#mcliam

As the party guests cheer and celebrate their new Duchess and future Queen, Madeleine glances at Regina, „Liam is turning his reign into a circus. He should know better than presenting his feelings to his court like that. This only makes him look weak and foolish“. 

Regina moves closer to madeleine, „Come with me“. Walking through the cheering crowd, they leave the ball room through one of the French doors leading to the inner courtyard and sit down on a bench in a dark corner, far from anyone’s sight, „Unfortunately, there is nothing we can do… in a few days she will be Liam’s Queen and will initiate the end of the monarchy as we know it“.

„Aunt Regina, don’t be so pessimistic. As long as they aren’t married, a lot could happen…“, Madeleine smiles at her Regina as if she already had a plan.

„You don’t understand… the girl is with child. Liam would never believe any intrigue and he will definitely never leave her“, Regina shakes her head, „The only thing that makes us better than commoners is their believe in that. Catherine wants to bring this monarchy closer to the people… for God’s sake, she got Liam build a kitchen in the King’s chamber so they can cook together. What is next? Will she send their child to public school? Soon people will start asking if they really need a King. She will destroy the monarchy and all of us with it“.

„W-What? A child?“, Madeleine stands up and start pacing nervously, „That bitch thought  of everything…“, she mumbles.

„My thoughts exactly“, Regina watches Madeleine’s steps slowing down.

„Oh, no but we are not going down without a fight!“, Madeleine crosses her arms in front of her, „Liam will never leave her but would she stay if she knew what life in palace is really about? If she knew how dangerous this life can be for her and her child? If we gave her a taste of how life with enemies in her own court could be?“

„I’m listening… What do you have in mind?“, Regina looks at Madeleine curious to know her plans.

—————

Once the celebration came to a close, Liam accompanied his fiancee back to their apartment. Unaware of Regina’s and Madeleine’s plans to disrupt their happiness, he runs a bath for him and Catherine.

Liam walks out of the bathroom, watching Catherine on the bed relaxing after this stressful day. He offers her his hand, „Love, the water is ready for you“. Once she gets up, standing in front of Liam, he unties her dressing gown, letting it fall to the floor. His eyes sweeps over her naked body, „You are so beautiful my love“. He gets closer to her, „Your breast… they look bigger“.

She giggles, „You noticed…“, she puts her arms around his neck. „Yeah, our baby is growing strong and soon we won’t be able to hide my pregnancy anymore“. 

„I can’t wait to see your belly growing“, Liam runs his hands over belly and around her waist, going down to her butt. He smiles, squeezing it gently and then his hands make their way down to reach under her thighs and lift her up. She hooks her legs around his waist and he brings her to the bathroom. He then helps her into the tub and she slides forward so he can sit behind her. „Once we are back from our honeymoon, we will be able to know the sex of our baby… do you want to know it? I can’t wait for this day to be honest“, he massages her back.

„Of course I want to know! Then we can finally decide on a name for our little one“, she smiles and rests a hand on her belly. „I'd say once we reach the second trimester, we could share the news with our people“.

Liam kisses her shoulder and her neck, „This day will be historical. After over four years, Cordonia will finally have an heir to the throne. Our people will rejoice over the news and we can finally start preparing for our baby’s arrival“.

„Honey, isn’t it too early to start getting ready for our baby?“, Catherine chuckles.

He hugs her, resting his head on her shoulder, „We are talking about the crown prince or crown princess of Cordonia… we have to choose a room, find someone to be responsible for the interior design, we need to find a local carpenter to make the furniture…“, before he finishes his thought, Catherine says:

„Hold on a second. If you still have the furniture of your baby room, we could use them. We would have the carpenter refurbishing those pieces, but the we wouldn’t need anything new and at the same time we would have something from your mother… that she chose for you. What do you think?“, she turns her head to Liam and notices he is getting emotional.

He kisses the back of her head, „You are amazing, my love. I don’t deserve you… you’re so thoughtful, so kind… your love is everything I need to feel complete“, his voice was soft, almost fragile, „That you wanna include my mother in this special moment, welcoming her into our child’s life means so much to me“. Liam holds her tighter to him, „I wish she could have met you, Katie… she would have loved you“, he whispers.

„I’m sure she is here, Liam, taking care of all of us“, she takes his hand and puts it on her belly, „Taking care of our baby“. 

Liam closes his eyes and thanks God for having sent her to him, he can’t stand the thought of a life without Catherine. 

