Accidental Proposal (A Year Agreement Book 1) (11 page)

I knew getting close to Liam’s family would only hurt me and them, but I could already feel myself starting to. Hell, I just told Lily stuff about my life that it took even Sophia months to get out of me. I was walking on dangerous ground already, and we weren’t even close to the end of the year. If I wanted to make it out of the deal unscathed, then I needed to stop myself from forming a bond with the family, but could I do that? Could I go back to being shut-off and lonely?

***

Liam

I didn’t know about Jenna’s parents, and to say I was shocked was an understatement. I wasn’t really that shocked at the news but more of why she didn’t tell me when I called her a “spoiled rich daddy’s girl.” I knew I should have known that before I brought her here, but I couldn’t let myself become interested in her. I didn’t plan on falling for her, and I wouldn’t. Getting to know Jenna would somehow make this deal something more than a deal, and I wouldn’t let that happen. Hell, I didn’t even know she was only nineteen! She looked a lot older than she actually was.

Yes, I felt bad for Jenna not having a family growing up. That would be terrible for any child. If I didn’t have such great parents, I honestly didn’t know how I would live. I loved my family immensely.

I was sitting there at the table taking in Jenna’s news, same as my parents and sister. Next to me, I could practically feel the nerves radiating off of Jenna. I didn’t know how to comfort her, so all I did was squeeze her thigh. During rest of lunch and dinner, I spaced out thinking about Jenna. Yes, she was different, very different than the girls I had been with during the last few years. She didn’t seem to care about fashion, her looks, or what people thought of her, and I’d started to think that she didn’t care about money. That wasn’t really true, however, since she did take the deal for the money.

Something about Jenna intrigued me. I felt myself turning my body as she talked to my parents, my hand resting on her thigh the entire meal, and I kept looking at her face. I hadn’t spent any time with her and now, sitting here at the table, I’d started to notice she talked a lot using her hands. She could hold her own in a conversation, and she blushed easily. She was definitely different than the other girls; she didn’t scream confidence. Instead, she seemed like the type to stand off to the side so others got attention while she observed.

The sound of Julie practically squealing jerked me out of my thoughts and back to the present. I caught onto the conversation when my mom asked us how I proposed. My mind seemed to blank of a story my mother would believe.

“Liam, you tell it the best,” Jenna said, placing her hand on my arm. She was looking at me with those wide green eyes that seemed to sparkle with mischief. I could tell she wanted me to say it so I’d mess up or something.

“No, you do, sweetie,” I bit out, not liking the endearment on my tongue.

“Okay. Well…” Jenna started instantly, and I knew I’d fallen for the trap. She wanted me to say that so she could make me look bad. As she continued on with the make-believe story that would never happen in a million years, I narrowed my eyes at her. She was making me sound like a stuttering wimp, and I was anything but that. The more she lied, the more my nice thoughts and feelings flew out the window.

“Awww, that is so sweet,” my mom cooed, smiling at us.

“Honey.” I looked down at her, clenching my jaw. “I don’t remember it being that way.”
How was my mother buying into that?

“It was, sweetie pie, but it was perfect.” She squeezed my upper arm hard, but it honestly felt like a small pinch.
Man, she’s weak.

“Awww, look at you two,” Mom said, grinning like an idiot at us. Beside me I watched Jenna’s lips twitch, like she was holding back a smile. “Let me go get dessert really quick.” Mom had really gone all out on this one. Jenna asked if she could help, and I quickly squeezed her thigh, warning her I wanted to talk to her about what just happened. Thankfully, my mom brushed her off and my father got up to help.

“You’re going to pay for that later,” I whispered into her ear, satisfied by her reaction.

Jenna turned to Julie a few minutes later, asking her about modeling. I tuned them out, not wanting to hear their girl talk. It didn’t surprise me that Jenna knew my sister was a model. Lennon must have told her. As I thought of Lennon, I realized I needed to talk to her; I didn’t want her to get close to Jenna. I didn’t need any more issues or drama concerning this deal. The moment Lennon found out, and I had to tell her since she was going to be Jenna’s ‘assistant,’ she flipped. By the end of her rant, I felt like my ears were going to fall off. I didn’t understand why she freaked out the way she did, but whatever.

