Chapter Eleven
Liam
Aiden stood on his front porch, his hands pushed deep into his pockets, and his eyes staring down at the ground. I pulled up to his house, kicking gravel beneath my tires, and quickly rolled down the window.
“You ready?” I called out, pulling his attention from the tops of his shoes to me.
It was the first time we’d really seen one another since I found out about Holly and how he helped keep the secret. I needed his help with the bed I ordered for Holly’s room, and we were, after all, best friends.
“Man, it’s really nice having you back in town,” Aiden smiled, sliding into the truck.
“It’s good to be back,” I admitted.
“So, this is it? You’re staying?” he questioned as I pulled away from his house.
It was going to be a long drive, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to get into this so early in the trip.
“Yeah,” I replied with a smile.
“I’m really sorry,” he sighed.
Shit. I guessed we were getting into this.
“What’s done is done. I forgive ya, but I can’t say that I understand why you didn’t tell me,” I responded.
Aiden shifted in his seat, obviously uncomfortable with my comment. We had three towns to drive through to pick up the sleigh bed. I really didn’t want the ride to be like this.
“All that matters is I know now,” I added, hoping to ease the tension.
“Liam, she made me promise. I didn’t think you’d ever come back, and if ya did, shit man, I didn’t think you’d be too happy to find out you had an eleven-year-old kid,” he stammered.
“Happy? What did happy have to do with anything? I wasn’t happy that the entire town kept a secret from me, one that could’ve changed my life,” I snapped.
“Yeah, exactly, changed your life, for what?” Aiden pointed out. “For diapers, formula, life in a small town, no future? You wouldn’t have experienced half, hell, probably any of what you have if you’d known.”
“That was my choice, not yours, not Alyssa’s, and certainly not Maria’s,” I growled.
Aiden didn’t rebut. The truck grew silent; only the sound of tires spinning across the pavement filled the cab. My blood was boiling as I began thinking about all the time I’d lost with Holly and about my chance with Alyssa I’d thrown away for nothing.
“I wish I had it to do over,” Aiden sighed.
I turned to my friend. He was staring out the window, watching the road as my heart began to soften. It wasn’t his fault. He was sworn to secrecy. Hell, I may have done the same.
“Me too,” I reached across the cab, resting my hand on his shoulder.
It was obvious he was sorry. It was written all over his face.
“I’m here now, and that’s all that matters. I have a lot of time to make up for,” I smiled, lightening the tension between us.
“So, you’re really staying?” he asked.
“I am,” I grinned.
“I can’t believe you’re a fuckin’ dad,” he gasped, slouching down in the seat of the truck.
I shook my head, laughed, and then turned my attention to the road ahead of us. I couldn’t either.
The radio played softly with an old country tune as I pulled from the highway and onto the backroads into the next town. The words coming through in my speakers made me think of Alyssa and how her smile still melted my heart.
“So, Holly is keen on the idea of me and her mother gettin’ back together,” I broke the silence between Aiden and myself.
“Really? What about Bruce?” Aiden asked.
“Well, she wants to break them up,” I admitted.
Aiden laughed. “Do you and Alyssa get a say in this?” he questioned.
I shrugged. My cheeks started to burn as Aiden’s stare grew stronger.
“I wouldn’t mind it,” I chuckled.
“Wow. You and Alyssa back together again, and this time with a kid,” Aiden sighed.
“I know, crazy, huh?” I smiled.
“Well, no one thinks much of Bruce, so I can’t say anyone would miss him,” Aiden commented.
“Not even Alyssa?” I questioned curiously.
“Hell, he’s always making her pay for everything, and all they do is argue. I can’t see her shedding any tears for him,” Aiden laughed.
“I don’t want to cause her any trouble. I mean, if she’s in love, and he makes her happy, then I would back off,” I confessed.
“I don’t think you have to worry about any of that,” Aiden laughed.
A wild relief rolled through my entire body, relaxing me from the weeks’ worth of tension I’d felt. Knowing that Alyssa wasn’t happy, wasn’t in love with this other man, it was all the confidence I needed to move forward. I wanted to win her back. She was the only woman I’d ever loved, and I realized, I’d never stopped.
“Here we are,” I said cheerfully, pulling into the gravel lot of the furniture shop.
The bed was perfect, just as it was pictured online. Aiden helped me load it, and the road home, we talked about Holly, how proud I was of her, and what an amazing little girl she’d become. No more talk about Alyssa, even though she was heavy on my mind.
“Thanks, man,” I patted Aiden on the shoulder as he climbed out of my truck.
He turned and smiled. “Good luck.”
The bed was unloaded and put together in Holly’s room. We’d already painted the walls bright purple, her favorite color, and hung lace curtains that she’d picked out. I stretched the new sheets over the new mattress and fanned out the fluffy comforter. I stood back, impressed and knowing that she would absolutely love it.
The buzzing in my front pocket pulled me from my thoughts. It was Holly.
“Hey, pipsqueak,” I greeted.
“Hey, Daddy,” she giggled.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“I have an idea. On how to break Mom and Bruce up,” she whispered into the phone.
“Oh yeah, what’s that?” I queried.
“I think we should send flowers to her from Bruce,” she whispered.
I paused. That didn’t sound like a way to break them up, but possibly push them together. Bruce could buy his own damn flowers, but from what I’d heard, he wouldn’t.
“I don’t see that working,” I chuckled.
“No, we put the wrong name on them, like he meant to send them to someone else,” she explained.
“You don’t think that would upset your mother?” I asked. I didn’t want Alyssa hurt.
“She would be mad, but only long enough to break up,” Holly said quickly.
I thought about what Aiden had told me about Bruce and Alyssa. He wasn’t good for her, or for Holly, and hell, he was probably a cheat as well as a mooch. Why not?
“You think that’ll work?” I asked.
“I do,” Holly insisted.
“Okay,” I agreed.