Page 13 of Married to Mischief

Icouldn’tgetintothe back office. It was locked up tight, and I was afraid I’d set off an alarm if I picked the lock. Liam may not have a history of being the most honest man in the room, but I trust him if he thinks this is a dead end. Plus, I’d prefer not to end up in prison with my ex.

I emerge from the back to find Liam holding a green embossed jewelry bag, one that's far too big for a single pair of earrings. That’s concerning. What else did he buy? But before I can ask, he grabs my arm and escorts me out the door, and this time to the passenger side of the car.

“Have I been demoted?” I tease.

“No. I just have somewhere special I wanted to take you.”

“I thought we were going to finish the journal entries in the book.”

He looks over at me, giving me a very concerning grin complete with an eyebrow waggle. “That’s where I got the idea.”

I raise a brow, waiting for more.

“Cillian never wrote in this book of a treasure but one entry mentioned this spot near the sea that was a ‘treasure indeed.' I may have visited a similar spot when I was younger and want to see how it has held up.” He opens my door and I slip inside.

Liam hops in the car and pulls out the book. He flips to a page and puts it in front of me. “This is the entry I was talking about.”

I skim it. “A cave over the sea, one, two, three. A home for you, a home for me, a treasure indeed.” It seems like nonsense to me.

“My grandfather once took me to a cave like this on the east side of England off a small island,” Liam says. “The cave is wide and has three openings, but is hard to get to so it is relatively unvisited. It’s utterly enchanting.”

“You think the treasure could be buried in a cave?”

“You never know. Regardless, I'd like to take you there.”

“Okay. Let’s do it. But can we stop for food first? I’m starving.”

He glances at his watch and an unidentifiable expression flitters over his features. But before I can dissect it, it’s replaced by his typical grin. “Of course, my love. Of course.”

Liam

“When you said you were hungry, I expected you to eat actual food,” I muse, eyeing Serena over my glass of water. The musicand atmosphere at the pub are so lively it’s contagious. Serena did something I’ve never witnessed. She ordered a drink.

“But you said this was a vacation, and I haven’t had a vacation in…ever.” Serena’s words are slightly slurred, but she keeps claiming she’s as lucid as a lieutenant. Apparently, this lieutenant is a lightweight.

I glance at my watch.

“Why do you keep doing that?” she asks, her body lolling to the side.

I sigh and scoot my chair closer to hers. “I was just hoping to take you to the caves soon.” Preferably before it gets dark, and I had things I needed to do first.

“That’s sweet.” She leans her head on my shoulder.

“But of course, you have to go and surprise me.” I chuckle, wrapping an arm around her.

“Says the man full of surprises.” A new song starts up over the speakers, and she looks up at me. “Should we dance?”

“No one else is.”

“Since when has that stopped you?”

“You might be a little too drunk, love.”

“Nope.” She shakes her head. “I’malwaysin control.”

Yet, she’s not. And it’s only with me she’s letting go of that control and allowing me to care for her. I will never take advantage of that. I press a kiss to the top of her head. “Let’s dance then.”

I help her stand, and her knees buckle, but I hold her up, swaying us to music not meant to be swayed to. It doesn’t matter. Nothing matters more than the woman in my arms.

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