Close Your Eyes: Book Four

Chapter Two

Of course I'm going to tell him. Liam and I went through a rough patch a few years back and divorce was a topic. I'm not doing anything to jeopardize my marriage with him. He is everything.

"Please?" he asks. "I want to talk to him."

"No." I reply.

"Savannah!" I look over my shoulder and see Liam standing on the porch with the baby. "Come in the house! It's freezing out here!"

I turn back to his father, but he puts the window up.

I raise my fist to knock again, but he rolls forward and takes off down the street, leaving me standing there, shivering.

"Babe!" Liam calls again. I look at him and he holds his hand out in my direction, looking after the car with a curious expression.

I sigh and cross the street, walking up the driveway to the porch.

He steps into the house with me and shuts the door behind me.

The heat of the house warms me.

"Who was that?" he asks.

I look at him, sighing softly.

Do I tell him it was his father right before he goes to work, or do I let him wait the entire day, come home and find out that his father is here and I knew about it?

Part of me wants to wait until he gets home from work to tell him, but my mind goes back to a little under two years ago, when we stood in the living room at three in the morning screaming at each other like we never have before. I told him I wanted a divorce, and when he started crying, I started sobbing, because I really didn't want a divorce, I just wanted him to be happy, and I had managed to convince myself that he wasn't.

That was the worst day of my life.

And yeah, we smoothed it out, had another baby, moved on from it, but still, that night haunts me.

If Liam comes home from work tonight and his Dad's car is back, I know he's going to walk up to the car to confront him, and when his father rolls down the window and he sees that it's him...

Just the thought that he could be upset with me is enough to scare me into telling him right now.

"It was your Dad," I tell him quietly.

He frowns, "what?"

"It was your Dad, Buddy," I reach up to run my fingers through his hair. "He's back."

Eloise is fussing to go back to her high chair to eat, so I reach out and take her little body from him, walking into the kitchen.

"What did he want?" he follows me. "What did he say to you? Why is he here? Why is he watching us?"

I put our daughter in the high chair and turn to him.

"He said he wanted to talk to you, and he wanted to know what time you got off of work," I reply gently.

"Oh my god, did you tell him, Savannah?" he looks nervous, so I shake my head.

"No, I told him that he and your Mom have done enough to you. I told him to leave you alone."

He rubs his hand along his face slowly, watching as I put more eggs on Eloise's tray.

"And what did he say?" he asks.

"He told me to tell you that he came by, and I told him I wasn't going to tell you."

He falters.

"Were you really not going to tell me?"

I turn around, stand up on tiptoe, and give him a soft kiss.

"Of course I was going to tell you, but what you and I talk about is our business, not his," I say gently.

He looks frustrated.

"Why did he want to talk to me?" he asks.

"I don't know sweetie, he never said." I reply, glancing at Bennett, who is drinking his milk.

"How long was he out there?" he wonders aloud.

I bite my lip.

"He was there when I got home from work last night," I admit. "But all I saw was a car. I figured it was somebody leaving the neighbors house or something. I didn't know it was him."

"That's why you went out there when I told you a car was out front of our house. You realized it was the same person," he realizes.

"Yeah," I nod my head.

He sits down at the kitchen table next to Bennett and runs his fingers through his hair.

"Why is he here?" he looks annoyed. "Why can't they just leave me alone? What have they got in store for me this time? Last time I had contact with my Mom, she was asking for money for my step Dad's cancer. I haven't heard from either one of them in, well, Theo's five, so like five years! My father has been...I don't know, freshmen year of college is-"

"Like eight years," I answer quietly.

"Exactly, so why is he showing up now?" he asks. "I don't get it. I don't understand."

"Well if you want, we can pack up the kids and run away to Cuba or something," I offer

He musters up a smile, and then he sighs.

"If he comes back, I want you to call me, okay?"

"Okay," I nod my head.

He looks at the time on his Apple Watch and sighs, standing up.

"I have to go to work."

"No!" Bennett exclaims. "Stay Daddy!"

Liam smiles and crouches down to his level.

"Do you see these?" he points to Bennett's food. He nods. "And that light right there?" he points to the light above the dining room table.

"Yes." Bennett nods adorably and I smile.

"If Mommy and Daddy don't work, we can't have any of this stuff! We would be in the dark, like, all the time! With nothing to eat!" he smiles and pokes Bennett's side.

"Oh," Bennett frowns. "You should go to work Daddy. I want to have lunch later."

Liam laughs and stands up.

"I know, kiddo, I'm going to." He kisses Bennett's cheek. "I love you, okay? I'll see you later. Be good to Mommy!"

"Okay! Love you too Daddy!"

Liam raises his fist and Bennett bumps his small fist with his, and then he walks over to the high chair and leans down to kiss Eloise's head. She looks at him and smiles adorably, and he laughs.

"I love you, little goose," he says to her, and then he turns to me, leans down, and kisses me slowly.

"Ewey!" Bennett giggles.

Liam laughs and pulls away to brush some loose tendrils falling out of my bun back. He tilts my chin up to look right into my eyes, and murmurs, "I love you."

God, this man.

"I love you, too." I smile.

He pecks my lips and pulls me into a bear hug, squeezing me tight enough to make me groan.

After a couple of seconds he pulls back and kisses my cheek, grabbing his car keys off the counter.

"I love you guys," he says to the three of us.

"We love you too," I reply.

"Ba!" Eloise smacks her hand against her tray happily as he heads for the door.

When I hear the front door open, I lean forward slightly.

"Drive careful please!"

"I always do!" he calls after me.

A moment later, the front door shuts.

_________

So what do you guys think????

~Sam