Accidental Proposal (A Year Agreement Book 1) (16 page)

I stood with my back to Liam, awaiting the yelling I knew was coming my way. How was I supposed to know Garrett would go spill to the paparazzi? It wasn’t my fault.
It’s your fault for trusting someone,
a little voice said in the back of my head. With one last look at the door, I turned around to face Liam. I knew nothing I could do would make any difference with Garrett, and I might as well face Liam now. 

“Liam, I—”

“No, Jenna. This whole mess, that will include the newspaper in the morning, is because of you. I told you not to tell anyone about this because someone will find out. Now we have to do damage control before anything else gets out of hand. You should not have opened your big mouth. It seems that whenever you do, something goes wrong,” Liam said. His blue eyes were dark, and his mouth was set in a firm line. The way he was talking to me made me feel like I was being scolded. “Who else have you told?”

“No one,” I said quietly, feeling small under his gaze. I briefly thought of Sophia but immediately shut that thought down. Out of anyone, she would never tell a soul. Liam stared at me almost like he was waiting for me to crack and say something else.

“You’d better be right, because if I find out anyone else knows, I will make it my personal mission to end you,” he threatened. I stared up at him, scared. Liam was making this to be worse than it actually was. They only knew that we were engaged, not about anything else.

“Liam, you are making this to be worse than it is,” I said, my voice soft, afraid that if I said anything too loud it would set him off even more.

“Worse than it is? Do you not realize what will happen if people find out I am paying you to marry me? My father’s business will crash, my family will be ridiculed, and don’t forget breaking my mother’s heart.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t think he would do anything if I told him.”

“That is right. You don’t think, Jenna! You only think about yourself and what will happen to you. I seriously can’t even stand to be in the same room as you. From now on, you will stay in this house unless I tell you to. Do not even think about leaving, because I will know. You will do everything that I say this week, and if you don’t, you are done.” His voice was so cold and emotionless I felt my blood freeze. From the way he was looking at me, I knew he was beyond serious. He was like a bear that was waiting to be poked. “Why I chose someone so incompetent, I have no idea. You were definitely a mistake.” With that, he turned on his heel and stalked out of the room. I watched after him and jumped when the door to the garage slammed.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered to the empty room, wrapping an arm around myself. I was always left alone. I let one tear slide down my cheek before heading to my room. Liam was right. Everything I said or did turned into a mess. Maybe I was a mistake.

Chapter Sixteen

That night, all I did was toss and turn. No matter what I did, I couldn’t get comfortable, and I couldn’t get Liam’s words out of my head. He was right, and that was the problem. The words that were true were the cruelest, because deep down you knew it and it scared you. They were always the words that hurt you the most. I finally gave up around three in the morning, knowing that it was no use to try and sleep. Feeling confined in my room, I threw my sheets off, grabbed a light sweater, and quietly padded to my door. Praying it wouldn’t squeak, I opened it and nodded when it didn’t. With one place on my mind, I tiptoed down the hallway to the kitchen.

Throwing on my sweater, I opened the back door and headed outside toward the gazebo. The light breeze blew across my bare legs as I made my way around the pool, the glow of the moon guiding me. The air was kind of cold, making me wrap my sweater more tightly around me. A few pieces of hair that had fallen from my messy bun blew in my face. 

I finally made it to the gazebo and took a seat on the bench. Pulling my knees to my chest, I wrapped my arms around them. I closed my eyes, breathing in the fresh air, and felt my body finally relax. My mind started shutting down, only concentrating on being outside instead of what happened yesterday. Even though it was three in the morning, I was wide awake.

Opening my eyes, I leaned to my left and looked up at the moonlit sky. Since we were a little outside of the city, I could see some stars above me. Seeing the dark sky only lit by the moon made everything seem so peaceful and mystical. For some odd reason, I had always loved the night more than the daytime. Being dark outside, it is easier to hide your feelings, your demons, and even your thoughts, but during the daytime everything could be seen and picked apart. It was easy shielding yourself at night. When I was younger, I used to climb on the roof of the home and stare at the stars in the middle of the night. I felt safer and peaceful watching the stars twinkle and seeing an airplane slowly make its way across the sky. Even though the next morning I would be tired and barely awake during class, I didn’t care.

Leaning my head back against the wood of the gazebo, I closed my eyes again, listening to the sound of crickets and the wind blowing through the yard. I didn’t know how long I stayed out there with my eyes closed and slowly drifting off to sleep. The rise of the sun jerked me awake, and I groggily sat up, looking around. My back was stiff from being in the same position all night. With a small groan, I stood up and stretched, hearing my body crack. It was probably only six in the morning, and I was more than happy to head back to bed. With my eyes half-closed, I made my way back to the house.

