Gwen
I was exhausted. I slumped down in the passenger seat on the way home from the party, tired and still a little pissed at Liam. He had no right to speak to me that way. The thing that pissed me off the most was that he was right.
I was the only one who stood in the way of having a family again. I’d fought against Allison and my father for so long, without any real cause. I wracked my brain, trying to think of something Allison had done to wrong me. Anything so I could go back and shove it in Liam’s face. Prove to him that she was the enemy, not me, but I had nothing. Nothing! It was infuriating.
She’d tried to get close to me for the first couple of years they were together, but I just pushed her away. I was convinced she was just some trashy gold digger and wouldn’t last. I mean, the woman was only a few years older than I was for Christ’s sake. Despite all my attempts to run her off she refused to back down. Insisting on kissing my ass, trying to make me like her. After a while, even Mother Theresa would’ve given up, but she didn’t. She faded into the background, polite and sweet and staying out of my way for the most part.
My anger toward her and my father, for that matter, had been all consuming, but it wasn’t justified. Daddy gave me anything and everything I wanted, and Allison just wanted to be my friend. I was just a selfish bitch who made things hard on them.
Liam reached for my hand and threaded his fingers through mine. He brought our joined hands to his lips and pressed a kiss to my knuckles. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I shouldn’t have…”
I sat up straighter and trapped his hand between both of mine. “No. You were right.”
Liam raised an eyebrow his lips twisted into a smirk.
“I hate when you’re right,” I said.
He squeezed my hand tighter and laughed. “Get used to it, Princess.” He shot me a wink. The smirk faded and his face grew serious. “What are you going to do?”
I shrugged. “I’m gonna fix it. I don’t know how exactly, but I’ll figure it out.”
He brushed his hand against my cheek. “Yeah, you will.”
“But maybe you should consider taking your own advice.”
He sighed. “It’s not that easy.”
“How do you know until you try?”
His lips twitched as he fought a smile. “I hate it when you’re right.”
I leaned across the seat and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Get used to it.”
***
The bar was pretty dead. Thursday nights were usually like that. Liam was at poker with the guys leaving me and Jason to run the bar.
I was refilling the salt when the bell above the door jingled, announcing a customer.
“This is just un-fucking-believable,” Alex said as she stomped her way through the empty bar with her sister-in-law, Millie, and Madison in tow.
She dropped heavily into a seat at their usual table. Madison and Millie followed suit. Madison stopped to nod in greeting to me.
I finished with the current bottle of salt and screwed the lid back tight, before heading over to take their order.
“Jack Daniels,” Alex barked when I approached the table. She was in an extraordinarily bitchy mood, which was a bit much even for Alex.
“Okay,” I said and turned my attention to the other ladies at the table. I took their orders before heading back to the bar.
I rattled off their orders to Jason and he started pouring. He nodded in their direction. “What’s up with her?” he asked as Alex waved her arms mid-rant, her face cold and tense.
“Fuck if I know,” I said with a shrug. I reached for the tray as he placed the last of their drinks on it.
I made my way back to the table. Alex’s voice raised with every step I took.
“All this red tape bullshit. It’s ridiculous. I’ve left six messages for the permit department manager. Six!”
“Well, I’m sure they will get back to you,” Millie said as she lay her hand over Alex’s on the table to offer her some comfort.
“The wedding is in two weeks! I submitted the permit applications months ago, and still nothing. What am I supposed to do? If those permits don’t come through, we won’t have a venue for the wedding. Where the hell am I going to find a new venue in two weeks!”
“Who did you talk to in the permit office?” Madison asked.
“I left a message for the department head. Francis Graden or Garden, something like that, but I can’t get the son of a bitch to call me back.”
I set her shot down in front of her. She wasted no time and tossed it down her throat, then slammed the empty glass hard on the table.
“Gardner,” I said, passing out the other girls’ drinks.
Alex frowned and looked up at me, her green eyes hard. “Excuse me?”
“Francis Gardner is the department head for the permit office.”
Her eyebrows shot into her hairline.
“Do you know him?” Millie asked.
“He’s my godfather,” I said with a shrug. I tucked my tray under my arm and looked down at their confused, yet hopeful expressions.
“Your…” Alex looked stunned, but didn’t finish her sentence.
“He went to college with my dad. I’ve known him since I was a kid.”
