Chapter 203

Aria’s POV

The rest of the dinner was filled with stilted conversations and us avoiding looking directly at each other.

The drive home was entirely silent. I looked out the window, counting the streetlamps we passed, while Liam coolly sat behind the wheel. There were many things to talk about, but I didn’t feel like saying a word.

I didn’t want to lose my faith in Liam. If he needed to explain, he would do so on his own.

I hoped.

“Thank you for a nice dinner,” I said curtly when we entered the house. While Liam paid the babysitter, I went upstairs to check on the kids.

Liam and I passed each other in the hallway, but we didn’t say one more word to each other that night.

As I was closing the door to my bedroom, ready to shut out the rest of the world for the night, I did catch Liam looking at me from further down the hallway.

His gaze carried weight, but I couldn’t understand what he was trying to say. If he didn’t explain, I likely would never know.

From what I could perceive, from this distance, it looked like guilt in his eyes. But I couldn’t tell if that was a real read of him, or if it was just something I wanted to be there.

Ready for this night to end, I closed the door, shutting Liam out.

Early the next morning, I awoke to the smell of fresh blueberry muffins and the sound of children laughing. With a light heart, I opened my eyes and sat up in bed.

For those few brief moments when my mind was still cloudy with sleep, I felt at peace. A house full of good smells and laughter was a dream, a future I wanted, and so easily attainable.

Only after a few moments of rubbing my eyes did I remember the circumstances of our situation.

Today was the day of the event – the one that Liam was being cagey about, the one that I was secretly invited too.

I didn’t have definitive proof other than a feeling, yet still I knew, deep down, that today would change everything for Liam and me. For better or worse.

That thought alone made me want to stay in bed, to hide under the covers and not come out until all this was over.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t be that selfish. I had other responsibilities now, like children who needed me to actually attend to them. The days I could hide in my bed all day had passed me by.

So, with a groan, I rolled out of bed, pulled on my housecoat, and headed downstairs to find Liam and the kids sitting around the table having breakfast. There were dishes in the sink, Liam must have cooked. There was a fourth place setting set up at the table.

Liam smiled a little when he say me, though it was sheepish. “There you are. Join us. I made enough for everyone.”

Those blueberry muffins did smell divine. Even the potential awkwardness of interacting with Liam after last night couldn’t stop me from digging into those muffins.

“Thanks,” I said and sat.

William and Joe were discussing some cartoon that I’d never seen, so I wasn’t totally sure what they were talking about. Everyone now and then though, they would look at me for input. I would agree when appropriate.

Liam was playing the same game, his brow pulling together in confusion for much of their conversation.

Yet every now and then, Liam would glance at me.

While the kids were deeply entrenched in an argument over whose super powers were superior, Liam leaned closer to me.

“I’m sorry about last night,” he said.

Looking into his eyes, I could tell that he was genuine. He wasn’t sorry enough to explain anything though.

So this was an apology breakfast. The muffins were good enough for forgiveness, certainly, but it depended on the scale of the situation. As I was still missing out on some crucial details, I didn’t know if the apology would cover it.

“I have to leave soon,” Liam continued. “I’ll be gone most of the day, and won’t be back until later. Don’t stay up for me, okay? We can talk tomorrow, first thing.”

Oddly, Liam did not make any moves that would make it clear the words were a lie. But how could that be? If he was planning on proposing to me later, how could he say he would see me tomorrow without that being a lie?

That uncertainty and discomfort that had begun to boil inside me the night before was nearly overwhelming now.

Something was definitely wrong here. I didn’t have the full picture, and without Liam to fill in the blanks, there was nothing I could do to anticipate what was going to happen tonight.

I could only show up and see for myself.

Later, in the afternoon, Isabelle came over a little earlier than she needed to babysit, to help me decide on an outfit. She was still bubbling with excitement, and didn’t seem to understand why I was suddenly so gloomy.

“So you had one weird encounter at some fancy restaurant,” Isabelle said. “It doesn’t mean that Liam is getting cold feet or something.”

“I’m not sure it’s cold feet,” I said. “The way he spoke to me to day. ‘Don’t stay up for me.’ He was serious, Isabelle. I genuinely don’t think he intends to see me again today.”

“That can’t be right…”

“I’m telling you,” I insist.

“Maybe you are the one getting cold feet,” Isabelle said. “Come on. We will find you the perfect dress and I’ll help you fix your hair and makeup. You are going to look like a movie star before we are through. Liam won’t be able to resist.”

While I did appreciate her enthusiasm and thanked her for wanting to help me feel glamourous, I had serious doubts about the nature of the event tonight. Nothing she said could ease those doubts.

She didn’t know Liam like I did. She didn’t see how he acted last night, and then what he said this morning.

“Are you sure it was an engagement ring?” I asked Isabelle once more.

“I’m dead positive,” Isabelle said. “It was a silver band with a massive diamond. Seriously, the rock was huge. The biggest I’d ever seen.”

That didn’t sound like a ring that I would personally prefer, and Liam had to know that. He could have gotten a bigger diamond in the hopes of impressing me, but I didn’t think he would be foolish enough to do that. Anything simple would have done. It was the gesture that mattered most.

A ring with a large diamond like that sounded like the one Joanna wore on her finger.

I froze, the thought barely out of my brain.

Joanna would like that ring.

Suddenly, a chill washed over me, sending a shiver up my spine.

“I know what I saw,” Isabelle said. “It was definitely an engagement ring.”

“Even if it was,” I said, my throat very dry, “that doesn’t mean it’s for me.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Isabelle said with a laugh. “Who else could he possibly be proposing to?”