Uncrushable (Forehead Kisses #3)

by Abby Reynolds

Despite how small my contribution was, I was making a difference in someone’s life. It would make my parents’ proud. It made me proud. Not only did I recover from the horrific trauma I experienced, but I was using that pain to help others. It was the least I could do.

  When I felt a large shadow fall over me, the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. Without looking, I knew who it was. His presence always sent static into the air, making my body naturally react to him. I didn’t turn around. Instead, I took a deep breath.

  His hands moved around my waist, making me melt automatically. His lips moved to my ear. “You did a great job.”

  I closed my eyes and relished his touch. “I hope it will make a difference.”

  “It will.” He kissed the shell of my ear then placed a gentle kiss on my neck. “I admire what you’re doing.”

  “I just wish I had something like this when I was…going through it.”

  “But you didn’t. And in the end, that made you stronger.” He turned me around, making me face him. His face moved close to mine then he kissed my forehead. “You say I’m the strongest person you’ve ever known. But you’re wrong, baby. It’s you.”

  “I don’t know about that…”

  “I do,” he said firmly. “It’s you.”

  Sleeping at Liam’s had become routine, not that I minded. Feeling him wrap around me kept me warm and relaxed all through the night. Knowing he’d be there the next morning made me excited for the following day. And knowing no one else was in his bed except for me made it better. We hadn’t made love yet, but our intimacy still satisfied me. The foreplay sent my head into clouds and made me feel connected to him all over again.

  When we went to sleep that night, Liam spooned me from behind. His massive size made the bed dip, and the heat from his body made central heating unnecessary. I slept peacefully knowing he was beside me. I wanted to be this way forever.

  His hand rested on my stomach and his leg was wrapped around mine. His warm breaths fell on my neck, and the quiet sounds of his breathing lulled me to sleep. He was my lullaby, my nightlight that kept the ghosts away.

  A dream came to me. It felt so real that I couldn’t tell fantasy from reality. I felt myself falling deeper into an unknown place. The room was spinning, and when it finally stopped, I was sitting in the kitchen of my childhood home. My parents were sitting in their usual positions by the table.

  The morning sun drifted through the open windows, brightening the house and the hallways. The garden swayed in the breeze, and the ruby red tomatoes contrasted against the deep green color of the plants. A wind chime sounded through the door.

  Two bowls of cereal were at the table, uneaten.

  Without thinking, I sat down in my usual seat, just like I did every morning.

  My dad had the paper beside him while he spooned the cereal into his mouth. His briefcase sat on the table. My mom was reading a magazine, her blue apron still tied around her. She always wore it for every meal, even if she didn’t do any cooking.

  “Keira?” My father’s voice played in my ear, repeating itself until it disappeared. A strong echo sounded in my mind.

  In a daze, I turned to him.

  He wore the same black spectacles I never saw him remove. Even late at night he watched TV still wearing them. I wasn’t even sure what he looked like without glasses. “You need to let us go, pumpkin.”

  Pumpkin…? I remembered the nickname. He called me that every day. I hardly ever heard him use my real name. “What do you mean?”

  “The biggest pain a parent can experience is the suffering of their child. Stop holding on to the regret. It wasn’t your fault.”

  Hot tears fell down my face. I faintly knew I was crying in real life. The salt seeped into my mouth. “If I hadn’t—”

  “Keira.” My father’s strong voice cut me off. “That drunk driver hit us. Not you.”

  “You wouldn’t have come after me if I hadn’t left…” The tears continued to pour down my face.

  “That doesn’t put the blame on you,” my father said gently. “And we would have done it again in a heartbeat. You’re our daughter, pumpkin. We’ll always come after you.”

  “I’m so sorry…” I felt so small in the chair, like a child in fifth grade. “I miss you so much…”

  “We miss you too.” My mom gave me a weak smile.

