Bellamy

 

The day of my date with Liam arrived. He was being incredibly secretive and sneaky about it, which made me wonder what it was he was planning.

I pretty much resigned myself to an entire day of waiting and wondering until he was supposed to pick me up.

Yep. He was picking me up even though we lived in the same house. This whole surprise date night might be maddening, but it was also so incredibly sweet.

Truth was Liam and I didn’t really have many actual dates. We’d had tacos when I first arrived in town, which probably didn’t count, but it was as close to a date as we’d ever gotten. That and we made out like horny teens in the back booth.

That’s what people did on dates, right?

I didn’t even know. Sure, I’d been out here and there over the past eight years, but that all seemed so far away, so unimportant.

I guess the last actual date Liam and I shared was when he took me to the winter carnival all those years ago.

He was already up and gone to training for the day. His dedication was something I really admired. I’d wanted to go up to the pipe with him, but he turned me down. It wasn’t my most becoming moment, but I pouted about it.

He thought it was cute, then declared I couldn’t go because my mom had booked us a stay day at the resort spa. Personally, I think he enjoyed torturing me and letting the anticipation build. And build it did. Even Liam seemed a little nervous about it. Every time I would try and pry some detail out of him, he would almost blush and turn shy.

Liam was the least shy man I knew, so it was just proof something was up.

“A girl could get used to this kind of pampering,” Mom said from the pedicure chair beside mine.

I smiled. “Thanks for booking this. It’s been nice.”

“You deserve a little relaxation after everything.”

I glanced her way. “So do you.”

“How have things been going?” Her question made us both look at the women giving us our pedicures and then back.

“Good. Nothing new to report,” I replied generically. I knew she would understand that meant there was no more developments in the release of Crone.

Unfortunately.

It didn’t seem to matter how many calls Liam or I made. It was roadblock after roadblock. It gave a girl serious doubts about our legal system. I just couldn’t fathom how all his money was so much more important than the safety of innocent people.

It was sickening how much money actually bought.

Liam had even called the mayor of New York. He got put through, too. Apparently, phone calls from a United States Olympic Medalists were quite an honor. Too bad they weren’t enough to keep a criminal behind bars.

Liam was so incensed after that call it had taken several hours for him to calm down. I even suggested maybe we postpone tonight, but he wouldn’t have it. In fact, I almost felt like the more definite Crone’s release became, the more he wanted this date.

“So what do you know about tonight?” I asked Mom, a gleam in my eye.

She laughed and shook her head. She had chin-length brown hair she used to keep highlighted with a beautiful honey color until she went into witness protection. I hadn’t been the only one who lost everything when I witnessed my father’s murder. Mom hadn’t even been there, but she’d lost everything, too.

“You should get your hair highlighted,” I suggested. “Like it used to be.”

She tilted her head, fingering the straight strands. “You think?”

I nodded. “Definitely.”

“I don’t know,” she mused.

“Oh, do it,” I exclaimed. “My treat! Maybe they can fit you in while I’m getting a blow-out.”

“I can go see while your polish is drying,” her tech replied.

I nodded vigorously.

“Well, okay.” She agreed.

The woman finished applying the polish and then went off to see if there was some availability. I glanced down at the bright, glossy red on her toes. “It’s beautiful.”

Mom glanced at mine, which was pure white. “So is yours.”

“It reminds me of the snow,” I said. And snow reminds me of Liam.

“I really like him,” Mom said, as if she knew it wasn’t the snow that made me choose the color.

“You do?”

She smiled. “I don’t know many men who would live with his girlfriend’s mother and his mother,” she teased. Then she turned a little more serious. “He makes you happy and I see the way he looks at you. It’s what every mother wants for her daughter.”

“I can’t imagine my life without him.” I confided, glancing down at the white polish adorning my fingernails as well.

“That’s good,” she mused.

“Good?”

“Of course. That’s how you know you found the one.”

