Liam

9

THE Manhattan bookstore was a quiet respite from the congested traffic and throng of lunch-hour pedestrians outside. Ellie checked her watch, wondering if she ought to forgo browsing for a quick lunch. She had a half hour before she was due in the federal prosecutor’s office to discuss her testimony in the embezzlement case involving Ronald Pettibone-or David Griswold. She’d learned from the prosecutor that Ronald was one of five aliases that her former lover had used.

The trial would take place next month and Ellie had been told that she would be called to testify. But today her mind wasn’t occupied with thoughts of the trial, or even of her interview. Today there was every chance that she’d see Liam Quinn again.

A tremor of anticipation raced through her and she took a moment to calm herself. She’d been thinking about this day since she’d left Boston nearly a month before, wondering how it might feel to see him again, curious to know if their attraction had faded. She’d even taken the day off to get ready, spending most of the morning picking through her wardrobe and fixing her hair.

Ellie thought it would be simple to forget him. She’d been so hurt and confused and angry when she’d left him at the bank that day. Determined to make a new start, she’d decided to try a brand-new city. But on the way to her new life, she’d stopped by New York and Intertel Bank had offered her another job, as a reward for what she’d done to catch Ronald. Faced with the prospect of an exhausting job search in a new city, Ellie had accepted, gaining a promotion and a higher salary in the process.

It was as if she’d turned back the clock to a time before she’d met Liam Quinn, before she’d laid eyes on Ronald Pettibone. Her life had returned to normal-she had friends, a nice apartment in a familiar city. Only Ellie didn’t really care for normal anymore. Normal was boring.

She glanced at the signs hanging from the ceiling of the store, directing customers to the different types of books. When she saw Self-Improvement, she fought the urge to check the shelves for something new. Since returning from Boston, Ellie had sworn off self-improvement. She was now learning to enjoy fiction. And she’d started collecting cookbooks.

It was high time to be happy with herself exactly the way she was. She didn’t need to go looking for love. If it was meant to find her, it would. And all the relationships that had come before were part of her life’s experience. “The right man is out there…somewhere,” she murmured. “He just has to find me.”

It sounded like a good plan but, in her heart, Ellie had a hard time convincing herself. Every time she pictured her future with one man, that man looked exactly like Liam Quinn, with his dark hair and his gold-green eyes. At first she’d tried a rational explanation-he’d simply been the last man in her life and his image still lingered in her mind. And then she’d decided that Liam Quinn had been the closest she’d come to her perfect man. But, finally, Ellie had been forced to admit that she was still in love with him.

She shook her head, unable to focus on the shelves of fiction in front of her. Her appointment was scheduled for eleven-thirty. There wasn’t any reason she couldn’t arrive early. Maybe Liam would be waiting, as well.

Ellie stepped out onto the street and wove through the mass of pedestrians, heading in the direction of Foley square. She wasn’t even sure he was coming to New York today. Only a casual comment from the prosecuting attorney had given her a tiny bit of hope. Leslie Abbott had mentioned that she was going to try to interview all of them on the same day.

“I love him,” she murmured, the thought repeating itself in her mind with every step she took. It hadn’t been difficult to face the truth. Her feelings toward him seemed so natural and so right-even though he had deceived her and hurt her. But Ellie had gone through enough breakups to know that her feelings could be completely one-sided. For all she knew, Liam had moved on.

Ellie pulled open the lobby door and walked inside, ignoring the ache in her heart. Just the thought of Liam with someone else brought a flood of emotion. How could she have walked away? She’d allowed her anger to overwhelm her true feelings for Liam. She’d ruined something that could have been wonderful.

A security guard sat at a desk near the elevator. “Please sign in, miss.”

Ellie grabbed the pen he offered and put it to paper. But before she signed her name, she scanned the list of people who had signed the book before her. Her heart skipped when she saw a name she recognized-Liam Quinn.

“Who are you here to see?” the guard asked.

“Liam Quinn,” Ellie murmured, running her finger over his name. She glanced up, then realized her mistake. “I’m sorry. I’m here for Leslie Abbott.”

“Seventh floor,” the guard said.

The elevator took forever, grinding upward, floor by floor. Ellie imagined that Liam was on his way down while she was on her way up and they’d miss each other completely. Her mind whirled as she tried to come up with something to say when she saw him. “‘Hello’ would be a good start,” she muttered. But after that?