—————

The next morning, Liam and Catherine head to Valtoria for a day trip. Catherine looks through the window enjoying the scenery and with the corner of her eyes she catches Liam staring at her. 

She smiles, „So, my King, what are the plan for the day?“

„We will be choosing the flower arrangements for the Cathedral from a local florist and also one of our wedding cakes will come from a Valtorian baker. As I told you before, it isn’t an official visit but I thought it would be nice to include your duchy in the celebrations. Unfortunately, we won’t have much time over there because of my trip to France tomorrow“, Liam kisses her forehead, „Now, you better look out the window or you will miss the entrance to your castle“.

Catherine’s eyes widen in disbelief, „What?“, she looks back at Liam shocked, „Are you serious? This is like out of a fairy tale“.

Liam smiles, „Everything you see here is yours“.

Catherine smiles, getting closer to Liam she whispers, „Well, Mr. Rhys, I can’t wait for the day we will christen every and each room of this castle“, she brushes her fingers over Liam’s chest and trails kisses over his neck.

Liam blushes, „Oh honey, I can’t wait for this day either but let’s not start something now that we won’t be able to finish… in a couple of minutes we will have to leave the car and I, erm…, I won’t be able to walk out of this car if you go on like that“. Catherine giggles and kisses him on the cheek, turning back to the window.

After their arrival, Catherine is greeted by Gladys, the majordomo and is led by her through the castle for a tour of the most important places while the florist displays her arrangements in the ballroom. 

When Liam and Catherine finally arrive at the entrance of the room, they can already take in the sweet scent of the flowers. Catherine slowly walks into the sea of flowers and heads straight to the petit brunette, working on the final details of one arrangement.

„Good Morning!“, she says, „This look amazing!“. 

Liam walks behind Catherine, watching carefully every details, „You have exceeded my expectation, Mrs. Wallace“.

The woman curtsies, „You Majesty, your Grace. Forgive me for having my back turned to you, I didn’t notice you approaching!“

„Please, don’t worry about it in anyway“, Catherine smiles, „So, I see you have included my favorite flowers in your arrangements?“

„Yes, your Grace. His Majesty made clear that I should add pink and white roses to the arrangements. I took the liberty to add the peonies though, for they are one of the symbols of your duchy“, she smiles and shows the different arrangements she has created.

„I love peonies and everything you have here. What do you think, Liam?“, Catherine looks at him and he walks through the sea of flowers.

„I believe this arrangement is one of my favorite — it’s simple yet classic and elegant“, he looks at Catherine and she smiles.

„I love it, sweetheart! I think we have a winner!“, she takes his hand in hers and leans her head against his strong arm. „Now it is starting to feel real, soon we will be married, Liam“, she looks at him and he kisses her head. They discuss a few other details with the florist before heading for lunch in the dining room.

In the afternoon, they headed to the parlor, where a local baker prepared a few different cake slices for a wedding cake tasting. Liam playfully fed Catherine with every cake flavor that was represented on the several trays. After going through the different flavors, they settled for a chocolate truffle cake filled with chocolate ganache with a hint of raspberry and vanilla.

The day in Valtoria ended with a ride through the the countryside, just a small presentation of Catherine’s duchy as their first official visit will be after their honeymoon and they will spend their first week as a married couple in her lands.

—————

In that same evening, after dinner, Catherine walks into her bedroom wearing a white night gown. She looks at Liam, lying in her bed, very concentrate in his reading and she smiles. She sits down next to him and gives him a kiss on the cheek.

Liam smiles and looks at her, putting down his book, „Sorry, I didn’t see you there…“

„It’s okay. What are you reading?“, she gets closer to him and he wraps an arm around her waist.

„Nothing too important, I’m just trying to get ready for my trip to France tomorrow“, he kisses the top of her head, „Are you sure you don’t wanna come with me?“.

Catherine smiles, „I’d love to but I got work to do and I got that tea party thing, the one Regina is organizing, remember?“

„Oh, yes, I do“, Liam tilts her chin gently to him, „If Madeleine is there and if anything happen that makes you uncomfortable, don’t feel obligated to stay there, okay?“.

„Thank you, sweetheart, but I think I can deal with Regina and Madeleine…“, she smiles and stares at him for a few seconds. Catherine bites her bottom lip, moving slowly over him, pulling her gown high enough so she can straddle Liam.

He smiles naughtily, „Hmmm, you are insatiable, my Queen…“

„I’m blaming the pregnancy hormones…“, she giggles and lower herself slowly onto him for a passionate kiss. His hands roam up her thighs -- one holding her hip and the other stopping between her legs, making her moan.