“Of course you have,” Alex said, tossing her hand in the air in frustration. Madison and Millie looked at each other, then back at Alex. I could practically see the war going on in her head. The last thing she wanted to do was ask me for help, but desperate times called for desperate measures.
“I could call him for you if you want,” I said to put her out of her misery.
Alex’s head snapped up and she narrowed her eyes at me, trying to figure out if I had some kind of agenda.
“That would be very nice of you, Gwen,” Millie said. “Right, Alex?” Millie shot her a pointed look. “Wouldn’t that be nice?”
I looked back at Alex and she sighed. “Yes,” she said. “I’d appreciate it.”
I smiled. “I’m happy to help. What’s the problem exactly?”
Alex sighed. “We want to get married in Madison Square. Set up a tent for the reception in the park, but I need the permit to do it. I already have the tent and everything is scheduled. We just need him to approve the permits for the day.”
“Easy enough,” I said. “I’ll give him a call in the morning. See what I can do.”
She sighed in relief and I turned, practically bouncing toward the kitchen to check on their food. Before I got far, Alex reached up and took a hold of my wrist. I stopped and turned back to look at her.
“Thank you, Gwen,” she said. “This means a lot to us.”
Sincerity filled her face. I could almost see the weight being lifted from her shoulders. To say Alex and I have had a rough past was a bit of an understatement, but maybe this would help us move toward a future as indifferent acquaintances. God knows we’d never be friends.
***
I flipped the last of the chairs over as Liam came in the front door.
“Hey, boss,” Jason said picking up Sam’s habit and Liam frowned at him. He likes to think of the staff as a family, so being considered the boss bothered him, but it was fun to get him all riled up sometimes.
Liam winked at me as he passed me to head behind the bar.
I smiled at him over my shoulder and made a show of bending over the table, making absolutely sure the spot in the far corner was very clean.
Behind me, I heard a thud, followed by a groan. I turned around as Liam peeled himself away from the bar he’d just run into.
Jason laughed. “You okay, man?”
Liam glared at me as I tried to contain my laughter. “Yeah,” he said. “I’m good.”
I made my way behind the bar and dropped my rag into the sink.
“Hey, Jay,” Liam said. “Why don’t you take off? I’ll close up.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah, man. Take off. I got this.”
“Works for me. I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”
Jason disappeared into the kitchen and Liam wasted no time. I could feel his breath on my neck as he pressed against my back and leaned his hands on the bar, caging me in and pressing his already hard cock against me.
I exhaled and pushed my ass back against him. Liam groaned and his hand slid to my hip, keeping me pressed tight against him.
“You like teasing me, don’t you, Princess?”
I leaned my head against his shoulder and gave my ass a little wiggle. He rewarded me with a pained groan as his fingers dug into my hip. “You make it so easy,” I whispered.
Liam spun me around to face him. His lips crashed to mine. He kissed me hard, sucking and biting at my lips. His hands ran down my body, gripped my ass, and lifted me onto the bar. He stepped between my legs and pulled them to wrap around his hips.
“So beautiful,” he whispered as his lips traveled down my neck.
I moaned as his hands made contact with my overheated skin. He pushed my shirt up. His lips left my skin only long enough to pull it over my head.
I felt wild. His hands, his lips, the way his skin felt beneath my fingers was like a drug. The sex was incredible but I wanted more. More of him, his kiss, his touch, just him.
His fingers made quick work of my bra as his lips traveled down my chest, taking my nipple between his teeth with just the right amount of pressure. I moaned and dug my fingers into his hair and held him there as he worshiped my breasts with that magnificent tongue.
“William Patrick Sinclair!”
Liam released my breast with a loud pop and stood up straight. His eyes went wide as he looked over my shoulder.
“Mama?” he said.
Mama? Shit! His mother?
“You were raised better than this, William.” She sneered. “Is this what you gave up your promising future for?” I could feel her eyes raking up and down my naked back. “So you could fool around with some cheap…floosy in some broken down old dump?”
I crossed my arms over my chest to cover what I could as Liam frantically searched for my t-shirt. I could see the pain and the humiliation in his eyes as her words hurt him deeper than he would ever admit.
Liam tossed my shirt at me. I tugged it quickly over my head and hopped down from the bar. Liam pulled me in close against his side. His lips brushed against my ear. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered.
He sighed and ran a hand down his face, clearly frustrated. “Gwen is my girlfriend, Mama, and I would appreciate it if you would show her some respect.”
