Life is Liz (LiL, #1)

Chapter 55: Part 1: First Times

"Very." That was something I could work with. At least, we'd have a topic to talk about if things went south.

"Anything else you want to know?"

"What's she like?"

He grinned and simply said, "She's a mom."

I glared at him, only partly serious and flicked his temple. He just laughed. "I know she's a mom, but not every person has the same character."

He was still smiling brightly. "Okay, I'll tell you when you kiss it better that actually hurt a little."

I tried to fight the smile that was tugging at my lips. Silently, I leaned over and gave his temple a lingering kiss. When I pulled back he pouted. "Now, I'm not sure I'm better, my lips kind of hurt too."

I leaned back in my seat. "Nope." Nice try, buddy.

"But-"

"You are driving, Sam. I'm not risking anything, besides, we had a deal. So, talk."

"Fine," he said, his pout slowly subsiding. "I guess, you could say my mom is pretty open minded. She also doesn't judge easily. She always waits for an explanation before getting mad which is a pretty good character trait if you ask me." He smiled and took his eyes off the road for a second to wink at me.

"She sounds awesome."

Not jumping to conclusions was a skill I had to admire her for. With two boys under one roof, I guess you learned to be patient over time.

Although, every time I imagined Sam in his house I thought him to be a father figure to his little brother, showing him how to ride a bike, teaching him to read, helping him with homework. But Simon wasn't the only child without a father, so was Sam, with the only difference that the latter didn't have an older brother that cared for him while growing up.

Sam had to grow up quickly to make up for the the missing family member in their home, I assumed.

My heart ached for the little boy Sam once was and it ached for him now. When we came to a red light I scooted closer to him, leaned over and kissed his cheek softly.

When I pulled back he smiled gently at me. "What was that for?"

"For you," I answered honestly.

His grin slowly vanished as his eyes traced over my features, studying me closely. His gray eyes seemed so utterly confused as he gazed at me before something in him clicked and another emotion washed over him. I'd been watching the change with gentle curiosity.

He parted his lips as though to say something, but then thought better of it and brushed them against my own. The kiss was so gentle I wasn't sure it was real. He took it slow, tenderly even as though too much pressure could break me, as though I was something precious he couldn't afford to lose to anyone, not even to himself.

When he pulled back a little, just enough to look at me, he sighed against my lips as though in protest as if an invisible force was pulling him away from me.

"You are..." he started, shaking his head, eyes closed. "Elizabeth Graham..." he broke off again, a smile tugging at his lips. "How can you even... Gosh, you have me tongue tied, Baby Girl," he chuckled.

I smiled, the revelation giving me some kind of weird satisfaction. I gave him a swift peck before pulling away again.

"How can you even think my people won't like you? No person in the right state of mind would take a dislike towards you."

I pulled back fully, frowning. "You do know, not every person actually likes me, right?"

"Yeah, crazy people."