„Oh god, Katie, you are so wet…“, he whispers and massages her love button with his thumb. She slips her hand into Liam’s boxer briefs, reaching for his fully erected manhood. She looks deep into his eyes, leading him slowly inside of her and he groans. „Oh baby, you feel so fucking good…“. She lowers the straps of her gown, exposing her breasts to Liam. He reaches for them and massages them gently for a moment while she rides him the way he loves it. He pulls her to him and kisses her neck, trailing kisses down to her collarbone and to her breast. They enjoy the feeling of their body becoming one for a while, their moans and groans getting louder.

„Fuck, baby… I’m close“, she lets her head falls to her back and Liam grabs her hips, intensifying her movement, getting deeper and faster into her, making her scream, „Liam…“.

„Yeah, love, come for me…“, as he feels her walls tightening around him, he wraps his arms around her, pulling her tighter to him and he lets go, finding his release inside of her. He looks deep into her eyes, „Catherine, I love you more than anything…“

„I love you too, Liam“, she lets herself fall to his side and Liam lies down, pulling her to him while they try to catch their breaths. She nestles into his arms, tracing circles on his muscular chest.

Sometime in the middle of the night, Catherine wakes up feeling sick. She tries not to wake up Liam but when he hears her throwing up in the bathroom, he doesn’t hesitate to go to her side. Although the treatment is working, some days are better than others. 

After 30 minutes in the bathroom, she washed her face, brushing her teeth and went to bed feeling terribly. Liam pours her a glass of water, „Maybe I should cancel my trip…“, he looks at her worried.

„Nonsense, Liam. I’ll be fine… we know that the sickness can last throughout the pregnancy. I’m just glad I get a break some days“, she drinks the glass of water and rests her head on Liam’s chest.

„Then promises me you will see the palace doctor in the morning, please! Just to make sure you don’t need another infusion…“, he kisses her head and strokes her back.

„Okay, honey, now you should sleep. You have an early flight to catch“.

Liam sighs and turns off the light. He tries to fall asleep but he can’t shake the feeling that he shouldn’t leave her alone.

—————

Feeling better than the night before, Catherine walks through the palace, on her way to Liam’s study to work from home. After two conference calls she hears a knock on the door. 

„Come in“, she says.

Regina opens the door and looks at her annoyed, „I was looking for you, your Grace. I just couldn’t believe my ears when I was told you would be working here, in Liam’s study“.

„It was Liam’s idea but I’m sure you aren’t here to discuss where I should or shouldn’t be…“, Catherine closes her laptop, „Please, have a seat“.

Regina walks into the room and sits down, „I had an early meeting with our family lawyer and I was told you still haven’t signed a prenup“.

„Liam and I have never talked about it, actually“, Catherine crosses her arms.

„He probably forgot with so many things to take care of... “, she smiles, „That’s the reason why I took the liberty to bring this for you. It is the same prenup Madeleine signed so in case of a divorce you will be taken care of“.

Catherine has a quick flick through it and closes her eyes shortly, pinching the bridge of her nose, „Okay, Regina… you know I am a lawyer, don’t you? Do you really think I am going to sign this?“, she opens her eyes and sighs.

„Why not? It’s fair…“, she says.

„First of fall, if we signed a prenup or not it’s none of your business, so you don’t have to go around asking questions. Secondly, I’m not against it. If Liam wants a prenup, we will have one but one that we both agreed upon — we will find a lawyer and we will discuss the terms of this contract, not you and your lawyer, do you understand me, Regina?“, Catherine stands up and walks to the bar area to pour herself a glass of water.

„I just wanted to be helpful…“, she says, „And there is also this other thing...“.

Catherine signs and takes a deep breath trying to keep her cool, „What is it?“, she walks back to her seat.

„This one you have to sign. Every Queen before you did…“

Catherine reads attentively every line and can’t believe her eyes, „You want me to terminate my parental rights to my unborn child?! Are you insane?“, she laughs but actually she feels like screaming, „‚The child of a King or Queen is property of the Crown‘? My child is property of nobody. I mean, Regina, if you or anyone think I’m going to sign this… you are delusional“.

„As I said, every Queen before you did. It’s just to assure that the child will have a courtly education and in your case, that you won’t take the child away from Liam“, she says.

