413 Cherry Street

After enjoying the feel of being in Liam’s bed for a bit, I get up and look at the clothes he left out for me. Another t-shirt and a pair of jogging pants. I slip them on and tie the string as tightly as I can to keep the pants from tumbling down to my ankles, then head downstairs for breakfast.

I start the coffee and make some toast as I add his number into my phone. I smile when I see his name and number there, urging me to call it.

I sigh as I put it away. I’ll call him later. I don’t want to come off as too needy. I glance at the window at his amazing backyard. That pool is calling me. I keep staring at it.

I’ll go for a swim after breakfast. If the neighbors can’t see into the yard.

I know Liam is a tad possessive over me and I don’t want to see what happens if he found out that his neighbors saw me swimming naked. He’d probably beat them up for looking at what’s for his eyes only.

I eat my breakfast as the horribleness of yesterday comes flooding back. I’ve been so focused on Liam that I forgot I’m facing life in prison for discharging a gun in public along with possession of ten kilos of cocaine. I just have to trust that Liam can take care of me.

With all that looming over my head, I still can’t help but be positive. It feels like everything will be okay with Liam watching over me.

I eat and swim in the t-shirt from last night, then it hits me that I have a shift to go to. Damn it. I wanted to wait here until Liam gets back. I really want a repeat of last night.

But I’m probably already in trouble for disappearing in the middle of my shift yesterday and not returning, so I have to go.

I call an Uber and head back to my apartment to grab my uniform and then I rush over to the coffee shop, getting there just in time for my shift to start.

Madison is already there. She’s shaking her head when I walk in. It’s the slow time between the morning and lunch rush, so there’s no one in the shop.

“Hey, Houdini is here!” she says with a sarcastic eye roll. “Why did you disappear yesterday?”

“Sit down before I tell you what happened,” I tell her as I walk behind the counter and put my apron on. “Trust me.”

She laughs as she hops onto the counter and watches me. “I’m ready.”

I can’t help but laugh at the looks of shock and disbelief on Madison’s face as I tell her about how I got arrested.

“You shot the gun?” she says with wide eyes.

“No, I dropped it. It went off when it hit the ground.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know! It was the first time I’ve ever held a gun before!”

“Are you lying?”

No matter what I say, she doesn’t believe me. Finally, she checks the Cherry Falls community Facebook Group to confirm that it did in fact happen.

“Your name is not mentioned,” she says as she stares at me in awe. “So, that’s good. Who was that guy?”

“Some lowlife who can’t even do a simple drug drop apparently.”

“I can’t believe you got arrested.”

“And went to jail.”

She shakes her head as she stares at me. “Fuck. I thought you got lost and went home.”

We both laugh.

“It wasn’t all bad though.”

She stares at me with a blank look. “Getting arrested wasn’t all bad? Please explain.”

“I met someone.”

“In jail?”

I giggle. “Yeah, I guess so. My lawyer. Liam Garret.”

“The Liam Garret. My older sister and her friends were in love with him. They all tried to get with him, but he refused them all.”

My cheeks start to get hot as I feel a blush coming on. He didn’t want any of them, but he wanted me?

“He’s gorgeous,” Madison says as she picks a maraschino cherry out of the bin and pops it into her mouth. “But it’s just professional, right?”

Now, I’m really blushing.

“I slept at his house.”

She spits the cherry out and nearly chokes. “What?!”

I nod with a grin on my lips.

“In a professional manner?”

“Well…”

“You slept with him?!”

I grin and she explodes off the counter, freaking out. “You had sex with Liam Garret?” she says as she flares her hands out from her temples like her head is exploding. “Tell me everything.”

I tell her about the night, leaving out the dirtiest parts which are just for us. She listens with rapt attention, hanging on my every word.

She’s so focused that when a guy comes in to get a coffee, she holds up her hand and tells him to come back in fifteen minutes. “Emergency.”

“What emergency?” the guy responds.

“Fire. In the kitchen.”

He pokes his head over the counter and frowns. “I don’t see a fire.”