The elevator doors opened and Ellie stepped into a tiny reception area. A receptionist greeted her and took her name, then invited her to take a seat.

“Ellie?”

She turned, then smiled, surprised to see Keely Quinn sitting near a potted plant. “Hi. What are you doing here?”

“I rode down on the train this morning with Sean and Liam. I have a cake decorating business here that I’ve been gradually moving up to Boston. But I still have a lot of corporate clients in Manhattan. I guess you’re here for your interview.”

Ellie nodded. “Is Sean in there now?”

“No, he finished earlier and headed back to the train station. Liam is in there now.” She glanced at her watch. “They said he’d be done by noon. We were going to have lunch. Maybe you could join us?”

“I-I don’t know. They might want to talk to me right away.” Ellie took in a ragged breath. “So how is everything in Boston? How is…Rafe?”

“He’s fine. But aren’t you more interested in knowing how Liam is?” Keely asked, her eyebrow arching.

“I just…well, there isn’t-” Ellie swallowed hard and forced a smile. “How is he?”

“He’s been good,” Keely said. “Busy. He sold some of his photos for a coffee table book on Boston and now he’s going to have a show at a gallery. And he and Brendan have been talking about doing a book together. He also had a chance to show his photos to National Geographic. They didn’t offer him a job, but they might in the future.”

“It sounds like he’s doing really well.”

Keely nodded. “He isn’t seeing anyone,” she said. “Not since you.”

“Hmm. Well, he won’t be alone for long. He’s a really great guy. There are plenty of women who will want him.”

“Yes. But what he wants is what really matters,” Keely said cryptically.

A long silence grew between them and Ellie fought the impulse to ask Keely what she was really trying to say. Did Liam ever talk about her? Had he been happy since she left? Did she think there was still a chance for them?

“And how have you been doing?” Keely finally asked.

Ellie took a deep breath. All this small talk was exhausting her! If she knew Keely better, she might be able to come right out and ask, Do I still have a chance with Liam? But she wasn’t a teenager and she didn’t need a go-between to solve the problems in her love life.

“I have a new job. And I just found a great new apartment. I’m doing really well. I’ve put everything that happened in Boston behind me. Actually, not quite everything-there’s still this trial and…well, not everything.”

Keely nodded slowly, then stood. “I’m going to see if I can find a cup of coffee. Would you like something?”

“No, thank you,” Ellie replied.

She watched Keely leave, then folded her hands on her lap, trying to keep them from trembling. In truth, her stomach was so nervous she wasn’t sure she could even take a sip of water. Everything came down to this, to the look on his face when he saw her, to the first words out of her mouth. Ellie groaned inwardly. So much for a brand-new start.

“Miss Thorpe? They’re ready for you now. Down the hall and last door on your left.”

Ellie quickly stood and hurried down the hall, her heart slamming in her chest. “Stay calm,” she murmured. “Be cool.”

She saw him as he stepped out of the conference room. He glanced up and their eyes met for an instant, then held. Ellie knew she was still moving toward him, yet she felt frozen in time. He looked so good, dressed in khakis and a sport jacket and tie.

“Hi, Ellie,” he said, a crooked smile touching his lips.

“Hello, Liam.”

The prosecuting attorney who stood behind Liam cleared her throat. “Miss Thorpe, if you’ll just come inside.”

But Ellie ignored her request. “How have you been?”

“I’ve been-”

“Mr. Quinn, I’m afraid you shouldn’t be speaking to Miss Thorpe right now. Until we’ve interviewed her, she shouldn’t be speaking to any of the other witnesses.” Leslie Abbott crossed to Ellie and gently took her arm, pulling her toward the conference room. “If you’ll just come with me, we can get started.”

The door closed behind Ellie and her heart, pounding so fiercely just a moment before, now dropped. Was that all? Just a few words, a quick hello and nothing more? She’d plucked her eyebrows and shaved her legs just for this moment and it was over before it even began!

“Please sit down, Miss Thorpe.”

Ellie took a place across the table from the court stenographer. Leslie Abbott sat next to her, setting her legal pad on the table in front of her. “So, let’s get started. I understand that you and Liam Quinn were lovers,” she said.