„Liam knows that I’d never do this to him and there are international laws that protect the rights of both parents... I’d never be able to leave the country with my child without the father’s consent. You have to know this much at least“, Catherine says, trying to keep her voice down, „Look, I have work to do. I’m gong to discuss this with Liam but I can tell you now, I’m not signing it!“.

Regina stands up and smiles, „Sooner or later you will have to…“. She turns around and leaves the room. Catherine waits until she closes the door and sends Liam a text:

„Can you talk now?“

A couple of minutes later, Liam calls her:

„Hey sweetheart, what is going on? Missing me already?“, his voice is soft and full of love.

„Liam, do you want a prenup?“, she says agitated.

„Whoa, where is this coming from?“, he says confused.

„Go on! Have a guess…“, she sighs.

„Regina? But I have never talked to her about a prenup… Honey, listen to me, I don’t need one. Otherwise we would have talked about it a while ago“, he tries to calm her down.

„Liam, I am not even mad because of the prenup but with the prenup she gave me a waver… to sign over my parental rights to the crown?! What the fuck! I am not doing that…“, Catherine stands up and starts pacing.

„Love, you don’t have to sign anything. I would never ask you to do that, you know me. You have to calm down, Katie, this isn’t good for you or our baby…“, Liam waits for an answer but she doesn’t say anything. „Honey?“

Catherine sits down again and puts a hand on her side, feeling some cramping, „Yeah, you are right. I think I gotta finish up things here and lie down for a while“.

„Is everything okay? Did you see the doctor?“, he asks worried.

„Yes, he will come by after the afternoon tea and I’ll probably get an infusion again“, Catherine closes her eyes and breaths deeply. 

„You should stay in bed today, you don’t have to go to Regina’s tea party“.

„I am going with Hana, Liam. Don’t worry too much about me… everything will be fine“, she says feeling a little better, „I love you… talk later?“

„I love you too, please call me whenever you want!“. After talking to Liam, Catherine answered a few emails and went to bed. She was still annoyed with Regina for her lacking of boundaries, but she tried not to worry about it for the baby.

—————

After a few hours in bed reading, Catherine got dressed for the tea party and met with Hana in the parlor.

As they arrive in the tea room, Catherine and Hana are greeted by Regina and from the corner of her eyes she sees Madeleine with a group of ladies. The room is nicely decorated with beautiful flower arrangements and live piano music. In every table there were a selection of teacakes, macaroons, scones with Cornish clotted cream and strawberry preserve, tiny sandwiches and other exquisite pastries. Regina was trying to be extremely nice, introducing Catherine to the other ladies.

After chatting with each one of the ladies, Catherine and Hana headed to their table and soon Regina joined them.

„Are you enjoying the tea party, your Grace“, Madeleine comes from behind Catherine and sits down by her side.

Catherine glances shortly at Hana before putting on a fake smile and turning her head to Madeleine, „Hi Madeleine. Yes, it’s been delightful so far. Are you enjoying it?“

“Well, enjoying isn’t the exactly the word I’d go for. I know most of the ladies in here. They are from lower nobility classes, looking for the opportunity of their lives…“, Madeleine stares at Catherine with a grin on her lips.

„Oh yeah? And what kind of opportunity are you talking about?“, Catherine asks curious.

At this Moment Regina starts saying, „Well, I’m not sure if you know but in a Cordonian marriage is quite common for both parties to have extra conjugal relationships. And as future Queen, it is your duty to choose Liam at least two of these beautiful ladies“.

„Do you see Lady Anne and Lady Cassandra over there? Those I chose for him before we got married… his mistresses will live in the palace. Of course not in your quarter but they should be available whenever their King desires“, Madeleine looks over at Catherine and her face is blank.

„Okay… Regina and Madeleine, Liam doesn’t need a mistress. I’m pretty sure that he doesn’t want one. It may be usual in a political marriage or a marriage of interests but we love each other. There will be no third person in our bed“, Catherine stares deeply into Regina’s eyes.

Madeleine laughs quietly, „Listen, Catherine, this monarchy is much older than your own country. If you wanna survive as Queen, you better accept that… your relationship with Liam is everything but normal, there are rules and you will follow them or you will have to leave“. Suddenly, Catherine feels extremely sick and tries to get up from her chair but Madeleine grabs her arm forcefully, „Now, you listen to me. Do you see the table on our left? Those ‚Ladies‘ I introduced you to? Why don’t you choose two of them and you can go… Liam has already pre-approved each one of them a few months ago. Lady Sophia, for example, spent 48 hour in a hotel in Paris with Liam… as you know, our King doesn’t lack of stamina. Lady Jasmin, on the other hand, spent a couple of days in his Yacht… oh, haven’t you two spent some lovely days cruising the Mediterranean? I hope it doesn’t bother you too much that you weren’t the first one. And lady Agnieszka, he sent a plane to Saint Petersburg to bring her to Cordonia for the weekend… I don’t need to tell you the things he might have done to her… probably in your room…“. Catherine feel the pain coming back and it makes her so dizzy she can’t concentrate.

