Unsung (14 page)

This was how it was going to be. And she was just going to have to accept it.

T
he next ten minutes were in no way easy for Liam. He was fighting with every ounce of his strength to keep his hands to himself, because all he wanted was to reach over and touch Harper.

It took everything in him not to pull her into his chest. Took everything in him not to wrap his arms around her, press his nose into that spot just underneath her ear, and inhale. Even now, the scent of honey filled his nose with every breath, testing his will.

As her eyes were his biggest source of insight, and her sunglasses currently covered them, he couldn't be completely sure of her emotions. But she was fidgeting, something that until last night he wasn't used to seeing her do. And for whatever reason she seemed just as confused and lost as he did.

He had no clue what to do about any of it. It was hard for him to get over how mad he still was at her.

She'd left.

Yes she'd explained it, said she was scared. And he got that, really he did, because he'd been terrified. But that didn't change the facts.

She'd left.

The sting of waking up alone was still there, itching underneath his skin. And it had absolutely nothing to do with his pride. Hell, that had gone out the window about a second after he'd met her. After he'd seen her really. And it wasn't like he'd regained it, either. Case in point his ridiculous love anthem that would be officially released to the airwaves in a few weeks' time.

He tried not to cringe at the thought of it. Yup, the second that was out there, the only name for what he was would be a fool.

And then there was the fact that she'd waited so long to tell him about the pregnancy.

Okay…so she'd just confirmed it a week ago…and then the doctor's appointment to
really
confirm it had only been a few days ago. Denial was a word she'd used in describing the time gap between suspecting and knowing.

And denial was a word that he was becoming fully acquainted with as well.

Because he really thought he could do it, really thought he could get through it all without making a bigger ass out of himself. And he almost did, too. Made it through the part where he programmed her number into his phone—and he was going to ignore the relief of finally having it. Made it through the appointment confirmation of her next doctor's visit that he would be going to—and which was conveniently during a break of the Isaac Hunter tour. Made it through walking the short distance back to the hotel where her friends were waiting by the car.

But he couldn't have things stay that way. Couldn't let her leave like this. Because at the end of it all,
he
couldn't walk away. He still wanted her.

They were ten feet from the car when he gave in. He pulled his sunglasses from his face, hanging them on his shirt, before he grabbed her hand. He was unable to ignore the relief that coursed through him at finally touching her. She came up short as she turned to look at him.

“You want to get to know me?” His hold on her hand tightened, and he closed the distance taking a step forward.

“Yes. I do,” she answered without hesitation.

“Okay, new rule: no barriers.” He reached up, pushing her sunglasses into her hair and revealing her eyes. She winced at the sudden brightness, but she didn't look away from him.

What he saw first was surprise mingled in her eyes, violet eyes that he'd been unable to get out of his head for the last few weeks. But underneath the shock they were tired and sad…sadder than anything he'd seen on her face before.

Considering everything, that was saying a lot. He hated seeing that look there.
Hated
it.

“Like I said earlier, we can't start over. It's not possible with everything that's happened. Certain things can't be undone.” He let go of her hand, grabbing on to her hip and sliding his palm around to her back. His other hand moved to her face, cradling her jaw.

“Like me leaving.”

“There are a number of things, and that's one of them.” He nodded slowly. “I wish I could forget that part. I really wish I could, but it happened, and it sucked something serious.”

“Believe me it sucked for me, too. I'm sorry, Liam. I don't think I'll ever be able to tell you that enough.”

“I know that. I do. And, though we can't erase it, we can move past it. And even though we can't start over, we can catch up.” His thumb brushed her cheek.

“And how do we do that?” Hope flickered in her eyes, a hope that was running through him as well.

“One day at a time.” He lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers gently, just a slow simple brush before he pulled her bottom lip into his mouth. His hand moved back, palming the base of her skull as he tilted his head and deepened the kiss.

She opened for him immediately, like she needed to taste him just as much as he needed to taste her. And then her hands were at his sides, tightening in the fabric of his shirt.

He didn't care that they were surrounded by people, most of them strangers and a group of four that he had no doubt were watching their every move. Nope, he didn't care in the slightest. All he was focused on was the fact that the woman in his arms was not only holding on to him, but kissing him like her life depended on it.

When he pulled back from her a minute—or two—later, they were both good and truly breathless. He leaned down, resting his forehead against hers.

“Despite everything that's happened,” he whispered, “I still want you, Harper. That hasn't changed.”
Will probably never change
. He moved just enough to where he could press his lips to her forehead.

She pulled back and looked up at him. “So how does this ‘no barriers' work?”

“Honesty. We share
everything
personal.”

“So the exact opposite of six weeks ago.”

“Exactly. We talk. Every day.
And
at a minimum we learn three new things about each other daily.”

“Like what?” she asked, her mouth quirking to the side and giving him the first smile he'd seen on her face since finding her again.

“Like, I'm twenty-nine, have an older brother and younger sister, and I'm a musician.”

“I already know all of those things about you.”

“But I don't know any of those things about you,” he said as he continued to move his thumb across her jaw.

“Okay, I'm twenty-six, an only child, and a massage therapist.”

“That's interesting, both of our careers are dependent on our hands.”

Speaking of hands, hers were now climbing up his chest, something he had no problem with in the slightest.

“You have to go again,” she said as her fingertips brushed his collarbone.

“I hate Brussels sprouts, I have a
slight
fear of heights, and I hope our child has your eyes.”

Her hands stopped moving, her fingers now laying against the base of his neck. “Liam.” She breathed his name and he did the only thing he knew. He kissed her again, savoring everything about the taste of her on his tongue.

