Worth Repeating (Worth It All Book 1)

by Elizabeth Perry

“Ok, better question, how are you?”

  It’s my turn to snort at his stupid fucking question. How am I? Completely fucked up inside, that’s how I am. My heads a mess, my heart is aching, and my body is a damn traitor who has no business making any decisions for the rest of me right now. I was doing ok with the Abby situation, at least I thought that I was.

  Then, she kissed me.

  The feeling of her body pressed up against mine, fuck. It was like being transported back in time, back to a place where everything was right in the world. Back to the place where she used to be mine. Her scent, her softness. All of it had threatened to break through my armor. Pulling away from her the way that I did was hard.

  And now, I’m exactly two minutes past holding a conversation with her, while she sat on the very same island that I used to fuck her on. In fact, even this office holds memories of her. I’ve had her on just about every square surface of this room.

  I’m so completely fucked.

  “I’m fine.” He immediately reads my bullshit, snorting once as he shakes his head.

  “Yeah, right. You are wound so tight right now, brother, you look like you’re about to explode.”

  “I’m not wound tight,” I snap, glaring at him hard enough to hopefully make him stop pestering me with questions. “I just didn’t sleep well last night.”

  “No?” He raises an eyebrow, staring me dead in the eye. “Why is that?”

  “I didn’t sleep with her,” I hiss at him, narrowing my eyes as I hop to my feet and slam my office door shut. “And don’t be insinuating shit like that. That’s how rumors get started.”

  “Rumors?” Luke laughs. “Not a damn man here is going to run his mouth about you. Some of them aren’t the brightest, but no one here is that fucking stupid. And I didn’t say anything about sleeping with her, Liam. That was all you.”

  I run my hands down my face and sink back into my seat. Have I mentioned that I’m a hot fucking mess today? I’m paranoid and on edge. My body is screaming at me to march right back into the kitchen, grab that girl in my arms and carry her upstairs to a place where we can be all alone.

  My dick wants inside of her, and my heart can hardly stand to shut her out anymore. I am wound tightly, and the only way to fix that is to fuck the living daylights out of Abby. Which obviously, is something that can’t happen. I’m in complete and utter turmoil here.

  “Liam.” Luke leans across the desk, his voice low and direct, as I continue to try to regain control. “Dude. What in the fuck happened between you two?”

  “Nothing.” I lean back against my leather desk chair, casting my eyes out of the window to where the snow is falling outside. “And everything. She kissed me yesterday, but I pushed her away. It’s messing with my head hard, because I didn’t want to push her away. I wanted to…” I shake my head, my voice trailing off.

  When Luke whistles, I flip him off.

  “Shit isn’t a joke, Luke. Having her here is fucking with my head, and bad. I don’t know how much more of it I can take. It’s like fighting a losing battle all day, every day. I’m about to lose my god damn mind.”

  “Why’s it got to be a losing battle?” My eyes widen at his ridiculous question. I mean, for fucks sake. He might as well ask me why the sky is blue. “You’re still in love with her. She still loves you too. Maybe she’s not back here to fuck your world up, brother. I told you, sometimes fate…”

  “Fate?” I can’t even hide my condescending tone from the single word. “This isn’t fate. If that shit had any hand in this, she’d be back in Chicago, living her best life with her rich, boring ass fiancé and planning a wedding. Fate didn’t bring her back to me, Luke, at least, not the kind of fate that’s ever worked in my favor. She was never supposed to be mine, and you and I both know that. This is just a cruel twist of fate, and she’s here just to test me. To see how strong I am. To see if losing her again will completely wreck me this time, or just damage me really good. Fate don’t work in my favor. It never really has.”

  “No?” He shoves his chair back, slamming his hands down on my desk and leaning towards me. “I think you’re wrong. I also think that you’re so damn blind to all of this, that you can’t even recognize the obvious. She took the ring off, Liam.” He glares at me. “But you’re so stuck inside of your head, that you didn’t even notice.”

  My heart stills in my chest.