  My dad rested his hand on mine. “You’re hurting us, Keira. We hate to see you suffer like this, carrying the weight of the blame. Please let it go. Seeing you suffer makes us suffer more. All we want is for you to be happy. Do that for us.”

  I sniffed and controlled my tears. “You want me to be happy…?”

  “Yes.” My mom’s curls framed her face. “More than anything.”

  A weight had been lifted from my shoulders. The tears still fell but the clutch around my heart loosened. I breathed through the pain, letting all the regret leave my body. “I love you.”

  “We know.” My dad squeezed my hand. “We always knew that.”

  “I’m sorry I was such a brat to you. I didn’t mean anything I said…”

  “We know that too,” my mom said gently. “We’re glad you made it.”

  “Made it?” I whispered.

  My dad gave me a look he used to give me every day. The seriousness was in his eyes, but so was the emotion. “I told you the right man would come along. You found him.”

  “Liam…?”

  He nodded. “He has our approval. Don’t let him go.”

  “I won’t,” I said quickly. “Never.”

  “Give him our love.” My mom patted my other hand.

  “Wait…does that mean you’re going?” I wasn’t ready to say goodbye.

  “Yes,” my father said gently. “But we’re never gone. We’re with you everywhere you go. “

  “Just a little more time…” The tears splashed down my face.

  “I love you, pumpkin.”

  “I love you too, daddy.”

  My mom kissed my forehead. “I love you.”

  “Mom, I love you.”

  The dream faded. My kitchen disappeared, along with my parents. They turned into blurs and faint lines. My father’s glasses were the last thing I saw. Then I only saw darkness. The tears were still hot and soaked into my skin. I woke up, feeling their absence weigh on my heart.

  “Baby?” Liam leaned over me, the concern in his eyes. “You were having a nightmare.”

  I blinked several times before I understood what was happening. “No, not a nightmare.” Slowly, I sat up. He moved out of the way and gave me space.

  His hand moved through my hair, silently waiting for me to speak.

  “I saw my parents…”

  His hand stilled then kept going.

  “They told me I wasn’t responsible for their deaths…that I was hurting them by blaming myself.”

  “You shouldn’t blame yourself,” he said gently.

  “They want me to be happy.”

  He stared at me, the emotion in his eyes.

  I processed what just happened. “It wasn’t a dream.”

  “Then what was it?” he whispered.

  “I…they came to me. It was them.”

  Liam said nothing.

  “And they told me they approve of you.”

  His hand cupped my face and wiped away a fallen tear. “How do you feel?”

  “I miss them so much but…I feel better.”

  “I’m sure that’s what they want, baby.”

  I snuggled into him, letting the tears fall off my face.

  He kissed my forehead and continued to run his fingers through my hair. His hard chest rose and fell with heavy breaths. The silence stretched, only our breathing making any sound.

  “I think you’ve finally moved on,” he whispered.

  The revelation hit me. “I think you’re right.”

  Chapter Nine

  Liam

  Keira was different for the next week. The dream she had lifted an invisible weight off her sh
oulders. I knew she blamed herself for what happened to her parents, just the way I blamed myself for losing my sister, but I didn’t realize how much it affected her until she finally let it go. The intervention or dream she had allowed her to forgive herself.

  And that was a beautiful thing.

  I had a fight the next day. I wasn’t nervous because I never was. But I wondered if Keira would come to the match. She came to the last one, so I assumed she would come to this one.

  Now she came over every day after class like clockwork. I loved her presence and never wanted her to leave. I hadn’t asked her to move in and I hadn’t given her key back, but I really wanted to. Working in the garden, training in the basement, and sleeping together every night were routines I missed.

  When she came over after class, she sat at the kitchen table and started working on her homework. Theresa and I were done with our presentation. Now we just had to give it.

  I sat across from her then rested my elbows on the table.

  She completed a math problem before she looked up at me. “What?”

  “Nothing.”

  She went back to her work.

  “I have a fight tomorrow.”

  She looked up again. “Where?”

