Page 133 of Fix Them Up
Liam pushed me against the wall, his thigh coming to rest between my legs, and I melted. A year on and he could still set me on fire with one kiss.
‘Do we have to go now?’ I complained, my heart racing.
Liam chuckled. ‘It’s your party, Red. I think people would notice if you were missing.’
I groaned, pushing Liam’s chest away so I didn’t press him closer to me. Liam’s smug smirk told me he knew exactly how distracted I was.
‘Come on, you’re going to be late.’ Liam laced his hand through mine and ushered us towards the pink front door.
I raised an eyebrow. ‘Can I be late to my own party?’
Liam laughed. ‘It’s a good job I told you the wrong time. Now, we’re bang on time.’
I swivelled towards him. ‘Not again.’
Liam shrugged, a wide grin on his handsome face. ‘And yet, you fall for it every time.’
*
I bit my lip as the last of the evening sun lit up the KAT WILLIAMS DESIGNS sign, giving it a warm orange glow. It felt obnoxiously big. Too big. It dwarfed the little shop I had pickedbecause of the adorable bay window. The outside was painted a soft white, and I was sure it would get dirty in the winter. I could paint a new colour to reflect a new season – burnt orange for autumn, dark blue for winter, and duck egg blue for spring. I shifted on my feet, my gaze drifting back to the sign. Liam stood beside me as Abigail had already run into the shop to find her mum.
A year ago, Liam’s restaurant was full to the brim with people, all buzzy and warm and full of laughter.
Now, it was my shop opening, three doors down from Liam’s restaurant, which, after a rave review from a well-known national restaurant critic, was booked up weeks in advance. Now, I had people asking me for favours in the club – bookings at Liam’s restaurant for their daughter’s birthday or a big anniversary they’d forgotten about. Liam always kept a table back and called it the Everly Heath Tax. He usually took care of the bill if he liked them well enough.
I gnawed at my lip. ‘Is the sign too big?’
‘No, love.’
‘I think it looks stupid.’
Liam rubbed his hand across my arm. ‘It’s perfect.’
‘Are you sure? Maybe I should call the signage people and ask them to mock up something else –’
‘Kat.’ Liam turned my shoulders so I faced him. He tilted my head up to meet his eyes. ‘You’ve worked fucking hard for this. All those nights studying and the money you saved to open this place.’ Liam offered the money to help, but I said no. I wanted to do this on my own and know I did it myself. He reluctantly agreed because he knew how much that mattered to me.
Liam continued, ‘The hard bit is over. No more working from the Wendy house, Red.’ He stood behind me, hugging me from behind. Kissing my neck. ‘Now you have your own shop, soeveryone knows where they can hire the best fucking interior designer in the Northwest.’
My lips twitched. ‘Maybe in the country.’
Liam smiled. ‘There she is.’
I exhaled a groan. ‘Okay. Let’s do this.’
Liam pushed open the door, and the little bell I installed last week gave a delightfully camp ring. Two of Liam’s floor staff, Mia and Adam, welcomed us holding trays of champagne. Liam had closed the restaurant for the night and insisted on catering the launch event.
‘Thanks, guys,’ I said, accepting a glass of champagne. Nerves bubbled up in my stomach.
Everyone I loved was squeezed into my tiny shop. Lydia and her girlfriend, Casey, stood by the wall-to-ceiling display of fabric samples. They had been going out for almost a year once Casey finally got the courage to ask Lydia on a date. Casey smiled and waved at me, her naturally warm disposition lighting up the room. Lydia turned and met me with a big smile.
I laughed as she pointed at the champagne and mouthed,Nice.
Ren was standing on the other side, standing alone. His charcoal trousers and white tee stood out against the burnt orange of my wall of prints. It was always a surprise to see him off-shift. He never seemed to take a break from Lily’s. I wasn’t sure he wanted to. He stood away from Lydia. He was subtle, but I noticed him stealing glances at her. Things were still off between them since he’d appeared at my birthday dinner. They were supposed to be childhood friends, but they were cordial. Distant. Everyone in Everly Heath seemed to notice it, whispering behind their hands when Lydia and Ren were in the same room. But whenever I brought it up to Lydia, she changed the subject.
‘There you are, darling.’ Graham and Mum came out from behind some curtains, like some sort of magician’s act. ‘Lovely display in the windows. We had to take a look.’
Mum and Graham looked tanned. Freckles across Graham’s cheeks showed they’d been somewhere warm.
