Loving Liam (Cloverleaf #1) (22 page)

“Holy cow! Are you serious? No way, Rachel.”

“I really screwed up, Chelsea.”

“It’s okay,” Chelsea said, her voice low and soothing. “You finally listened to your heart and, well, other regions, but you finally ignored that annoying brain of yours. I’m actually sort of proud of you.”

“Well, don’t be. I’m totally mortified by what I did. I think I got overwhelmed because Valentine’s Day is coming up and, well, it isn’t exactly my favorite holiday, as we both know.” Tears burned at her eyelids. “This is not like me, you know?”

“I know. It’s not like you to hop into bed with some guy, but Liam isn’t just some guy,” Chelsea said softly. “I think there might be something very special between you two, but you’re way too stubborn to see it. I know Valentine’s is hard for you, but maybe this will change that for you.”

“I can’t have any kind of relationship with him. Don’t get me wrong. If things were a little different, then maybe, but it can’t work.”

Chelsea sighed, then added sympathetically, “It will be okay. Trust your heart for once.”

Rachel shook her head. “I can’t.”

“Oh Rachel, I wish I was there. This sounds like a ‘large bottle of wine and chick flick’ kind of situation. Maybe moving up there wasn’t such a great idea. I almost thought I was wrong about that too. You always sound happy, even when you are frustrated with work.”

“I’m starting to think I may have really messed up by coming here.” Rachel’s heart squeezed a little, and she suddenly felt homesick. She hadn’t felt this ache for a while and had thought she was settling nicely in Birch Valley. She had begun to feel like an important part of the school and truly loved her job. She had made wonderful friends in Mary O’Brien and her daughter Maggie, and she adored Karen. She’d made great strides, and thinking she had actually failed now did not sit well with her. But Rachel missed the comfort of having Chelsea, who knew her better than anyone.

More tears escaped her eyes, and she wiped them away before saying good-bye to her best friend and promising to call if she needed to talk some more.

Chapter Seventeen

Liam

Sunday dinner was in full swing at the O’Briens’. Liam sat next to Daniel, who immediately started digging in after they all said grace. When Liam just sat there, plowing an imaginary field in his potatoes, Daniel looked over at him.

“What in the heck are you doing, Liam?”

“Huh?” Liam looked up.

Daniel forked some potatoes into his mouth and motioned toward Liam’s plate. “You seem kind of spaced out,” he said quietly. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, everything’s fine.” Liam turned back to his plate, trying to focus on his food. He hadn’t regained his appetite since Rachel had run away yesterday morning. Instead of eating, he watched Grandpa Paddy tease one of the twins by pretending to steal his roll.

“Oh dear, must you torment the child?” Mary scolded as she entered the dining room and placed a gravy boat on the table, then gave the boy a small peck on his head.

“Only having a bit of fun with my little lad here.” Grandpa Paddy winked and replaced the roll.

“So Valentine’s will be here next week,” Daniel said. “Anyone got any plans?”

Patrick and Liam looked at each other, and Patrick shot Daniel a cool glare.

Clearly noticing the look that passed between them, Mary took the opportunity to redirect the question. “Anyone need any more rolls?” She smiled as she held up the large basket.

“I could always do with another, my love,” Pat answered.

The meal continued without incident. As the other men scurried away after eating, Mary asked Liam to stay behind and help her clear the table. He picked up the large casserole dish from the center of the table and followed her into her kitchen.

“Thanks, hun. So did you enjoy dinner?” she asked.

“Yeah, it was good, Mom. Always is.”

“I’m glad. I noticed you didn’t seem to have much of an appetite, so I wanted to ask.”

Liam sighed. “Sorry, I wasn’t very hungry today.”

Mary watched him, and Liam could tell she was trying to figure out what was going with him.

“How’s work going? I know we have that bake sale coming up soon, and I was thinking about trying something different this year—lemon bars.”

“Yeah, that sounds good.” Liam’s turned away and went to grab more dishes from the dining room table.

“So how are things going with Rachel? I haven’t heard from her since the poor dear’s pipes froze. We had such a lovely time baking, and I know she appreciated you and your brothers helping her.”

Liam avoided his mother’s stare as he returned to the kitchen. He knew what she was doing. She was probing for information so she could fix whatever was wrong, but he doubted she could help him with this problem.

“Well, I better get home. I have some papers I need to grade. Thanks again for dinner, Mom.” Liam kissed her on the cheek and practically ran out of her kitchen.

