Cadie gasped. “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I forgot about this!”
“What?” Harper, Brystol, and I asked in unison.
Turning to look directly at me, Cadie said, “Hope asked me one time if I ever saw you and Liam together. I asked her what she meant, and she said she thought Liam was cheating on her. I remember telling her there was no way Liam was cheating, and certainly not with you. This was before she found out she had cancer.”
My hand came up to my mouth. “She thought Liam and I were having an affair? Cadie, why didn’t you tell me?”
She shook her head. “Hope laughed, and I thought she was pulling my leg. I mean, sometimes she would say the oddest things, and I assumed it was just her. Or maybe she had postpartum depression. Like maybe things weren’t going well with her and Liam, and she just said what was deep in her mind. I don’t know. Then she got sick and I forgot all about that conversation.”
My hands twisted together. “Oh my gosh, this all makes so much more sense now. The reason why Hope was pushing me away had nothing to do with Winnie, and her worry that Liam and I were…oh my gosh.”
“You don’t know that, Aurora,” Harper stated as she sat down next to me. “We can’t possibly know what was going through Hope’s head at that time. She was probably scared to death she wouldn’t see her daughter grow up.”
“I agree,” Brystol said. “What you really need to do is talk to Liam, Aurora. He is the only one who knows the truth. Plus, I think you need to be honest with yourself, Aurora, and how you truly feel about Liam.”
I dropped my head and closed my eyes for a moment before looking up and seeing my beautiful best friends all looking at me—concern and love etched on their faces.
“Liam already has it in the back of his mind that I want to replace Hope.”
“He doesn’t,” Harper insisted.
With a weak smile, I whispered, “I think he does, and maybe there is a reason he was quick to hire Kim. I don’t know.”
“He needed someone to watch Winnie, and he made that stupid promise to Hope about not letting a stranger watch her. In his mind, Kim wasn’t a stranger. I don’t think it is anything other than that.”
I chewed nervously on my lower lip before releasing it. “What if I tell Liam I have feelings for him other than friendship, and he doesn’t feel the same? Things will never be the same between us. I adore Winnie, and those few months of catching her here and there about killed me. I can’t risk my friendship with Liam or losing the chance to have Winnie in my life.”
“So what, you’re just going to ignore how you feel?” Brystol asked. “Because I can tell you from experience that only leads to more heartbreak.”
“What about Gary?” Cadie asked. “You guys went out a few times. Nothing there?”
I shook my head. “The other night at The Muddled Moose he asked me to attend a fundraiser in Albany. I told him no, and that I didn’t think I saw anything moving forward for us other than friendship. I didn’t feel anything when I was with him. Not when he kissed me or reached for my hand. Not like I do when Liam smiles at me.” I dropped back against the sofa. “Oh man, I’ve got it bad, and now I’ve unleashed it, the proverbial horse has left the barn, and I’m not sure I can ignore it anymore. I like Liam. IwantLiam. Shit.”
“Oh, Aurora, sweetie, I don’t think this is a bad thing at all. You need to tell Liam the truth.”
I nodded and gave a weak laugh. “I know.”
“You deserve happiness, and so does Liam. And truth be told, I’ve seen him watching you and I never wanted to say anything, but I think he feels something other than friendship as well,” Harper said with a smile.
“Who couldn’t love you!” Cadie grinned. “You’re an amazing woman and wonderful friend. You and Liam have spent so much time together, I don’t think it would surprise anyone that the two of you would fall for each other.”
I felt my cheeks heat. “You’ve seen him looking at me?”
“Not looking—staring as if he was longing for something.”
“Don’t you meansomeone!” Brystol added with a wink.
Harper drew in a breath and slowly let it out. “I know you think Liam couldn’t give you his whole heart, but I disagree. I saw how he looked at you the last time we were together. He cares for you in a much deeper way than friendship alone.”
I glanced over to the clock. “Oh gosh, I have to run. I’m meeting one of the contractors at the bookstore.”
Grabbing my purse, I leaned down and kissed Lily, then rushed toward the front door, calling over my shoulder, “Love you all! Talk soon.”
As I made my way to my car, it wasn’t lost on me that I was being a coward. Or maybe it was realizing that I had deeper feelings for Liam, causing me to freak out. Whatever it was, I turned up the radio and pushed it all away.
The bell above the door rang, and I glanced up with a smile to greet the customer, only to have it falter when I saw Kim and Winnie walk in.
“Who is that with Winnie?” Lou asked in a low whisper.