Ellie gasped. “What?”

“You heard me. Do you realize how this could affect our case? Look at this from the defense attorney’s point of view. We have a private investigator who enlists the aid of his brother who in turn sleeps with the suspect’s ex-lover-who was also a suspect in this case.”

“But I didn’t know who Liam was when we…we became intimate. I just thought he was a regular guy. And then when he told me the truth, I was angry. After I learned that I was a suspect, I went to him and Sean and told them that I would help them catch Ronald-I mean, David.” Ellie put her hands on the table and leaned forward. “Is this going to cause a problem? Is Ronald going to get off?”

Leslie shook her head. “I don’t know. We’ll just have to see how the case unfolds. But I have to warn you that Griswold will probably try to shift the blame to you. To make it seem as if you were the mastermind. We’re in for a tough fight here, Miss Thorpe. Are you ready for this?”

“Do I have a choice?” Ellie asked.

“I’m afraid you don’t.”

Ellie closed her eyes, an image of Liam Quinn swimming in her head. Her words to Keely now seemed almost prophetic. She’d never be able to make a fresh start-with or without Liam-until she’d put this whole mess behind her.

And from the look on Leslie Abbott’s face, that was going to take a lot longer than Ellie had anticipated.

“HERE’S TO Ronald Pettibone. Or David Griswold. Or whoever the guy was,” Liam said, raising his pint of Guinness to Sean. “May there be many more criminals like him for you to chase-and me, too, when I need a few extra bucks.”

Sean picked up his glass and knocked it against Liam’s. “Ten years, no trial. That’s pretty good. Plus the bank got its money back and we got paid. Case closed.”

“A few months ago I was wondering where I was going to get the money to pay the rent. And now things are definitely looking up,” Liam said.

“What are you going to do with the money?” Sean asked, grabbing a handful of peanuts from the bowl in front of him.

“I don’t know. Make some plans. I’ve got my eye on a new camera. And I thought I might do a little traveling, see if I can’t get some nice photos to show National Geographic.”

“Any other plans?” Sean asked.

“What do you mean?”

His brother shrugged. “I don’t know. I just thought…”

“Ellie?”

“Yeah,” Sean said. “Ellie.”

“Let me tell you, I was relieved when Pettibone took the plea bargain,” Liam said, staring at the coaster beneath his glass. “I didn’t want to see Ellie testify. After that interview I figured it might get pretty ugly. Ellie didn’t deserve to have her personal life dragged out in public. It was a good trade. Pettibone gets to serve his sentence in a cushy country-club prison and Ellie gets to go on with her life. On the other hand I was disappointed I didn’t get to see her. I had this whole speech laid out, how I was going to apologize first and then tell her how much she means to me.”

“And now what?”

“I don’t know,” Liam said. “I guess I have to figure out another way to get her back. It’s gotta be something really great-so she can’t possibly say no.”

“And while you’re thinking something up, she’s probably getting on with her life,” Sean said.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“Hell, if you don’t know, I’m not going to tell you.” Sean took another sip of his beer, then slid off his bar stool. “I’ve got to go. Tell Da I can tend bar tomorrow night.”

“And you and I are going to look for a wedding present for Brendan and Amy tomorrow, right? And we have to go get fitted for our tuxes, too.”

Sean nodded and waved as he strode out of the bar. Seamus wandered down to the end and picked up Liam’s nearly empty glass. “Another?” he asked.

Liam shook his head. “Nah. I better get going. Sean said he’ll work tomorrow night. And I think I’m good for the weekend.”

“Ah, you’re a pitiful sight, boyo,” Seamus commented, wiping the bar with a damp rag. “Ya sit here every night moonin’ over that girl and where does it get ya?”

“Da, I don’t need advice on my love life from you. We all know where you stand on the subject of women. Except, of course, for Ma.”

“I’m just sayin’ that ya got to stand up and be a man. Get busy livin’ or get busy lovin’. This in-between makes ya look like a bleedin’ gombeen.”

Liam grabbed his jacket. “Are you going to tell me one of those Mighty Quinn stories now?”

“Maybe you could use one,” he said.

