That’s when I see them—the cracks in his armor, the self-doubt creeping in through old wounds that never fully healed. Liam has spent his entire life taking care of everyone around him. He runs into burning buildings to save strangers and rescues mischievous cats from trees. He’ll drive hell for leather down the back roads on a whim for a girl with a broken heart, but who’s there for Liam when the smoke clears? Who chases away his demons and faces down the darkness with him when life becomes too much to bear?
I could do that for him. I could behissavior if he lets me.
I glide my thumb along his cheekbone and press my lips to his forehead like he often does for me, hoping it stirs up the same sense of calm. “I only need you.”
Maybe that’s not what he needs to hear. Liam has enough people whoneedhim. He needs someone tochoosehim. So, I do. I’ll choose him every day if that’s what it takes.
“I wantyou, Liam. All of you. Every imperfect piece of you.”
He buries his face in my neck and inhales deeply, placing asoft kiss against my collarbone. “Don’t think you know what it means to hear you say that.”
“Need me to say it again?”
“Only if you mean it.”
I cradle both of his cheeks in my palms and let myself fall a little deeper into those familiar green depths. “I want you.”
His posture relaxes, and he presses his forehead against mine. “You have me.”
Chapter 19
Worth the Wait
?Everywhere, Everything - Noah Kahan
Ruby
I give Aiden one last push on the swing and duck out of the way. He pumps his legs a few times. When he reaches maximum height, he launches off the swing and dismounts perfectly in the patch of sand below.
“It’s going to be dark soon,” I say. “We should head back inside.”
“Aww. One more time?”
“You said that last time and the time before. I’m not falling for it again. And don’t give me those puppy dog eyes, either.”
Aiden kicks up sand, muttering something under his breath, and I almost give in.Almost.I hold out my hand and lead him to the front door.
When we step inside the house that has come to feel so much like home, I find Liam standing in the entry, slipping into his boots.
“I was just coming to find you,” he says. “Uncle Connor needs your help with something, Aiden. He’s in the kitchen.”
“Ok!” Aiden dashes down the hallway, leaving me in the dust.
Once we’re alone in the entry, Liam pulls me into his arms.
I clasp my hands around the back of his neck and skate my fingers through his hair, studying his handsome face and taking in the subtle glint of something in his eyes. “Why do I feel like you’re up to something?”
“Because I am. I have a surprise for you,” he murmurs.
“A surprise? For me?”
“Yeah, Goldie. Go soak in the tub and meet me at the back door in an hour.”
He starts to walk outside, but I call out to him, stopping him in his tracks. “What are you planning, Mr. Murphy?” I smirk.
He glances back at me, one hand on the doorknob. “You’ll just have to wait and see.”
When I get upstairs to my bathroom, the massive tub is already filled. Steam billows out of the water with my favorite scents lingering in the air. There are lit candles placed around the room, and soothing ocean sounds playing over the speakers.
