Page 74 of This Heart
The new bell we had installed to alert us when someone came into the bookshop went off. At the time, I thought the little song was cute. Now it just reminded me of the buzzer on my dryer that I don’t know how to turn off, which goes for, I swear, at least five minutes after my clothes are done.
“Jesus, I’m going to find that thing and rip it out!” Granny stated before turning and heading to the back.
I turned and froze. Liam was walking into the bookstore with Winnie. Just the sight of him made my heart flip in my chest. When our eyes met, Liam broke out into a huge grin. I swore time stood still for a few moments until I heard Winnie’s voice cry out.
“Kitten!”
Lowering myself, I smiled as Winnie gasped and looked from the kitten to me. She bounced on her toes in pure excitement.
“She is just a little baby, so we have to be very careful petting her.”
Nodding, Winnie gently stroked the kitten’s back.
“So soft,” she said in her sweet little voice.
“She is.”
Liam walked over and bent down as well. The smell of his cologne penetrated my senses, and I had to force myself not to lean in closer to him and draw in a deeper breath.
Get a grip, Aurora.
“You got the cat you’ve always wanted.”
My head jerked up. “What?”
He smiled, and I ignored the way it made my lower stomach clench with desire.
“You said before you’d always wanted a white cat with blue eyes. You finally got one.”
A small laugh slipped free as I said, “I forgot I’d told you that.”
Liam went back to scratching the kitten under the chin while Winnie cooed over her. “What’s her name?” Winnie asked.
“I haven’t named her yet!”
“She’s cute,” Liam stated with a smile.
“What brings you two to the store today?” I asked. “We don’t have a storytime planned.”
When Liam’s gaze met mine, something in the air crackled between us. I wasn’t sure if it was just my imagination or not, but something moved across his face, and I could have sworn it was desire.
My sister and the girls were right. I needed to tell Liam how I felt. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could pretend to be his friend and stop the desire to kiss him.
“Winnie and I wanted to invite you over for dinner tonight. Mary and James are leaving for the weekend, so it’s just us.”
“Who is going to watch Winnie this weekend while you’re at work?” I asked.
Liam pulled Winnie closer to him and smiled. “I took the weekend and all of next week off.”
“Are you going on vacation? If so, take Aurora, she needs one,” Lou said with a smirk in my direction.
I shot her a dirty look, and when Liam looked down at the kitten, I mouthed that I was going to kill her. Her reply was to wink at me.
“We don’t have anything planned, to be honest. I just knew I wanted to spend some time with Winnie.”
Suddenly, Granny appeared. “You, Winnie, and Aurora should go somewhere. She is in desperate need of a vacation. Her kitten especially needs one.”
I almost choked as Lou did the silent shoulder laugh as I cleared my throat and stood, leaving the kitten on the floor.
