The wheels in Liam’s head were spinning, I could see it. “You’re so much better than that, Charlie. Don’t let her convince you to get married just for the hell of it.”
“It wouldn’t be for the hell of it,” I cut in, glaring at him.
“An independent woman like her doesn’t need a man to take care of shit. She’s got it covered.”
I shook my head in disgust. “Marriage is about a hell of a lot more than taking care of shit. You two just had a piss-poor example.”
“We turned out okay, though.” Liam gave Charlotte a nod of approval.
He was trying to make it them against me. I couldn’t let him do that.
“Charlotte’s amazing,” I said, kissing her again. “Jury’s still out on you.”
Charlotte cupped my cheek and gave me a secret smile. “Can I help with that?”
“Nope. You can sit down and relax while I make dinner.” I looked over at my roommate. “Liam said he wants to help.”
“Yeah, I can make dinner and not make a wreck out of the kitchen in the process,” he said, pulling out a chair at the table for Charlotte.
“Be my guest,” I said, offering him the knife.
He narrowed his eyes at me and got another knife to peel potatoes.
“Liam, what’s going on with you?’ Charlotte asked. “It’s been way too long. Tell me everything.”
He talked about him and Keri, hockey, and the community service he’d done at the injured veterans charity. Charlotte talked about the nursery and baby names she liked. I said very little, which was fine by me. After all these months, I was realizing that Liam might never get past his anger toward me over Charlotte. I’d live with that if I had to, as long as their relationship was okay.
In a way, I’d traded Liam for Charlotte. I wasn’t sorry. It would’ve been nice to have them both, but Liam thought I was unworthy of his sister. I’d thought it was a knee-jerk reaction at first, but time had proven me wrong. He genuinely thought I was a dirtbag, which meant we’d never really been friends anyway.
Charlotte
We were about ten minutes into the trip home from Bennett’s parents’ house before I could put into words how I was feeling.
“Your family is amazing,” I said softly. “You have what I always wished Liam and I could have.”
He glanced over from the driver’s seat and smiled. “You’ve got ’em now, babe. They loved you.”
“Your mom just talked to us about us and the baby the whole time. There was no drama about her own life. My mom’s gotten a little better about it, but it used to be that every conversation ended up revolving around her.”
“My dad told me not to let you get away. He said you’ve got the one-two punch—smart and stunning.”
“Aw . . .” My cheeks warmed. “I never really knew life with a dad. I’m so glad our son will have one like you.”
Bennett’s coffee-with-cream eyes softened. “Thanks, babe.”
I adjusted my hips in the car seat to get less uncomfortable. That was my best hope these days. Something Bennett’s mom had said popped into my head.
“Your mom told you when we were leaving that she has a feeling she’ll be seeing more of us soon . . . What did she mean?”
Bennett looked uncomfortable for a second, his lips pressed together. “She was saying she thinks I’ll be getting called up soon.”
“Called up . . . that’s good, right? To an NHL team?”
He nodded. “It would probably be Indy, but it could be Chicago. They’re looking for a winger and my parents know that.”
“And they live right there, so that would be good.”
He glanced over. “It would be if you’d come with me.”
Oh. She’d said us because she assumed we’d all be moving if Bennett got called up. My stomach rolled with nervous realization.
“I can see by your face that wasn’t what you were thinking,” he said, his disappointment clear.
“Well, I . . . I mean, there’s my job and my apartment, and I just . . . that would be a huge thing. I don’t think I could just leave my life behind like that. Couldn’t you . . . I guess not.”
“What?”
“I guess I assumed you’d still live in Fenway but travel with the new team, but that’s stupid, isn’t it?”
“No, not at all. It’s just that the hockey off-season is so short that I’d only be there for a couple months before camp started.”
“Right.” The sick feeling was getting stronger. I leaned my head back against the car seat.
“Relax, babe. I haven’t gotten called up and the season’s almost over. If we win tomorrow night, we clinch a playoff spot.”
“That’s exciting,” I said weakly.
All I could think about was Bennett leaving. He’d become so important to me. I loved him. And his professional success would mean the end of our relationship.
He squeezed my knee. “If we make the playoffs I’ll be crazy busy for the next few weeks. But after that, I’ll be all yours. No more traveling until next season starts. I can pick up a gig at the local lumberyard and work days or evenings.”
I swallowed against the tightness in my throat. “That sounds perfect. Right when the baby is due.”