“Girlfriend.” She scoffed. “Please, I can smell the gold digger from here.”
“That’s enough,” he roared.
Mrs. Sinclair’s eyes went wide with shock. She pressed a delicate hand to her chest, her lips pressed into a hard line as she took the last few steps toward the bar. She fixed me with a disapproving gaze and set her Birkin bag on the bar between us. I held her gaze and refused to back down from her attempt at intimidation.
“I am your mother. You will show me some respect.”
Liam pushed me behind him, taking a protective stance between me and his mother. “I don’t care who you are. You will not come into my place of business and disrespect me and the woman I love.”
My heart swelled with pride as I wrapped my arms tight around his waist. God I loved this man.
“Love.” She laughed. “I’m sure she’s just looking for her next meal ticket.”
I felt his body tense and anger flooded through me.
“How dare you!” I said. The words slipped from my mouth before I could stop them.
She glared at me as I stepped around Liam. “Excuse me?”
“How dare you speak to him that way. Call me what you want, but I will not let you him talk to him like that.”
“I will speak to my son in any manner I see fit. I have news for you, young lady. Whatever plans you have for my son, know that as long as he continues with this ridiculous act of rebellion, he will never see a dime.”
“For your information, Mrs. Sinclair,” I spat. “I could give two shits about your money. Not that it is any of your business, but Liam is worth far more to me than anything money could buy.”
I looked up and met his eyes, which filled with pride. “I love him, and there is nothing you can say that will ever change that.”
Liam and I smiled at each other and refused to tear our eyes away as the truth of my words settled over both of us. Nothing was more important to me than Liam and nothing ever would be.
Mrs. Sinclair snatched her bag from the bar. “We’ll see about that,” she snapped before she turned and stormed out the front door.
When she was gone, Liam pulled me into his arms, his smile wide and his eyes bright and full of love.
“So, that was your mother?”
“In the flesh.”
“She seems nice.”
Liam laughed and pulled me tighter against his chest. His lips crashed to mine in a heated kiss.
When he finally pulled away, I sighed and laid my head on his chest. His heart pounded against my ear in perfect rhythm with my own.
“I love you, Princess.”
I looked up at him and smiled. “Right back at ya, boss.”
***
“Thanks, Uncle Frankie,” I said, and hung up the phone as Liam came out of the bathroom with a towel slung low on his hips. He walked over to the couch and leaned down to press a sweet kiss on my lips. I pulled away and smiled as he settled in next to me.
“I had a rather interesting conversation with Alex today,” I said.
Liam laughed. “Without bloodshed?”
I slapped at his chest and he caught my wrist and laughed as he held my hand against his smooth skin.
“Not nice.”
He leaned forward, playfully nipping at my bottom lip. “Never said I was.” He pressed his lips to mine in a slow, soft kiss, then settled down on the couch, pulling my legs into his lap.
“What was so interesting about this conversation with Alex?”
“Well, I overheard her complaining to Millie and Madison about a permitting issue for the wedding.” Liam nodded. “As it turns out, my godfather is the head of the permits for the city. So I called him and he said he’d take care of it himself. Isn’t that great?”
Liam looked down at me with a frown.
“What?” I asked.
“Nothing,” he said. “I’m just a little surprised is all.”
“Surprised?”
“You and Alex aren’t exactly on the greatest of terms. I guess I’m a little surprised you wanted to help her.”
I shrugged. “I’m trying to play nice.”
Liam leaned over and pressed a kiss to the side of my neck. “Since when do you play nice?”
I giggled as his words tickled my neck. “Since you.”
Liam pulled away and looked down at me with a cocky smile. “Since me, huh?”
I just nodded my head and smiled. “I love you, and regardless of my past with Alex, she and Drew are important to you. If I want to be a part of your life, then I will have to be nice. Even if it kills me.”
He smiled and pressed his lips to mine. The tip of his tongue flicked against my mouth, encouraging me to open for him. I gripped his neck and deepened the kiss, lost in the smell of soap on his skin and the taste of mint on his tongue. Kissing Liam was like sampling the best champagne. After I’d had a taste of the best, there was no going back.
I ran my hands down his chest to the towel still tucked around his waist. With one swift move, I yanked it free and dropped it to the floor, then landed a hard smack to that delicious bare ass, the sound echoing through the loft.
Liam smiled against my lips. “So much for playing nice.”