eyed him warily. ‘Isn’t it?’ she challenged defensively.
He stood up abruptly. ‘I have some business to attend to in Ireland—’
‘Business, Liam?’ she echoed tauntingly. ‘Would that be business of the female kind?’
He drew in a harsh breath at her deliberately insulting tone. ‘I realise you’re upset at the moment, Laura.’ Otherwise she wouldn’t be getting away with this so easily, his own tone implied! ‘And as it happens, yes, it’s of the “female kind”; it’s my mother’s sixtieth birthday on Wednesday. We’re having a surprise family party for her. Obviously I have to be there,’ he added dryly.
‘Obviously,’ Laura echoed, wondering how Mary O’Reilly would react if presented with the biggest surprise in her life: her grandson, Bobby!
‘You could always come with me.’
She looked up at Liam sharply, wondering if her own thoughts could possibly have been reflected on her face. Liam steadily returned her searching gaze, giving away none of his own thoughts.
‘And Bobby, of course.’
‘I don’t think so, thank you,’ Laura replied dismissively, her hands clenched so tightly at her sides her fingernails were digging painfully into the palms. ‘As you said, it’s a family party.’ She looked across at him challengingly.
‘As I said…’ He gave an acknowledging inclination of his head. ‘In view of Bobby’s upset, I’ll be coming back on Thursday, Laura. And when I get back I think we need to talk. I mean really talk.’
‘I—’
‘Don’t you?’ he queried pointedly.
No, she didn’t! But if she knew anything about Liam—and she knew a great deal!—she knew she wouldn’t have much choice in the matter!
Did he know Bobby was his son? Did he know, one hundred percent certain, that he was Bobby’s father? And, if he did, why didn’t he just come right out and say so?
Now was the perfect time for Liam to launch into his attack, when she was already feeling utterly defeated by Bobby’s emotional outburst. So why didn’t he…?
Liam shook his head as he watched the emotions flickering across her face. ‘I’m not the man you thought I was eight years ago, Laura,’ he told her. ‘Then I tried to act noble—and ended up being completely the opposite! This time around I’m determined to succeed.’
‘Noble?’ Laura repeated dazedly; it wasn’t a word she had ever associated with Liam! ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’
‘No, I know you don’t.’ He gave a humourless smile. ‘But that’s part of what we need to talk about. I’ll get here on Thursday in time to speak to Bobby before he goes to bed; keep the rest of the evening free for me, Laura.’
She moistened dry lips. ‘I—’
‘Go up and talk to Bobby now,’ he continued firmly. ‘Tell him I’m coming back. And make him believe it,’ he added grimly.
How could she be expected to do that when she wasn’t sure she believed it herself…?
CHAPTER TWELVE
‘FINISHED?’ She looked questioningly at her son as he left half the pizza that she had ordered for him on his plate.
Since their talk on Monday evening Bobby had been very quiet. He had seemed to accept what she’d said about Robert, and why he had died, but at the same time had not quite believed what she’d said about Liam’s intention of coming back today.
Maybe because she still wasn’t sure she believed that herself…!
Liam had telephoned her from the airport on Tuesday morning before his plane took off, wanting to know how her talk with Bobby had gone. Not that she’d been able to reassure Liam too much on that point; Bobby just wasn’t giving away his feelings at the moment.
Other than that brief telephone call from Liam she had heard nothing from him the last three days, had no idea whether or not he still intended coming to the house this evening. It was a point Bobby was well aware of; the first question he had asked when he’d woken up this morning was had she heard from Liam? Which she hadn’t. And still hadn’t, as the day progressed.
Which was one of the reasons she had decided to take Bobby out for a pizza after school, hoping to take his mind off Liam’s proposed visit. Although, from Bobby’s lack of appetite, she might as well not have bothered!
‘Finished. Can we go home now?’ he asked eagerly.
She gave a weak smile. ‘Of course.’ She stood up to pay the bill, feeling an ache in her chest at Bobby’s obviously suppressed excitement; he was just too afraid to dare to outwardly anticipate that Liam would keep his promise.
Laura knew the feeling.
Only too well!
But this bewildered pain was exactly what she hadn’t wanted for Bobby, was the reason she would have preferred Liam and Bobby never to meet. Of course, she couldn’t have anticipated the invisible bond that had come into existence between the two of them from the moment they had met, but she had known enough not to want even to take the risk of the two of them forming an attachment. Because it was a risk. To Bobby’s fragile emotions…
But, after doing everything in her power to prevent the two of them ever meeting, she had bowed to the fact that they had, that there was nothing she could do about the fact they actually liked each other. What she would do was personally strangle Liam if he let Bobby down this evening!
Bobby could barely contain his excitement on the drive back to the house. Laura was relieved at having the concentration of driving herself, for a change, to keep her own mind from dwelling on the possibility of Liam’s arrival. In fact, she had chosen to drive herself for that very reason.
Bobby waited barely long enough for her to bring the car to a halt in front of the house before jumping out and running in, leaving the front door wide open as he did so. Laura followed at a more leisurely pace, reluctant to feel the sting of her own disappointment as well as Bobby’s.
‘What kept you, Mrs Shipley?’ drawled an achingly familiar voice as she entered the hallway.
She couldn’t help it; her pulse rate quickened at the sound of Liam’s voice, her eyes glowing with pleasure as she looked up at him standing only feet away with a grinning Bobby held up in his arms.
Her breath caught in her throat as she realised how right they looked together. But it wasn’t with that wariness she had felt from the moment she met Liam again over a week ago, this was something completely different…
She was still in love with Liam!
Had she ever stopped…?
She had thought she had, had believed, when she’d finally accepted Liam had left her eight years ago, that her love for him had died too. But looking at him now, so achingly familiar, his eyes smiling into hers, their son held in his arms, Laura knew that she had never stopped being in love with Liam,
