Chapter 55

fifty-five

LIAM

By the time Amy handed the phone to Paul, I was a nervous wreck. It had only been a day since I'd last seen him. Twenty-four hours of second-guessing myself and not knowing if I'd made the right decision.

"Liam? Are you still there?"

"I'm here. Merry Christmas."

Paul sighed. "Merry Christmas to you, too. I've moved into the kitchen to give us some privacy. I heard what Amy said. You don't have to come to Sunrise Bay for her first day of school."

"It's okay. I told her I couldn't make it. If she remembers, she can call me when she gets home."

"I don't think there's much chance of her forgetting. How's your dad?"

I glanced at my father. He'd poured two cups of coffee and was about to cut into the Christmas cake Paul had made. "He's fine."

James held the knife over the plate. "Tell Paul the cake's wonderful. If he sends them to Chicago, I'll order two from him. "

I smiled as Dad bit into a big slice of cake. "Did you hear that?"

"I did. Send me your dad's address and I'll bake them for him this afternoon."

"You don't need to do that."

Dad placed the cup of coffee and some cake in front of me. "If you're talking about the cakes, yes he does."

I frowned.

"Oh, for goodness' sake," Dad said. "Give me the phone and I'll speak to him myself."

There was no way I wanted Dad to speak to Paul. "Your coffee will get cold."

"So will a lot of things if you don't hand over the phone."

I reluctantly placed the phone in Dad's hand. "Be nice."

"I'm always nice. All you have to do is ask the ladies at the bowling club." James held the phone against his ear. "Hello, Paul. This is James, Liam's dad. Your cake is delicious."

I had no idea what Paul said, but Dad's dry chuckle surprised me.

"Don't let my son distract you from getting your business up and running. Can you send two cakes to me in Chicago?"

I picked up my cup of coffee and listened to the one-sided conversation. Dad wasn't much of a talker, especially on the phone, but Paul seemed to be prodding sentences out of him.

James smiled. "No one's perfect. But if you want a keeper, you'd go a long way to beat my son."

Heat scorched my face. "Dad! Don't say things like that." It was just as well Paul wasn't in the same room. As well as being incredibly embarrassed, I wanted to get the phone off him fast.

"What was that?" James asked Paul. "I couldn't hear what you said over the top of Liam's mutterings."

It was time for me to eat cake. So I did. A great big slab of rich fruitcake that was easily the best I'd ever tasted. I was about to cut a second slice when Dad cleared his throat.

"I'd better rescue the cake," James said as he moved away from the table. "There won't be much left after Liam's finished eating his next slice."

Dad wasn't much of an exaggerator, either. But the conversation with Paul was bringing out the worst in me. Before Dad could say anything else, I grabbed the phone out of his hand.

"It's Liam. I apologize for anything offensive my dad might have said. He's not usually like that."

"Your dad seems nice."

I heard the smile in Paul's voice and some of my nerves disappeared. "Send Alex and Dylan my congratulations. Amy told me they're engaged."

"It'll be an exciting year. Are you looking forward to working in an office again?"

"I haven't given it much thought." That was a lie, but Paul didn't need to know I was dreading the next few weeks. "It'll be good catching up with the rest of my team."

"I'm sure they've missed you."

I heard some voices in the background.

"I have to go," Paul said. "Some of Alex's friends have arrived. I hope you enjoy the rest of the day."

"You, too."

"Remember to send me your dad's address. And tell him I won't be charging him. "

"You don't have to do that."

"Yes, I do. Call it a thank you present for everything you did for Amy and me."

There was no point arguing with Paul. Even if I didn't give him Dad's address, he'd still manage to get the cakes to him. "Dad will look forward to seeing them. I'll talk to you soon."

"Bye."

And before I could stop Dad from eating another slice of cake, Paul ended the call.

James licked royal icing off the end of his fingers. "That went well."

"You think?"

Dad smiled. "Take it from a man who's had more differences of opinion with other people than anyone you know. It went well."

I hoped so because, as much as I didn't want to admit it, I was still in love with Paul.