Chapter 24

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You hit me head-on, got me weak in my knees

Yeah, something inside me's changed

I was so much younger yesterday

-Starving by Hailee Steinfeld & Zedd

*****

DELILAH

I shifted on the bed with a groan. My body ached in a good way after the long night of love-making. Liam pulled me closer to him, his warm body cradling mine in a protective embrace. His lips kissed the shell of my ear.

"Good morning," he said, his voice rough with sleep.

I hummed, my eyes finally flutering open to see the sun shining through the large window. Liam's hand rested beneath on my navel, stroking the skin with gentle caresses.

"The hardest part when you left was not waking up with you by my side," he whispered, nuzzling my neck. "I hated it. And I hated not going to sleep with you in my arms."

"I'm here now," I replied.

"Hmm, that you are. And I'll be damned if I let you go."

"Have you checked on Adrian?" I asked him.

"He's still sleeping. Poor kid, he was exhausted."

"So am I," I said, leaning my head back to his chest. He gave a low chuckle as he placed open mouthed kisses at the nape of my neck.

"What are we eating for breakfast?" I asked him. I didn't know how I was even able to speak. He was waking up every fiber of my body with his touch.

"I know I'm eating you," he replied. I didn't have to look at him to know that he was full blown smiling. 

I giggled when he nipped at my earlobe. "I'm serious," I said, nudging him with my elbow. "What are we doing to day?"

"I'm doing y-"

"Liam," I scolded him.

"You're no fun," he teased. Still, he held me close to him and sighed. The comfort he was providing was like no other. "Well, I'm pretty sure that there's going to be a bunch of people over. Your parents, Chris... Jo, probably even Carissa. Oh, and detective Jameson may be here too."

"The detective?"

"Yeah. I invited him over for a couple beers."

"That's nice. He was very helpful."

"A little too much, I think."  I ignored his remark but that didn't stop him from tightening his grip around me.

"Can't... breathe."

"Oh. Sorry," he muttered. "Do you mind if Carissa is here?"

There was no way I could mind. She'd offered me more support than my own mother did. Besides, she'd played a vital part of Adrian's life and would more than likely continue to be there - I couldn't deny her the right that she'd earned of being around. "We need to talk to her though."

"I will," he murmured. "I'm the one that hurt her. I need to apologize properly."

"I do too, though."

Liam nodded, once again his lips touching my skin while his hands began to tease me. He found the perfect spot without much struggle, clearly still remembering every part of my body to perfection. A soft gasp left my lips and I closed my eyes, letting myself feel the many sensations that he ignited in me. 

"Morning quickie?" Already positioning himself behind me. A moan was my response.

I couldn't argue with him, not when he made me feel so cherished when he touched and kissed me that way. He made love to me slow, like I needed after the night we'd had. There was so much more to us than the physical aspect that I didn't know how I could have ever doubted whether or not we could make it.

With both our efforts in the relationship, I knew we would be able to move forward. Sometimes as humans we make the mistake of running from fate, or destiny or God's plan... whatever you believe in. But some things just aren't up to us. You can run, hide, avoid it... reject it, but when something is meant to be, there's no stopping it.

Whether it happens within a week or months or years, if it's going to happen it will. 

*****

We were able to relax and spend the morning with Adrian making sure that he was truly okay. I admired him. He appeared to be oblivious to the seriousness of the situation and was calm and playful even though Liam and I still were a bit shaken up. We contacted his school and they were flexible enough to let him stay home for the rest of the week. 

As quiet as the morning was though, come the afternoon the house was flooded by people. The first to arrive was Jo who brought so many toys that I knew they wouldn't fit all in Liam's house. We helped Adrian open the countless boxes when I thought of a way that we could store all his toys.

"It's a good thing that he has two rooms, isn't it?" I asked.

Liam furrowed his eyebrows. "You're going back to your apartment?"

"I think this is where I step out of the room and go somewhere I'm not interrupting," Jo mumbled awkwardly. 

