Page 7 of Love in Times of Contempt

"She's in shock," Liam guessed.

"She's never speechless, though," Ana said. "This is very weird. Did you get what we said, Ely? Unless you committed a crime I don't know about and your criminal record ruins your secret— in which case you'd have so much to explain, Elena Castillo— we're offering you a job."

Silence still filled the line.

"Unless you don't want it?" Liam asked.

"Just give me a sec— I just—" Ely tried.

"Do you need to think about it?" Liam offered, but she interrupted him.

"No! I don't need to think about it. I was just going through my mental list of things I need to do— quit my job, pack, sell, move…"

"So is that a yes?" Ana wanted to confirm.

"It's such a loud, unconditional, and resolute yes you'll hear it all the way over there, my friends."

"We'll get our lawyer to send you everything soon." Liam squeezed Ana close. "For now, this is goodnight from me. I have therapy early tomorrow."

"And I'm assuming Ana is going to bed with you, after this time apart," Ely added. "I'll go to bed soon myself. I’ll have plenty of daydreams about my life in California to keep me up at night, if I'm not careful."

Chapter Three

"IT'S SO NICE TO see you, Doc." Liam sat on the worn leather sofa and got comfortable, a to-go cup of coffee from home in his hand.

Dr. Linda smiled. "You too, it's been a while."

"Yeah, how long? A month and a half?"

"Or so, yes." Dr. Linda adjusted her glasses with a gesture so familiar to Liam that he smiled. "Last time we met, you were still waiting to hear about the documentation for the production company."

He grinned. "Yes, we finally got the green light, and we even hired our first employee."

She clapped her hands together. "Wonderful!"

"We hired Ely, Ana's best friend."

"Oh, yes. You've mentioned her before."

"Yeah. I think she could do great things for the company." Liam sipped from his drink.

Dr. Linda nodded. "You've put a lot of hope in it; it makes sense to me that you want to make sure you choose the right people."

Velvety coffee warmed its way down his throat. "Exactly, and I think Ely is a good bet."

"So now you're in business with Ana and her best friend. Are you still comfortable with the whole thing?"

Liam would have thought that Dr. Linda had doubts, if he didn't know her well after two years of working together. Linda's number one goal was to help him gauge whether his emotions and thoughts aligned as he made decisions throughout his life. He took her question at face value.

"Yep. Everything is still going well." He traced the texture of the cup's plastic sleeve with a finger as he talked. "The company stuff is gaining momentum. I'm not that worried about working with Ana and her best friend; I wouldn't have offered to invest in Ana's production company in the first place if I had worried it's a bad idea. I think it's neutral, really, and Ana— well, she tells me it's pretty common in her culture to work with family and friends."

"As long as boundaries are clear, I also think it can be neutral. Especially if you and Ana are still doing well."

"And we are." He smiled. "I swear, Linda, Ana's just what I'd been looking for."

Amusement appeared in the slant of her mouth. "I believe you! I promise. Every time we talk about her, you light up like the skies parted and the only ray of sunlight for miles fell on you alone."

He chuckled. "That's how it feels."