  “The Gaslight.”

  “What time?”

  “Eight.”

  She nodded. “Should I get there early?”

  So, she was coming? “I’d like it if you came with me.”

  “Okay.” She went back to her work.

  That was simple. We didn’t have to have a big conversation about it. Now we had a relationship I wanted from the beginning. “Can you do something for me?”

  She abandoned her work and gave me a firm look. “You know I would do anything for you.”

  “Can you come to the business center tomorrow?”

  Confusion settled on her face. “Sure…”

  ‘There’s something I want you to see.” Theresa and I had our presentation the following day. I wanted Keira to see what I was doing with Theresa for the past month. She never asked and I never told her, but I wanted her to finally see what was behind the curtain.

  “Okay.”

  The next day, I wore a suit to class even though I hated dressing up. I preferred jeans and a t-shirt any day. Actually, I preferred no clothes at all. I’d walk around naked if Keira and I were having sex again. But since we weren’t, I didn’t want to tempt either one of us.

  I pulled the thumb drive out and put it in the computer, which was connected to the projector. Our research paper was sitting on the professor’s desk, ready to be graded. Working with Theresa wasn’t so bad. She pulled her weight and listened to my ideas even if she didn’t always agree with them. Personally, I hated group work, but she didn’t make it so unbearable.

  “You look nice,” she said as she came to my side. She was wearing a black pencil skirt and a salmon colored blouse.

  “Thanks.” I didn’t compliment her in return.

  “Nervous?”

  I was never nervous for any reason. “It’s just a presentation. The audience probably won’t even listen to us.”

  “No,” she beamed. “They’ll be fascinated and they should be. We put a lot of work into this. We both better get A’s.”

  I didn’t care what our grades were. As long as I passed, I was happy with that. “Ready to start?”

  “I’ve been ready.” She flipped her hair and walked away.

  I surveyed the audience and spotted Scotty in the corner. Judging the darkness in his eyes, he felt like an idiot knowing Theresa and I were doing schoolwork together, not fucking. I’m glad I finally cleared my name with him.

  The doors opened and Keira slid inside. She was wearing jeans and a t-shirt. Her hair was layered and it tapered around her face. Anytime she was in the same vicinity, I recognized her presence. My body was in tune with hers in an inexplicable way. She looked around the audience, searching for me. When her eyes finally turned to the stage, she saw me. Then she looked at Theresa. I could see her connecting the dots.

  She never asked what I was doing with Theresa and I appreciated that trust. But I knew she must be curious, and now I was answering her questions.

  I grabbed the clicker and began the presentation, wanting to get it over with.

  After we were finished, I packed up my laptop and returned the clicker to the projector. The audience clapped and the professor made notes on her clipboard.

  “We rocked,” Theresa said with a smile.

  “No complaints.”

  She patted my shoulder then walked away. “I’m sure you’d like to talk to your girlfriend now.”

  I would. I headed to the back of the lecture hall and saw Keira standing with Scotty. She gave me a bright smile, but the light didn’t compare to the beauty of her eyes. The relief was heavy in her face. She obviously trusted me, but seeing me prove my innocence only helped our relationship.

  “Nice presentation,” Scotty said.

  “Thanks,” I said.

  “Didn’t understand a word you said but it seemed like you knew what you were talking about.” He put his hands in his pockets while he stood beside his cousin. He was the same height as I was, and we both towered over Keira.

  I turned to her, watching the glow on her face.

  She stared at my body in my suit then placed her hand on my chest, her fingers touching my tie. She played with it, pulling it closer to her. “You look good in a suit…”

  Scotty looked uncomfortable. “I guess I’ll see you at the fight tonight…”

  I ignored him while he walked away. My eyes were focused on Keira.

  She yanked on the tie and pulled my lips to hers. As soon as we touched, the fire seared my mouth. Her lips were soft and wet, tasting like honey. My neck bent so we could kiss, and she stood on her tiptoes to reach me. My hands moved to her waist and I gripped her hips, my favorite feature.

