Lexi face flushed with embarrassment. How could she tell him she’d gone back to Liam’s place? Even if nothing happened, how could she tell him something like that, with Eric sitting there? Her heart began to race, and she could feel her face flush with embarrassment.
“No,” she replied, glancing up at Eric, who was now watching her closely too with the strangest look on his face. “I didn’t see anyone watching me. And no, nothing happened.”
“And what about when you left the bar?” Matt asked as Lexi’s heart hammered in her chest. Her stomach heaved, and she knew she was going to be sick.
“I’m sorry,” she cried as she reached for the paper bowl on the nightstand next to her bed. She’d barely picked it up when she vomited into it.
“I think we’ve got enough for now,” Liam said, standing up from the bed. He watched Lexi with worry etched across his face. “You’ve done remarkably well, Lex. Thank you for talking to us.”
“I… I’m sorry,” she said once more, as she wiped her mouth. “I wish I could be more help.”
“We may have one or two more questions in the future,” Matt said, as he too stood up, looking a little worse for wear as his eyes dropped to the small bowl of vomit in Lexi’s hands. “If we do, is it okay to call you?”
“Sure,” Lexi replied, as her eyes found Liam’s. When they did, she smiled at him, but it faded when he didn’t return the smile. Instead, he looked at Eric, and Lexi knew he was just as confused as she was right at that moment.
“We’ll be in touch,” Matt said, as he quickly moved towards the door.
“Okay,” Lexi nodded, as once more, she looked at Liam.
“Look after yourself,” Liam said, as he too moved towards the door. With one last glance, he followed his partner out of the room, leaving Lexi alone with Eric once more.
“Are you okay?” Eric asked taking the little paper bowl from her, setting it down on the nightstand, before he sat back down on the edge of the bed. He reached out, taking hold of her hand.
“I guess I’m not as okay as I thought I was,” she sighed, wishing she could just lay back down and go to sleep. She gave him a smile, but she knew that there was something on his mind. Something that she knew he couldn’t keep inside. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” he replied without looking at her. He didn’t speak for a few moments, and Lexi knew whatever came out of his mouth next would not be something she was ready to talk about.
Still, she knew that she would answer whatever questions he had truthfully.
“So,” he said, finally looking up at her. “Remember we had that conversation in the car. About the stories I’ve heard about Detective Murphy, about Liam?”
“Umhmm,” she replied as her heart hammered in her chest.
“You said you weren’t one of his one night stands,” he said, his eyes searching her, but she knew he already knew the answer.
“I wasn’t,” she replied, as fresh tears trickled down her face. Eric stared at her for a moment, and Lexi knew he knew the truth.
“You were the girl,” Eric whispered, looking completely heartbroken. “Weren’t you?”
“The girl?” Lexi asked, unsure of what he was talking about.
“The nurses said that he is the way he is because some girl broke his heart,” Eric said, as he reached up and brushed the tears from her face. “It was you. You were that girl.”
Lexi didn’t reply. Instead, she just nodded.
“He’s still in love with you, isn’t he?” Eric continued, giving her a sad smile.
“Umhmm,” Lexi replied, tears now freely running down her face.
“And… and you?” He asked as tears danced in his eyes now too. “Do you still love him?
“Eric…” she sobbed softly. “I’m so sorry…”
“Did you… did you sleep with him?” He asked, closing his eyes, unable to look at her while he waited for an answer.
“What?” Lexi asked, surprised he would even think that. “No! Eric, I would never…”
She sat there, staring at him for a minute, having no clue what to say next.
“I think you’re a very sweet guy,” Lexi replied, knowing that she needed to be honest with him. If nothing else she owed him that much.
“But you don’t love me,” Eric sighed, holding her eyes with his. “Do you?”
“No,” she admitted sadly, shaking her head. “At least, not like I should.”
“I didn’t think so,” Eric replied, giving her a sad smile. “If I’m honest, I’ve always known it in my heart.”