I reached my hand out, and she surrendered hers. “I’m so glad you’re here. When I found out I was pregnant, you were the first person I wanted to call. Just thinking my baby would never know you was devastating.”

Her eyes turned misty, and she smiled. “That’s all over now. We’re here together, and that won’t change.”

I glanced off in the direction the two nail techs went and lowered my voice. “What if he comes for us?”

“He won’t. He’s not going to do anything to jeopardize his freedom.”

I wondered if she believed that or if she just wanted me to. She squeezed my hand and smiled. “No thinking like that, not today. Today we are being pampered and relaxing.”

“So are you going to tell me where Liam is taking me tonight?”

“What makes you think I know?”

“Do you?”

“Nice try.” She laughed. “My lips are sealed.”

I let out a frustrated groan, and the women returned to usher us over to the salon so we could get our hair done.

Before I moved off toward the stylist’s shampoo bowl, Mom caught my hand. “Bellamy.”

I glanced around.

“I love you, and I’m so glad we’re together again.”

I rushed forward and hugged her. “Me, too, Mom.”

After that, we were both whisked off, me to get a shampoo and blow-out, and Mom to get her highlights.

After our facials, nails, and hair, we headed back to Holly’s. I loved the house, but even after a few months, it still didn’t feel like home. As the baby inside me grew, thoughts of a place of our own became more frequent.

I didn’t say anything, though, because there was enough going on already. Adding house hunting and a move into the mix wasn’t wise. Besides, if we moved out, Holly would be here alone, and I didn’t want to say I was ready for our own place and make Liam feel he was abandoning his mom.

“So…” Mom began, following me into our bedroom. “What are you going to wear tonight?”

Charlie was bouncing around in front of me, and I knew he wouldn’t stop until I gave him my undivided attention. Dropping down, I scratched behind his ears as his tail beat against the carpet. He tried to lick me with his massive tongue, but I ducked just in time.

I stood and sat on the bed. Charlie plopped his massive head in my lap. I shrugged, thinking about my wardrobe. “Liam said something warm. So probably jeans. I don’t have much to pick from.”

I’d been here long enough to have a dresser full of clothes, but they were all casual. Nothing about me was fancy or even dressy. I didn’t really have any “date wear.”

Thinking about it made me grimace. “Maybe I should have gotten something…”

“Hold on,” Mom said and disappeared from the room. A few minutes later, she came back with a large white paper bag and set it beside me on the bed.

“What’s this?” I asked.

“I saw it the other day when I was in town, shopping with Holly. I thought of you, so I bought it.”

“You didn’t have to do that,” I said, touched.

“I wanted to. There was a long period of time I wanted to give you gifts and couldn’t.”

Reaching into the bag, my hands closed around impossibly soft material. I lifted the item and held it out. “It’s beautiful,” I said, staring at the thick white cardigan. It was one of those oversized styles that I could put on over a thick, long-sleeved T-shirt for added warmth. The material was so soft and thick I wondered if perhaps it was handmade. The neck and front opening was lined with white faux fur that was almost downy to the touch.

I pulled it in, hugging the material against my chest and letting the fur tickle my cheek. “I love it. Thank you so much.”

“When I saw you pick white for your nails today, I knew I had to give it to you because it matches.”

I smiled. “It does.”

I set aside the sweater and hugged her. Mom squeezed a little tighter than usual and whispered, “I’m so proud of you.”

Sniffling, I pulled back. “So what are you going to do tonight since I won’t be home?”

“Holly and I are having dinner.”

I nodded. Our mothers had become good friends since Mom came here to stay. I was glad because the baby made us all family, and I wanted nothing more than for all of us to get along.

“Speaking of. We’re going to be leaving soon, so I better go get dressed!” On her way out, she stopped and turned back. “I’m going to want all the details tomorrow.”

“I’ll take notes.” I promised.

“You better not! Enjoy your time with him. Pretty soon, you’re going to have a baby vying for your attention.”

I rubbed a hand over my stomach and smiled to myself. He moved beneath my hand, and it made my smile widen. Since that first kick, Shaw had been very active.

