Liam
It seemed that in the last few days Liam Kennedy was destined to experience women crying. First, there was Abby, and now he stood in the dressing room of an upscale clothing store, staring at a beautiful tailor with tears welling in her eyes.
This woman was different than Abby, though. Abby's tears were of the extremely dramatic sort. They were meant to persuade Liam to change his mind. They had intention behind them. Taylor's tears, however, were entirely different. She was doing everything she could to hold them back. Abby had seemed desperate to force them out, whereas Taylor seemed desperate to hold them in. She was such a professional that it pained her to break down and show her humanity to Liam.
Apparently, she had lost her dog recently, and Liam could see how much she was struggling with it. He could see how much pain she was in. He could tell she was uncomfortable and thought she had already said too much, but he couldn't help but feel like it was a moment in her life when she deserved some compassion. She smiled at him and began to close the dressing room curtain for a third time, but Liam held it open yet again.
"What kind of dog?" Liam asked.
She let out a resolute sigh before she said, "A Basset. An all-brown Basset Hound." She smiled sadly as she gazed toward the wall behind Liam, looking like she was lost in thought. "I found him in London when I first moved there. He was like my guardian angel. That was almost ten years ago. He was already full-grown when I got him, so I really didn't know how old he was. He used to bury bones." She let out a sad chuckle as she stared downward. "I thought that was fictional—dogs burying bones and then digging them up and enjoying them days later. I'd never seen a real dog do that, but Simon did. He'd dig a big hole and then put the bone in it and cover it up like a cartoon." She glanced at Liam. "I'm sorry. I'm usually a pretty private person, so it's odd that I'm even telling you any of this. It's just weird not having him around, and you asked, so—"
"I've never seen a dog do that, either," Liam said.
She looked at him and noticed that he was smiling sweetly at her. She felt terrible for saying so much. It was completely unlike her. She sighed. "It's just that he used to come to work with me, so I'm used to him being in the back. It's strange not having him back there." She sighed again and blinked, contemplating a graceful way to close the curtain now that she'd made things too personal.
"When did you lose him?" Liam asked.
"Yesterday."
The instant she said the word, a single tear rolled down her cheek. She cleared her throat, and quickly wiped it away with the back of her hand before using the other hand to close the curtain. "I'm so sorry about this. I—"
She started to say more, but she stopped when Liam, yet again, stopped her from putting the barrier between them. He gazed at her through the crack in the curtain that had grown smaller each time she tried to close it. She gave him a beseeching expression, pleading with him to let her create the distance she so desired.
"May I have a hug?" he asked.
This question seemed foreign and disagreeable to Taylor. "I'm sorry?" she said as if she hadn't heard him.
"A hug," he repeated. "May I have one?"
She gave him a slight smile. "I appreciate the gesture, Mister Kennedy, but I'm not really the hugging type."
"It's not a type," he said with an easy grin. "It's just an action. I'm not a runner, but I run sometimes. I'm not a jumper, but I jump sometimes."
Liam could see Taylor's wheels turning, but she still didn't seem like she was considering doing it.
"It would mean a great deal to me," he said. "You could consider it customer service."
She let out a little laugh at that. "I certainly don't make a habit of giving hugs as customer service," she said. "This industry is a man's world, and even though I'm sure a few of my clients would like hugs, I have to uphold a certain—"
She stopped speaking right in the middle of her sentence because Liam Kennedy did the unthinkable. He pushed the curtain aside and pulled her by the arm, causing her to topple right into the dressing room. He was a solid, brick wall of a man, and she felt herself smack right into him… right against his chest. By instinct, she started to pull away, but Liam Kennedy wrapped his big arms around her, enveloping her in warmth. He wasn't trying to be inappropriate with her, he simply knew that she needed a hug and he was ready and willing to be the one to give it to her. He took a deep breath, and she felt his chest rise and fall as he held her tightly but gently, conveying sympathy and love and regret for her loss. She had been rigid with tension, but she relaxed, accepting his gesture for what it was.
"I know you're tough," he said softly. "But we all need a good old fashioned hug every now and then."
Taylor found herself not only thankful for the contact, but also squeezing him back, which was totally unlike her. "I usually don't need hugs," she said after a few seconds.
"Well, maybe today's an exception," Liam said.
They were still in the small dressing room sharing that basic human form of compassion when Drew unexpectedly came around the corner.
"Oh," he said in a surprised tone when he caught sight of them. His voice cut through the silence, and the way he said it left no doubt that he was completely taken aback by what he saw. Taylor jumped and stepped back from Liam as if he was suddenly a thousand degrees and it was scorching her skin to make contact with him.
"He was asking me about Simon," she said, explaining herself as she took a few steps back. She glanced into the dressing room. "Thank you for letting me vent a little bit, Mister Kennedy," she said with a smile aimed at him.