The sound of glass clinking reached my ears as I stepped onto the patio. I knew Liam was up, but I had no intention of seeing and talking to him unless told otherwise. Not bothering to even knock so I don’t scare him, I opened the door and walked into the kitchen. I didn’t miss the surprise and confused look on his face as I walked by him, half-asleep. He stood frozen, watching me with a cup of coffee in his hand. Without a glance in his direction, I walked out of the kitchen and to my room. Without taking my sweater off, I plopped down on the bed and was out in seconds.

***

The sound of my cell phone ringing brought me out of my dreamless sleep. I groaned, turned over, and blindly reached for my phone, my eyes still closed. After almost dropping it twice, I finally grabbed it and brought it to my ear. 

“Hello?” I croaked, my voice deep with sleep.
Man, I sound like I smoke three packs a day
. 

“Jenna, where have you been? I have been calling and texting without an answer from you,” a familiar high-pitched voice yelled into my ear.

“Candy—” I started to say, but she cut me off. 

“What happened to calling me every day?” I sat up and ran my free hand down my face.

“I’m sorry, Candy. Things have just been crazy,” I said, apologizing and feeling bad that I hadn’t talked to her or Sophia in a while.

“Well, you are going to make it up to me. I’m coming over,” she said. With that, my eyes snapped fully open.

“Wait, what? You coming here?”

“Yes, I need you to watch Sky for a little bit. I have a test to take in an hour and then work until nine. You can make it up to me this way. Plus she’s been missing you,” Candy said. “What is your address?”

“Candy, I don’t think—” 

“I am coming over. Now, what is your address?” she asked in a firm tone. Sighing, I told her the address and hung up. Knowing Candy, I knew she would be here soon, so I reluctantly got up and made my way to my bathroom. I needed a cold shower to wake me up, so I stripped out of my sweater and my PJs. Seeing the clock from the corner of my eye, I saw it was ten. With only a few hours of sleep in me, I knew this day was going to be a long one.

I stood in the shower for a good ten minutes before I made myself get out. With pruned fingers, I dried my body off and started to feel more awake. A cold shower always did the trick. I quickly got dressed in a pair of old shorts and a t-shirt, putting my hair in a high ponytail. I grabbed my phone and left my room. I didn’t make it far, as the doorbell rang. Getting excited to see Candy and her little girl, Sky, I grinned, walking quickly to get the door. When I opened it, I was instantly thrown back by a little body running into me. Sky wrapped her arms around my waist and grinned up at me, showing me one of her two front teeth. Her blonde hair was up in two pigtails, and her identical blue eyes, which were like her mom’s, sparkled up at me. She was dressed in a pink dress that had a unicorn on it, and black leggings underneath.

“Wenna!” she yelled up at me. My grin widened as I leaned down and scooped the four year old in my arms. I loved how she said my name with a “W” instead of a “J”.

“Sky!” I said, placing a kiss to her cheek. “I’ve missed you.” Instead of saying anything, she kissed my cheek in return and played with my hair in my ponytail. She’d always had a weird fascination with my hair. “Candy—” I turned to say but stopped. She stood outside the door, staring straight past me. I knew she was surprised by where I was living when only three weeks ago I was in some shack of a place.

“You live here?” she all but yelled. “You will be telling me everything.” With that, she walked past me and into the house. Rolling my eyes, I shut the door with one hand and followed her. I was only a few feet inside when Sky wanted down. The moment her feet touched the ground, she was running to the TV and staring up at it.

“You got yourself a sugar daddy, didn’t you?” Candy asked, turning on me with a wide grin on her face.

“What? No!” I said. Of course she would think that, but in a way it was kind of true.

“Oh, okay, like a house like this doesn’t belong to someone with a lot of money. Hate to break it to you, Jenna, but only old guys have a lot of money.” I resisted the urge to tell her Liam wasn’t old.
Let her think what she wants.

“So you need me to watch Sky for a few hours?” I asked, changing the topic. Thankfully, Candy didn’t press anymore on the subject and nodded. 

“Yeah. I have a test for hair school in twenty minutes, then work right after. Is it okay that she stays here with you?” I had forgotten Candy was going to hair school during the day and worked at the club at night. Honestly, she was someone I could see doing hair. She only had a few more tests to take and then she would be certified.

“It is totally fine. I wasn’t planning on doing anything today anyways.”
Yeah, and you are on house arrest.
“I’ve missed hanging out with Sky,” I said, shooting her a smile as she walked around the living room. 

