Reckless

Chapter 13 - Distraction

Chapter 13 – Distraction

Liam

The engine roared to life as turned the key, my eyes trailing back over to the house where I had left Sam. I hated leaving today but I had a lot of things to take care of; I knew if I had Alex slip up and tell Lacy that Sam was back I would have the perfect distraction for her. Part of me felt guilty setting them up like that but I needed to slip away without making Sam worry. Everything had been a mess at work since my father and I had our fall out. After everything settled I began making my own connections with some of our business partners. I kept things clean and simple, cutting my father out of the equation. It was just a matter of time before it all came to a head and right now we were preparing ourselves for a fight. This morning I received a call from my mom, asking me to come over and have a sit down. Usually, if mom was involved I could count on no firearms being used. My father might be an ass but he had a soft spot for my mom and tended to keep his nose clean in a sense when she was around.

When I pulled into the driveway my mom was already waiting for me at the door. She smiled brightly as she walked down the steps to my car. “There’s my baby!” She beamed as I climbed out of my car. Mom was beautiful, she was tall with dark brown hair. The only thing that even showed her age were the small lines around her eyes when she smiled. “Ma’ stop.” I laughed, pulling her into a big hug. I wasn’t sure just how much mom knew about the fight dad and I had but I doubt she knew much.

I followed her into the house and I listened to her go on and on about her book club and the drama that came along with a bunch of middle aged woman reading romance books. Her words began to fade into background noise as my eyes landed on my father sitting in the breakfast nook. He was sipping on his coffee and flipping through a newspaper – never once acknowledging that they had company. That’s when it hit me, my father didn’t want to meet with me, my mom had just taken it upon herself to try to mend things between us. She had no clue what had happened after all.

“Sweetheart, look who is here for a visit.” She beamed as she glanced back at me. She had no idea she was about to open a box she would soon regret. “Ma’ I don’t think this is a good idea. Why don’t I take you out for lunch?” I spoke softly, trying my best not to let my anger get the best of me. “Oh, nonsense Liam! Right dear?” My father continued to ignore my mother as she stood there awkwardly. “Ma’ –“ I started to speak but was quickly interrupted by my father. “I know what you’ve been doing.” He spat as he threw his newspaper to the table. I took a deep breath and started to turn to leave. “Don’t you dare walk away from me, son.” I could feel the anger boiling deep in my chest, this isn’t going to end well if I don’t leave now, I thought. I didn’t turn around when I spoke, I simply stood my ground with my back still facing them. “Ma’ I told you. This isn’t a good idea. I love you, but I think it’s time for me to leave.”

“No. You are not leaving until I know what is going on with you two! I feel like you all are keeping me in the dark and I have had enough of this.” Her voice shook as her eyes moved between me and my father. “Why don’t you ask your husband what happened.” My words came out hard – I didn’t want to be angry with her; none of this was her fault. Even with all that we did my mother was one of the sweetest people I had ever met. In fact, she was a lot like Sam – she always put others first. I didn’t want to be the one to out this – I didn’t want her to think I was making it all up. He needed to tell her the truth.

Sam

Lacy and I spent hours at the mall shopping. She even made me stay in the food court for about thirty minutes while she purchased something for me. My stomach was twisted up in knots, I felt so guilty, the whole time at the mall I had tried to find something I could afford for Liam, Lacy and the other guys but everything was way out of my price range. Lacy finally pulled me into the small coffee shop in the mall and we tucked ourselves back in the corner of the shop to rest and catch up while we sipped the mouth watering mocha drinks. “Lacy, I have to tell you something….” I nervously picked at the lid of my cup as my eyes drifted around the room – not wanting to look at her face. “Sure, what’s up, buttercup?” Her cheerful voice made me feel even more guilty. I took a gulp of the steaming drink before slumping over in my seat. “I can’t really afford Christmas gifts this year… so if you want to take mine back I understand.” Lacy leaned across the table and took my hand in hers, a sad look now on her face. “Sam, I didn’t get you something because I expect anything in return. I got you something because you’re my best friend and I am so happy that you are back. Christmas wouldn’t have been the same without you. Also, if we are being honest here, I don’t think anyone would have been able to handle Liam moping around like a love-sick loser. So that right there is the best gift you could have ever given us.” She giggled, giving my hand a light squeeze. My heart felt like it would burst, I had never experienced so much love from anyone and it was overwhelming. I could feel a hot tear break free and roll down my cheek. “Sammy, no! Don’t you dare!” She frowned, reaching over and wiping the rogue tear from my cheek. “You stop that.” She smiled as she settled back in her seat and sipped on her drink.

Even though I still felt guilty I tried my best to cheer up any enjoy the rest of the afternoon with my best friend. As I sat back and listened to her fill me in with the latest gossip on campus I couldn’t help thinking about how much I admired her. She didn’t care what anyone thought of her she just lived her life the way she wanted to.

By the time we got home that evening I was exhausted. As we walked up the stairs to the porch I couldn’t help but notice how quiet it was. Even though I had only been staying with Liam for a little while one thing I had learned quickly was that this house was never quiet. I couldn’t help but feel nervous as I opened the door and stepped inside.

My eyes felt like they might pop out of my head when I looked into the living room. The whole house was decked out for Christmas. There was a Christmas Tree and decorations all over the place. I stood staring at it all, these guys did not seem like the holiday type. “What do you think?” A deep familiar voice asked, as his arms wrapped firmly around my waist. I hadn’t realized it, but I officially had the goofiest grin on my face. Ever since I was little I had wanted to have a real Christmas, when Gran started taking care of me she couldn’t never really afford a Christmas Tree, but she always tried to do something nice for me. This was perfect.

“It’s…” My words seemed to stick in my throat like they had been dipped in glue. I tried to clear my throat but all the emotions from today just seemed to flood my senses leaving me desperately trying to hold myself together. Liam tightened his arms around me and buried his face in my neck, his arms rocking me slightly as we stood there in silence. “You okay?” he asked, as he released his hold on me and spun me around in his arms. Instantly I buried my face against his chest, clinging to him like it was life or death. “Baby don’t cry.” He whispered, his arms wrapping me up once again. There was something so special about this man, he felt like home.

We stood there like that for god knows how long, but he never once let go. Finally, the tears stopped, and I was able to compose myself enough to step away from him. “I’m sorry about that… wow… I am a mess.” I laughed, wiping the left-over tears from my cheeks. I hated that he sees me like this, but the dam had finally broke – all of the emotions were flowing through me.

He smiled, tugging me back to his chest as he gave me a tight squeeze. “I just wanted Christmas to feel like normal for you.” Normal? God, bless him – he had no idea what my normal was. I let out a soft laugh as I stood on my tip toes and placed a soft kiss to his cheek. “Thank you. You have no idea how special this makes it.”

“Alright, you two!” Lacy yelled from the door way.

We spent the rest of the evening curled up on the couch watching some of the guys play video games. Honestly, it was kind of nice to be doing something so normal. Everyone was laughing and poking fun at whoever was losing at the time – it was perfect.