“So, Liam and Jenna…” my mom said, making me turn my gaze toward her. I instantly knew what she was going to ask. She was never one for letting things slide by. “When is the wedding?” I looked down at Jenna just in time for her to turn to me, her eyes wide.

“We haven’t decided just yet,” I said, not really knowing what else to say.

“You haven’t thought about the date, location, guests, anything?” Mom looked like she was about to have a heart attack any moment.

“No, Mother, we haven’t. We’ve only been engaged a few weeks.”

“It’s okay, no need to stress. I’ll help you guys get everything ready, and so will Julie. We are going to make this the greatest wedding ever.” She fanned her face with her hands. “We have so much to do!” She clapped. “We need to get a date set, then think about a theme, guests, and bridesmaids! And a dress!” I groaned inwardly, knowing my mother would make this wedding over the top. Having your mother be a designer wasn’t the greatest sometimes.

“Honey, not right now. We can figure that out later,” my father said, putting his hand on my mother’s arm.

“Sorry, you’re right. I’m just so excited.”

I ran a hand down my face, already thinking about how this wedding was going to be a disaster.

The rest of dessert thankfully went by fast. I was more than ready to get Jenna out of here as quickly as possible. Once we got to the living room like my father suggested, I could make up a lie so we could leave. I could already see my mother and sister taking a liking to her, and I didn’t know if that was a good idea, especially for my mother. She could get attached pretty easily, and if she got attached to Jenna, at the end of the year she would be heartbroken. It was just better that my family didn’t like Jenna too much, so this all could work out. If not, everything would have just gone down the drain.

Chapter Eleven

Jenna

Bored. Lonely. Those two terms I had become very familiar with. It was now Sunday morning, exactly five days since I’d met Liam’s parents, and five days of doing absolutely nothing. I hadn’t seen Liam since we visited his parents, and it was starting to annoy me. I thought he would be here this weekend and maybe, just maybe, we could “bond,” but apparently not.

Right after my talk with his mother, when I walked into the living room, he was out of his seat and ready to leave. I barely had time to say goodbye to his family before Liam was pushing me out the door and into the car. I tried asking why we were leaving so soon when I had just started to bond with them. All I got in reply was, “We are going home” or a grunt. The moment we got home, which was around four, Liam walked away from me down the hall, and that was the last time I had seen him. He was always gone before I got up in the morning and was always getting home after I was already in bed.

I’d heard him moving around late at night but hadn’t gotten the guts to get up and go talk to him. I was still confused as to why we had to leave his parents and why he was still acting cold with me. You’d think he’d want to get to know me better or something, but no. He’d made himself scarce lately.

The last five days hadn’t been altogether unproductive, though. On Wednesday, I called Candy and talked to her for a few hours. I also went grocery shopping that afternoon with Garrett, who was actually really great company. On Thursday, I met up with Sophia at the diner to get my last paycheck and catch up. We spent a good three hours just sitting there talking before she had to get back to work. Ever since I went shopping, I’d cooked from home. I even made extras for Liam, but he was never there. Although I did notice in the morning the leftovers would be gone, so at least he was eating. On Friday, I had my first encounter with Liam’s maid, Martha.

I had just gotten out of the shower and was headed to get a drink in just my towel when I came across Martha in the kitchen. Both of us were surprised, to say the least. Martha at first thought I was one of Liam’s lady friends, but I explained to her that I wasn’t without going into too much detail. Martha was a small, slight woman in her mid-sixties with short white hair. She looked to be what I thought a grandma would be like. Apparently she was supposed to clean the house twice a week, but she’d been busy with her grandchildren so she couldn’t come by.

We ended up spending a good portion of the morning talking and getting to know one another. I didn’t tell her I was Liam’s fake fiancé, and she thankfully didn’t ask. I kept my ring in my bedroom, and Martha just thought I was the daughter of some friend of Liam’s. I had already told enough people about the deal that I didn’t want to get in trouble telling anyone else.

Now, on Sunday morning, I sat outside out in the gazebo looking out at the flowers, enjoying the nice weather. It was so nice out that I was even in shorts, but I knew the nice weather wouldn’t last much longer. With nothing else to do, I thought about taking a swim. There wasn’t much I hadn’t done inside the house. I’d already finished two books in just a few days, and I’d cleaned the house, although it didn’t need it. I’d even walked around the backyard multiple times. I guess redecorating would be on my to-do list this week.