She pulled the curtain closed, leaving Liam in the dressing room, staring at the inside of the velvet curtain. He heard her sigh on the other side. "Just leave your garments in there after you change," she reminded him. "Drew will take care of boxing them."
"Okay," Liam said.
"How'd the straight fit trousers work on Mister Bishop?" Her question was obviously directed toward Drew, and Liam just stood there listening to them for a few seconds until they walked away and he could no longer hear their conversation.
He realized that his heart was still beating rapidly from the exchange, and he contemplated how and why the quiet, sophisticated suit maker had the ability to affect him this way. He could still smell her, and he reached up and held his forearm to his nose, breathing in to see if she had rubbed off on his coat. Maybe it was just that the whole place smelled like her.
Liam changed clothes and went out to join the others in the store. Drew was waiting near the dressing room and wasted no time at all going in to get Liam's things so he could take care of boxing them. He took off toward the back, carrying everything in his arms.
Liam stood next to Jesse and Rose as they waited for Drew to come back out with their things. He stood casually with his hands in his pockets, but he couldn't help but look around for Taylor. He was disappointed that she was nowhere in sight.
"What a nice place," Rose said. "I wasn't expecting it to be this nice. Memphis doesn't have anything like this. Drew gave your uncle the royal treatment. He even offered him a bourbon. Can you imagine?"
"I guess that's what happens when Courtney's your new daughter-in-law," Jesse said.
"They probably treat everybody like that at these prices," Rose said.
She casually reached out to a table of neckties and turned one of them over, searching for a price tag.
"How much?" Jesse whispered.
"Doesn't say," she said.
"If you have to ask…" Jesse teased.
"How was your experience?" Rose asked Liam. "I think the woman who helped you was the owner."
"She was," Liam said. He still felt distracted by the memory of his encounter with her. He thought about her dog burying bones and felt sad for her that she missed him so much.
"Did she give you the royal treatment like Drew?" Rose asked.
"She probably could've kicked him in the shin and he wouldn't mind with those blue eyes," Jesse said.
Rose giggled and leaned into her husband for being silly.
"She was sad," Liam said thoughtfully.
Rose's expression shifted to one of concern. "About what?"
"Her dog just died," Liam whispered, looking around to make sure he wasn't overheard.
"Aw, that's so sad," Rose said.
"Your mother cried for days when we lost Ladybird."
"She was trying not to cry, but I asked her about it," Liam said. "Maybe I shouldn't have."
"Oh, don't feel bad," Rose said, rubbing her nephew's back. "You've always taken up for people and been so considerate about their feelings. That's just who you are."
"Okay, so here we have it!" Drew exclaimed in a jovial tone as he emerged from the back. He was overloaded with boxes and bags but wearing a huge smile as if it was his absolute pleasure to perform this balancing act.
Jesse and Liam both asked if he needed help at the same time, but Drew refused and easily made it to the counter where he set everything down.
He looked at Liam with an impressed expression. "I guess you're ready to go Mister Kennedy. Taylor said everything worked right off the peg so you won't be needing any alterations." He glanced at Jesse. "Miss Quinn will be altering your trousers as soon as possible. She said to tell you we'll have somebody deliver them to you in the morning. We'll make sure you have them in time for the ceremony. She has the address for the location of the wedding in Malibu. Is that a convenient place for the delivery?"
"Yes, that's great," Jesse said.
"Wonderful. We'll have them there by 10am."
"Perfect," Rose said. "That's service. Thank you so much for accommodating us."
"It's our absolute pleasure," Drew said. He held out his hand as if waiting for a handshake.
Jesse reached out to shake it, looking a little confused. "Do we pay here, or…"
"Oh, Courtney's already taken care of everything," he said. "I'm sorry, I thought you knew. Her assistant called and squared everything away before you ever got here." Drew began cheerfully handing the garments and bags to the three of them. "It truly has been a pleasure working with you," he said. "We hope you'll come back to Taylored if you're ever in California again. Let's hope it's not under these circumstances, but we'd love to work with you again."
"Thank you so much," Jesse said, looking down at the bags he was carrying as if taking stock of what he had.
"This is the groom's suit," Drew said, pointing to the extra garment bag Jesse was holding.
"Thank you," Rose said.
They all started making their way toward the door. Liam new their business was over, but he hated not seeing Taylor one more time.
"Is she not coming back out?" he asked.
"Oh, Miss Quinn?" Drew asked. He glanced toward the back of the store. "I believe she's already begun working on the alterations for Mister Bishop's trousers."
"Oh, okay," Liam said.
"Would you like me to give her a message?" Drew asked.
Liam hesitated as he looked around. He wasn't going to pass an opportunity to give her a message, but he had no idea what to say.
"I guess, uh, just tell her thank you for helping me out," he said. "And that I'm really sorry about Simon."
Drew tilted his head at Liam with a warm smile. "Thank you," he said sincerely. "We all miss that old man around here. I'll certainly pass that message along to Taylor."