Page 90 of Fix Them Up
He was smiling – a small smile.
‘I signed the contract today. It’s mine.’
‘Are you fucking kidding me?’ I squealed, jumping up and down, trying to make Liam join me, but he laughed and pulled me close. His chest rumbled with laughter, contained, muffled by his T-shirt.
‘When? How? Your dad –’
‘I finally grew some balls and told him. I didn’t ask. I told him. I suggested Jack should take over.’
I pulled back, my eyes wide. ‘Jack? But you’re so hard on Jack.’
Liam frowned. ‘I’m not hard on him.’
I cocked an eyebrow. ‘You are.’
Liam exhaled. ‘Maybe I have been in the last couple of weeks. But that’s because I’ve only started thinking of him as my successor.’
I whistled. ‘This ain’t succession, babe.’
Liam looked at me sardonically. ‘Don’t “babe” me. And you know what I mean. Once I started thinking of him taking over, I needed to push him more. I didn’t mean it to come off harsh.’
I hummed, unsure.
‘I’ll apologise to him.’
‘You should.’
‘I’ve been in a bad mood the last few weeks.’
I huffed. ‘Understatement.’
‘It might have something to do with a certain redhead creating chaos in my life.’
I gasped. ‘I didn’t create any chaos, thank you.’
‘Chaos. Good chaos.’ He pulled me closer. ‘I don’t think I would have done this had you not turned up, full of all of your ideas. You inspired me. If you could come here and –’
‘Move up to a random northern town, leaving my job and friends, digging up all of my daddy issues, all to renovate some house?’
Liam made a strangled noise like he wasn’t sure what to say. ‘Yeah, all of that. If you could do all of that, I could do this. I could open Lily’s.’
‘Lily’s,’ I mused. ‘I like it. Short, snappy.’
‘It’s my mum’s name,’ Liam explained, his voice growing hoarse.
‘That is lovely, Liam,’ I said. ‘Really lovely.’
‘Ren and I said it would be named after her – the menu is going to be inspired by some of her favourite dishes, after all.’
I nodded. ‘And your brother –’
‘He won’t answer my phone calls right now.’ Liam sighed. ‘I don’t know if it’s because he’s up a mountain, drinking his way through a city, or just ignoring me.’
‘But when he does answer –’
‘I’m going to ask him to come back. If he wants to. Come back and help me open this place.’
It was incredible to see the difference in Liam. His voice was clearer, his eyes shone, and he stood taller. Like the restaurant had boosted his confidence. Like he had a renewed sense of who he was.