„Enough, Madeleine!“, Hana stands up, „We are leaving… you two should be ashamed of yourselves!“, Hana takes Catherine’s hand and helps her to stand up. 

„But I didn’t finish yet…“, Madeleine says laughing while Hana and Catherine leave the room.

Hana leads Catherine to the parlor and after a couple of minutes in silence, she says, „You are pale and your hands are cold. I gotta call someone“.

„I think I am a little dehydrated, I feel so dizzy I don’t think I can go up the stairs…“, Catherine says, her hand is on her belly. „Would you please call Leo?“, she hands her phone to Hana.

Hana immediately calls him and tells Leo to come as fast as he can. Meanwhile, Catherine wraps her arms around her stomach in pain. She tries to takes deep breaths but it doesn’t help.

When Leo arrives, he walks up to Catherine, „You don’t look good, Katie… What happened? I thought you guys were having tea with Regina!“. Hana told him what happened in the tea room. „What the fuck is wrong with those two? Liam is going to kill them…“. He offers a hand to Catherine, „Let’s go, I’m taking you to your room and then I’ll let the doctor know you aren’t feeling well”.

When Catherine stands up, Hana notices blood in the back of her dress, „Katie, you are bleeding…“, she says. Shortly after Hana finishes her sentence, Catherine faints, being caught by Leo.

„No, no, no.. this isn’t good! Okay, I gotta take her to the hospital… You tell the guards to not allow Madeleine or Regina to leave this palace. They should take them to Liam’s office and stay there until I come back!“, Leo holds Catherine in his arms and runs to the front door, getting her into his car and rushing to the hospital.

During the short drive to the hospital, he let them know that he would be arriving with Catherine and in less than 15 minutes he parked in the back entrance of the hospital, where a team was already waiting for her. Leo watched her go before leaving to park his car. Nervous with the situation, he called his brother but nobody answered the call. Then he tried Bastien:

„Bastien, where is Liam?“, he says apprehensive.

„He is in a call, can I help you with anything?“, Bastien asks.

„I need to talk to him. Catherine is in the hospital“

„I see, give me a second…“, Bastien puts him on hold and soon Liam in on the other side of the line.

„What is it, brother? Did you cause a fire in the palace again?“, Liam chuckles.

„Li, listen to me… you better come back! Regina and Madeleine are out of control…“, he says agitated.

„Okay, you are making me nervous… what is going on, Leo?“

„Catherine is in the hospital, I think she and the baby aren’t doing well… she was bleeding, you better get here fast, Liam. I’ll tell you what happened once you arrive!“, Leo explains.

„I’m on my way“, Liam says angrily, „Don’t let them leave… I’m going to deal with those two once and for all“.

To be continued…

For more chapters go to my MASTERLIST in my bio.

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„Very well, Hakim. Why don’t we save the details for our dinner next week? Perfect! Alright, talk soon, old friend“, Constantin hangs up and looks at Liam very seriously. „So Liam, I heard from Regina that you were talking about transferring to an U.S. University“, he stands up and walks to the bar cart, pouring himself and Liam one fingers of whisky.

„Yes, father. I believe that living abroad would broaden my horizon and I’d like to get to know other cultures before I finish college and start working in service of the crown“, he looks at his father, who hands him a drink.

Constantin walks back to his chair, „Regina thinks it will be good for you“, he sits down and looks at Liam, „and I cant deny, I think it is a good idea myself“. Liam smiles and his eyes widen. „I pulled some strings and due to your impeccable curriculum and grades, you were admitted into Stanford. You will be flying next week to California“, he smiles.

Liam jumps from his chair and walks up to his father to hug him, „Father! I can’t believe it… I never thought you would ever consider letting me go! Thank you so so much!“, he smiles.