“Thank you, Jenna. I will be here right after work, around nine. Here is her blanket, stuffed animal, and her PJs,” she said, handing me a bag I didn’t even notice she was carrying. “Baby, come give me a hug and a kiss before I leave.” I watched as Sky ran over to her mom and gave her a tight hug and a kiss. I smiled sadly at the sight. “Be good for Jenna, okay? Do as she says, and I will see you tonight.” Candy kissed the top of her head before standing up.

“Thank you again, Jenna.” She gave me a quick hug and apologized for leaving before opening the door and leaving.
Okay, what to do to entertain a four year old? I bet Liam doesn’t have any board games
. “Sky, what would you like to do today?” I asked, taking a seat on the couch. She jumped up next to me and moved her legs back and forth, her feet not touching the ground.

“I want ice cream!” At the mention of food, my stomach rumbled softly. The way Sky was sending me puppy dog eyes, I immediately caved even though it was only eleven in the morning.

“Ice cream, you say? I don’t think you want it quite enough,” I said, rubbing my chin and hiding my grin at the look Sky had on her face.

“Wenna, I want ice cream! Very badly,” she whined. I leaned my head down so we were eye to eye and looked at her. For some reason, she found that the funniest thing and started giggling in my face. I couldn’t help but let my smile slip out.

“Okay, we will get ice cream.”

“Yay!” With that, she jumped up and ran around the living room. I was about to stand up when I realized I had no ride to get us to get ice cream and Liam would get mad if I left. Since I couldn’t drive, it wasn’t like I could borrow that car. Biting my bottom lip, I hesitantly grabbed my phone. I stared down at the five contacts on my phone. I couldn’t call Garrett. I wasn’t planning on talking to him for a while, as I needed to cool off before I did. With him and Sophia out of the question, I could either call Liam and most likely have him yell at me, or I could call Lennon. Without thinking about it too much, I hit Lennon’s number.

“Hello?” she said after the second ring.

“Hey, Lennon.”

“Hey, what’s up?” she asked.

“I kind of need a favor from you.”

“
Is it something fun?” she questioned.

“Well, kind of. I don’t want Liam to find out.”

“I’ll do it!” she immediately shouted through the phone.

“Thank you! I am watching a friend’s daughter, and we want to go get ice cream. I was wondering if you could give us a ride?”

“I’ll be there in fifteen.” She hung up on me.

“Wenna, I want to see your room. Do you have unicorns too?” Sky asked, pulling me away from my phone.

“Let’s go and see.” With her hand sliding into mine, I led her to my room, her stuff under my other arm.

“You don’t have any unicorns! You need unicorns, Wenna!” she said the moment we stepped into my room. Setting her things on my bed, I looked around. My room was pretty plain. It could use some pictures or something. “Don’t worry, Wenna, we will get you one.” Her soft voice was hard with determination as she nodded, looking around my room.

“I only want one, if you help me pick it out. Maybe we will have to go by a toy store after we get ice cream.” Her blue eyes widened, and she nodded excitedly. A minute later, the sound of a knock echoed into my room. Grabbing a pair of flats and my bag, I followed Sky back to the living room. Lennon was already there waiting for us.
Why did she even knock?

“That was fast,” I commented.

“Well, I was already on my way over here. Who is this beautiful little girl?” she asked, turning her gaze to Sky, who was standing next to me staring at Lennon.

“This is Sky. Sky, this is my friend, Lennon. She is going to come and get ice cream with us.”

“Do you like unicorns?” Sky asked, crossing her arms over her chest, a serious look upon her face. Lennon looked at me, but I shrugged at her.

“Of course I do. I like pink ones,” she said, squatting down in front of Sky. There was a moment of silence as Sky stared at her, almost as if to make sure she was being serious and to see if she was cool enough to hang with us. She must have found something that she liked, because in a matter of seconds, a wide toothy grin spread across her face.

“Good! Ice cream now!” I shook my head, and Lennon chuckled quietly. We both nodded and headed to the door.

Once we got Sky settled in the back and we were driving down the street, Lennon finally asked me what happened last night.

“Where did you guys go after you left?” 

“Nowhere. We just went to McDonald’s.” 

“I thought you were just going to go home?” She glanced over at me for a second before focusing back on the road.

“Well, after I got bombarded with the paparazzi, Liam drove us to McDonald’s,” I said with a shrug.

“Wait, what? The paparazzi were outside?” Her voice was rising. I glanced over my shoulder to make sure Sky was okay and found her staring out the window.

“Yeah. I walked outside and was swarmed with cameras and people asking me questions about Liam and my engagement. Liam came out a minute later, rescuing me before we jumped in the car and left. I’m surprised you didn’t see them when you left the diner.”

“How did they find out? And no, they must have left before we got done.”

“Garrett told them, apparently,” I answered bitterly. It hurt knowing he told when he promised he wouldn’t.