The wind had taken on a chill, whipping the waves to frothy peaks as the storm front moved in. Brianna shivered through her thin leather coat. “Hold me, Liam,” she whispered. “Just hold me.”
He opened his jacket and wrapped the front around her, holding her against his shirt. She was shivering, more with emotion than with cold. His
arms tightened, pressing her into his warmth.
When she tilted her face up toward him, he kissed her—not gently but hungrily, his mouth devouring hers, his tongue thrusting in a desperate pantomime of what couldn’t happen—not here, not now, with no place to go and the cold swirling around them. His arousal was a solid ridge, jutting against her belly through his jeans. Desire was an ache in the pulsing core of her body. As she moved against him, his breath deepened to a rasp.
“Liam . . .” she whispered. “I want you . . . I want you so much . . .”
With a muttered oath, he pushed her firmly away from him. His hands gripped her shoulders at arm’s length. His eyes blazed into hers. “Damn it, Brianna, haven’t you made enough mistakes in the past week?” he growled. “I won’t let myself do this to you. Not now, while your life’s in a mess on so many fronts—school, your father, your legal problems. Even if we had the right place for it, you don’t need me adding to the load by making love to you.”
Brianna’s chin came up. At some deep, practical level she knew Liam was right. But he was treating her like a foolish child. Worse, he had rebuffed her, and it hurt.
“The wind is getting cold,” she said. “We need to go.”
“Good idea.”
Sand swirled around them as they crossed the beach and returned to where they’d left the bike. Brianna didn’t look up at him as she sat on the curb and pulled her socks over her chilled feet. Liam didn’t speak as he laced up his boots and handed her his helmet to wear.
Was this the end? Were they breaking up?
She clung to his back, fighting tears as the Harley wove through nighttime traffic. She loved him so much. But that was no guarantee of a happy ending. Life being what it was, when he let her off at the motel tonight, there was a chance she might never see him again.
By the time they reached the motel, a sleety rain was falling, blown almost sideways by the wind. Liam pulled up under the lip of the roof, the bike stopped at an idle. Before he could dismount and help her, Brianna climbed off the back seat and handed him his helmet.
“Put this on. You’ll need it tonight.” It was the closest she could come to saying goodbye.
He buckled on the helmet. “Call me after your appointment. I’ll be wanting to know how it went,” he said. Then, he swung the bike away from the building and headed out of the parking lot.
Brianna had pocketed a key to the room. Opening the door with caution, she stepped inside. On a table next to the empty bed, a small lamp lit the warm darkness. In the other bed, Allison was sleeping, or at least pretending to.
Trying not to disturb her, Brianna stripped off her damp boots and clothes, pulled on her pajamas, and turned off the light. Only then did she allow the tears to come, her heaving sobs muffled by the pillow she pressed to her face.
* * *
The next morning, Brianna kept her eight fifteen appointment with the dean of students. Half an hour later, feeling numb and shaken, she emerged from the administration building and sank onto a sheltered bench to wait for Allison, who’d gone to the dorm to pick up her boxed possessions. Right now, it was time to phone Liam.
Last night’s storm had stripped the leaves from the maples and sycamores, leaving bare branches etched against the chilly blue sky. Brianna shivered as she pulled her phone out of her purse. The color and warmth of autumn was coming to an end. Would the love relationship of her life be coming to an end, as well? She and Liam hadn’t exactly quarreled, but things had been cold between them when they’d parted last night.
The phone rang once on the other end. No answer, but Liam had said he’d be working. Brianna waited as the phone rang again, then again. Worry tightened an icy band around her heart. What if he’d gotten in an accident last night? Nobody would have called her. She’d have no way of knowing whether he was all right.
“Brianna?” She heard his voice, and her world slipped back into its orbit. “How did it go with the dean? Are you all right?”
Brianna sighed. “It could’ve been worse. I’ve been released on probation. If I make it back to school next semester, I’ll be all right. Any later and I’ll have to reapply. But I don’t know what’s going to happen, Liam. This isn’t just about my arrest. It’s about my father. Northwestern is expensive. What if he can’t afford to pay for me to go there? And what if he needs me at home to help him get better? I can’t ask Allison to do everything.”
Liam was silent for a moment, as if weighing what he’d heard. “You’ll be all right,” he said. “We’ll be all right. As long as we love each other, we’ll find a way to make this work.”
Her heart soared. As long as Liam believed in her and loved her she could make it through this crisis. But it wouldn’t be easy. She’d be making some hard decisions over the next few weeks. It was time to become an adult.
She glanced up to see a white Lexus pulling over to the curb.
“Got to go,” she said. “Allison’s here. We’re heading home now.”
“Be safe,” he said. “Call me.”
“I will. I love you,” she said. But he was gone by then. She didn’t even know if he’d heard her final words.
Brianna tucked her phone in her purse and hurried toward the white car. A world of challenges awaited her at home—her trial, her father’s health and financial issues, and her own dreams of an education and a career, and keeping in touch with the man she loved. But Liam was right. Somehow they would work things out.