I’ll be sure to take everything into consideration.”

“Good,” I say. “Expect it in your inbox by the end of the week.”

Liam glances around, but for the present moment, we’re blessedly alone. With a half-lidded look that makes my skin erupt in goosebumps, he leans close, his fingertips trailing up my arms to my neck until he’s cupping my face.

“My inbox? Can we not go over my reviews in person? Perhaps,” he says, nibbling my earlobe, “in a private meeting?”

“I suppose that’s an important part of the process.” My voice is breathy, but I’m enjoying this too much to feel embarrassed. “The privacy. And … the reviewing.”

“Mmm.” He moves to my neck, and I just know someone’s going to walk in, but I can’t make myself care. “Maybe we could hold it in a stairwell. Just for, you know, old times’ sake?”

I laugh, which breaks the mood a bit. Good thing too, because Davy and Danny bolt through the room with the whippedcream canister, one of Dad’s dogs chasing after them and Sadie shouting from somewhere deeper in the house.

“For old times’ sake? We just hung out in a stairwell for the first time last week!”

Liam pulls back and grins. “Yeah, but that’s where we reconnected. And then connected again.”

“If by connecting again, you mean kissed.”

“I did mean that. We also carried a tree up a stairwell.”

I trace my finger over the faded pink line, all that’s left of the scratch from earlier in the week. “We sure did. Okay, boss—you’ve convinced me. We will add one private stairwell performance review to our work calendars.”

Giving me the kind of smile that makes me want to find a stairwell right this second, Liam says, “It’s a date.”

EPILOGUE

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