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Cooper hadn’t been lying. Roselle was the only thing that made him genuinely happy these days. I’d seen his mood when she wasn’t around, and it was clear he walked around with the crushing weight of sadness and despair all the time.

Tears filled my eyes.

What had I done? What had I given up and missed out on?

Liam looked like this as an uncle. I could have only imagined the way he would have been as a husband and a father.

At the thought, I felt a heaviness in my chest that forced my breaths to a slower, deeper cadence. I could have had that. I could have been here at this party with Liam and our own children. We could have had a little girl with dark, curly hair and those signature blue Westwood eyes who looked at her daddy like he was her hero. And our son would look just like his dad, and they’d roughhouse the way Liam and his brothers always had.

Oh, God. What had I done?

As I stood there with a gaping hole in my heart, longing for all that could have been, it hit me just how selfish I’d been.

Because not only had I stopped myself from living out the fantasy in my head, but I’d taken that dream from Liam, too.

The regret was unbearable, and the pain of it burned in my lungs.

With encouragement from her uncle, Roselle took those final few steps in Liam’s direction. He caught her just before she tumbled to the ground, scooped her up against his chest, and stood while he kissed her repeatedly on her cheek and neck.

The sound of her laughter filled the air.It was magical.

And then Liam happened to look in my direction.

My mom hadn’t been wrong about at least one thing that would happen. Liam was certainly shocked to see me. I just wasn’t so sure she was right about him being delighted that I was there.

At that moment, I left it up to him.

I remained put and offered a sad smile.

And once he gathered his bearings, never having looked away once, he took purposeful strides in my direction.

I braced myself with each step.

LIAM

The world had stopped spinning.

I had stopped breathing.

When I woke this morning, I had anticipated spending the day with my family as we celebrated my niece’s first birthday. A huge milestone for her; I found I was rather distracted by how much time had passed since she was born.

Time was flying.

The whole world was passing me by.

While I had so many parts of me still stuck ina life that felt like it existed eons ago, everything and everyone was moving on. Changing.

And yet, now, it seemed as though time had stopped. My breath had caught in my chest, and I’d visibly rocked back on my feet at the sight of her.

Although I’d have been lying if I said I hadn’t thought about Layla today, I could confidently say I hadn’t anticipated seeing her here, at my family’s lake house.

But I was mistaken. Because she was here. She was standing there, looking as beautiful as ever, with those captivating eyes and a soft smile.

Asadsmile.

Not fear. Not anger. Not even a hint of happiness.

Was it regret I saw there? Longing?