Page 25 of Rejected Heart

I blinked my eyes and shook my head, bringing myself back to reality. Turning my attention to my mom, I apologized. “I’m sorry.”

Her face lit up with a smile. “Don’t be.”

"I’m supposed to be working,” I reasoned as I returned to sorting through the new merchandise that needed to be put out on the floor.

She nodded. “Yes, you should be. But it’s clear you’re sidetracked.”

There wasn’t a hint of frustration or anger in my mom’s voice. “Why aren’t you the least bit irritated with me?”

My mom tossed her hand out to the side in a dismissive wave, the smile on her face still plain as day andhaving grown in the last few seconds. “Why would I be? I remember what it was like.”

Intrigued, I tipped my head to the side. “You remember what it was like? What do you mean?”

She moved toward me and placed her hand on the side of my face. Something washed over her expression, but I wasn’t quite sure it was a look I’d ever seen before. “I remember that feeling.”

“That… feeling?”

“The one that consumes you when you’re in love.” Her hand fell away from my face, and she took two or three steps back toward the table with the folded garments. After picking up a shirt that needed to be refolded, she revealed, “Nearly every waking moment is spent thinking about that other person. And when you aren’t with them, it’s worse.”

I should have known she’d be able to take one look at me and know I was daydreaming about Liam. It was just a couple of months shy of two years since we’d taken that field trip together, and I was still so caught up in him and how he made me feel.

That it was now summer didn’t mean we didn’t get to see one another every day. We did. But Liam worked during the day at the amusement park, so I tried to find ways to occupy myself, mostly spending my mornings and afternoons with my mom at the consignment shop.

“So, I’m not crazy?” I asked her.

Laughter spilled out of her. “Not at all. I was the exact same way with your father. He was always on my mind. If anything, summertime felt more challenging forme. I had nothing to distract me. No homework to complete or upcoming tests to study for. The long summer days dragged on. All I wanted was to spend time with him, but he would be at work. And since he worked for a landscaping company, his days started early and ended late.”

Sometimes, it still blew my mind how open my mom was about sharing with me the details of her relationship with my dad. It was clear how much she loved him, but that didn’t negate him breaking her heart. How it was possible for her to have such a sense of peace whenever she spoke about him was a mystery to me.

“It’s the same with Liam. He works so hard.”

“I know he does.”

“Was it… Did you ever feel bad?”

“In what way?”

Obviously, I’d been feeling undeniably consumed by Liam, never managing to go more than an hour without thinking about him. But part of me felt a bit selfish. “I know I come here and help you out during the week, but it’s nowhere near the level of physical labor that Liam does. He works like that out in the sun and heat all day, and he still manages to make time for me every night. I love it. I just hate seeing how exhausted he is. Was it like that with you and dad?”

“Exactly like that. I had a summer job babysitting for one of our neighbors. The mom only worked part-time hours, so I spent my mornings playing with these two little kids. Their mom was home by lunchtime, which meant I had all afternoon to do whatever I wanted. Yourdad never had that, but he didn’t let that stop him from driving by to pick me up, so we could spend a few hours together. I always felt like I was counting down the minutes until he’d show up on my doorstep. When he proposed so young, I remember feeling like it was the best day of my life, because I’d be able to wake up and go to bed beside him every single day.”

Looking at my mom and listening while she shared these stories with me, especially recently, felt like looking in a mirror. She’d always been open about their relationship over the years, but I hadn’t ever been able to relate to it on the level that I could now that I had Liam.

And it was like we were the same. Sure, I enjoyed spending time with her as we worked together in the store, but I was addicted to gazing at the clock. And with each hour that passed, I grew more and more excited about seeing Liam.

Knowing the type of love my parents had, it warmed my heart to see the similarities. But in the same breath, it terrified me.

Was it possible that Liam and I could wind up just like my parents?

TEN MONTHS LATER

“Only one year left.”

There was so much relief and excitement in Liam’s tone.

While I never wanted him to feel anything but happy, I could admit to myself that I found it a struggle to be optimistic about something like this.

We’d just finished our last day of school for our junior year, and in true Liam fashion, he’d taken charge and decided we’d celebrate by lounging by the pool at his parents’ place. We were the only ones here, since his parents, brothers, and Ivy were all working at Westwood’s—Ivy and Tate finished their spring semesters at college two weeks ago—and Jules had gone to a friend’s house after school.

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