Deciding to take advantage of the weather, I headed inside to change into a bathing suit. I didn’t remember having one or even buying one, but yesterday, bored, I’d gone through my clothes and found one. Lennon must have snuck it in while we were shopping. I headed into my room and stripped out of my current clothes and grabbed my new swim suit. Putting it on, I couldn’t help but love it.

The top was almost tie dye, but with more white. It had a fringe hanging down the front, and the bottom was the same tie-dye pattern. I normally didn’t like my body, but as I looked in the mirror, I smiled at myself, turning in different poses. I quickly pulled my blonde hair into a messy bun on top of my head. With a towel hanging off my arm, I headed back outside.

As I walked toward the pool, I couldn’t help but think of how bored and lonely I had been this week. Sure, I’d always been lonely, but not ever really bored. Working two jobs every day until late at night didn’t give me much time to be bored. And when I had a day off from both, I was too busy catching up on sleep, cleaning my little apartment, or paying bills. Now that I had no jobs, or anything to do for that matter, I was
very
bored. I just wished Liam would give me something to do or let me get another job. I was not good at doing nothing because I would soon start thinking about things I shouldn’t, and that was not good. Someone like me had to be going and doing something.

With a sigh, I set my towel on a bench next to the pool and made my way to the stair entrance. When I dipped my toe in, I shivered a little at the coldness. Deciding it would be better to just get in quickly, I went to the end of the deep end and took a deep breath. Before I could back out, I was jumping into the water and letting it envelop me in a cocoon, my body sinking to the bottom. Once I hit the bottom, I pushed off from the floor and swam to the surface. My head broke the surface of the water, and I gulped in air, feeling the cool water against my skin.

I grinned, moving my arms around me to stay afloat. It’d been so long since I swam last that it felt amazing. As a kid, I would walk to the Rec Center whenever I could and swim for a while before heading back home. I loved the feeling of water against my skin and how weightless I felt floating on top of it. Turning to drift on my back, I closed my eyes, feeling my body let go. The feeling of being weightless and free was something I treasured. I didn’t have many opportunities to feel that way in my life. Instead, I often felt weighed down, the whole weight of the world resting on my shoulders.

The sun shone bright on me, warming the skin that wasn’t underwater, a slightly breeze tickling it. A few birds chirped and sang around me, talking to one another. A sense of calm washed over me, and I grinned widely. Dunking my head back under, I started swimming to the other side.

I swam from one end of the pool to the other multiple times before coming to a stop at the deep end and resting my arms on the edge. I didn’t realize how big the pool was until I did a lap. My arms burned. After doing three laps, my arms felt like noodles. Softly kicking my legs, I rested my head on my arms on the corner of the pool and closed my eyes, feeling the soft breeze against my face. Lying there, I realized I could get use to this. A pool at my disposal was going to be nice when summer came around. I debated getting up and turning on some music, but I was being lazy and didn’t want to get out.

I lost track of time swimming around in the pool and occasionally getting out to try and get a little bit of a tan. I was now on my back, floating again, when a muffled voice reached my ears underwater. When I opened my eyes, I saw Liam standing there in his work clothes, his hands in his pant pockets. He must have taken off his suit, since he was only wearing a nice-fitting light grey shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of black slacks, his tie loosened and hanging around his neck. His brown hair was tousled, and he had a nice five o’clock shadow across his jaw. All in all, he looked very sexy standing there, watching me.

Surprised to see him home, I swam toward him and stopped treading water, looking up at him.

“You’re home.”

“What are you doing in the pool?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Swimming, what else?” I replied sarcastically.

“It’s almost six thirty. It’s going to be dark soon.”
Oh.
It was three when I’d first got in, so I’d been in here for three and a half hours!

“Shit,” I muttered under my breath, going to the edge and pulling myself out of the pool. I kicked my legs a little to help me and swung my leg onto the concrete. Liam took a small step back as I stood there, dripping wet. I felt him look down my body, which my bikini did little to cover up. With my cheeks red, I quickly brushed past him and grabbed my towel. The whole time I dried off my arms and legs, I felt Liam’s gaze on me, and I tried not to squirm. I bent over to dry my legs and heard a quiet groan. I shot back up and blushed even harder, turning to his direction.

“Are you done yet?” he asked in a deep, husky voice. I could see his hands balled into fists. I quickly wrapped my towel around myself as my stomach growled, ready for dinner.

