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Chapter 39: Liam
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one night stand. Chapter 40: Liam
"Hi, Dad," I greet. The front door slams behind me as I step into the living room. Even though it's the beginning of April, the weather is still frigid. My father doesn't keep the thermostat set any higher than sixty-four degrees to keep the energy bill down.Every little bit helps.The corners of his mouth curl up as his gaze settles on me. "Hey, I didn't know you were dropping by today.""I had some time and thought I'd see how everyone's doing." I settle on the couch and run a hand over my hair. The top has grown out, but I still have it shaved close on the sides.Concern flickers in his eyes. "Anything going on that I need to know about?" My dad is always waiting for the other shoe to drop. Can't say that I don't feel the same way most of the time. I don't think I've ever sat back and taken a breath.I open my mouth to put him at ease when my brother stalks out of the kitchen. As soon as he sees me, he halts in his tracks. His lips flatten into a thin line as he pulls o
one night stand. Chapter 41: Liam
I jerk to my feet, popping off the worn couch. I can't wrap my mind around his bottled-up anger. "What the fuck is your problem?"Laughter bubbles up from his throat. There's an ugly twist to his lips that I find unnerving. I shake my head as my eyes narrow. I'm at a complete loss as to who my brother has morphed into.Is this the same happy-go-lucky kid who followed me around the playground? I can barely remember back that far. He's a different person than the one he used to be five years ago. If I could find my bitch of a mother, I would wring her neck for putting us through this."What the fuck is my problem? That's rich!" He shakes his head like I'm the butt of a joke.I clench my hands."Seriously dude? You have absolutely no fucking clue what's been going on around here." His eyes widen at the confused expression on my face. "What? You think because you pop in every once in a while that everything is under control?" His gaze cuts to my father. "Why don't you tell
one night stand. Chapter 42: Gia
"Ms. Monroe! Guess who I saw at the grocery store last night?"I smile down at Aiden Gibson. He's practically vibrating with all his pent-up excitement. Kind of like an overeager puppy.He's ridiculously adorable.Then again, they all are.With only two more months left of school, I'm amazed at how much my second graders have grown. Baby teeth have been lost with new adult teeth poking through in their place. They've shot up a handful of inches. Reading levels have been exceeded. Triple digit addition is no longer an impossible concept to grasp. And they've all learned how to treat one another respectfully. My little second graders aren't so little anymore.I can't help but look around and feel lucky to have been given such a great group of kids this year. As proud as I am, it's always bittersweet to hug them goodbye on the last day of school.Nostalgia swirls through me as I refocus my attention on Aiden. With a grin, I tap my finger against my chin. "Let's see," I muse,
one night stand. Chapter 43: Liam
"Hey, is everything okay?"My gaze slices to Sam who hovers at the threshold of my bedroom. Guess I hadn't realized I'd been staring off into space. There's a lot of shit on my plate and it's hard not to feel overwhelmed.I'm trying to work with the bank and buy more time but given the fact that my father didn't bother to respond to their previous attempts to contact him, they're not exactly sympathetic to our plight. Maybe if I'd found out a little sooner, I could have done something about it. We have little more than a week until my family is supposed to be packed up and out of the only home we've ever known.I don't understand what Dad had been thinking. And no amount of apologizing on his part makes the situation better.I shake myself out of those thoughts and shove my hands through my hair before dragging my gaze to him. "Yeah, it's fine," I say with a shrug. "Just some home stuff." I almost laugh.It's always home stuff.It never gets better.Doubt flickers across his ex
one night stand. Chapter 44: Liam
Three fucking years.I was still in high school when they got together.This thing with Gia has really messed me up.I liked her.No, I like her.I still like her.No matter how much I try, I can't evict her from my head.The entire time I've been negotiating with the bank, begging for an extension, for a few more months to find a solution, she's been there, gnawing away at the back of my brain. I scrub a hand tiredly over my face as it hits me again like a Mac Truck cruising along at ninety.On top of everything that's happening, I'm trying to keep up with my workout regimen. I can't allow my life to go to hell. Playing professional football will be a whole new level. I need to be as physically and mentally prepared as I can.The crushing weight that has been solely reserved for when I stopped home for an hour or two each week is now a constant presence. It presses against the walls of my chest until I can't breathe.And there's no one I can talk to about it either. The one m
one night stand. Chapter 45: Gia
I'm not sure what I was thinking when I agreed to this.All right...yes, I do.I'd been thinking that I had no business getting involved with a guy who is twenty years old and still in college. Someone who is leaving town in a few months and won't be looking back once he makes it to the NFL.When I found Tyler standing in the doorway of my classroom, I had a moment of weakness and thought-why not? Maybe I need to give our relationship one last shot. We certainly weren't perfect, but I did love him. And Tyler is a good man.I could do a lot worse.That's exactly what my thought process had been forty minutes ago. It's also how I ended up in a restaurant, having dinner with Tyler. But somewhere in those forty minutes from when I saw him at my door to us sitting at a table and waiting for our dinner to arrive, I realize deep down that it will never work.Now that I'm here, and see the hopeful expression written across his earnest face as he tells me about all the ways he'll change i
one night stand. Chapter 46: Gia
Like I'm some desperate, older woman chasing after some hot college athlete. I cringe at the mental image I've painted in my mind.The entire time we were together, Liam pushed for more, and I held him at arm's length because I was scared of getting involved with someone his age. Someone who was moving on to bigger and better things.It was stupid on my part. And now that stupidity has cost me my relationship with Liam.Decision made, I spin on my heels and head for the front entrance. I need to get out of here. As I push out through the glass door into the parking lot, a hand locks on my elbow before steering me off to the side. Goose bumps prickle along my skin. Everything in me seizes at Liam's proximity.It's been weeks since we've seen one another or been this close."Did you know?" His voice is low and hard.I wish to God that I didn't understand the question.When I fail to respond, he growls, "Did you know Bauer was my coach?"My heart riots painfully against my chest.
one night stand. Chapter 47: Liam
My gaze travels around the new apartment my family moved into. It might not be much, but it's the best we could come up with on short notice. Hell, we were lucky to snag one with three bedrooms.So...there's that, at least.No one is happy about the move. Both Cullum and Claire have been uncharacteristically quiet about it. They understand there wasn't much choice in the matter. And Dad...well, he's been silent for obvious reasons.It feels like I let everyone down by not being able to buy us more time with the bank and save our home. The only positive is that we have a plan moving forward. My brother will continue to work until I start earning a paycheck. As soon as that happens, he'll quit his job and focus on high school. I'll handle the bills from now on until my father has completed an outpatient treatment program and can be trusted to deal with that responsibility again.Whenever that is.It sucks that everything had to fall completely to shit. I'd thought we were at le
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