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Shaking my head as I pursed my lips, I explained, “Well, Jules didn’t. And I don’t recall seeing a ring on her finger. But I’m not sure about Ivy. I didn’t get a chance to see her.”

“Oh? Why not? I thought you said you went to the hotel after visiting with Jules.”

Damn it.

It seemed I might not have any choice in sharing the truth about Liam.

“I did. I went to the hotel to see her. And not for nothing, but the place looks incredible. Obviously, I always thought it was luxurious and grand, but Ivy’s added a level of elegance and opulence that wasn’t there before. The place is stunning.”

“I remember going there for a party once. It wasbreathtaking back then, so I can only imagine what it must be like now.”

“I should have taken some pictures to show you.”

“So, what happened with Ivy? Was she not there?”

“She was. But when I arrived, she was busy finishing up something in the ballroom and had a member of her staff tell me to wait for her in the hotel bar,” I explained.

My mom’s expression twisted with confusion. “So, you did see her?”

I pressed my lips together. How long could I remain silent? “Not exactly.”

“I don’t understand.”

Several options for breaking the news to my mom ran through my mind, but none of them felt right. How could I tell her about what happened without artificially lifting her spirits?

I parted my lips several times in hopes of offering an explanation, but nothing came out. And just when I thought I had something figured out, the doorbell rang.

Saved by the bell.

I sent my mom a curious look as I got up off the couch. “I wonder who that is.”

Relief swept through me as I made my way to the door. With any luck, this would be just enough of a distraction that I’d get out of the conversation with my mom and wouldn’t need to get her hopes up, only to disappoint her later.

But when I made it to the door and looked out one of the small windows that ran along the side of it, I gasped.

Every muscle in my body tightened as I took in thesight of Liam standing there, looking as handsome as ever. But as wonderful as he looked, I couldn’t miss the hint of annoyance in his expression when his eyes met mine.

I bit the corner of my lip and opened the door. “Liam?”

“You left me,” he clipped. “Twice now, you’ve left me.”

My stomach dropped.

I’d considered how wise it was for me to leave the way I had last night. But it had gotten late, and I panicked. If I had woken him up, I suspected a conversation would have ensued. And with needing to get back home, I figured it was best to just leave.

Now, I realized that might not have been the wisest choice. Because it was obvious Liam was linking my disappearance last night to what I’d done eight years ago. I could see how he had drawn such a conclusion, but they weren’t the same.

“I… I had to get home,” I said softly. “I couldn’t leave my mom alone.”

“And you couldn’t wake me to tell me that? You thought it’d be better to just walk out without a word? After everything we’ve been through, after where things went last night, you can honestly tell me you thought the best option was to leave like that?”

I dropped my gaze to my feet. “I hadn’t really thought that much about it. I just needed to get home.”

Silence ensued. If it hadn’t been for the fact that I could still feel his dominating presence just inches away, I might have thought he’d left. I was so unnerved by thesilence—Liam had never been at a loss for words with me—I lifted my chin to meet his intense stare.

Only when he had my full attention did he speak. “We need to talk.”

I swallow roughly. “About what?”