Just a Taste (30 page)

Her family had moved furniture and created a spot in the room to dance. Of course, right in the middle was Rosa, hands in the air, shaking her hips. What she hadn't expected, however, was Liam dancing right behind her. Carmen stepped forward to get a better look.

“Oh, jeez. Nothing worse than a guy with no rhythm trying to dance with a girl who does. I'm so embarrassed,” Maggie said. “He's very typical white guy out there.”

Maggie's assessment was correct; Liam couldn't dance. It should've been funny, but Carmen just got mad. She crossed the room and strode straight up to Liam. Her hand fisted in the front of his shirt, and she pulled him away from Rosa. His hands naturally landed on her hips.

He lowered his head and said, “Thank you for rescuing me.”

She might not be as sexy or confident as Rosa, but Carmen knew how to dance, so she did. She wrapped one arm around Liam's neck and started a bump and grind that he likely wouldn't forget. He barely moved. He kept his hands lightly at her waist and allowed her to move all over him.

She had no idea if anyone else watched or if they were all too busy dancing, and she didn't care. This was about letting Liam know that he was hers. The song ended and she felt parched.

Liam lowered his head again and planted a searing kiss on her lips. If anyone had a doubt they were together, it would've been squashed.

“That was really fucking hot. What are the chances we can get everyone to leave?”

She smiled. “It's not even midnight.”

“I'm not sure I can wait that long.”

Voices raised in another corner of the living room. Carmen couldn't see past the wall of a guy who stood there, though. Then she realized it was Shane. Liam released her and went to see what the problem was. Carmen followed.

“She said she doesn't want a drink. Leave her alone,” Shane said.

“Hey, man, I was just trying to get to know her, that's all.”

Christ. She'd know Pete's voice anywhere. Carmen pushed past Liam and skirted around Shane. “What did you do now, Pete?”

Pete raised his arms. “Nothing. I offered her a drink, and this guy gets all in my face about it.”

“You had a hard time taking no for an answer.”

Maggie's eyes darted between the two men. “It's fine. No problem.” She tugged on Shane's arm and led him back to the kitchen.

Before Carmen could say anything to Pete, he was already gone, skating through the crowd of cousins in the room.

“What was that all about?” she asked Liam.

He shrugged, but said, “Shane's protective.”

“Why? It was just a drink, not an offer to hit an hourly hotel. Besides, Maggie introduced him as her friend, not boyfriend.”

“Maggie doesn't drink.”

“At all? Your family owns a bar.”

Liam took her arm and pulled her toward a quiet corner. “A few years ago, Maggie was raped by her ex-boyfriend. She was drinking and he drugged her. So she doesn't drink.”

“Oh, God. I had no idea.”

“Don't worry about it. She's okay. Or at least getting there.”

Carmen let Liam lead her back into the crowd in the living room. The beat of the music had her dancing without thought. Liam didn't move much, but he stayed close and she liked that. The night wore on and she drank more than she probably ever had, but she was having a great time.

Midnight struck and as the noise in her house rose and shots and fireworks went off outside, Liam pushed her up against the wall and kissed her. It was the kind of kiss a girl could never forget, one that changed her life and how she viewed herself. In that instant, Carmen knew, even with her alcohol-fueled brain, that she was completely and totally in love with Liam O'Leary.

By one o'clock, people started to leave and Carmen looked beat. As much as he wanted to take her to bed—and he'd wanted to do that for hours—she needed to crash. She was smiling and happy, but could barely stand up straight. He took her to her bedroom and stripped her. He knew she really had to have been drunk because she didn't protest for a second. Then he tucked her into bed.

“I can't go to bed. I have guests,” she slurred.

“Your family had a great time. They're all heading home now. You threw a great party.”

“But the mess . . .”

“I've got it covered. Get some rest.”

She ran a hand over his chest and tugged at his shirt. “But I want you to come to bed.”

“I'll be here soon.” He kissed her forehead and went back to the living room.

Rosa was kissing people good-bye and ushering them out the door. He stood behind her. “Are they all right to drive?”

“They're good. Marco is driving the rest.”

He nodded and turned to go to the kitchen to start the cleanup. Surprisingly, Rosa followed, carrying plates and cups to throw in the trash.

“You don't have to stay.” He'd watched her drink a lot over the course of the night, and although she held her liquor better than Carmen, she had to be pretty drunk.

“I'm not leaving this mess for Carmen.”

“I've got it.”

“And I'll help.”

If she wanted to clean, he wouldn't turn her away; the house was pretty trashed. They worked in silence for a while, but Liam had a feeling that Rosa was building up to something. He stood at the sink and began washing dishes.

Rosa set a stack of glasses next to him and finally said, “You're not good for her, you know.”

“What?”

“You're not good for Carmen.”

His hackles rose and he reminded himself that they'd both been drinking. “What makes you think you get to decide what's good for her? You know nothing about us.”

