Page 30 of Rejected Heart (The Westwoods #5)

LIAM

Before I even opened my eyes, I knew she was gone.

As that realization hit me, I rolled to the opposite side and squeezed them shut tighter. The last thing I wanted to do was face reality.

Either I’d had more to drink last night than I thought and had made everything up in my head, or I’d had the best night of my life in years, and now she was gone.

It was safe to say I had no interest in opening my eyes to confront that reality. Not after what last night had meant to me.

I was aware from the moment I took Layla by the hand and led her out of the bar that I was setting myself up for trouble. I knew, deep down, that I’d only do more damage to my already battered heart.

But I didn’t care.

I’d done it anyway.

And if given the opportunity, I wouldn’t hesitate to have another go at her. As incredible as the sex was, it wasn’t even about that for me. It was merely having that connection to her again, having her with me, that mattered most.

Maybe that made me weak. Maybe it was pathetic.

But the truth was, Layla had a hold on my heart, and I didn’t want to consider a life without her.

I’d been doing it for years, and I’d hated every minute of it.

If there was even a slight chance, a remote possibility, that we could work things out and figure out what went wrong, I’d do whatever it took to make us whole again.

She just needed to give me the chance to prove it to her and make it happen. After last night, I couldn’t go back. I wouldn’t.

We had to figure this out.

Begrudgingly, I peeled my eyes open to confirm my suspicions were true. There was a small part of me hoping my instincts were wrong.

I wasn’t so lucky.

Because sure enough, just as I had suspected, Layla was nowhere to be found.

She’d left me. Again.

I let out a long, low sigh. I should have known. I should have anticipated this specific response from her the moment I decided to give in to those primal urges last night.

With a hollow feeling in my gut, I decided I wasn’t going to do this again.

I wasn’t going to let her take herself away from me without fighting tooth and nail to understand why.

I wasn’t going to live like I’d lived the last eight years, especially without knowing how it was so easy for her to continue walking away.

I deserved at least that much.

Tossing the blanket from my body, I strode to the shower to wake myself up and clear my head. While I was in there, I attempted to come up with a plan for how to handle this with her.

Maybe I should have considered this before I took the step that I did with her last night, but there were far too many emotions coursing through me at the time. From this point forward, I needed to be smart.

I needed to demonstrate to Layla that I intended to fight for her, that I wasn’t going to allow her to throw us out like we meant nothing. She was going to have to answer some tough questions, because I wasn’t going to settle for anything less.

And she couldn’t claim there was nothing between us after the way things went down last night. It was time for some honesty and transparency.

I finished in the shower, noted the time, and sent a text off to Cooper. Before I could do anything about my situation with Layla, I had to make sure things were handled at the amusement park. I didn’t think my brother would have any issues with covering for me.

While I waited for him to respond with an answer about where I could find him this morning, I moved to the kitchen and grabbed myself some breakfast.

As I ate, visions of my night with Layla flashed through my mind. I wondered if it had meant anywhere near the same to her as it had to me. I didn’t even have to concentrate that hard to still hear her moans or recall the way it felt to have her fingers touching my skin again.

She was the only woman I’d ever been with, and sinking myself between her legs again had been an unforgettable experience.

I took my time with her, refusing to pretend that it was just about sex.

No matter what I’d said to her or how it might have appeared on her end, being with Layla was about so much more than that physical connection.

I’d thought she felt the same, but given that she’d disappeared after I’d fallen asleep and hadn’t even given me the courtesy of a note, I questioned just how much she actually cared.

By the time I’d finished breakfast, Cooper had gotten back to me and mentioned he was going to be working on a broken machine in the chocolate factory, so I left my suite and hopped on the elevator.

While I was going to have to give Cooper some details about what had happened last night, I had hoped he’d be the only one until I had the opportunity to talk to Layla. Unfortunately, no sooner had I stepped off the elevator and walked toward the hotel entrance, I saw my sister.