A little while later, I dressed in a pair of thick black leggings, because none of my jeans would button anymore, a plain white long-sleeved shirt that was also a little snug around the belly, and added the cardigan Mom gifted me.

Since Liam said warm, I put on the boots he’d bought me when I first arrived, letting a pair of tall white socks stick out from the top.

The spa day had been really good timing because I didn’t have to do my hair. It was so long, it would have taken forever to blow it out and then flat-iron it into its straight, glossy style. I loved it like this, sleek and done. I rarely ever did it this way because, well, who had time for that?

Charlie got up from the bed with a woof and raced from the room. Seconds later, Liam’s voice reached me. “Bells?”

Butterflies erupted in my stomach and made me smile. “In here!” I called and turned from the dresser to race out of the bedroom. I knew I’d seen him this morning, but it felt like days ago.

He was walking across the room, on his way from the door leading into the garage, when I saw him. My footsteps faltered when our eyes met, and so did his.

We stood there on opposite sides of the room, just staring. He didn’t really look any different than any other day, dressed in dark jeans, dark waterproof boots, and a heavy coat. He wasn’t wearing a hat, though, and his hair was tamed, combed back and pushed into a style.

He looked the same, but there was something different, a certain air of anticipation in the way he took me in with his gray stare.

He was nervous, and it was absolutely adorable.

“I was, uh, gonna ring the doorbell.” He began, offering up a sheepish smile. “But I was afraid it might scare you.”

I nodded, understanding. I didn’t have the best track record with opening the door to strangers.

“Are those for me?” I asked, gesturing to the huge bouquet of roses in his hand.

He glanced down as if he’d forgotten they were there. “Oh, yeah,” he answered and walked toward me.

“You look,” he said, sweeping his eyes over me once more, “really beautiful.”

“Thanks,” I said, reaching for the bouquet. There had to be two dozen roses, all of them snow white. Fingering the silky petals, I smiled. “These are gorgeous. Thank you.”

“I wasn’t sure what your favorite flower was,” he said, scratching behind his ear.

I whispered, “Any kind you bring me.”

He reached out and pulled his fingers through a long strand of my hair. “I like this.”

“I know,” I said, shy. Liam loved my long hair, and as much of a pain in the ass it was, I probably would never cut it because of that.

We stared at each other for a few more quiet heartbeats, and then he cleared his throat.

“I’ll put these in water. Then we can go,” I said, a giddy feeling sort of rising up in me. I felt I was in high school and being picked up on a first date with a guy I had crushed on for so long and thought he hadn’t even known I was alive.

But he did. And he was here. With roses.

After I found a large glass vase, I filled it with water and slid the entire bouquet inside it. I would arrange it later when we got home. For now, I was too excited.

He was waiting at the bottom of the stairs when I came down and offered a hand so he could help me the rest of the way.

I stepped down, and he didn’t move back. Undeniable attraction pulsed between us, as well as anticipation. Liam reached down. I thought he was going for my hand.

Instead, he caressed the baby sandwiched between us.

His other hand came out, and I stood there as Liam cradled our child while basically making love to my face with his eyes.

My knees began to feel like Jell-O, and it was as though I were hypnotized by his presence.

The side of his mouth kicked up, and he finally let go. “Just had to get that out of the way for the night.”

I smiled.

Then Liam reached for my hand. “You ready to go?”

I nodded vigorously, making him laugh low.

Right before we stepped out into the garage, I hesitated and tugged him around. “What’s wrong?” he asked, stepping close, so close I had to tip my chin back to look up at him.

“I just wanted to tell you this is the best date I’ve ever been on.”

His teeth flashed. “We haven’t done anything yet.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

He groaned and touched our foreheads together. “I’m kinda nervous,” he whispered.

The confession endeared him to me even more.

“Don’t be,” I whispered back.

Gripping my hand, he started walking again. Leading me out into the winter’s night as anticipation swirled around with the snow.