“You don’t know how much I wish that I did,” Lexi said, once more tears trickling down her face, but she quickly brushed them away.
“But maybe in time,” Eric replied, giving her a pleading look. “You could learn to. Because I think you and I could be so good together. If you gave me a chance…”
“I can’t,” Lexi said, knowing she needed to do the right thing. “I don’t think it would be fair to lie to you like that. You’re such a good guy; you deserve better than that.”
“You want Liam!” He said giving her a smile, before he let go of her hand, stepping away from the bed.
“I don’t know,” Lexi sighed. “Liam and I… we’re complicated.”
“You need to talk to him,” Eric said, smiling at her.
Lexi just smiled. She hated that he was being so nice to her. It would have been so much easier if he had yelled and shouted at her. But she should have known that Eric would be nice about it. It was just who he was.
“I’m so sorry, Eric,” she whispered, wishing more than anything that she could just love him as he loved her. It would be so much easier. But she loved Liam. As much as she had tried to let him go, she just couldn’t.
Now she just needed to figure out what she was going to do next.
Chapter 14
Liam stood in the hallway of Lexi’s apartment, staring down at the drops of blood on the polished, wooden floor. A couple of feet away lay a smashed lamp that was probably knocked over during the struggle, next to it a broken Buddha ornament. A knot of dread gripped his insides as he imagined how scared she must have been in those few moments as they struggled. What would have happened if she hadn’t got away? What would that animal have done to her?
Liam could feel pure anger pulse through his entire body. He needed to get this guy and make him pay for what he had done.
“Forensics have finished dusting for fingerprints,” Matt said, pulling Liam from his thoughts. “But if he was wearing gloves, I doubt we’ll find anything other than the homeowners prints.”
“We need to catch this asshole,” Liam sighed, as he thought of Lexi once more. “This has gone on long enough.”
“I’m with you on that,” Matt replied, nodding his head. “We just need a break.”
Liam looked down at the blood once more and sighed. Then he noticed a second drop on the floor, next to the broken lamp. It was so small; he’d missed it the first time.
“Look,” he said as he crouched down to take a closer look. “This is more blood. It’s too far away from the other drops to be from the same person.”
“You don’t think…” Matt replied, crouching down too, to take a closer look. “He was hurt too. Maybe the lamp hit him. This could be his blood.”
“Maybe,” Liam nodded, wondering if this was indeed the break they needed. “Lexi said she hit him with that ornament.”
“I’ll have forensics take a sample,” Matt said as he stood back up, and headed back down into the back of the apartment, leaving Liam alone once more.
Liam stood up, taking another few steps into the apartment and looked around. This was Lexi’s life now. This was her home with another man. Liam hated that he was so jealous.
He picked up a photo that was on the end table, next to the sofa. It was a photograph of Lexi with Eric. They were dressed up like they were somewhere special. Liam stared at it for a moment, his eyes focused on Lexi.
She looked so happy in the
photo. She was staring at Eric, and she had the biggest smile on her face. She was happy. Or at least she was until Liam had come crashing back into her world, and now her life seemed to be falling apart.
He knew in his head that the right thing to do was walk away from her. Leave her to get on with her life with a man who could make her happy. He imagined her having a family with Eric and moving from their apartment into a nice house in the suburbs, complete with picket fences. It was the life she deserved, and he needed to let her live happily ever after.
That’s what his head said. His heart, however, refused to listen. He loved her. It was that simple. Deep down inside, he believed she loved him too. It was in her eyes when she looked at him. It was in her lips when she kissed him.
He thought about how she had kissed him when they were in the hospital. It was what he longed for while he watched her sleeping. There was so much he’d wanted to say to her, but he never got the chance. When Dylan walked in, Lexi jumped back like what they were doing was wrong, and this confused Liam. He was sure he was the one she was choosing when she kissed him. But maybe he was wrong. Maybe she was saying goodbye.
Then Eric arrived back, and Liam just needed to get out of that room as fast as he could.