***

Rachel

Monday morning showed up with rain; not a quiet drizzle but pounding sheets of wild precipitation. Rachel hurried out of her car to take shelter inside the warm elementary school, and Karen smiled as she entered.

“Good morning. A little wet, isn’t it?” Karen teased. “Coffee’s ready.”

“Morning. My goodness, I can’t believe how it’s coming down out there. My windshield wipers didn’t even help. I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to drive. Might have been better to take a boat.” Rachel laughed.

“What this means is that spring is near,” Karen added confidently as she grabbed a stack of paper to put in the teachers’ mailboxes.

Rachel weaved her way into the teachers’ lounge and added some more coffee to the mug she had already been working on. She had slept terribly and was already on her third cup of coffee.

Rachel’s body tensed as she heard Liam greeting Karen. Quickly planning an exit strategy, she zoomed into her office.

***

Liam

Karen watched as Rachel sped past. “Boy, she must be in a hurry,” she commented to Liam.

He watched as Rachel shut the door to her office, knowing full well why she had fled. So the avoiding game now was in full swing.

For the remainder of the day, Liam didn’t see a trace of Rachel, but he didn’t press the issue or try to confront her. He wanted to give her a little space as he tried to figure out how to mend things between them.

After work, Liam decided to drive by the O’Brien Construction shop to see if Patrick was in. He wanted to get his brother’s advice on what to do about Rachel because he had failed to come up with any ideas on his own.

Walking inside the large metal building, he saw Patrick leaning against the counter sorting some papers.

“Hey, Patrick, how’s it going?” Liam called out.

Patrick looked up, and his mouth turned into a slanted smile. “It’s going. Just got done with a small job; we barely just got back in. Glad you stopped by, though. I wanted to see how things were. You seemed a little down at dinner.”

“Yeah, that’s kind of why I came by. I wanted to get your advice on some stuff.”

“Sure. I’m assuming this has to do with Rachel?” Patrick gave him a knowing look.

Liam nodded. “Yeah, I’m sort of stuck right now. Basically, she came over on Friday to discuss that issue we’ve been having at work.”

Thinking about their encounter left him wanting more, needing more. God, he wanted her again so badly, it made his body hurt. The thought it may never happen killed him.

“So how did that go?” Patrick asked. “She probably gave you an earful, I imagine.”

“She did, and then, I don’t know, things happened so fast.”

Patrick focused his eyes on Liam with intense curiosity. “What do you mean ‘things happened so fast’? What the hell happened, Liam?”

“Let’s just say it went from fighting to making up real quick,” Liam said. “Then the next morning she took off without saying good-bye or anything, and today at work, she completely avoided me.”

“Wow.” Patrick rubbed his dark evening stubble. “You really like her, don’t you?”

“I do. I can’t explain it, either. That’s why I wanted to come to you. I feel like we finally got to a point where we both see that we are attracted to each other, and I think this could turn into something serious.”

“So now how do we fix this? Basically, your biggest problem is work, right? Maybe we should start there. What about those reports she has been hounding you about?” Patrick was deep in thought, and Liam was glad problem-solving was his gift.

Liam rolled his eyes and grunted. “Yes, work is our main problem and her not wanting to get involved because of work. I think she came up here to really prove something to herself or maybe her family. Patrick, I don’t agree with what she is asking us to do with all this focusing on testing and dragging the parents into that big mess.”

“I know you don’t, but if you play ball, she might be a little more willing to talk to you at least. Maybe she won’t be so quick to put up that wall,” Patrick offered helpfully.

“Man, I don’t know. That’s asking me to go along with something I firmly don’t believe in,” Liam countered.

“Do you think you might love her?” Patrick looked hard at him.

This was why Liam had come to Patrick. He was only a little bit older but had lived so much more. He knew what love was, and he would be straight and honest with Liam. There would be no sugar-coating from Patrick.

Liam swallowed and inhaled, then let out a lungful of air. “I think I do, Patrick.”

***

Rachel

Rachel was in her kitchen heating up some water for tea when her cell phone buzzed.

“Hello?” she answered as she dunked a teabag into a large mug, mesmerized by the steam.

“Hey, lady, how’s it going?” Chelsea chirped.

Rachel smiled. She could always count on her best friend to be happy and cheery. Maybe it was all that California sun. Rachel sure missed that, especially now, when the gray clouds controlled the skies of Birch Valley and matched her own gloomy disposition.

“Raining like crazy here,” Rachel responded as she grabbed her mug, then took a sip, careful not to burn her mouth.

