Page 7 of Rejected Heart (The Westwoods #5)

LAYLA

Nearly two months had passed since our class took that field trip and Liam Westwood entered my life. The last two months had been the most exciting of my whole life.

I could hardly believe I was here now, mere minutes away from Liam arriving to pick me up for the Christmas party.

My mom had taken me out shopping for a dress, and she hadn’t hesitated to make sure I had something that was utterly stunning.

I was in an honest-to-goodness ballgown, something I never thought I’d see.

It was a gorgeous navy-blue with a sweetheart neckline and lace cap sleeves.

There were floral applique embellishments and a sweeping hemline that, with each step I took, made it appear as though I was gliding across the room.

The gown was the most exquisite thing I’d ever worn.

It made me feel like royalty, like a real princess.

We’d spent extra time on my hair, putting some large, loose curls in it before pinning parts of it back and allowing some of those curls to fall freely around my face. I didn’t typically wear tons of makeup, but for this occasion, I thought it was appropriate to have some on to complete the look.

“You look so beautiful,” my mom said after I’d slipped on my silver shoes and descended the stairs to stand in front of her.

I smiled at her, my heart bursting with love for this woman. She’d given up so much to give me all that she had. I’d be forever in her debt. “Thank you for this, Mom. I feel so pretty.”

She moved toward me and gave me a hug. “That’s because you are. It isn’t the dress or the hair or the makeup that did it.”

Just as soon as she loosened her hold on me, the doorbell rang. “He’s here!” I bubbled, squeezing my mom’s hands in mine.

“Well, let me go answer the door so he can see you.”

My mom took off toward the front door, and I remained rooted to the spot.

Though I felt a lightness in my chest at the excitement I was experiencing over what was ahead tonight, there was no question I did feel some nerves.

My stomach was fluttering, and I cleared my throat several times to prepare myself for seeing Liam.

The door opened, and his voice floated toward me. “Hi, Mrs. Snow. I’m Liam Westwood. I’m here to pick up Layla for the Christmas party tonight.”

“Hi, Liam. It’s wonderful to finally meet you,” my mom returned. “And it’s just Meredith, not Mrs. Snow. ”

Crap.

I hadn’t mentioned anything to Liam about how it was just my mom and me, that my dad had walked out on us nearly ten years ago. She hadn’t changed her name or anything, wanting to keep it the same as mine, but being called Mrs. Snow would sting.

“My apologies.”

“No worries at all, Liam. Layla just finished getting ready.”

As she stepped back and to the side, Liam had a direct line of sight to me. I was floored when I saw him dressed in a suit. He looked amazing.

His lips had parted as I finally moved in his direction and came to a stop a few feet away. “Wow,” he mumbled. “You look… Wow, you look beautiful.”

I could feel the flush creep over my skin. “Thank you. You look very nice, too.”

He wore a proud smile. “Thanks. I brought these for you.”

Liam handed me a gorgeous bouquet that was the perfect complement to the Christmas holiday—bright red roses, green hydrangeas, red berries, and some evergreen stems.

I lifted the bouquet to my nose and inhaled. “Thank you, Liam. They smell wonderful.”

“I’m glad you like them.” He gestured over his shoulder. “Both of my parents are here. They’re driving us, and they’re happy to meet you, Mrs… I mean, Meredith. Is that okay?”

“Of course. I’d love to meet them. ”

Liam dipped his chin, turned around, and waved at his parents to join us.

It was at that point when things changed for me.

I was feeling much more nervous than before.

For some reason, I hadn’t considered the meeting of the parents until this moment.

And it seemed strange that I would even feel concerned about it.

Liam and I weren’t exactly a couple. Sure, he’d said a lot of sweet things to me, but he’d never talked about wanting to make anything official, nor had he ever attempted to do anything to take us out of the friendship stage.

Mr. and Mrs. Westwood walked up to the front door, looking stunning and wearing big, bright smiles. Immediately, Liam’s father extended his hand to my mom and said, “Hi. I’m Malcolm Westwood, and this is my wife, Evelyn.”

“Meredith Snow,” my mom returned, her grin matching theirs.

“Evelyn and I wanted to give Liam an opportunity to come to the door on his own, but we realize your daughter is still fourteen, so we thought it was appropriate to introduce ourselves as well.”

“I appreciate that. I do trust my daughter’s judgment, but this is a first for both of us, and she’s still a kid. So, thank you for giving me even more peace about this.”

