Because of His Past Read Online Free PDF

birds—I wouldn’t want to be
them or have to live like them.”   He
cocked his head thoughtfully.   “I’m
sure that’s why Liam is getting in fistfights and mixing with the seedy
underbelly of the community.   He’s
trying to throw off the weight of his legacy—he’s trying to pretend it’s
not real.   But sadly, it is.   And he’ll discover just how real it is
soon enough.”
    Scott’s prediction hit her like a fist to
the stomach.   She felt the knot of
tension in her belly, thinking of Liam’s beautiful face, his cool blue eyes,
and the way he’d tasted.   His lips, like fire, burning into hers.
    But despite the fact that she wanted to
argue against everything her brother believed about the Houston family, Grace
had to admit that she was falling deeper and deeper into agreement with him.
    The Houston’s were different from other
people.
    The world didn’t want to see someone like
Grace paired with Liam.
    And perhaps, Liam was going to come to
realize it as well.   The universe,
as Scott put it, was going to show Liam in no uncertain terms, that the game
was rigged, and there was no way around it.

 
    ***

 
    The conversation with Scott hadn’t
exactly put her in a good mood, but in some way, it had liberated her.
    I
need to move on , Grace
thought, later that night as she lay in bed and tried to fall asleep.
    She was still thinking about Liam, still
wondering about him.   Thoughts were
plaguing her incessantly—memories of their short time together haunted
her like ghosts.
    It was as if he was dead, a spirit that
could no longer be seen in this world.   And that hurt badly.   But if
he was dead and gone, then in another way, she was free to move on.
    Her eyes drifted closed, and she wished
that at least in her dreams, she could be together with him again--if only for
a short while.
    But when her eyes snapped open again, it
was morning, even though it felt as though just seconds had passed since she’d
closed them.
    Grace yawned, turned on her side and
stared at the alarm clock.
    It was 8:45 in the morning, a bit later
than she normally woke up.   But then
again, lately she’d been sleeping more in general.
    That’s
because you’re depressed.
    She sat up and felt for her phone, which
had gotten wedged between the wall and the clock, somehow.   As she picked it up, she saw that she’d
already missed a call from an unknown number.
    LIAM.
    Her heart was racing.  
    Please
let it be Liam.   I just want to hear his voice again.
    It wasn’t his normal cell number, but
Grace theorized that there were a million different numbers a rich guy like
Liam could use to call her.
    At least, she hoped it was him, even
though she knew that nothing good could possibly come from them speaking,
except more pain and sadness.
    Suddenly, the unknown caller was trying
again, and her phone vibrated incessantly in her hand.   The moment she answered and heard the
other voice, she knew it wasn’t Liam Houston.   But the voice was familiar.
    “Is Grace there?” he asked, his voice
deep and melodious.
    “This is she,” she said, feeling puzzled,
but also vaguely excited.
    “Hi Grace, this is Red Jameson.   How are you?”
    Grace sat back, stunned.   “Oh, I’m fine.”   She opened her mouth and closed it again,
at a loss for words.
    “I wanted to check in for a couple of
reasons,” he said, and she could almost hear his warm smile through nothing but
the sound of his voice.   “First of
all, I wanted to say that I think you were very courageous and responsible in
getting help for Liam the way that you did the other day.”
    “Thank you for saying that,” Grace
replied.   “And of course, for
bringing the doctor along and getting him help.   You didn’t have to do any of that.”
    “I hear Liam’s recovering well,” Red
said.
    Grace felt a pain in her belly as she
thought about the fact that this was news to her—she had no idea what was
going on with Liam anymore.
    “I’m glad to