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  Chapter Seven

  Liam stood by the keg and sipped his beer. The music was in full swing now that the haunted house was over. People were moving, dancing, laughing, and making out in the shadowed corners. Mike and Jack stood by his side, drinking, and commenting over the girls.

  His gaze was focused on Sera as she sat with Danielle and Kathleen on an old couch. She was laughing happily as her eyes followed the people dancing. A man in a devil costume walked up to her and held out his hand. She shook her head, said something, and he shrugged and walked off.

  "Looks like Lucifer wants your girl," Mike commented, his hairy werewolf hand was covered in spilled beer.

  "Maybe Lucifer could get her to give it up," Jack said laughingly.

  "What?" Liam inquired coldly.

  Jack shifted uncomfortably as Liam turned to face him. "Well, did you get any yet?"

  "Is that any of your business?"

  Jack looked to Mike for help, but he was very engrossed on a dangling bat. "No."

  "That's right."

  "But if you do, could you let us know how it is?" Jack said with a laugh as he tried to break the chill in the air.

  Liam forced a smile to his face as he turned his back on him. Anger was rapidly coursing through him, but getting into a fight with one of his best friends wouldn't do him any good. "There are some good-looking women here tonight. But then again, you can't see most of their faces!" Doug joked as he approached the keg.

  They all laughed, and Liam felt some of the tension ease out of him. He glanced around the room, but his eyes quickly returned to Sera. She laughed as Kathleen gestured crazily. He couldn't help but smile as Sera's laughter rang through the room, and her violet-blue eyes sparkled brightly. She was unbelievably beautiful tonight. His heart and body ached from just looking at her.

  A flash of gold cut across his line of vision as Michelle stepped up to the keg. "Hello, boys," she purred as she bent over to give them a clear view of her full breasts.

  Liam looked away in disgust as everyone else bent lower with her. "You are looking exceptionally fine tonight," Mike said.

  "I thought I looked exceptionally fine every day, Mikey."

  "You do," Jack said eagerly.

  "Thank you, Jack; you're a doll."

  She stood back up, brushing her chest provocatively against Liam's arm as she studied him through lowered lashes. "Good party," she whispered in his ear. "I could make it even better."

  She turned away from him, casually tossing her hair over her shoulder. "Well," Jack drawled. "You could definitely get some from her... again."

  Liam glared at him as Jack moved swiftly past him and out to the dance floor. He didn't need to be reminded of his past mistakes. He ground his jaw as his hand clenched his cup.

  "There is something wrong with that girl. Don't listen to Jack; he's an ass. I'm only going to say this because I'm drunk, and I'll deny it tomorrow, but if I had a girl like Sera, sex or not, I wouldn't give her up," Mike said.

  "Weren't you the one telling me to break up with her two weeks ago?"

  Mike downed the rest of his cup. "You know why I think that. It can't last forever, Liam, but for now, you might as well stay with her."

  "I intend to," he replied icily.

  "Good," Mike said, clapping him on the shoulder. "Now, I'm going to get laid. At least one of us should!"

  Mike laughed as he hurried out to the dance floor. Liam shook his head in annoyed disbelief as he watched him mingle with a group of girls. He spotted Michelle again as she flirted with a bunch of guys. He resolutely turned away and walked over to Sera.

  "Would you care to dance?" he asked, extending his hand to her.

  She looked up at him and smiled. "Certainly."

  He took hold of her hand and led her out onto the dance floor. Tugging at his hand, she stopped him at the edge of the floor. He turned to her, smiling as he wrapped her in his arms. She tilted her head back; her eyes appeared mysterious from the red flames curling to her temples. The creamy skin of her rounded shoulders was too tempting to resist. He ran his hands across them, pleased when he saw her eyes spark and her mouth part. He grinned as he pulled her closer against him.

  Sera bit into her bottom lip, her hands clenched on his back as a familiar tightening started in her loins. Just a few weeks ago, the feel of his obvious arousal would have frightened her; now, it excited her. She stepped closer to rub against him. His abrupt inhalation, and the darkening of his eyes, caused her to smile with satisfaction.