"No, it's fine," Liam said pressing his lips together. "I just thought you would be staying here," he told me.

"Yeah... I'm gonna leave you two alone," Jo said walking away. 

"No," I said grabbing hold of her arm. "We'll talk about this later, right?"

Liam sighed and nodded. We were clearly going to have a serious conversation later that day, but for now I didn't want to ruin the small progress that we'd made. 

By early evening my parents and Chris were also at Liam's house. They were relieved that Adrian was okay. My dad had been concerned about me and was focused on my eating despite my reassurances that I was feeling better. 

My mom... Well, my mom was my mom. I didn't expect her to change her attitude towards me anymore or show any compassion, not after the things she said when I needed her the most. I was the bigger person and greeted her even when she ignored me though I didn't try to make friendly conversation with her.

It didn't matter if she forgave me or not, at least I was trying. I couldn't do much more than that. Hopefully one day she would see that I was serious in my efforts of being a better mother, daughter and a person overall.

Adrian was craving mangoes, and frankly, I was too. As I began peeling them up and chopping them, my mind was overwhelmed with the thoughts of what turmoil the last few days had been. That would be something that I would never truly get over. How was I ever going to feel okay with him going out with his friends? Or with him spending the night with someone other than Liam or I? The thought of something happening to Adrian... it was too much, too painful. 

When my vision blurred, I set the knife on the counter and held on to it as if it grounded me. I didn't ever think I could love someone so much or feel such deep fear.

My thoughts were interrupted when a strong arm wrapped around my waist. I quickly blinked the tears away. 

"Come sit with us," Liam murmured, kissing my head.

"I'm almost done," I replied trying to hide what I felt. 

"You okay?" He asked me, hugging me just a little bit tighter. I couldn't lie to him.

"I will be." He hummed behind me, placing his head on my shoulder. "Something you want to say, Liam?"

"Many things, actually." 

I continued chopping the fruit when he didn't say anything. I was unsure as far as what to say. Uneasiness was present despite my attempts to forget what happened.

"I don't really want you to leave," Liam said in a quiet voice.

I stopped with the knife mid-air. As much as I wanted to stay with Liam and Adrian, I felt like that would be a bit like rushing into things. I didn't want the remote chance of things between us not to work. He turned me around, brushing my hair out of my face. 

"I just got you back, Delilah... I don't want to let you go." 

I couldn't help but smile at his confession. He never was one to hide what he felt and I was glad that hadn't changed. "I don't either."

Without a further word, he leaned down and brushed his lips against mine. "You belong here, with us. Always have, Delilah." My eyes fluttered closed when he kissed me. We'd spent all night kissing and touching each other and still, it was surreal. I couldn't believe that he was there holding me. 

He deepened the kiss, holding me in place with his arms wrapped around me. We forgot about the people waiting for us in the living room; it was just us. 

"Get a room, children," my dad interrupted in an annoyed voice. I blushed and Liam let out a throaty chuckle. "Jesus Christ, I thought those days of finding you two sucking face were over after you had Adrian," he muttered shaking his head. "Guess I was wrong."

"Sorry," I mumbled. 

My dad nodded, taking a sip of his beer before leaning back against the counter. "Lilah, could you give Liam and I minute. I need to have a word with him."

That sounded too much like a particular talk he had with him when Liam first asked me to be his girlfriend. Liam didn't look fazed though and stepped to the backyard with my dad.

Seeing everyone important to us gathered in the living room was a beautiful sight. It felt like home. Though Chris and Jo didn't seem to get along, everything else seemed to be falling into place. 

They were entertaining, though.

There was knocking at the door, stopping me from watching their interesting banter. Detective Brian Jameson stood there with a large remote control car and a wide grin.

"Oh, that wasn't necessary, Brian," I said as soon as I saw him.

He shrugged, the smile not leaving his face. "Good kid with good parents who went through hell. I don't mind."

