Elissa put the dish down and went to look at the screen. Liam. They said a man could work an outfit, but he was working that robe. The picture showed him looking over his shoulder. The robe had parted with his movement, and you could see well-defined chest muscles that matched the sculpted calves, which shown from below the robe. On another man, the flip flops would have made him look foolish, but Liam had enough confidence and swagger to wear pink flip flops and still make you recognize he was a male in his prime.
He still had his thick dark hair that curled around his ear and piercing blue eyes that she had gotten lost in while he talked about his plan to follow his grandfather into the hotel business. She had thought he was sharing his goals and dreams with her; instead, he was just winning a bet. Taking a seat, she got the remote and turned up the volume on the television.
“Local Chusadite Liam Butler has once again been seen in a compromising position. No one knows what led to the events of him walking into one of his flagship hotels with what appears to be a homeless woman, but everyone agrees that the behavior is erratic at best. This type of speculation couldn’t come at a worse time. Sources say that Butler has been trying to introduce innovative approaches to keep the family-owned hotel chain above water.”
The picture on the screen changed from Liam walking in his flip flops to an image of his grandparents, holding hands and smiling at one another. The picture made Elissa’s breath catch. There was such love in their eyes, and their hands were entwined as if they were making a vow to one another.
“Butler has been the Co-CEO since his grandfather passed away a year ago. The transition was hard on everyone, especially the company’s stock, with some moves that people see as impulsive and lacking long term planning. It’s been rumored that the board has asked for some concessions from Butler to show his stability, which has prompted his seemingly endless pursuit of a significant other. A person, who chose not to be revealed, said these public antics only confirm that Butler may not be the CEO the company needs.”
Elissa couldn’t believe it. She was just in New York at that hotel. How could he mess up her life again? She stood up and clasped her hands together and bent her head. If she took deep breaths and centered herself, she wouldn’t explode over how thoughtless he was being. The hotel job description had cited it wanted new and innovative ideas. It seemed like the creative ideas were Liam’s, but here he was running around like a chicken with his head cut off from woman to woman.
“Elissa, are you praying?” Auntie asked.
Her eyes flew open, and a smile came to her face as she saw her aunties concern.
“I’m sorry, Auntie, I thought Liam could use all the prayer he could get.”
Auntie agreed and stood when the doorbell caught them both unawares.
“I’ll—"
Elissa cut her off. “I’ll get it. It’s about time for you to go to the garden, yes?”
Her aunt nodded. “Thanks, let me know if it’s that Johansen guy. I mean, he can wait a little, it would do him good.” Aunt Becky left the room with a little more pep in her step. It wasn’t much, but whatever brought her Aunt Becky joy, she tried to provide it. The bell rang again, and this time, there was a knock right after. Someone was persistent
“Hold on.” It was probably another petition. It seemed like the neighborhood was overrun with petition workers.
Elissa opened the door and found herself looking at a familiar man but couldn’t recall from where. She thought she should remember a man who was so nice to look at, and most important didn’t seem like he was at the door for a survey or to sell her something. If he was here to sell her something dressed in his business casual wear, she couldn’t wait to hear it. Elissa looked, and he didn’t have a clipboard, pamphlets, or a vacuum cleaner. If nothing else, she was about to listen to a pitch she hadn’t heard before.
“Yes?” she prompted.
He nodded and then started patting his pockets as if he were looking for something. Elissa began to think he was lost and needed directions. He held up one hand and then let out a sigh of relief when he pulled out a bent, slightly crinkled business card and handed it to her.
“Elissa Dane, my name is Travers Warner, and I—”
“How do you know my name?” Elissa asked, giving Travers a skeptical look.
“Sorry, we know each other, sort of and—"
“Sort of? I don’t think so Mr. Warner, now, I’m not sure why you’re here, but you can just—”
“And you thought I would make a mess of it,” Liam said as he stepped into view.
“Liam, I just wanted to introduce the situation first, and see if Ms. Dane was interested.” Travers had a defeated tone as if nothing he did mattered.
“I’m sure she’ll be interested, so let’s move past the formalities.”
Elissa heard his voice, and suddenly, she was back in time. Waiting for Liam to come to her door and say the rumors weren’t true, that she wasn’t a dare that he took up. In truth, she had rehearsed this meeting many times. She had practiced saying how she hadn’t wanted to date him anyway. She’d even had daydreams about him coming back and telling her how much he cared for her and was sorry, and she would just walk away saying, “Too bad, you missed your chance.” All of those witty sayings left her. Now that she was face to face with Liam, her mind was a blank.
“Liam?” she asked.
“Right on the first go, Elissa. I need to talk to you.”
“What?”
Liam took a deep breath. “I hope you know how to do more than ask questions; otherwise, this could be harder than I thought.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about our marriage.”
Chapter Three
Elissa Dane had grown up. He had dreaded and craved this moment. Elissa Dane had been his nemesis in college. If he said right, she would promote left. The first two years of college, it was Elissa vs. Liam, and then one day, they clicked—or so he had thought.
Today, she was everything he thought she would become: confident, beautiful, bold, and headstrong. Her dark hair shone in the morning sun. It was in a sloppy knot that could compete with any magazine model’s. She had on a white shirt that was open at the top and showed off tanned skin. Elissa wore a pair of jeans on her legs that seemed to go on forever. If he wasn’t sure if the rebel still lurked in her, he could see it personified in her bright red flip flops that matched her toenail polish. He had a new appreciation for women in flip flops. It was then that he noticed one of her feet was tapping the ground. When he looked up, he looked right into her stormy eyes.
He recognized that slow ember of awareness in her eyes. Some things may have changed. Time may have passed, Elissa Dane may have filled out in all the right places, but he always got an odd thrill seeing her rise to the moment.
If memory served him correctly, Elissa did not share his sentiments. Her face went from confused to indignant to full-on defensive. If he had to classify it, he’d say it was changing from the playful debates they had, to looking at him as if he were a bug. It was definitely not a look he was used to getting from women. Considering the way she used to look at him in their last year in college, it wasn’t one he was expecting from her.