“Well, I better not tell you how gorgeous it is here,” Chelsea teased. “So the big question is, how was work today, and did you see him?”

Rachel sighed loudly. “I’m such a coward, Chelsea. I avoided him like the plague. I just feel awful. Any time I heard his voice today or even caught a glimpse of him, I booked it in the opposite direction.”

“Oh, Rachel.”

“Next week we have this bake sale to raise funds for our Dr. Seuss day in March. I have to sort of lead the event, and all the teachers participate. I’m completely dreading it now.”

“Do you have to bake too? Remember that time we tried making brownies? What a disaster!”

Rachel chuckled. “Yeah, I have to bake too.”

“There is a grocery store or bakery nearby, right?” Chelsea suggested sweetly.

“No, I’ll actually be baking. I already know how to bake something pretty awesome.” Rachel smiled at the thought.

“Really?” Chelsea seemed surprised but then continued, “So let’s talk more about Liam. What are you going to do?”

“I have no idea. I do know we can’t go on like this, with me running to my office every time he’s near.”

“Maybe it’s time to talk to him, Rachel. What if you explained how you feel? Honestly, where do you stand with this guy? Where do you want to stand with him?”

It was a good question, and Rachel really wasn’t sure of the answer. A large part of her was terrified, but another part wanted something with Liam, and that part seemed to keep growing. Although Rachel continued to try to fight any feelings she was developing for Liam and that was getting harder and harder to do.

“It’s so incredibly difficult. There’s a part of me that, to be completely honest, is attracted to Liam. He’s unlike any guy I have ever met. He’s sexy, funny, and smart, but he’s also a teacher and I’m his boss. My God, I can’t even begin to explain the effect he has on my body.”

Thinking about Liam caused her to feel warm all over and desire to simmer right below the surface. She was shocked how quickly her body reacted.

“Damn, that sounds like enough of a reason right there to be with him,” Chelsea responded with eagerness.

“He comes from this amazing family. I love his sister, Maggie. You would too.” Rachel went on to explain how her relationship with Maggie had developed over the last several weeks.

“She sounds really sweet.” Rachel thought she detected a hint of jealousy in Chelsea’s voice.

“Seriously, you’d like her. I bet she would adore you too,” Rachel said gently.

“I guess the only problem is, you need to figure out if you can get past the work stuff. Then, if you can, maybe you can try and give it a shot. He sounds wonderful, and I want to meet him and his brothers,” Chelsea said in her fake sultry voice.

Imagining how Chelsea would react to Liam made Rachel squirm with a bit of jealousy this time. “When you come up for spring break, you’re going to have to meet everyone here. There are so many nice people. As for his brothers, they are both single. Patrick is, like, wow, I mean, just wow. ‘Tall, dark, and handsome’ barely describes that man. And Daniel is so adorable and sweet.”

“Ooh, Patrick. I like tall, dark, and handsome very much. Now I can’t wait to come and visit you.”

Rachel laughed. “I bet.”

“Hey, have you heard from your parents at all? My dad says he had drinks with your dad last week. Said he didn’t even discuss you being up here,” Chelsea said quietly.

“No surprise. I got an email from him a couple days ago, asking if I had come to my senses yet. My mother sent me a lovely text too, asking me if I had met anyone and also when will I come to my senses and come back,” Rachel said. “Ethan and you are honestly the only ones who seem to have supported me doing this. Ethan says he hopes to come up for a visit too, but he has been so swamped.”

“Maybe Ethan and I should come up together,” Chelsea offered seductively.

“Good grief. I can’t wait to show you this place. It’s so different, but I think you will like it, and everyone says it’s so pretty in spring. Right now, there are dirty chunks of snow everywhere.”

The two friends chatted for a while longer, and when they hung up, Rachel felt more at ease about her problems and eager for Chelsea’s visit in the spring. She considered herself lucky to have such a great friend and realized how much she truly missed her.

***

The following days only brought more rain and worsened Rachel’s mood. Continuing to avoid Liam was proving to be more difficult each day. It also didn’t help that Karen was watching her like a hawk, knowing full well what she was up to. To top that off, Valentine’s Day was tomorrow, and Rachel could feel herself becoming more irritated as it neared, not only because it reminded her of that awful breakup a couple years back, but because it made her realize how lonely she was. Then there was the bake sale. Even though it wasn’t until Friday, the day after Valentine’s Day, Karen had already started decorating the cafeteria, going for a full-blown Valentine’s theme that made Rachel nauseous. She couldn’t wait to be done with this holiday.