WOLF and the Runaway Heiress.

Chapter 07

RIO

After my lunch date with Bree, I still couldn’t shake what she said.

Why the secrecy?

I wondered if I should just come out and ask Bree and David when we're all together, "Are you two dating?" Sure, it might put them on the spot, but it also gives them a chance to be honest with me. I really dislike it when people start keeping secrets from me.

I know it sounds bad, but the more secrets people keep, while taking in yours, the more they hold over you and the less you know about them, really.

I have seen it too many times through my mum and her empire— just what happens when those closest to you start keeping secrets. I didn’t want the seeds of doubt to begin growing, and also, it wasn’t fair. Bree demanded to know everything about my life, yet I can’t even get the first name of the guy she's been sneaking out of the province on romantic trips with?

What did I care if she was seeing my stepbrother? David was a good guy; I’d be happy for them both. Additionally, David was making his way into one of my mother's companies; he was on the path to success. Why wouldn’t I be happy for my bestie?

After Bree and I separated, and she went back to work, I took a casual walk around the city park. Being around nature, even if it was socially landscaped, still helped bring clarity to my mind.

I found an empty bench next to the water where a bunch of kids were laughing and pointing at the ducks to their mothers.

I used to do the same thing with mine. It’s funny how, when you're a kid, seeing a duck was the most magical thing of your day. You went home and told everyone you saw for the next week to follow, all about these ducks swimming in a pond.

You never realize that one day, you'll be an adult, sitting in the park, watching the ducks while wishing you were that same kid where nothing was complicated or heavy, and the most spectacular thing in the world was swimming ducks.

Lately, something's been off with me, but I didn’t know how to describe it, so I just never expressed it to anyone.

There was a stirring in my chest, and a sudden pressure in my head when I was overthinking things. I kept telling myself that I was nervous about graduating from pastry school, but I was then convinced that it was actually due to the interviews I was conducting, then the wedding gigs with all the pressure from Liam and my friends, and now I’m not sure. Is it because I think Bree is lying to me, because there is something more to her secrets?

This stirring, this pressure, this gnawing voice within me; it was relentless.

I was starting to doubt everything around me.

Everything but my mum.

She will always be my one constant. My balance. She always seemed to find me when I needed grounding, no matter what the circumstances.

Or maybe it was about him again.

Sometimes, the desire to ask my mum about my father would flare up, but I never had the guts to do it.

Who was he? Was he a good man? Did he know about me? Why’d he leave?

I often wondered if it was those unanswered questions that made me second-guess and doubt those closest to me as much as I did.

After all, if your own father is MIA, who says a nitpicking fiancée, and secretive friends wouldn’t do the same?

I desperately wanted to know about him, even just his name, but I also knew I could never ask Mum any of it.

Despite the front she puts on, my mother was still in love with him.

He was the love of her life, and she has never been able to move on.

How’d I know this? Because I found an old journal of hers.

She had his name scratched out beyond recognition, but the words that surrounded his name were strong and passionate. The heartbreak of never seeing him return after his visit back home was unbearable. I read my mother's words filled with so much hope and love, and then quickly turned to agony and loneliness. I wanted to know why he left. What was it that happened in his hometown that prevented him from ever coming back to Mum and me?

It was focusing on me growing in her belly that pulled my mum out of her despair, and I was her new hope and purpose. But she never allowed herself to love that deeply again.

She dated, heck, she married David's father for a very brief few months, but no one ever lasted. No one has ever compared to him.

Does he know how hollow he left her?

Maybe knowing this was a possibility made me hold onto my own reserves with Liam?

Or was that why I didn’t give him my heart as deeply as I know my mother gave my father? I knew I held back, but that didn’t mean I didn’t care or want to be married. It just meant that I was optimistically cautious.

I continued to watch the ducks swim, and a soft smile graced my face as I watched the rambunctious children cheer and marvel at their cuteness. I envied how easy it was for them.

When I arrived at Liam’s condo, it was just after six. He had his favourite takeout boxes ready for us on the table when I stepped in.

The smell of fusion foods filled the space.

To be honest, I would have loved a big, greasy burger with the works, perhaps accompanied by a side of onion rings. Oh my gosh, what I’d give for a strawberry milkshake.

Just at the thought of all that grease and those carbs, my mouth watered.

“Hey, babe,” Liam calls out from the kitchen as he opens the bottle of wine.

Wine.

Sigh.

If I couldn’t have a milkshake, I’d be down for a cold beer.

“Hey, what’s all this? I thought we were going to decide on food when I got here?” I asked.

Liam didn’t respond right away. He poured both of us the chilled wine and set it at our places on the table.

“I just thought I'd save us the time. Plus, I am starved. Bree told me that you and she had lunch together, which must have been nice. I worked straight through mine. Come, let's eat.”

Liam gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and then took his place at the table.

Uhh, ok.

“Sure, but I don’t really like any of this stuff, Liam.” I hesitated while taking my seat.

Liam looked up at me mid-bite. “What? Of course you do, we always order this.” he challenged.

I shook my head. “We ordered it because you like it. We ordered it because David and Bree liked it. We never order it because I agree or ask for it.”

There was a long pause. Liam looks from me to the food and back at me again.

“s**t, I’m sorry, babe. I forgot again, didn’t I?”

You sure did, that gnawing voice within me echoed bitterly, but I squashed it back down.

“It’s fine, I’ll just eat this one dish and have something else later.” I tried to smooth it out, but inside, I was disappointed.

“So, how was work?” I asked, changing the subject.

Liam, despite being a Reid, didn’t work at Reid Enterprises like his father or brothers. He worked for one of their smaller sister companies. He was a department manager there and spent a lot of overtime hours trying to prove himself capable.

It hurt to watch him work himself to exhaustion every day, but he said he loved a challenge. Part of me wondered if I should talk to my mum about maybe getting him into one of our companies.

David had suggested it a few months ago, and I hadn’t given him an answer, but I have been rolling the idea around in my mind. Was this something I wanted to do?

If it didn’t work out, I would feel terrible because I had asked my mum for the favour, but would it also create issues with Liam and me? There was a lot at stake when recommending someone and pulling a few strings to get your way.

I never used my mother's contacts to build my future; should I do it for Liam?

“It was exhausting, to be honest, but if this is what I have to do to be seen as worthy, I will do it. You are lucky, babe. You will never need to grind as much as I do to excel. If you fail at your cooking, you will always have your mother's money to back you.” Liam casually chuckled, and I dropped my fork to stare at him.

He did not just say that s**t to me.

“Excuse me?” I could feel something boiling and scratching within me at his arrogant assumptions.

Liam looked over with a smirk. “You know what I meant. I just meant, if you fail, then your mother will be there to help you. I don't have anyone in my corner if I do.”

“That's weird, because I kind of thought that was what I was doing. Standing in your corner, supporting you. I guess I was wrong.” I scoffed in annoyance.

“s**t, I didn’t mean—” Liam stumbled his words, got up from his chair and pulled me into a reluctant hug. “I’m sorry. That came out all wrong. I’m sorry, babe. I’m just exhausted and have an early morning tomorrow again, and on top of that, I have another flight out to the US in a couple of days. Please don’t be angry with me. I am really sorry.”

With a sigh, I dropped the issue and let Liam pull me tighter into the hug.

He didn’t mean it, I chanted within, trying to calm the boiling anger within. It didn’t help much, but at least we could resume the rest of our evening together.