  “She made that guy a promise, that she’d wear his ring until she either remembered him or realized that he didn’t fit in her new future. It’s pretty obvious that she doesn’t remember anything yet, but she sure as hell has realized that another man doesn’t fit in her future. You know why?”

  I can’t even find a single word to respond to him, which is fine, since he doesn’t wait for me to.

  “She still loves you.” He stares down at me, driving every word home. “She can’t remember anything, and yet, she knows that she loves you. Stop being so fucking blind.”

  I’m stunned. I didn’t notice the ring being gone from her finger, but then again, why would I? I’ve been avoiding even looking at her since yesterday, when she kissed me. I can’t fucking look at her. Like I said, I’m about to break. When I don’t say anything back to him, Luke just shakes his head, and moves towards the door.

  “You’re making a big mistake, Liam.” He pauses with one hand on the door. “If you need anything else from Derek, let me know. If you need me, I’ll be in the kitchen with Abby, helping her make a fucking cake, or I’ll be in the ring. Either way, you’ll know where to find me.”

  The anger that I felt earlier from Luke’s sudden outburst is gone, and in its place, is a full blown rage. I’ve read the entire police report on Abby’s accident. I’ve seen all of the photos of her in the hospital. I’ve read the extent of her injuries.

  The report is way too short for my liking, with the conclusion being, that it was just a tragic accident. Still to me, it doesn’t add up. And as I study the pictures even closer, an anxious feeling grows in the pit of my stomach.

  They’re vague, but dammit all, the bruising around her neck is obvious even to me, and I’m no damn detective. The markings are listed in the report as being from the seatbelt, but that seems like amateur police work at best.

  Those are strangulation marks to me, and I’m just some schumck off the streets.

  Within seconds, Luke’s’ back in my office, drenched in sweat and looking irritated that I just pulled him out of the ring, but even still, he stands stock still and listens to me, as I spread the pictures out in front of him.

  I watch as his jaw ticks, much like mine does when I’m both pissed off and trying to concentrate. I watch as his eyes narrow, and then, I immediately notice when he sees what I already did.

  “What in the actual fuck?” He snatches the picture off of my desk, and stares at it hard. “How did she get those marks on her fucking neck?”

  “Exactly.” My arms cross, and my stance widens, much like it does when I’m trying to keep myself under control, which is fitting, because that’s exactly what’s happening right now. “Someone fucking choked her. That’s the only explanation.”

  Luke settles himself into my desk chair, his annoyance with me now a thing of the past. “Ok.” He rifles through the photos, looking at her injuries, and then reading the police report. “I’m no doctor, but her injuries seem consistent with a car accident. All of them, except the marks on her neck.”

  Anger courses through me.

  “That means, that someone gave them to her. Before the accident.” It all makes sense, at least, in this moment it does. Abby was in an accident a hundred miles away from her house, in the middle of a terrible storm-one that she would have never headed out into if she didn’t have to. But something happened to make her need to flee. Something that involved some motherfucker with his hands around her neck.

  I fucking knew that her story didn’t add up.

  “Alright.” Luke’s face is grim. “What do we know about the owner of the ring
that she no longer wears?”

  “He’s some country club jackass.” My jaw ticks. “The same as her parents. Hell, they probably hooked her up with the tool. They can’t be counted out here, either.”

  “Her parents are shitty people, but I can’t see them actually hurting her.” Luke’s face matches the sheer fury that I have building inside of me. “But then again, you know them better than I do.”

  Damn right, I do. Her dad’s face is behind every fucking fight that I’ve won over the years, every one of my opponents not standing a chance, when I envision Michael Daron’s’ face on theirs. I’d love nothing more than to actually get the chance to beat him to a pulp in real life. The guys a complete fucking asshole.

  “I wouldn’t put it past them, but you’re probably right. The fiancé is more of a likely suspect.”

  “Ex fiancé,” Luke corrects me, his fingers furiously typing into his phone.

  “Get back in touch with Derek.”

  “I’m already on it.” Luke’s words are clipped as his fingers mash against his phone. Within seconds, it pings.

