Page 34 of Resurgent
I look over at Liam, expecting to see that look of approval I’m slowly becoming addicted to, but his expression is inscrutable. “It was like a dream,” he finally says, tearing his eyes away from mine to look at Manny. “In fact, she haunted my dreams after the accident. When I woke up after months of being in a coma, I had a moment of clarity. Life is short and you shouldn’t waste a minute of it. I knew the first thing I had to do was find Charlotte. Marrying her was a bit spur of the moment,” he admits with a wink in my direction, and I hold back a giggle.
Salome’s gaze swivels to me. “And all that time he was in a coma, you didn’t know where he was? You thought he was dead?”
I nod. “I went to his memorial service. It was awful.”
Liam flashes me a look of mock hurt. “It was awful? I left specific instructions. It should have been the party of the year.”
“It was awful to think of you gone forever,” I say quietly.
Manny clears his throat. “I imagine you were thrilled to see him.”
“You’d think!” Liam says pointedly to me, his lips twitching again with barely concealed amusement. I realize he’s actually enjoying this. I have to admit, I am too. It’s like Liam and I are having our own private conversation right under Manny’s nose.
“There were extenuating circumstances,” I reply primly. Turning to Salome and Manny, I explain. “He made an overly dramatic entrance.” Liam chokes on his beer and I giggle.
Manny is clearly growing impatient with our innuendo-laden banter. Fixing his gaze on me, he says, “How long have you been married?”
Liam slips my hand in his. “Just a few days,” he answers for me. “As I told you earlier, I came here as soon as I could. We married in an informal ceremony—”
“Very informal!” I add with a snort.
“Shame on you,” Salome says to Liam. “The love of your life deserves a ceremony to remember.”
Liam shrugs. “I needed to get here as soon as possible to meet with the boss. I imagine he wasn’t very happy when I died without delivering what I owed him.”
“That is an understatement,compadre. But you are here now. I’m sure you will get it sorted out in no time. It’s too bad he is gone until next week.”
I squeeze Liam’s hand. Finally, some valuable information.
Liam plays it cool. “Yes, it is. But it will give me some time for a honeymoon with my bride. He’s back Wednesday?”
Nice bluff.
“Thursday,” Manny corrects. “At the compound in Quintana Roo. I’ll tell him you’re coming.”
“Perfect.”
“I assume you will deliver what you owe him at that time?”
“Absolutely.”
“Excellent.” Manny claps Liam on the back. “Come. Let’s have another shot.”
After another round of shots and a story about Manny and Salome’s young son, Liam threads his fingers with mine. “It has been good to see you, Manny, but if you’ll excuse us, I owe Charlie a honeymoon.”
“And a wedding,” Salome says. “You must give her a proper wedding. These things are important to women. Right?” She looks to me for confirmation.
“Actually—” I say uncomfortably.
“Tell him, Manny!” She grips her husband’s arm and gestures exaggeratedly at Liam.
“Si,señora,” Manny says drily. Turning to Liam, he says, “Give the woman a proper wedding.” He adds under his breath, “But her wedding is your funeral,compadre. This time next year, she’ll have given away your favorite pants, replaced your favorite chair with a designer one that’s uncomfortable, and will be carrying yourcajonesaround in her purse. I see she’s already made you lose that necklace you always wore. Not that that’s necessarily a bad thing.” He laughs at his own joke.
“What necklace?”
Manny punches him in the arm. “Ha! See what I mean? The silver one with that unusual carving on it. I’ve never seen you without it. You used to say it was your good luck charm. And now you’re all ‘what necklace.’” He laughs loudly. “I guess she’s your good luck charm now.”
Liam wraps his arm around me, pulling me to him. “That she is.” He holds his hand out to shake Manny’s, then kisses Salome’s. “See you next Thursday.”
“That went pretty well,” I say as soon as we get back to our villa. Liam shuts and locks the door, then motions to me. With my heart thumping, I slowly walk over to where he’s standing. He cups my chin in his hand. “You were fucking amazing. Your toast saved my ass! And that description of how we got together…” He shakes his head. “That was something else.” Suddenly embarrassed, I look away. “It wasn’t a big deal.”
“It was. I’ve never had anyone have my back like that.” He presses his lips to mine softly before letting me loose. “Thank you.” Turning around, his runs his fingers through his hair. “I’ve got a week and half to find the guns. Damn my memory!” He paces the room. “I wish I could remember the necklace he was talking about. I don’t remember ever wearing a necklace. Not my style. Maybe that was some sort of clue. Especially if it had some sort of carving. But who knows where it is now? Probably in the rubble somewhere in Pakistan.” He growls with frustration.
“Actually,” I say slowly. “I was wearing it when I got kidnapped.”