  Liam savored in the silky feel of her skin and luscious hair. He lifted his head; his gaze darted across the room to find Michelle watching them. Her eyes locked on his as she continued to talk to the group of guys around her. She stared hatefully at him and then glared at Sera. He kissed Sera's neck, his eyes never leaving Michelle's. He had begun to hate her for the way she treated Sera. But, he hated himself more. It was his fault Michelle despised Sera as much as she did.

  He turned around and pulled Sera closer to him. He couldn't lose her, couldn't even bear the thought of losing her. He inhaled her precious, sweet smell. A scent he knew he would never forget.

  Suddenly, a flash of gold was beside them. Liam stiffened as Sera pulled away. "I need to talk to you," Michelle said to Sera.

  "I don't want to talk to you," Sera replied.

  "Go away, Michelle," Liam informed her coldly.

  "No, I think your girlfriend needs to know the truth." She spoke softly to not draw any attention to herself. She tossed back her thick red hair and smiled coldly at Sera. "Look, you need to know why I was so upset about the two of you."

  "Michelle—" A tendril of unease squirmed through him.

  "I have no idea what you're talking about." Sera frowned in confusion; her face reflected her innocence.

  "Let's go," Liam said, grabbing her arm. He had to get her out of there before Michelle could say anything else.

  "Wait!" Michelle cried. "I think you owe it to me to listen. For old time's sake Sera, please."

  "I don't owe you anything," Sera replied coldly.

  Michelle pitifully hung her head. "You're right; you don't owe me anything. I'm sorry to tell you this—"

  "That's enough," Liam interrupted brusquely.

  "But Liam and I slept together at the beginning of the school year. That's why I've been so upset. He just stopped speaking to me. He started completely ignoring me, for you."

  Sera's eyes went back and forth between them. Her breath was frozen in her lungs as her heart began to hammer. Liam glared hatefully at Michelle.

  "Is that true?" Sera demanded.

  Liam knew he could lie, that she would believe him, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. She had bared her soul to him in complete trust; he couldn't betray her trust any more than he already had. "Yes," he grated through his teeth.

  Sorrow burst through her eyes as her jaw clenched. She ripped her arm away from him and cast Michelle a scathing look before she turned and walked away. "I'm sorry!" Michelle called after her, a huge grin on her face.

  "You bitch!" Liam hissed. "You goddamn bitch!"

  Michelle turned to him, a sly smile on her face. "It's about time she knew. Were you ever planning on telling her? Because someone had to. I was just being a friend."

  Liam stepped closer to her, forcing her to tilt her head back to look at him. "I will get you for this. Do you understand me?"

  Alarm flickered through her eyes, but she covered it with a haughty expression. "No, Liam, I think I got you."

  As much as he wanted to make her pay for what she had just done, he wanted to get to Sera more. He turned and hurried after Sera but was effectively cut off by Danielle and Kathleen. "What happened?" Kathleen demanded, her cute face scrunched and her hands planted firmly on her hips.

  "Where did she go?" he demanded.

  Kathleen tilted her chin defiantly. "I don't know. What did Michelle say to her?"

  "Where did she go, Danielle?"

  Danielle lifted her head an
d angrily met his eyes. "You should have told her," she whispered, cutting deeper into his heart.

  "Told her what? What did you do?" Kathleen insisted. Then, her mouth dropped open, and her eyes flew back to Michelle. "You bastard! How could you? And with her? You cheated on her!"

  It took all he had not to shake the girl. He didn't need this now. "I did not cheat on her," he growled. "Now, where is she?"

  Kathleen glowered at him, her arms folded over her chest, and her mouth compressed in a severe line. "What's going on?" Mike asked as he appeared beside Kathleen.

  "Your friend's a lying bastard!" Kathleen snapped.

  Mike's mouth dropped as he looked at Liam. Liam was fighting every impulse he had to grab hold of Kathleen and shake the answer out of her. Instead, he fisted his hands and took a deep breath to control the growing fury inside of him.