  “He’ll email all that he has on the guy by the end of the day.”

  16

  Abby

  “We’ve got to talk.” Liam’s voice is gruff, as he slams the front door shut behind him. I’ve been on edge since he barged into the gym kitchen, interrupting me just as I was pulling my cake out of the oven. I was irritated at first, since for the very first time, I actually made something that didn’t look and smell awful. But he didn’t even notice that, nor did he care. He just took the cake out of my hands, set it on the counter and basically pulled me out, into the parking lot, and loaded me in his truck. His anger is palpable, which has my stomach twisted all in knots. I’m not even sure what I did to make him so mad, but I have no doubt, that his anger is directed at me.

  “Alright.” I shrug off my jacket and take off my boots, trying to ignore the way that he paces around the living room, his hands clenching and unclenching at his sides. “Let’s talk.”

  When his eyes land on mine, my entire body immediately stills. I can’t seem to move, nor even manage to form a coherent thought. I’m simply frozen in place, as his eyes rake over my body. I watch the emotions flash in his eyes, and then, without any warning, a guttural sound leaves his mouth, and one of the fists clenched at his side flies up, smashing hard against the wall beside me. As drywall dust explodes from the wall, I instinctively scream, the sound echoing all around us. It’s only then, that he actually looks at me.

  “Oh, fuck. Abs…”

  Tears that I didn’t even know were building in my eyes now flood my cheeks. A sob escapes me, as fear takes over. I’ve never seen him look like this, and honestly, it’s a terrifying sight. His eyes are wild, his entire body is shaking, and as he stares at me, the rage living inside of him radiates against my skin.

  “Why are you so angry at me?” My voice is weak and foreign to me. I’m so fucking confused right now, and honestly, a bit scared. I never imagined that Liam could look like this, especially not at me.

  “Fuck.” It comes out as more of a plea than a curse. As the tears continue to fall from my eyes, Liam sinks down onto his knees in front of me, bowing his head and pressing it against my stomach. I’m stunned, and still, shaken up.

  I don’t have any idea what’s going on right now, but the change in him is drastic. He’s falling apart right in front of me, and I have no idea why. My head is spinning.

  “I’m sorry, Abby.” His head remains down. “I’m so fucking sorry, baby. This is my fault. It’s all my fault. I pushed you away…I’m the reason that someone hurt you. I’m…”

  I’m lost. I don’t know what to say, I’m afraid to even move. But then, my eyes fix on him, and I see just how badly his entire body is shaking. The fear that I felt leaves me just as fast as it came, and before I can stop myself, I lower myself to my knees, in front of him, and lift his face up to mine.

  “What are you sorry for? What’s going on, Liam? Please talk to me.”

  “Someone hurt you, Abby.” The sadness in his eyes guts me. “I promised you that I’d always keep you safe, and I didn’t. If I wouldn’t have…”

  What comes over me in this moment, I’ll never know. Maybe I’m just begging for punishment, or maybe, it’s because it feels so wrong not to do it. Even though he pushed me away yesterday, and even though he told me that he can’t do this with me, my body aches to feel him. He’s falling apart in front of me, and the desperate need to make it better takes over.

  I kiss him, I press my lips to his, and twist my fingers in his hair. I pull him towards me, towards my skin, and let the feeling of him drown out all of the madness that always seems to circle me.

  He pauses against me, and then, he pulls back. I prepare myself for the words that he’s undoubtedly going to say to me here. I steady myself for more of his anger, but to my surprise, it doesn’t come. In fact, he doesn’t push me away, at all. He growls loudly, and then grabs a hold of me, lifting us both and slamming me against the wall. His hands move wildly over my body, gripping and groping me. As his mouth smashes against mine, and the taste of him invades all of my senses, I feel his hands move against the front of my shirt. The sound of it ripping off of me causes my entire body to ignite.

  Holy Shit.

