Page 49 of Liam

He shrugs, stepping over me to take his spot on the couch. “Just wondering if that’s the reason for your late-night giggles.”

“You can hear that?” I ask, eyes wide.

He taps the wall behind him. “You’re literally one wall away.”

“Sorry.”

“Are you kidding? It’s so good to hear your laugh again.” He smiles, ruffling my hair the way he used to. “Have you seen the one with me in it?”

“No.” I lift my phone and start searching through all the twins’ videos. “Which one?”

“I got it,” he says, tapping his phone to stream it to the TV. A second later, I see Liam on a much larger scale. I smile, tucking my legs beneath me, and get more comfortable as the intro plays.

It opens with the twins in the waiting area of what I assume is Roman’s work. Not with the Prestons, but at the auto shop. The name of the mechanic is blurred out, just like the company logo on Roman’s shirt when he appears from a door behindthe reception desk. “I assume you’re dropping off Luke’s car?” Roman asks, clearly hesitant.

The camera pans to Linc, which means Liam will be behind the lens in most of this video, as he is with the majority of the other vlog-style ones. “Yeah,” Linc says. “We already talked to Dylan about it.”

I get up from my spot and sit beside my brother. “Who’s Dylan?”

“He owns the shop. We went to high school together.”

On the screen, Roman says, “You realize Luke’s my boss, right? I don’t know how comfortable I am doing what you’re asking.”

“That’s why you need to sign this,” Linc tells him, slamming a piece of paper down on the reception desk. The camera zooms in on the page, and the only thing on there is what I assume is Lincoln’s messy handwriting.

“Promise?” On-screen Roman asks. The single word is the only thing written on the page, but it’s spelledpwomiswith a backward S.

Lincoln looks proud of his work. “Consider it a guarantee that nothing will happen to your job, or you, and you promiseusyou won’t say a word to Lucas about it.”

The camera zooms in on Roman, a hint of mischief playing beneath the exhaustion that always seems to be there.

I glance at the man beside me, the one who gave up everything to be my one constant in life. If I’d known this video existed during the years we were apart, I no doubt would’ve watched it on repeat, just for the tiniest of moments with him. Even through a screen. A weight tugs at my heart, anchored by the longing etched deep in my chest, and I push it aside, distract myself by finding the video on my phone and reading the comments. “More Roman!” the top one says, and I read it out loud to him.

“What?” He looks over my shoulder.

“Oh em gee. Roman is sooo hot,” I relay.

“It says that?” he asks, grinning like an idiot as he rests on the couch cushion again. “Look at me go. I’m sooo hot.”

“Okay.” I giggle. “You need to relax.”

“Relax?” he scoffs. “Hell no. I have a fan club. Maybe I should start one of these… these…” He waves his hand between us, trying to come up with the right word.

“Channels,” I offer, and before he lowers his arm, I grasp it gently, something I’ve wanted to do since the moment I saw the tattoos. It’s impossible not to notice them, but I’ve never inspected them up close. Initially, I thought they were just random pieces of artwork, and I’m sure some are, but the ribbon, the braided rope, the envelope with my initials on the corner… those aren’t random at all. I subconsciously rub my thumb over the envelope.

“I told you I got all your letters, Addie,” he says, his voice soft. “And I read every one.”

I glance up at him. “Your tattoo artist must think you’re crazy.”

“Nah.” He smiles to one side. “Juan already knows how much you mean to me.”

“Juan?”

Roman nods. “He was my cellmate. Now he’s one of my best friends.”

I release his arm, sit closer to him while the Preston Twins video plays in the background, completely forgotten. For now. “Does he have tattoos?”

“Nah. His mom won’t let him.”

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