Ivy’s eyes locked on mine, and she didn’t hesitate to wave me over to her.

Layla had mentioned Ivy was supposed to be meeting her in the bar last night. That’s probably what this was about.

“Good morning, Ivy. What’s going on?”

Her brows lifted in surprise. “You’re asking me that question? ”

“You waved me over here.”

Nodding, she explained, “Because I had hoped you were going to talk to me about what I saw yesterday.”

That could have been any number of things, so I didn’t jump to any conclusions about what she was referring to. “What did you see?”

Ivy squinted, narrowing her gaze on me. “One of my employees here at the front desk called me yesterday evening to tell me that a woman named Layla had stopped by to see me. I told them I needed to finish something up in the ballroom first, but that I’d be back soon.

When I got back here and asked where Layla was, they told me she was waiting at the hotel bar.

Imagine the shock I got when I walked there and found you sitting beside her. ”

“I was there first. She sat beside me.”

“Does that matter?” my sister countered. “Liam, it’s been eight years, and the two of you were sitting beside one another at the hotel bar. I decided not to interrupt. I wanted you to have the time to talk to her.”

I didn’t know why I insisted on sharing that it was Layla who had approached me. Ivy was right. It didn’t matter. The bottom line was that Layla and I were speaking at all.

“I appreciate you giving us that time.”

Ivy offered a half-hearted smile. “I know how much you needed it. But I’d be lying if I said I’m not even remotely concerned.”

“About what?”

Soft laughter spilled out of her. “I don’t know why I thought that after you had that encounter with Layla that you’d suddenly be back to the fun-loving talkative guy you used to be.”

I shrugged, my lips twitching. “Sorry to disappoint you.”

“As good as I thought it was that you and Layla were finally speaking to one another, I have to admit, I was shocked to see you leading her onto the elevator. I can’t imagine the two of you worked out eight years of separation in a matter of minutes in the bar.”

“That’s a fair assessment.”

Ivy sent me a questioning look, but when I provided no additional information, she pressed for more. “She’s not here, is she?”

Something twisted in my gut, and I shook my head. “No.”

“Are things good between the two of you?”

I wasn’t about to share the details of my sex life with my sister, but she wasn’t a fool.

Ivy could easily work out what had happened, so I didn’t need to pretend differently.

“We didn’t discuss what we should have, if that’s what you’re asking,” I told her.

“But things weren’t necessarily bad between us, either. It’s just that…”

“What? What happened?”

A wave of anger and disappointment rolled over me. “I went from falling asleep feeling the best I have in years to waking up and being right back at square one, because she snuck out at some point.”

The expression on my sister’s face matched the heaviness I felt in my heart and limbs. She was just as devastated to hear the news as I had been to experience it this morning.

“Liam, you’ve got to talk to her,” she urged me.

“I know. That’s why I’m going to meet up with Cooper now. I need him to spare a couple of guys to cover me at the amusement park, because I need to work this out with Layla.”

Ivy inclined her head with understanding. “That’s great. I think it’s the right thing to do. But when I say that you need to talk to her, I mean it. You can’t get caught up in your feelings for her.”

“That’s not easy.”

“I get it. Trust me, I get it. But I don’t want to see you right back where you were eight years ago, either. You need to talk to her; you need to figure out what went wrong.”

That was my goal.

And Ivy was right.

I couldn’t allow myself to get distracted by my feelings for Layla.

I could love her all I wanted, but I needed answers.

Plus, if Layla didn’t feel the same about me as I did about her, if she didn’t want the same things, it was better for me to know that now.

If that was the case, at least I could go into this knowing the outcome.

Then again, considering Layla hadn’t intentionally sought me out in either instance—she wasn’t even back in Landing for me—maybe I already had my answer. Perhaps that was why I hadn’t been so eager to stop her from kissing me last night and why I allowed things to progress the way they had .

“I’m going to figure it out, Ivy. It’s just a bit terrifying, too.”