  Everything happens so fast, that my brain can hardly catch up to the way my body screams. Somehow, I manage to get Liam’s shirt over his head, tossing it into the pile on the floor, along with the rest of the pieces of my now tattered clothing. I’m completely naked underneath his half naked body, writhing against him and moaning his name, as he trails every inch of me, wreaking havoc over my body. I’m so pent up that I can’t focus on anything, other than the desperate need to feel his touch everywhere.

  As if reading my mind, he drops to his knees in front of me. The second that his mouth lands on the spot that I ache for him most, I nearly pass out. He simply takes his time, devouring me, as if he has been starving for the taste of me for the last six years.

  Maybe he has been. Good God, I’m certain that I’ve been aching for this. I can’t imagine anything else ever feeling this fucking good. My body becomes limp as his mouth continues to work magic against my sensitive folds. I thrust my hips against him shamelessly, until my legs become so weak, that my knees buckle against him, and the overwhelming feeling inside of me explodes.

  When my brain is finally able to comprehend anything besides the sensations running rampant inside of me, I open my eyes to find him staring hard at me as he steadies his body against mine, holding me upright. I’m lifted almost immediately, my legs wrapping around his waist, and with no warning at all, he slides inside of me, filling me so whole, that I know the second that this is over, I will forever be aching to feel this way again.

  His soft grunts and moans match mine, our slick, sweaty bodies moving loudly against each other, our voices simultaneously uttering the other’s name.

  There aren’t enough words in the world to describe this moment, but that’s ok. I don’t need words. I just need to store this memory in my mind, so that I can always revisit it, if I ever have only my memory to remind me of just how fucking good Liam Worth was to me.

  “Abby,” he croaks, his face contouring into something that resembles pain. “Baby, I can’t hold back much longer.”

  His wish is my command. Before he can even finish his plea, I completely lose myself, crying out for him as my world comes crashing down. I have almost immediate peace, and as he growls loudly, finding his own release, I wonder how in the hell I could have ever walked away from this.

  What we just had, wasn’t just damn good sex.

  Having him inside of my body, is the type of feeling that I could equate with world peace. It’s the unicorn in the room. The mermaid in the ocean. It’s a myth, a fable. Except with him, it’s reality. It’s just not mine to keep.

  “Fuck.” Liam pulls away from me, and then runs his hand down his face. “What in the hell did
I just do?” The look on his face brings me immediately back to earth. He doesn’t look happy that we just had sex. In fact, he looks torn as hell. “Go put some clothes on, Abs. We still got to talk, and I can’t talk to you like this.”

  I almost argue with him, but I don’t. I take the scraps of the clothing that I was wearing earlier and toss them into my room. I pull some lounge pants and a t-shirt on, but just as I’m about to go and find Liam so that he can talk to me, the front door swings open, and as my eyes focus on the woman walking through the front door, my stomach drops to my feet.

  I’ve never seen anyone more gorgeous than the woman who just let herself into Liam’s house as if she owns the place. Her skin is dark, and her eyes are the most beautiful shade of brown that I’ve ever seen. That’s not what catches my attention the most, though. The part that makes my blood run cold, is the very prominent baby bump sitting in the center of her stomach.

  “Abby?” The look of shock on her face immediately turns to anger. “What in the fuck are you doing here?”

  17

  Liam

  “Letty. Seriously. If you could just stop yelling for five seconds, I would explain all of this to you.”

  “Explain?” She snorts, waving her hand right in my face. “How in the fuck do you plan to explain yourself out of this one, Liam? Abby is here, in your house that reeks of sex, by the way. How can you explain that in a way that doesn’t scream worthless fucking cheater?”

  “It’s not like that,” I growl, anger boiling inside of me at her inability to shut her damn mouth and for once, have a rational conversation.

  And yet, it is.

  There are a million ways that I could try to lie my way out of this, but honestly, it’s no use. I can’t lie to Letty. She’d see right through me. We know each other too damn well.

  “Why is she here? What in the fuck is this, Liam? Some kind of sick and twisted game that you’re playing? A last ditch effort, to what? Explore your pasts, before…” As her voice trails off, her hand rests against her rounded belly. As I follow her hand down, I’m immediately filled with regret.