But she didn’t wait around to hear anymore. She grabbed her bag from under her chair and pushed her way out of the venue. Once she got outside, the cold air slapped her heated face. But it didn’t stop her. Aggie ran down the stairs and through the parking lot, past his car and onto the pavement.
“Aggie. Stop. Just wait,” Liam called after her but she ignored him and started to run.
Tears of anger streamed down her face. Sure, she’d frozen for a second but she’d quickly regained her composure and been ready to deck the guy. She’d already made the first move and was about to follow up with a blow that would’ve landed him on his ass. But that wasn’t the issue here. It was what Liam had said about her making decisions and how she couldn’t do it on her own. She’d known deep down that one day he’d come out with something that would break her heart. She hadn’t expected it to be this though. That was the reason she’d tried to hold off building a relationship with him but he wouldn’t listen. No, he always had to be right.
Well, mister, you got it all wrong.
She hadn’t made a bad decision that night. Her attacker had. She was just the poor girl who’d had to pay for it.
Liam’s car pulled up beside her and slowed. “Aggie, stop please. Let me apologize.”
“Go away. I don’t want to talk to you.”
“No. You have to let me tell you what I meant.”
She kept walking.
He sped up and parked farther up the road. Liam got out and stood on the path in front of her. “I need to explain. It’s not just about learning self-defense, which I’m sure you’ll rock at. You need more than that to get past what happened to you. I want to help you.”
She could organize her own counsellor, thanks very much. Aggie fumed but kept walking, brushing past him. He reached out and grabbed her arm. Aggie didn’t think. She pivoted, grabbed his arm and twisted. Only when he cried out in pain did she let him go. Liam was on his knees hanging onto his arm. The hurt look on his face did nothing to make her feel sorry for him.
“Get the picture, Liam. I can take care of myself. You and Ben made sure of that.” She picked up her pace and started jogging and didn’t stop until she got home.
* * *
“I don’t know what to do.” Liam pushed himself from his desk, leaned back in his chair and rocked—as if that would make him feel better. Drew sat opposite him. “She won’t speak to me, refuses to answer the door at the bakery. I’m totally lost.”
“Sorry, pal. I’ve tried to talk to her; so has April. I got a swift ‘mind your own business.’ Not the attitude I expect from my little sister. For a while there, I thought you were getting through to her. You must have pissed her off good.”
Had he ever, and he’d regretted it ever since. “You already know that, and it’s not helping that I’ve apologized every which way I can.” He chewed on his lip. He couldn’t say any more to Drew because that would break Aggie’s confidence. He’d have to work this one out by himself—but that was just the problem. He’d already tried so hard to win her over, and nothing seemed to work. Perhaps it was time he simply stopped trying.
“I’m honestly thinking of moving on, Drew. I can’t sit here so close to her and not be able to have her.”
Drew’s jaw dropped. “You’re kidding me?”
Liam shook his head. He’d thought and thought and thought some more. But he couldn’t come up with anything else that made sense. He needed to get away. Being so close but so far apart from her was killing him. A break might allow him to get over her.
“You can’t leave. You’re a partner.” Drew sank down into his chair again.
“I’m thinking of getting a subsitute to step in for a bit. Maybe six months away from here will be enough to get over her.”
Drew gave him a pleading look. “No. You don’t really mean it. Heck, this has come out of the blue. I never would’ve thought you’d run away. Even at our worst moments interning, you were the one who encouraged me to soldier on.”
Liam shrugged. No matter what Drew thought, he had to leave. He couldn’t bear to see her around anymore.
Drew tried again. “No. Come on, Liam. Stop and think. You’re being ridiculous. You can’t let her push you off the island.” He stood and paced the small office. “I’ll go and talk to her again. Make her see sense. There has to be something one of us can do.”
“Don’t bother. I’ve tried talking, cajoling, begging, and nothing works. It’s over. I fucked up so bad and this is the price I have to pay for it.”
“I still don’t understand what you did that was so wrong.” He leaned over the back of the chair and stared at Liam.
“That’s between her and me, but I said something I can’t take back and it broke her heart.”
Drew frowned. “Was it true? Did you mean it?”
“No and no.” Nobody made the choice to get assaulted. That was crazy thinking. What he’d really meant was that he hadn’t been there for her and couldn’t forgive himself for leaving her exposed to something like that. If they’d stayed in touch more, if he’d made it clearer that he loved her, if he’d focused on their friendship and not so much on his career, it wouldn’t have happened.
But trying to explain that wasn’t going to be easy. He’d be exposing his own insecurities and failures to the person he cared about most. Would she ever look at him the same way again? He
