calling?” I ask.
She puts her hand up to silence me, then waits.
“Pam?” she says.
My stomach drops. Liv’s mother? That’s her big idea. I shake my head, but she looks me dead in the eye and keeps talking.
“It’s Tara. I’m so sorry to bug you, but I need your help. My car broke down and I don’t have any cash on me for a cab or a towing service.” She winks at me and I finally get it. “I’d really appreciate it if you could come down here… no, don’t tell Liv. The truth is I’m trying to arrange a surprise for her birthday and if she knows, she’ll figure it out… yeah. Okay. Thank you, Pam. I’ll send you the location.”
She hangs up and grins at me.
“Birthday?” I repeat.
“It’s tomorrow,” Tara confirms. “She hates her birthday. Always has, so she refuses to let me make a big deal of it.” She slams the door closed and bumps her fist on the side of the cab, earning her a glare from the driver. “Well, what are you waiting for?” She says to me. “I got Pam out of the house for you, so go get your girl.”
“I owe you one.” I give her a grateful smile.
The whole ride to her house, I stare out the window in silence. It’s her birthday tomorrow and I had no idea. What was she going to do, sit there alone, thinking about Tara and I being married? I sigh. Nobody should go through life hating their birthday. I pull out my phone and call Mason.
“Ben,” he says, surprised. “How are you doing?”
“I need you to arrange something for me,” I say, no time for small talk.
“You won the bet?” he asks. “That’s great.”
“No, this isn’t about the bet. I fucked up and I need to fix it. Can you book me a room in the best hotel in New York? I want their most expensive room, flowers, champagne, gifts, jewelry… whatever is going to make tonight the most special night of Liv’s life. Don’t even worry about the cost.”
“Okay,” Mason agrees, sounding uncertain. “I’ll do my best.”
My hands fidget in my lap as we turn into Liv’s street. God, I hope this works, because if it doesn’t… The hardest part will be getting Liv to hear me out over what she heard me say to Jake. I’ll do whatever I have to in order to make her listen to me, because girls like her only come along once in a lifetime.
I’d be a fool to let her slip through my fingers.
Chapter 19
LIV
“Can one of you say something?” I look from Mom to Jake, my hands clasped tightly in my lap. “Please?”
Mom can’t even look at me. She just stares at the same spot on the floor, her eyes glassy, like she wants to cry but can’t let the tears out. Jake reacts first. He silently gets to his feet and walks over to me, his hand smoothing over my hair as he gently kisses my forehead.
“I’m so sorry,” he whispers.
I watch in shock as he grabs his jacket and walks to the door, disappearing before I can react or ask where he’s going. I turn my attention back to Mom, praying for a better reaction. I need something from her. Anything at this point will do.
“Mom?” I whisper.
Her head snaps up, like I’ve broken her out of a deep thought. Her mouth trembles as she frowns at me, then she gets to her feet and rushes over to me. I sigh with relief when her arms encase me. She holds me close, rocking me like she used to when I was a little girl.
“I’m so sorry, baby,” she whispers as the tears fall freely. “I’m so, so sorry.”
“It wasn’t your fault,” I say. “And I should’ve told you the truth then—”
“You were fifteen, Liv. I should’ve noticed the signs or seen something. And my reaction when you needed me was to send you away.” She lets out a harsh laugh. “You must have felt so alone.”
I had, but telling her that right now isn’t going to help, so I just close my eyes and let her rock me.
“I’m not upset how things turned out,” I eventually say. “I loved having the chance to get to know Dad.” I hesitate, one question burning on my mind that I’ve wanted answered for a long time. “Can I ask you something?”
She nods.
“Why did you never visit me?”
“Because I thought that was what you wanted,” she finally replies, her