Rosa shook her head. “I like you. I know Gus always liked you. But Carmen . . . she's head over heels, but it's not right.” She huffed out a breath. “It's not you, so before you start thinking I'm a racist or shit, that's not it. I see that you make her happy, but this is supposed to be her time. Finally.”

Liam dropped the sponge into the water and dried his hands. Rosa was serious. This wasn't some silly conversation about how he'd better not hurt her cousin. “What do you mean? If I make her happy, how can that be bad?”

Rosa ran her fingers through her hair and then scooped it up into a ponytail, tying it with a band from her wrist. “Look around. She has like five projects she started on the house that are left unfinished.”

“That's because I needed help on the truck. It's temporary.”

“No, it's not. Not for her. She put her entire life on hold when she came home to take care of her mom. When her mom died, she stayed and took care of her dad. She's never had her own life. This was supposed to be it, but now she's taking care of you.”

“She's not—”

“She is and you know it. She never wanted to work on the truck. She did it because of you.” Rosa shot him a look and crossed her arms. “Did you know she was supposed to go on a vacation? She planned to get away and have fun. Her first vacation ever.”

His jaw dropped a little. He hadn't known. Why wouldn't Carmen have told him?

“Yeah, I didn't think so. She canceled her plans because you needed her. I get that your mom was in the hospital, but it shouldn't have been Carmen's problem.”

Her words stung, but she was right. He had leaned on Carmen, but wasn't that what you did when you were in love? “She didn't tell me about her vacation or I would've told her to go. I love having her here, but I don't
need
her. I want her to have her own life.”

The words in Gus's letter came back to him. Gus had asked him to help Carmen find her freedom, to take care of her. Rosa was right. Carmen had been doing that for him.

Well, that would end right now. He sagged against the counter. “So, how would you like to work on the truck permanently?”

A smile spread on Rosa's face. “Yeah. But we need to figure out what we're gonna do about Heavenly Buns.”

Carmen rolled over and wished she could remove her head. The thumping beat a rhythm on her brain. She stretched her leg carefully behind her so she wouldn't have to roll over, and found the space empty. She slit her eyes open and saw sunlight, so she closed her lids again.

Liam wasn't in bed with her, but he never got up early, which meant it must be late morning. She tried to think of a reason for getting out of bed and came up empty. It was Saturday, so she didn't need to work. Of course there was always something that needed to be done, but nothing that couldn't wait.

Except her house was a mess. She knew her family well enough to know that they would've left a ton of crap everywhere as if she had a maid who would come through and clean. Knowing Liam, he was probably cleaning right now. It definitely wasn't his responsibility. It had been her idea for the party with her family and friends.

She gingerly pushed herself off the pillow and groaned. The thumping in her head picked up pace. She eased her eyelids open and glanced at the nightstand to see the time. A glass of water and aspirin with a note sat near her clock. She picked up the note and brought it close to her face.

She swallowed the pills and decided additional sleep was more important than coffee. Hopefully, by the time she woke again, the headache would be gone. As she settled back against her pillow, she tried to remember her night. Man, she'd drunk a lot.

Then she remembered her stupid jealousy being the reason for the extra drinks. She wondered if she'd done anything to make an idiot of herself. She scanned her memory, but came up empty. She danced with Liam. More like she danced at him, but he'd shown no signs of being embarrassed by her.

She lay there, willing sleep to come, but realized that once her brain was engaged, she couldn't fall back asleep. Gently sitting up again, she pushed herself to move. She took a long, hot shower and dressed.

By the time she walked into her living room, she felt a little better. What she found in the living room threw another shock into her. The entire room was clean. She checked the time again. It was only eleven. How the heck had Liam had time to clean everything?

The kitchen was spotless as well, clean dishes stacked neatly beside the sink. Rosa sat at the table sipping from a cup of coffee. One surprise after another. She was wearing some of Carmen's clothes.

“Did you clean everything?”

Rosa grunted, and then shook her head. “Me and Liam did it last night before crashing.”

Her words poked at Carmen. She didn't like hearing it, but her reaction to the words bothered her more. “You didn't have to do that. I would've gotten it done today.”

“We wanted to. You're always taking care of everyone.”

Carmen poured a cup of coffee and sat.

“Liam hired me to work the truck with him permanently.”

“What?” Carmen tried to keep her voice and her emotions calm.

“We were talking last night while we cleaned up. I know you thought Pete would work with him, but come on, it's Pete.”

“I thought you hated working in food service.”

Rosa set her cup down. “No, I hate working at the restaurant for my dad. Working on the truck this week was kind of fun. Besides, if I'm working, you can focus on getting a job you really want.”

Anger poured through Carmen, but she wasn't sure why. Working on the truck with Liam was supposed to be temporary, until they could figure out something else. But they were partners. They were supposed to discuss things like this.