Page 53 of Falling for Love

His smile faded, replaced by an understanding that only made it harder for me to keep talking.

“My son comes first, Liam. Always,” I continued, my voice firmer now. “He’s my whole world, and I can’t risk bringing someone into his life who might not stay. He’s been through enough. I’ve been through enough. I won’t bring random guys into our life. Right now, you visit as a friend. I can’t promise anything beyond that. I just can’t do random.”

He didn’t say anything right away, and for a second, I thought I’d scared him off.

But then he smiled again, that same easy, infuriatingly confident smile that made my knees weaken and my pulse race.

“But I’m not random. You know me, Evie. I’m here. And I’m not going anywhere.”

I let out a soft laugh, shaking my head. “You make it sound so simple.”

“Maybe it is,” he said, his gaze locking onto mine. “I get that Hayden comes first. He should. But if you’re asking me to prove I’m not random, I will. Just give me the chance.”

I opened my mouth to respond, but no words came. He wasn’t rushing me or demanding anything—just quietly, patiently waiting for me to believe him.

And that scared me more than anything else.

Chapter Twelve

Evie

“Even though I want the pie, I should probably head home to do some bookkeeping.”

“At this point, I’m used to rainchecks,” Liam said teasingly.

We’d driven back to town, and he parked by my truck.

“I’m starting to think I’ll never make up the number of rainchecks I owe you.”

“Nah. We’re even.” He climbed out of the truck, and just as I was about to get out, he opened the door for me and helped me out.

“Well, so that you know, I’m holding you to that pie date. We just won’t call it a raincheck.”

“Yeah. We’re past that,” I said lightly.

I felt incredibly guilty for letting him down, but I only had so much time to finish things.

Liam walked me to my truck and lingered as I climbed inside, resting his hand on the doorframe for a moment.

“Drive safe, Evie.”

“You too, Liam. And thanks for showing me Red Barn Cider. I believe you can make it everything and more.”

“Thanks for saying that,” he said softly, his gaze dropping briefly to my lips before flicking back to my eyes. “It means a lot. You mean—”

His voice trailed off, and he hesitated. He tilted his head ever so slightly as my heart pounded.

Liam shoved his hands into his pockets like he was debating whether or not to kiss me or back away.

It didn’t help that all I could think about was the oopsy kisses I’d managed to stumble into earlier. The moment my lips landed on Liam, my entire body felt electrified with something I didn’t even know could happen to me any longer.

Liam switched gears. “You really think Red Barn Cider has potential?”

“I do. It’s not just potential, Liam. It’s already something special—you just have to bring it to life.”

His eyes quickly dropped to my mouth before he stepped back and smiled at me.

“It was great seeing you again, Evie.”

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