  "Where is she?" Liam ground out.

  "Who?" Mike asked.

  "Sera."

  "She just went out the door."

  "Thank you."

  Kathleen moved to block him. "Leave her alone!"

  Liam glared at her, but she refused to back down. "Kathleen, get out of my way."

  "No, you've upset her enough, now leave her be."

  "What is going on?" Mike demanded.

  "He," Kathleen said, thrusting an outraged finger at Liam, "slept with Michelle."

  Mike winced as he cast Liam an apologetic glance. "How'd she find out?" he asked.

  "You knew?" Kathleen cried, whirling on him.

  Liam moved swiftly past her while she was distracted. He hurried through the mess of labyrinths built for the haunted house, becoming increasingly agitated with every step he took. He would like nothing more than to rip Michelle's throat out. But he was angrier at himself than he was with her. He should have told Sera. He never should have let her find out like this, but his concern over losing her kept him from telling her.

  He made his way to the first floor and stopped. Sera hadn't gone outside. The eerie music that played when the door opened hadn't gone off. He froze to listen, but he heard no footsteps or sounds of movement. He headed back up the stairs, knowing if she had made her way down, she would have left. He went a different way through the maze, and back up to the second floor. He rounded a corner, stepping into one of the scenes set up between two bedrooms.

  All that was left was a large table and two dining room chairs. Sera was sitting in one of the chairs, her head resting in her hands. "Sera—"

  "Go away, please."

  "Sera—"

  She dropped her hands to look at him, her eyes were wet with tears, but her jaw was set. "Go away, Liam, now."

  "I have to talk to you."

  "No. You could have talked to me before, and you didn't. Now, I don't want to speak to you."

  "Sera just let me explain."

  "You've had your chance to explain," she replied icily. "You chose not to. You opted to have me think one of my best friends suddenly hated me for no reason. You could have told me. You made your choice, now I've made mine. Go away."

  Liam made his way cautiously into the room. He knew if he moved too fast, she would bolt. "Would you have had anything to do with me if I had told you?"

  A tear streaked down her cheek "Yes," she whispered.

  "You would have kept talking to me if I told you I got drunk, slept with your best friend, and left without even saying goodbye? You would have thought I was a piece of shit, and you wouldn't have said one word to me."

  A few more tears slipped free as she realized just how easy walking away from Michelle had been for him. He hadn't cared about her at all; he had just used her and left her. Sera's heart broke when she realized she didn't know him as well as she’d thought. She had known there were other girls in his past, but she hadn't thought he could discard them as if they were nothing.

  "Lying was much better though," she whispered.

  "I didn't lie."

  She laughed coldly and shook her head. "You acted like you didn't know why she was behaving the way she was. You lied to me."

  She choked back a sob as she buried her head in her hands again. "Sera, please don't do this."

  "I didn't do this," she whispered. "I told you things I'd never told anyone, you son of a bitch." She wiped angrily at her face. She hated herself for crying like this in front of him, but she couldn't help it. Her heart was breaking into a million pieces.

  Liam felt a fresh rush of anger at the reminder of what that bastard did to her. He clenched his jaw against the sudden bloodlust ripping through him. He swore if he ever found Jacob, he would kill him. But now was not the time to let his temper get the best of him. Now he had to make her understand as her tears tore at his heart.

  "Please don't cry, Sera. I'm sorry; I never meant to hurt you."

  She shoved back her chair and jumped to her feet. "Go away, Liam; I don't want to see you."

  "Listen to me, I made a mistake, but I didn't lie to you."

  "Liam—"

  He walked across the room to her.

  "Stay away from me!" There was a wealth of vehemence in her voice, but he ignored it as he took hold of her hands. She jerked them away. "Don't touch me!"

  "Sera, I love you."

  Her head shot up so forcefully he thought she might have given herself whiplash.

  "Don't," she whispered. "Don't."

  "I'm sorry about what I did, I made a mistake, but I do love you."

  She took a hitching breath as she shook her head in denial. "How could you say something like that? How could you?"