“Are you hungry?” I asked, walking toward Liam and trying to hide the sounds my stomach was making. All he did was nod, looking down at me, his blue eyes darker than before. Swallowing quickly, I walked past him and toward the house, the whole time feeling his heated stare. Not knowing if he was following me, I swiftly went to my room and threw on an oversized t-shirt. I didn’t have time to change because I bet Liam would want dinner done fast.

I came back into the kitchen and found Liam standing there, looking down at his phone. Tearing my eyes away from his sexy form leaning against the counter, I headed to the fridge.

“Do you want something specific?” I asked, looking around.

“No,” came his only reply. Rolling my eyes, I decided to make something quick and simple. I grabbed some shrimp from the freezer and quickly put it in a bowl with some water. I pulled out a big pan along with some spaghetti noodles. As I moved around the kitchen, Liam just stood there playing on his phone and occasionally looking over at me. I tried not to let his gaze affect me while I worked.

With the noodles boiling with a little bit of salt for our shrimp linguine, I grabbed what I would need from the fridge for the sauce. With nothing to do while the noodles were cooking, I leaned against the counter by the sink and watched Liam. He leaned against the counter like a model who’d just come off the runway. I ran my eyes greedily down his body, actually feeling my mouth water. There was nothing sexier then a well-dressed man. “I think your noodles are over boiling,” Liam said suddenly. I quickly looked away from him and to the stove. He was right. I quickly ran to it and grabbed the spoon, stirring it just before it boiled over the side. Tasting a piece of a noodle and noticing it was done, I turned off the stove and went to grab the food to drain it. “I got it,” Liam’s deep voice said over my shoulder, his hands coming over mine. As I looked up, Liam stood pressed against me, grabbing the pan’s handle. His leg nudged for me to move, so I stepped to my left.

I watched as he picked up the full pan of hot water and dumped it in the drainer. Once all the noodles were out of the pan, he shook the drainer of water before putting the noodles back in the pan. I stared at him, surprised. He put it back on the stove and turned to me. I raised an eyebrow at him.

“You know how to cook?” I asked.

“Of course,” he said, looking at me weird.

“Sorry, I thought you had someone cook for you and put it in the fridge in containers,” I admitted. I never would have pegged Liam as a guy who could cook.

“I do that because it’s easier when I work early or late.” I nodded, biting back a smile. I moved around him so I could finish our meal. Liam was finally talking to me, and I wasn’t going to say anything to mess it up.

Stirring the noodles and the buttery wine sauce, I asked Liam to bring me the shrimp before dumping them in. As usual, the shrimp cooked in just a minute and then our food was done. While I’d been stirring the pot, Liam had gotten us bowls, and he was waiting for me to plate the food. Once I was done, I put mine on the dining table before grabbing a drink.

We sat there awkwardly, eating quietly, not saying a word to one another. Dinner was good, and I was eating mine not so gracefully, unlike Liam. But hey, when you’ve been outside for hours swimming, it makes you hungry. The silence continued, and I shifted awkwardly in my seat. I normally didn’t mind silence, but Liam just sat there staring at me. Clearing my throat, I opened my mouth, whatever came to mind coming out.

“So you played all different kinds of sports in high school?” I asked, taking a sip of water. The moment I asked, I knew I probably shouldn’t have. Liam’s face darkened, and his cobalt eyes narrowed. He didn’t say anything for a full minute. He just glared at me. “I’m not allowed to ask that?” I asked, narrowing my own eyes at him.

I hated the way he looked at me, and that the moment I said one little thing, he flipped. Was I not allowed to even
try
and get to know him? At least I was trying to make an effort, unlike him. I’d enough of his looks and glares. If he wanted me to pretend like he wasn’t there, then so be it.

“No, you are not.” His voice was low.

“What is that, taboo or something? Am I not supposed to know you have five championship rings for different sports?”

“It is none of your concern.” For some reason, that made me even angrier. There went any happy feelings I had from earlier.

“How is that none of my concern, Liam? I don’t know you! How are we supposed to make this work if you won’t even try? I do not want to be here, but at least I’m trying to do something, unlike you.” I stood up, pushing my chair backwards across the tile. “You know what? Have it your way. If you want to act like I don’t exist, then fine. I’ll do the same to you. I’m done trying.” With that, I left my empty plate on the table and walked off to my room.