He remembered how he wanted to just knock Eric on his ass when he came running into the room, acting all worried and concerned about Lexi, but Liam was still angry he had left her alone the night before.
Liam was almost relieved when Dylan asked to speak to him outside the room, but the relief was short lived.
“What the hell were you thinking?” Dylan asked Liam as he stood in the on-call room, where he had taken him to talk privately. “What if Eric had come and found you in there, instead of me. How stupid could you be?”
“I was thinking that the woman I loved was hurt, and I needed to see her,” Liam sighed as he sat down on the edge of the bed in the room. “I just wanted to see her, Dylan.”
“I know,” Dylan sighed as he sat down next to his brother.
They both sat there in silence for the longest time.
“Liam, she is with Eric,” Dylan said, finally. Liam cringed at his words, but he knew his brother was right. He was just feeling so confused. “I know that’s hard for you to accept, but she is.”
“I know she is,” Liam sighed, rubbing his tired eyes. “But that doesn’t change how I feel about her.”
“I know,” Dylan replied, giving his brother a sad smile. “But she’s moved on. She’s happy. Eric is a good guy. I know it’s hard, but you have to let her go.”
Liam closed his eyes, sucking in a deep breath before he pushed up off the bed. He’d heard enough, and he couldn’t listen to him anymore.
“I need to call Matt,” Liam said as he walked to the door of the room. “We need to take her statement, then get to the scene to make sure forensics hasn’t screwed it up.”
“Liam,” Dylan said, stopping him before he walked out the door. “Are you going to be okay?”
“I don’t know,” he replied honestly, before he turned back to the door, leaving the room.
“Are you ready to get out of here?” Matt asked pulling Liam from his thoughts. “I told Steph I wouldn’t be too long. She wants to go shopping for a new table and chairs, and I promised we’d go this weekend.”
“Sound like fun,” Liam replied with a sarcastic laugh, as he turned to face his partner. “Yeah, I’m all done here. We just need to get the security videos on the way out.”
“You know,” Matt said as he followed him out of the apartment. “You don’t know how lucky you are living the single life you do. Don’t get me wrong, I love Steph, but I hate shopping for furniture. Besides I don’t see what’s wrong with the table we have.”
Liam smiled but didn’t reply. The last thing he felt right at that moment was lucky.
Forty minutes later, they were pulling in outside Liam’s apartment. Matt switched off the engine, then turned to face Liam.
“So, would you like to tell me what the hell is going on?” He asked, giving Liam a worried look. “You’ve been very quiet since we left the hospital. In fact, you’ve been quiet for a couple of weeks now, so spill. What’s going on?”
“There’s nothing to tell,” Liam said with a sigh, without looking at his partner. He knew Matt wasn’t stupid, so he wasn’t surprised he picked up on his dark mood.
“How do you know that girl?” Matt asked, surprising Liam with his question. “I get the feeling that she is more than just the latest victim of this asshole.”
“Now that is a long and very complicated story,” Liam sighed again, but this time he looked at Matt. “And I promise I will tell you all about it. Just not today.”
“Should I be worried?” Matt asked giving him a questioning look.
“No,” Liam replied, smiling at him. “But I will fill you in on Monday. I promise.”
“Okay,” Matt said, giving him a nod before Liam pushed open the car door and climbed out.
Making his way up to his apartment, his feet felt like lead, as did his heart. Walking into his living room, the wine glasses from the night before were still on the coffee table, and it made his heart ache. Why hadn’t he just made her stay? Why had he pushed her so hard?
Slipping off his jacket, he threw it on the armchair, before he picked up the wine glasses and took them to the kitchen. Setting them down on the countertop, he closed his eyes and thought about Lexi, and how she had kissed him. He remembered the warmth of her lips against his, and he longed to feel it again.
He felt so confused, and his heart ached. She had been the one to kiss him. But then she was with Eric. Closing his eyes, he remembered Eric kissing her when he walked into the room. Liam really had no idea what to think.