  He didn't know what else to say. He stepped forward and took her into his arms. She sobbed as she angrily pushed at him in a desperate attempt to free herself. "Stop," he whispered. "Stop."

  "Get away from me!" she yelled, but he refused to release her. He needed to get through to her. He couldn't lose her; he just couldn't. "How many times have you used that line?"

  He cupped her face in his hands and forced it up. Tears slid down her face as she glared at him. "I have never said it to anyone before," he said. "Never! You are the only person I have ever loved."

  She stared at him as her eyes searched his face. "How can I believe you?" she whispered tremulously.

  He closed his eyes against the agony ripping through him. "You just have to," he answered. "I'm telling you the truth."

  Tears caused the makeup of her flames to trail down her cheeks in red and orange streaks. He tenderly wiped them away with his thumb as she fell limply into his embrace. He held her against his chest as he smoothed her hair and kissed the top of her head. He was suddenly unable to stop himself from kissing and touching her. He wanted her so badly he burned with it.

  "I love you," he said again, kissing her neck and tasting her sweetness. She buried her face in his shoulder as sobs continued to rack through her. "Come on," he urged as he took hold of her hand.

  He led her through the maze and up the stairs to his room. He settled her in before walking down the hall to the bathroom. Music blared from upstairs as he washed the makeup off his face and tried to get his thoughts together. The water did nothing to ease the tense anxiety in him. He hung his head as self-disgust rolled through him.

  With a deep sigh, he shoved away from the sink, grabbed some paper towels, and wet them before making his way back down the hall to his room. He opened his door, closed, and locked it behind him. Sera was standing by the window. She had taken her cape off; her exposed skin glistened like pearls in the moonlight as it streamed over her.

  He wanted to talk to her, to try to explain, but he didn't know what to say. Instead, he moved across the room to stand behind her. Resting his hands on her shoulders, he relished in the feel of her satiny smooth skin. She went rigid beneath his touch but didn't move away from him.

  "Why didn't you tell me?" she whispered.

  Liam closed his eyes and inhaled deeply as he tried to gather his thoughts. "I didn't want to lose you," he answered honestly.

  She turned to face him. H
is breath froze in his chest at the sorrow in her startling eyes. Gently, he tilted her chin up and used the paper towels to wipe the makeup from her tear-stained face. She kept her lashes lowered as he worked. When he finished, he tossed the towels aside, and her gaze finally met his.

  "You wouldn't have lost me."

  There was so much warmth in her gaze he knew he didn't deserve her. She was too good, too innocent and pure for the likes of him. "In the beginning, I would have."

  "I told you what happened to me on the second day I knew you. I trusted you then, and you said I could, but I couldn't. If you had told me about Michelle then, you wouldn't have lost me, but now..."

  Her voice trailed off as she rapidly blinked back tears. Liam bowed his head to press his forehead against hers. "I meant what I said. You can trust me. But at the time, I didn't think you needed me to tell you about it. The conversation we had that night had no place in it for what happened between Michelle and I. After that night, I should have told you, but I didn't."

  "Why didn't you?" she asked tremulously.

  His hands clenched on her shoulders. "Because I didn't want you to think less of me for it. I preferred to pretend it didn't happen. Can you understand that?"

  Tears slid down her cheeks as she nodded. She could understand that. There were things she would prefer to forget, but she still felt betrayed. Maybe he couldn't tell her that night, and she could see why, but she wished he’d told her later. She wouldn't have been upset with him, and maybe she could have tried to talk to Michelle, but she didn't think Michelle would have spoken to her anyway.

  "I can understand that," Sera whispered, lifting her head so she could look at him. "But I wish I hadn't found out this way."

  "So do I," he said hoarsely. "So do I."

  "How could you use her so easily?"

  Liam's jaw clenched, a muscle twitched in his cheek. "Sera, I didn't use her, she was there, and I was there, and sometimes things just happen."

  "She apparently thought it was more."

  "I don't believe she did. She's just aggravated I didn't chase her around, and follow after her like everyone else," he said honestly. "We met, and we slept together, that is all it ever was."