  My hormones were getting the best of me so I broke our embrace. Students and teachers were standing around, and I didn’t think it was appropriate for them to see a glimpse of our sex lives.

  “So…now that the presentation is over I won’t be seeing Theresa at your house?”

  “Or any woman.”

  “I like that.” She kept playing with my tie.

  I wanted to ask her to move in with me but I kept it back. “You want to get lunch?”

  “Sure.”

  I took her hand and pulled her out of the auditorium. Even though I asked her to lunch, I actually wanted to go home and roll around with her on my bed, feeling her slight form beneath me while I made love to her. We weren’t ready for that—but we were almost there.

  I packed my bag and pulled on my loose shorts and t-shirt. I wore my boxing shoes and removed my watch. The gloves were in the bag and everything was ready to go.

  “Is there anything I can get you?” Keira asked.

  “No. I have everything.”

  “Okay.” She didn’t seem nervous at all.

  I liked that. “Ready to go, baby?”

  “Yeah.”

  We drove my truck to the building then parked outside. When I killed the engine, I snuck a glance at her. Her body was relaxed and her eyes didn’t hint at a threat. It seemed like we were going out for ice cream.

  “You’re sure you’re okay with this?” I asked.

  She turned to me, looking at me in the darkness. “Of course.”

  I didn’t detect a lie. “Then let’s go.”

  We left the truck and entered through the back entrance directly into the locker room. I pulled my shirt off then sat on the bench, wrapping my gloves around me.

  Johnny came in, rambling. “It’s a packed house tonight. Lots of bets are on the table. One of the cables went out but I had the maintenance team fixed it. One rope for the ring broke but it was replaced. I—”

  “Johnny, this is my girlfriend, Keira.” I cut him off because he would talk forever if I didn’t.

  “Oh.” He eyed her for a moment before
he finally extended his hand. “Nice to meet you.” I could tell by the tone of his voice he didn’t like her one bit, probably because I quit because of her. But he held his tongue and wasn’t rude to her.

  “You too,” she said. “I’m glad Liam has a good guy looking out for him.”

  “I always got his back.” He turned to me. “There’s a lot of money on the table so you better win.”

  “Thanks,” I said sarcastically.

  “I’ve been trying to get that Jaguar. If you win this, I can buy that baby in cash.”

  “Again, thanks,” I said sarcastically.

  He clapped my back then walked out. “Be ready in five minutes.”

  “I’m always ready,” I said without looking at him.

  When he was gone, I returned my focus to my gloves and made sure they were fitted just right.

  Keira walked behind me then her small hands were on my bare skin. I tensed at the feel of her hands on my shoulders and back. Then she rubbed her fingers into the muscle, loosening all the knots and aches. My head dipped while I enjoyed the feel of her massage. My body was constantly tired and it was nice to be pampered once in a while. After a few minutes, I was so relaxed I forgot about the fight altogether. All I felt were her hands on me.

  This was exactly what I wanted, her beside me before a match. Silently, she took care of me and kept the nerves away. Her hands glided across my skin with just the right pressure. Then they moved to the back of my neck.

  “Don’t fall asleep,” she whispered.

  I moaned quietly, telling her I was still awake.

  The guys came into the locker room.

  “Dude, you’ll never guess who your opponent is—oh, hi, Keira.” Bran stopped in his tracks and shut his mouth. Judging the guilty look on his face, I knew he was about to say something she probably shouldn’t know about.

  Tony was beside him and he looked away from Keira, his hands in his pockets.

  Scotty eyed Bran, wondering what else he would say.

  “Who is it?” I asked calmly.

  “Nobody,” Bran said with a shrug. He stepped away and averted his gaze. “You need some water, man?”

  I gave him a firm look. “Bran, who is it?”

  Keira stopped rubbing my back, her hands resting on my shoulders.