Page 85 of Between Secrets and Obsession
“Yep. Recently. He met a woman in Vegas, fell madly in love, and got hitched. Surprised us all.” I shrug, happy to see our waitress coming with our food.
She sets the plates down, and I pour some ketchup on my plate, then dig into my fries.
“If it’s any consolation, I’m not a heartbreaker.” He looks genuine. “I just haven’t found a woman who’s right for me, but I haven’t given up.”
I wipe my mouth. “Well, you’re still young. But yeah, I get it. I’ve dated some, but nothing serious.” I leave out the part where the only man I ever wanted was Liam.
While we eat, our conversation is light, and we don’t discuss anything too serious. I can’t help but notice the way he smiles at me, how a small dimple appears when he chuckles, or how polite he is to every single person he comes into contact with.Falling for Blake would be easy, and maybe that’s what Liam’s concerned about—me being in love with someone other than him. The thought pisses me off.
Blake is perfect on paper, and hell, in person too, but my heart’s still recovering from the shockwave Liam caused. I’m not sure I could give Blake a fair chance until I’m over it—if I ever will be.
On the way home, I take control of the radio again, and Blake encourages my love for pop music. When we pull into the driveway, I’m laughing at how he knows every single word to a Miley Cyrus song.
As he puts the car in park, I look at him. “Thanks for a great night. That’s the most fun I’ve had in a long time.”
“Me too.”
I lick my lips, my nerves taking over, and we both get out. Blake places his hand on the small of my back, leading me forward.
“We should go dancing next,” I tell him, excited to learn more about him. Even if I’m torn about dating anyone right now, I’d at least like to try to move on. Or at least have some fun.
“I’m down for the challenge.”
I’m a bundle of nerves as the date comes to an end. I suck in a deep breath, waiting for his next move.
“So I hope you had a fun time,” he continues as we slow and stop on the porch. “I was wondering if I could kiss you good night?”
The fact that he asks instead of doing it has my heart racing. Everything stills, and before I can respond, the door swings open, and Liam’s wearing a grimace, glaring at us.
“Not a fucking chance,” he growls/
I’m so livid I can’t even speak.
“Night’s over.”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
LIAM
I fucking hate that guy.
Not just because he asked Maddie out, but everything about him has always made me want to kick his ass. And I despise that she agreed to go, knowing I don’t like him. She stood in front of me, wearing next to nothing, and screamed at me to back off.
It hurts more than I want to admit, but I deserve it.
I have no right to tell her what to do, and I definitely have no right to be jealous, but I’m motherfucking jealous. Andpissed.
Not knowing where she is or how late she’ll be out makes me anxious as hell. Sophie’s most definitely not on my side and only scowls when I glance her way. The air was thick with tension when Victoria arrived and has been since she left three days ago.
“You need a beer,” Mason says, handing one over before sitting next to me on the couch.
“Thanks.” I take it with a curt nod, suspicious of his motives.
Keeping my eyes on the TV, Mason shifts and narrows his gaze at me. “So is Victoria coming back soon? Or are you flying there next?” It’s the first time we’ve been alone to talk, so I figured the questions would flood in. Mason’s not the type to just drop it even if I asked him to.
I swallow hard, not wanting to talk about her. After she dropped the baby bomb on me yesterday, she’s the last thing I want to think about.
Turning my head, I pierce him with a hard look. “We’ll take turns flying back and forth. We both work a lot, so we’re playing it by ear.”