She offered a sympathetic look. “You know we’re all here for you.”

I smiled at her. “I know you are. Now, let me get out of here, so I can try to sort this all out.”

“Okay. Good luck.”

Turning away from the reception desk, my eyes landed on the front entrance. I took two steps in that direction before Ivy called out to me. “Liam?”

“Yeah?”

“We’re here for you, but we’re also here for her, too. If you want that, if she wants that, we’re all here.”

Warmth moved through me.

My family loved me, so they had every reason to hate Layla for what she’d done.

But they didn’t. Not once had they ever spoken poorly about her.

Even in my darkest days, they never took that path.

Sure, they were heartbroken about it all, but they did what they could to support me.

And it was at this very moment that I realized how much I appreciated that.

Because if there was any hope of me ever being able to work things out with Layla, if there was even a remote chance of us being able to have a future, I’d want my family there when it happened.

Maybe they always hoped for the same.

“Thanks, Ivy.”

She grinned at me. Then I turned and walked off.

When I met my brother in the chocolate factory, it was clear he was concerned. “Everything okay, Liam? Your text was unexpected.”

“I need a favor.”

“Sure. What’s going on?” He was focused on the machine he was fixing, but his tone indicated he was curious and engaged in our conversation.

What I loved most was that, without hesitating, Cooper was ready to lend a helping hand. Maybe that was because I didn’t often come to him needing anything.

“I saw Layla last night.”

Cooper stopped what he was doing, his eyes shooting to mine. “What?”

“I guess she had gone to visit Jules, who subsequently told her to visit Ivy at the hotel. Ivy had been busy in the ballroom when Layla showed up, so they told her she could wait in the bar.”

My brother’s brows shot up. “Let me guess, you happened to be there?”

“Yep.”

“And she approached you?”

“Hard to believe, isn’t it?”

Cooper abandoned the machine entirely and walked toward me. “What happened?”

I went on to explain to him what happened in the bar, some of the things we’d said, and how we’d wound up in my hotel suite last night. Of course, I also shared how Layla had left without saying a word.

“So, where do you think things stand with her? Was last night just nostalgia for her, or was there something more there? ”

I sighed. “That’s why I need a favor from you.”

“How can I help?”

“I was hoping you might be able to spare a couple of guys to handle things for me at the amusement park today. I might only need the morning, but I need to take some time to seek her out and get some answers. I can’t keep doing this, Coop.

I’ve lived empty for eight years. At the very least, I’d like an explanation. ”

“And if you’re hoping for more than just an explanation? If you’re hoping for the best?” he questioned me. “What does that look like?”

I looked away and considered the possibility of a best-case scenario. The last thing I wanted was to have a negative mindset going into this, but it seemed such an unlikelihood that I’d ever have what I really wanted.

I returned my attention to Cooper. “In a perfect world, I’d give Roselle another aunt and some cousins. You’d have another sister-in-law.”

Understanding dawned on his features. “She’s always been it for you.”

“The question remains if I’ve ever been that for her.”

Cooper hesitated a beat before he said, “Take the time you need. I’m almost finished with this. Afterward, I’ll have Marco take over my tasks for the day, and I’ll cover for you at the park.”

“I appreciate it, Coop.”

“Yeah, well, I’m going to hold you to your word. I want a niece or nephew from you.”

Something indescribable hit the center of my chest. Layla and I had been apart for so long, and the hurt and bitterness between us were just as fresh and raw as they had been the day that she turned down my proposal.

But the idea of having a life and family with her was something that I still longed for.

There wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do to make that happen.

“If it was up to me, that would have already happened.”

“I know. I hope it works out for you, Liam. Honestly, nobody deserves it more than you. Whatever you need, even after today, I’m happy to help.”

“Thanks, Cooper.”

He waved his hand in the air dismissively as he moved back to the machine. “Don’t mention it. Now, go figure out how you’re going to win back your girl.”

With that, I turned and walked out.

It was time Layla and I had a real conversation.