Shaking his head, Liam started toward the door, then heard Seamus softly call his name. He glanced over and saw his father nod his head toward the other end of the bar. Ellie stood next to a bar stool near the door, her hands clutched in front of her. Liam stopped dead in his tracks and his breath froze in his throat. He’d seen her just once in the past month, those few precious seconds outside the conference room in New York. But in the days that had followed, he’d imagined this moment over and over again, dreamed about it at night, carefully considered what he might say.

He slowly approached her, his gaze fixed on hers. God, she looked pretty. She wore a cotton dress with a little sweater. Her dark hair fell in waves over her shoulders. “You’re here,” he said.

Ellie nodded. “I wasn’t sure if I should come.”

“No,” Liam said. “I’m glad you came. It…it’s good to see you, Ellie.”

She stared down at her fingertips, painted a pretty shade of pink. “I’m just in town for the day and I had a few things to say. I thought I’d get a chance to see you at the trial.”

“Yeah, the trial. I guess I’m kind of glad we didn’t have to go through that.”

“That’s what I came to tell you.” She risked a glance up at him. “I want you to know that there are no hard feelings. I understand now that you were just doing a job and that your only concern was putting Ronald Pettibone in jail-where he belonged.”

“That wasn’t my only concern, Ellie.” He reached out to touch her arm. “And it wasn’t just a job. I was with you because I wanted to be with you, not because I had to be.”

A blush stained her cheeks. “You don’t have to say that. I’m really all right with everything that happened.”

“Well, I’m not,” Liam countered. “Ellie, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you.”

She stared at him for a long moment and Liam was sure she was about to turn and run. But then she swallowed hard and attempted to smile. “And I haven’t stopped thinking about you, either,” Ellie said. “I made a mistake and-”

“No, I’m the one who made the mistake.” Liam couldn’t contain his excitement. She still cared! “I never should have let you go.”

“I never should have gone.”

Liam glanced around the pub, then grabbed Ellie’s hand and pulled her toward the door. They stepped outside into the late-afternoon sun. A warm breeze blew from the south and summer was in the air. He pulled Ellie along the sidewalk until he was sure they were completely alone. “What does this mean?”

“I don’t know,” she said, her voice trembling. “I just feel like we left things unfinished.”

“Me, too,” Liam said. “Like there’s more to us than what we had. That if we just had a little more time, we would realize how great it really was.”

“So what does this mean?” Ellie asked.

Liam’s gaze skimmed over her pretty face. “It means that I want to be with you, Ellie. I want to see where this could go.” He reached up and cupped her face in his palms, then kissed her, lingering over her lips for a long time. “I love you. I don’t think I really knew that for sure until this very moment. But I can’t even think of a future without you in it.”

“That’s a good thing,” Ellie said, her mouth curving into a warm smile. “Because I just accepted a new job at the Boston branch of Intertel. I thought I might come here and get a new start.” She reached up and brushed his hair back from his eyes. “And just so you know, I love you, too.”

Liam tipped his head back and laughed. Then he grabbed her again and pulled her into his embrace, this time kissing her like a man in love. He’d spent so long avoiding a real relationship and now he understood why-he’d been waiting for Ellie Thorpe to come into his life.

“You know, I’m going to ask you to marry me,” Liam said. “And we’re going to have a family and we’re going to live happily ever after. Are you all right with that?”

“You’re not proposing to me now, are you?” Ellie asked, looking slightly alarmed.

“No. I’m just warning you that I will. And it will be great. And you won’t be able to say no.”

“You’re pretty confident, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, I am. I’ve been doing a little reading. Ten Steps to True Love. Have you read it?”

Ellie blushed, then wriggled in his arms. “I think I have. But you know, I’ve decided to give up the self-help books. Instead I’m just going to listen to my heart.”

“And what does your heart say?”

“That I’m glad you came to my rescue that night. And that I’m glad I decided to come to Boston today.”

Liam chuckled, thinking back to all the tales of the Mighty Quinns he’d been told as a child, to the Quinn “curse” that had befallen his three oldest brothers. He smoothed his hands over Ellie’s shoulders and kissed her forehead. Now he knew why Conor and Dylan and Brendan had laughed when their father brought up the curse. It wasn’t a curse at all. It was a gift.

And Liam was going to spend the rest of his life thankful for the gift, for the fateful events that brought Ellie Thorpe into his life…and for the love that would keep her there.