“Want to sit down?” he murmured.
She shook her head and didn’t let go, unable to tear herself away from him yet.
Liam rested his cheek against her hair and cradled her, surrounding her in the warmth and strength she needed so badly. “He shouldn’t have lashed out at you like that. Maybe he’ll come around once he sees Charity’s awake and things calm down.”
“He won’t.”
“He might.”
With a deep sigh, Honor pulled back. “No, he won’t.”
The finality in her tone must have registered with him because he stilled and stared down at her questioningly.
There was no easy way to say it. “If I leave with you, I’m no longer his daughter.”
He scoffed. “He’s just mad right now. He’d never do that.”
He didn’t believe that she was being literal. That her father was capable of such a thing. She knew better. And even if she could mend her bridges with her parents and they accepted her after this nightmare, they would never accept Liam. So how the hell could she marry him, knowing that?
“Yes, he would. I’ve seen him do it to his brother and one of my cousins. Some of his parishioners over the years, too.” Her family meant the world to her. They weren’t perfect, but no one was, and she had to at least patch things up with Charity or she’d never be able to live with herself.
He grunted. “Doesn’t sound very Christian to me.”
Maybe not, but that was beside the point because her father wasn’t going to change. He subscribed to the old school lessons in the Bible, and could cut the people he no longer cared to associate with out of his life without any trouble. “Oh, God, I don’t know what to do!”
He rubbed a soothing hand over her back. “So we stay for a while and see what happens.”
No, there was no we about it, and he still wasn’t listening. “You can’t be here, Liam. You’ve seen how he is with you, you’ll just make everything worse.” And if Charity found out he was here, there was no telling how she’d react.
His jaw flexed and Honor realized how harsh that sounded. She opened her mouth to take it back or at least reword it, but he cut her off. “There’s no way I’m leaving you to face them and everything else alone, so forget it.”
Frustrated, she pulled away abruptly and ran a hand through her hair. “I appreciate your support and trying to help, but seriously, you need to leave.”
“Forget it.”
God, he was just as pig-headed as her father. She sucked in a deep breath and struggled for patience, feeling like she was about to explode. She loved that he’d come here and stood his ground beside her even in the face of her father’s wrath, but she couldn’t handle more drama right now and that’s absolutely what his presence would cause.
“Please, you need to go, and I need time to think about everything.”
At that he stiffened, his gaze turning wary. “What do you mean, everything? Us?”
She waved a hand helplessly. “No, I mean everything! God, I feel like I’m being torn in two—” She stopped talking when she noticed his gaze was riveted to her left hand. Her bare left hand. Her chest constricted.
“You took off the ring?”
The accusation in his eyes hit her square in the heart. She scrambled to explain. “In my pocket. I couldn’t come in here wearing it, it would have made things a thousand times worse,” she blurted. Not that things could really get much worse, but she desperately needed him to understand. He didn’t have contact with his father. He didn’t know what it was to have a family that expected things from him, couldn’t fathom what it was like to be in her position.
Her sister had just attempted suicide because of them getting engaged. What the hell would Charity do if they went through with it and got married?
Liam met her gaze once more, his expression so guarded it scared her. She had the awful premonition that she was on the brink of losing him too. One false step here on her part and he’d be gone. “Are you going to put it back on?”
His tone was even but she knew he was really asking if she’d changed her mind about the engagement. The honest answer was, maybe. At least for now. She couldn’t take any more pressure from either side tonight. “Please try to understand, I can’t wear it right now. Just—I need some time to sort everything out.” And figure out what decision she would be able to live with for the rest of her life.
Because she already knew that’s what it would come down to: Liam or her family, one or the other, no way around it and no hope of having both. Forever.
He acquiesced with a tight nod, clearly not liking the idea. “I’ll wait in my truck until you see Charity, then take you home after. I don’t want you driving right now. I’ll stay at your place tonight and we’ll talk this all out once you get some sleep. Things will look better in the morning, once everyone has a chance to cool off.”
It killed her that such a strong man was practically begging her to let him stay and help. She took his face between her hands and stood on tiptoe to kiss him. He seemed surprised by the move but before he could react she pulled away. “I don’t think that’s a good idea tonight.”
His expression hardened. He studied her for a long moment, his silence raking across her already raw nerves. “So what—you want me to walk away and wait for you to make up your mind if you still want to be with me or not?” He ran a hand through his hair in agitation. “Not three hours ago you promised to be my wife.”
She flinched at the hurt in his voice but before she could respond a woman appeared at the far end of the corridor, holding a binder. Honor stepped back from Liam as the woman smiled at her. “Are you family members of Charity Girard?”
“I am,” Honor said.
“Are your parents here as well?”
“Yes, inside.” She indicated the private room with a nod.
“Great. I’d like to talk to all of you if you have a few minutes.”
Honor glanced at Liam. The woman knocked once on the door and pushed it open. Her mother stood up and saw Honor there. Her face brightened with hope but she studiously ignored Liam standing next to her, as though he didn’t exist.
God, she couldn’t do this.
Taking Liam’s hand, Honor faced him and squeezed hard. Even though she was torn and this whole situation wasn’t fair, she was at least partly responsible for what Charity had done to herself. No matter what her faults, she loved her sister. Charity was the reason she had to stay here.
“I need to stay with them.” And at least try to work this out. Even though she already knew it would land her in the exact same position she was in now. In a no-win situation.
He nodded once, but she could tell he was conflicted about leaving. And he was remote now, already pulling back from her emotionally in case her decision didn’t go the way he hoped. That made her feel even worse. “You’ll call me if you need anything?”
A fresh wave of tears blurred her vision. “Yes, thanks. Love you.” She did, with all her heart, and it was important he know that, no matter what happened later.
His expression softened slightly but his gaze remained wary. “Love you too.” He didn’t smile or try to touch her again.
Watching him walk away, a bolt of fear shot through her. She was seized with the sudden urge to call his name and sprint after him. If she did he’d be waiting to catch her when she jumped into his arms, then he’d drive them away from here, away from her crazy family. An impulsive part of her wanted to say to hell with them. She would marry Liam and they’d spend the rest of their lives together.
It would mean losing her sister forever, and never seeing or speaking to her family again.
Honor slipped her hand into her pocket and curled her fingers tight around the ring hidden there. In the end, loyalty to Charity and her guilty conscience kept her rooted in place. She stayed where she was, dreading the thought of what was waiting for her on the other side of that door behind her. And even more terrified that the awful decision looming before her had already been made.