I stepped aside letting him walk into the house. Adrian gasped when he saw the car and ran to Brian but stopped himself with apprehension, unsure whether to take it or not.

"Go ahead, buddy," I said with a smile. "Say thank you, though."

"Thank you!" He exclaimed with bright eyes. He went off to show the car to Chris and Jo while Brian and I went to the kitchen. I gave him the beer that Liam had promised and we sat at the  table.

"How are you doing?" He asked me after several minutes of silence.

"I'm good. Happy," I replied.

Brian narrowed his eyes on me. "Bullshit."

My eyes widened at the single word. He sat back satisfied with my response and drank his beer. "You can't be 'good' and 'happy' after the ordeal you went through. Your son had disappeared and then..." his grip around the beer bottle tightened, "you saw that kid, Delilah. You may feel better now but there's always lingering trauma after situations like this. It's better to deal with it now instead of waiting for years to pass and suddenly exploding with anxiety. Trust me, I've seen it time and time again. So, how are you really doing?"

I swallowed and looked away for a moment. He was right. I was terrified that something would happen again yet kept pushing the feeling away in an attempt to not dampen the happiness of Adrian being back. "I'm scared," I finally replied.

Brian pressed his lips together and brought his chair closer to me. "I know, and truthfully, I don't think it'll ever go away. You have to remember that there is good people in the world too though. And that Adrian has both his parents to care for him."

I sniffled quietly. It was difficult to believe that I could prevent it from happening again when I was to blame the first time. "Did you find the boy's parents?"

"Yes, today," he nodded sadly. "They were found. He'd been missing for days."

"Oh, poor baby," I murmured.

"It's the hardest part, finding the families. No one ever wants to deliver that type of news. I always dread making that phone call."

"Can't imagine it being easy."

His eyes were sad for a moment but he hid it well. "Bet you guys are going to spoil that boy rotten for a while, huh?"

"Well, even you're spoiling him."

"Ditto," he said.

"Thanks for everything," I said. "I'm glad you were there for us."

He gave me a wary look as if he wanted to say something but wasn't quite sure how to. Brian cleared his throat, finishing the last bit of beer. "As many shitty people that I meet in this job I also get to meet some pretty amazing ones."

Green unwavering eyes stared back with intensity.

Was he-?

"I see you made it," Liam said with a hard look towards us. Brian didn't hesitate to stand up to greet Liam and my dad. I excused myself and decided to spend the rest of the evening on the floor with Adrian.

The way the detective had looked at me... It was friendly, real friendly. Perhaps I'd imagined it, but it felt as if there was something else there.

When everyone left, I was the first one to go to bed after putting Adrian down. I felt drained. Carissa hadn't showed up for some reason and to be honest, I couldn't complain. It had been overwhelming having everyone there.

I curled up in bed, covering myself with the sheets up to my neck. Sleep was taking over when I heard Liam walking into the room after the last person, Chris, left.

"Tired?" He asked.

I forced my eyes to open and gave him a small smile. "Yeah."

Liam nodded and I watched him undress. He was completely naked when he got under the sheets and pulled me to his chest. It was strange that he was being so quiet; that much I knew.

"You're mine," he breathed into my neck.

"Oh, really?" I asked in a playful manner.

Liam wasn't having it. He turned me around on my back and positioned himself on top of me, forcing my legs apart. I gasped at the possessiveness in his actions.

"Liam, what-"

"You're mine. It's that simple. I'm not sharing you with anyone."

"I'm not your possession. Besides, you and Carissa-"

"Carissa and I are over, Delilah. That detective," Liam clenched his jaw, a spark of jealousy in his eyes. "You're mine, do you understand?"

I nodded and as soon as I did, his lips were pressed on mine with anger, lust and so much more.

I would have never been able to deny to him that I was only his.

*****

A/N: Do you think that they should move in together or should Delilah go back to her apartment?

Next chapter, Carissa makes an appearance. We'll see how that goes. 

Thank you for reading!

-Luz<33

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