He didn't want to say good-bye to her. Wasn't ready for it. He'd just found her. It was too soon.

“We're going to figure this out,” he said against her mouth.

“I know. No barriers.” She repeated the new plan.

“Exactly.”

When the SUV pulled away from the curb five minutes later—taking Harper with it—the only thing that helped the ache in his chest was the fact that he was going to get to see her in less than two weeks.

Let the countdown begin, and let it get to the end as fast as possible.

Liam's deep, rich voice filled the tiny space of Harper's bedroom while she unpacked and did laundry. As she had neighbors on all sides of her—some a little bit older who had never hesitated to complain—she had to listen to music at somewhat subdued levels. Though she was pushing the boundaries a tad bit tonight, her volume just a little louder than usual. The current song coming through her speakers was “Wild and Reckless.”

“Tearing down the road in the middle of the night. My only guide the glow of the moonlight…”
she sang along.

It was Liam's first big song and she knew every single word of it. Again, the fact that she hadn't made the connection that he was Liam James was freaking ridiculous. How had she never Googled what he looked like before?

She still couldn't believe how they'd found each other again, either. Because really, what were the odds? Slim, that was for sure. But hey, considering the fact that she'd gotten pregnant even with the use of all those condoms, maybe the odds were a little skewed.

She dropped the basket of laundry onto the bed and immediately put her hand over her belly.

But her getting pregnant was not an unlucky occurrence. It might not be the most optimal timing in the world, but this was her child…Liam's child…
their
child.

He was going to be involved, and the relief at that fact was freeing. And then there was the added bonus that she hadn't screwed everything up beyond repair.

I still want you, Harper. That hasn't changed.

Those words kept repeating in her head, and that—combined with the low rich timbre of his voice crooning through her apartment—resonated through her body. The power that his voice had over her was scary as all hell, and the fear she'd felt all those weeks ago was still present, niggling at the back of her mind.

There was no denying the fact that she was in love with him. It hadn't been some overwhelming rush of hormones six weeks ago. It hadn't been just great sex…
really
great sex. It had been him. Liam James.

But there was no more running. She couldn't. The future held a good amount of unknown that wasn't comforting in the slightest, but wasn't that life? There were no guarantees with anything…

She wished they'd had more time. Wished they hadn't had to leave, and she had no doubt that Mel, Bennett, and the boys would've given her more time. But Liam hadn't had the time. He'd needed to catch a flight to California, and he'd looked genuinely unhappy about leaving her. He'd wanted more time, too.

That hadn't been a figment of her imagination, had it?

I hope our child has your eyes.

More words that kept repeating on a loop.

There was a lot of uncertainty coursing through her, but something she felt in her bones was that Liam James was a man of his word. So she was going to go with that, uncertainty and all.

At least the overwhelming anxiety that had been plaguing her for the last few weeks had lessened significantly. She guessed it was because of the truth finally being out there and all. Well, the truth being out there to Liam…she still had to tell her parents, a prospect that wasn't in the slightest bit appealing.

But she didn't need to worry about that tonight…that was on the docket for tomorrow.

She'd actually planned on telling them everything when she'd gone to pick Luna up that afternoon, but her father had been out at a farm checking on a sick colt. She couldn't tell one without the other there…and really the thought of telling her mother alone was terrifying.

So yeah, she didn't need to worry about that until tomorrow.

Her cell phone rang on the nightstand next to her, vibrating against the wood. Liam's name flashed on the screen and she grabbed for the phone immediately, hitting the Accept button before even thinking about it.

“Hi.” Her heart was beating erratically out of her chest.

“Hey, I…” He trailed off for a second, the phone going silent. “Are you listening to my music?”

“Crap!”
She dropped the phone into the pile of clothes before she practically pole-vaulted over her bed to get to the speakers set up on her dresser. Luna jumped up from her dog bed in the corner and started barking as Harper fumbled with her iPad. It took her a couple of tries before she was able to mash the Off button successfully.

Well…that had just happened.

“Luna, shhh.” She picked up the still barking dog and held her to her chest.

Luna let out a few more chuffs before Harper set her on the bed. The dog stopped barking as she spun in a circle, making herself comfortable on a throw blanket by the pillows.

It took Harper a second to successfully retrieve her phone from the still warm pile of clothing, and she heard Liam's chuckle coming through the speaker before she even had it to her ear.

She cleared her throat before talking. “Sorry, I, uh…dropped the phone.”

“Yeah, I noticed that.” The smile in his voice was evident. “Luna not a fan of my music?”

“Wh-what?”

“She was barking.”

“Because I woke her up when I made a mad dash across the room.”

“Ahhhh, I see.” He chuckled again, the rich warmth of it settling low in her belly. “So, what are you doing?”

“Unpacking and washing laundry.”

“Well, aren't you a party animal?” The teasing in his voice wasn't helping with the erratic state of her heart.

“Yup. What are you doing?”

“Settling into the hotel.”

“Your flight was okay?” she asked as she propped the phone between her ear and her shoulder and started twisting a washcloth in her hands. Why was she so nervous? It wasn't like this was their first conversation, yet she was barely able to think of what to say. Next thing she'd be asking him about the weather.

“Yeah, but I came to a conclusion.”

“A conclusion?”

“This whole catching-up thing is going to need to be balanced.”

“Balanced?” Or she'd just turn into a parrot and repeat the end of all of his sentences.

“Yup, I want an entire conversation where I get to ask you anything. You know way more about me than I know about you. And I'm at a disadvantage as a lot of information about me can be found on the Internet.”