Evelyn looked down at me, her eyes shining. “You look lovely, Layla. That dress is beautiful.”

“Thank you.”

“The whole family has heard so much about you, so we’re thrilled to finally be able to meet you.”

I hadn’t ever had the need to practice schooling my features, so when Liam’s mom made that declaration, my eyes nearly fell out of my head. Had he been talking about me that much? And the whole family? What did that mean?

“I’m… I’m happy to meet you, too.”

It was probably faster than was polite, but I quickly tore my attention away from her and met Liam’s stare. He was still smiling brightly at me, and that smile helped to take off the edge as Malcolm Westwood spoke again.

“This Christmas party tends to run rather late. We don’t want to keep her out past her curfew, though. What time would Layla need to be home?”

Curfew?

I’d never been out with anyone late enough to need a curfew.

I looked up at my mom and saw her contemplating her answer. “Oh, I’ve never had to do this, so I hadn’t even considered it. I don’t want to ruin the fun. I really want Layla to have a good time tonight. Is 10:30 okay?”

Malcolm nodded. “That’s perfectly fine. We’ll have her home by then. Liam will keep track of the time.”

My mom placed her hands on my shoulders. “Would you like me to put those flowers in some water for you.”

I handed them to her. “Yes, please.”

“Have a wonderful time tonight.”

“I will, Mom. See you later.”

Liam took me by the hand and led me toward his parents’ car. Him holding my hand was already enough to have me jittery, but then he opened my door for me, the same as his dad did for his mom, and I was a mess .

The drive to the hotel wasn’t nearly as uncomfortable as I suspected it might be, with this being my first meeting of Liam’s parents.

They’d asked a few questions about my school break and if I was excited about the upcoming Christmas holiday, but they didn’t keep the focus solely on me.

Liam shared some specifics about Christmas with his family and how his mom had this Christmas tradition of buying at least one new nutcracker decoration to add to her collection every year.

Apparently, his dad hated nutcrackers, and it had been a running joke in their lives since their first Christmas together.

The shift in the conversation helped to ease a lot of the nerves I’d been feeling, and before I knew it, we’d arrived at the hotel. Once we were there, both Malcom and Liam had done the chivalrous thing and opened the doors for Evelyn and me.

We’d made it to just outside the front door of the hotel when Liam’s parents turned toward us with bright smiles on their faces, and Evelyn said, “Have a great time tonight, kids.”

I smiled back at her as Malcolm pinned his focus on Liam. “Keep track of the time, and find me when it’s time to head out.”

“I will, Dad.”

With one final look at each other, the four of us stepped through the entrance and into The Westwood Hotel. Malcolm and Evelyn didn’t stop there. Their feet carried them forward to what I assumed had to be the ballroom where the party was being hosted .

Liam had been making the effort to follow them, but he only got two or three steps ahead of me before he realized I wasn’t moving.

I couldn’t.

My eyes were roaming over the space, scanning every surface, as I took in the sheer opulence of the place.

It was beautiful, of course. I hadn’t ever seen something so grand.

But if standing inside the front entrance to the hotel taught me anything, it was that Liam and I lived very different lives.

His family owned this hotel, which was just one small part of the entire Westwood’s campus. My mom and I couldn’t ever dream of staying in a single room here. What would I find as we journeyed deeper into the place?

If this was just the hotel the family owned, what did their home look like?

I’d never given much thought to where I lived. My mom worked her tail off to provide the very best she could for us. And I had everything I needed—maybe more, if I counted this dress—so there was nothing for me to feel bad about.

But standing in this place, I cringed to think what Liam and his parents must have thought when they stood at the front door to my house.

They had to have had thoughts. Nobody alive would be able to miss the very stark difference between the wealth of our two families.

“Is everything okay?”

Liam’s concerned voice broke through the unwelcome thoughts I’d been having. I saw the hint of worry in his expression, felt terrible for getting so distracted, and offered a genuine smile in return. “Yes, everything is great. I just… This place is beautiful.”

He looked around and shrugged. “I guess. It’s nothing like what you’ll find in the ballroom, though. I haven’t seen how they decorated tonight, but it’s always incredible. Ivy played a big role in it this year.”

“Ivy?”

“My older sister. She’s a senior this year, and she’s planning to attend college after she graduates, but the hotel is where she intends to be. Just like I’ve spent my summers working in the park, Ivy has spent her time in the hotel.”