A wave of anger suddenly rushed over his entire body. He picked up a glass, hurling it towards the wall on the far side of the kitchen. Then, using his arms, he pushed everything from the countertop in a temper, sending it all crashing to the floor, sending broken glass flying everywhere.
“FUCK!” He bellowed, pushing his hands through his hair as his anger gave way to grief. He stumbled backward until his back hit the wall behind him. Then he slid down to the ground, burying his face in his hand, before breaking down and crying.
A buzzing sound crashed into his head, pulling him from a restless sleep. He moved slowly, every inch of his body aching. When Liam opened his eyes, he realised he was still on the floor of his kitchen; lying amongst the mess that was once the contents of his countertop. He groaned as he stretched out, every inch of his body felt like he had gone 20 rounds with Mike Tyson.
He pushed up off the floor, just as the buzzer sounded once more.
“I’m coming,” he grumbled as he made his way out to the hallway. Knowing it was probably one of his brothers at the door, most likely Dylan, Liam reached up and pressed down on the intercom. “If you’ve come to check on me, I’m fine. So you can go back to the others and tell them the same thing. Now please, leave me the hell alone.”
“Um…” Lexi's voice came through the speaker, surprising Liam. “I... I didn’t come to check up on you. I came because I needed to talk to you.”
Liam stared at the speaker on the wall for what felt like forever. Part of him wondered if in fact, he was still asleep on the kitchen floor and that this was all a dream.
“But if you don’t want to,” Lexi continued, sounding almost embarrassed. “Then I should just go.”
“NO, WAIT!” Liam exclaimed, pressing down on the buzzer. “No. I want to talk. Come up.”
She didn’t reply for a moment, and Liam worried that maybe she had changed her mind and she was gone.
“Okay,” she finally replied, much to Liam’s relief.
He stood there in the hallway for a moment, his mind racing a million miles a second. Lexi was here. He had no clue why, but she was here. She wanted to talk.
He opened the door, then took a deep breath before he stepped out into the hallway. He held his breath as he
stood there waiting for her, the only sound was the screeching of the old elevator as it climbed up through the building. His head was full of everything he wanted to say to her. He was so scared he would say the wrong thing again, and she would leave once more.
Finally, he saw her. Her eyes met his through the steel bars, as the elevator came to a stop. Taking a step forward, Liam pulled up the outer door of the elevator, as Lexi opened up the inside one.
Liam stepped back, as Lexi stepped off the elevator, everything he had wanted to say moments before seemed so unimportant now. He had no clue what to do now.
Neither of them said a word for the longest time. Finally, Liam took a step closer to Lexi, his eyes never leaving hers.
“You’re here,” he whispered, his eyes glued to Lexi’s.
“I am,” she replied with a nervous smile. “I got into a cab when I left the hospital, and I don’t know why, but here seemed like the only place I needed to be.”
“What about Eric?” Liam asked, knowing he probably shouldn’t, but he needed to know.
“It’s over,” Lexi said, smiling once more but this time she seemed even more unsure of herself. “He isn’t the one I love. He never was.”
Liam stared at her for a moment, as the biggest smile filled his face.
Unable to hold back any longer, Liam closed the distance between them, quickly claiming her lips with his, as he pulled her into his embrace.
Lexi didn’t hesitate. Returning his kiss, she wrapped her arms around his neck, holding on to him like he was the only thing keeping her from coming apart.
Liam reached down, quickly scooping her up in his arms before he turned and headed back into his apartment. Kicking the door shut, he headed straight down the hallway, towards his bedroom.
When he reached the bedroom, he set Lexi down on the bed, climbing above her.
“Promise me that you’ll never leave me again,” Liam breathed out as he pressed his lips against the bare skin of her neck.
“I promise,” Lexi whispered as she reached up, running her fingers through his hair. “I will never leave again.”
That was all Liam needed to hear. Slamming his mouth against hers, his kiss grew deeper and deeper.
Liam (The Murphy Boys Series Book 4) Page 14