„Liam, my son, I just wish you would have come to me first“, he hugs him, patting him on the back. „However, there will be rules!“, his tone becomes stern and Liam goes back to his seat, „There can be no scandals and nobody can know you are a prince“, he opens a drawer, picking up a brown envelope and putting a few papers on the table, „In the U.S you will be known as Liam Thompson, a British exchange student from London. Only the US Government and the University know your true identity. This is your new passport, drivers license and everything you will need — The British Government has helped us with everything and it’s only be possible thanks to our shared ancestry with the English Monarchy, Queen Victoria. So, next time Elizabeth invites us for a wedding, we better show up!“, he smirks. „I’m taking your platinum credit card, you will get a normal one with  a comfortable limit to live off but not too high to draw attention — if someone asks about your comfortable life though, tell them your parents are bankers. You will live near campus in a two bedroom apartment that you will share with Drake. Your security detail will occupy the apartment in front of yours and will be always in your shadows, making sure that you are okay“, he puts everything back into the envelope and hands it to Liam. „However, if the press finds out about it and your whereabouts or if anyone discover your true identity… that’s it! You will have to come back home, understood?!“

Liam smiles, „Understood, father! This is only fair…“

„Alright, I guess you have a lot to get done before flying out to your new life in the states, so you better get it done!“, he walks up to Liam and hugs him once again. „Now, I will try to track down your brother to tell him the news. I’m sure he will want to say goodbye in style!“, he chuckles. 

„Okay. I really have a lot to get done. See you later, dad and tell Regina thanks from me!“, he smiles and walks out of his father’s study.

——————

One week later…

Leo knocks at Liam’s apartment urgently, „Come on, little brother! The guys are already waiting!“. Liam opens the door suddenly and Leo almost falls into his room, causing Liam to chuckle.

„Alright! I can’t even get ready for my own going away party…“, he shakes his head while his brother puts his arm around his neck and they walk down the stairs to meet Drake, Maxwell and Bertrand in the entrance of the palace. Liam greets each one of them and says: “If everyone is already here, what are we waiting for? Let’s get this party started!“. The guys cheer and one after the other enter the limousine but shortly before Liam’s turn to go in, he hears a familiar voice behind him.

„So, it is true?!“, Olivia stands there, her eyes welling up with tears.

„Guys, go ahead, I have to talk to Liv for a second… and no worries, I’ll be right behind you. Now, go, go, go!“, he shuts the car door and watches as they leave, turning back to Olivia. „Let’s go for a walk.“

Olivia crosses her arms in front of her and walks out of the palace with Liam following behind her.  Heading to the gardens, she says: „I can’t believe you were going to leave without saying goodbye! I really mean nothing to you…“, she lowers her head, looking at her feet.

„Liv, don’t say that“, he stops her and puts his hands on her shoulders. „You are one of my best friends. It’s just too complicated right now“

„I don’t wanna be your friend, Liam. I want more… that kiss meant something to me… I thought you felt the same way“, she looks at him, tears streaming down her cheeks.

He hugs her and she rests her head on his chest, „I’m sorry, Liv. I thought, perhaps there was more there but… I love you as a friend, as a sister and it won’t change!“

Olivia pushes him away, „Wow Liam… as a sister?! You kiss me and then tell me you love me as your sister?“, she looks at him for a moment in silence, her face expecting something from him but there is nothing there, „Good. I wish you a good flight, Liam. Have fun with your new life!“, she walks away.

„Liv… Liv! I’m sorry for hurting you… I really am!“, he says, walking in her direction but she doesn’t answer, just makes some motion with her hands and leaves. Liam watches her as she goes, torn between going after her or letting her alone but he knows, it’s better to leave things this way — he will never be able give her what she wants from him.

——————

Liam arrives at the beer garden thirty minutes later and everybody notices due to his facial expression that he had a lot in his mind. He sits next to Leo and Drake, watching Maxwell and Bertrand greeting someone on another table.

„What happened? You look down… it’s your going away party, you should be happy to leave this place for a while to enjoy some time with people of your own age“, Leo says.

„He kissed her, that’s what happened!“, Drake says sipping his pint, earning him an annoyed glance from Liam before he looked at Leo.

„Yeah, I just made my situation with Liv a lot more complicated“, he takes Leo’s pint and takes a gulp, „She spent the entire summer throwing herself at me, I thought maybe there could be something there… but there isn’t. Now she is hurt and mad at me“.

Leo takes the pint back from Liam’s hand, „She will survive, Li. This was a stupid move though, everybody knows she has been crazy about you from a young age. However, what is done is done. You are leaving and now with you moving away, she will have no other choice than get over it“, Leo wraps an arm around his neck, „“I’ll miss you, brother but I am glad you will be able to leave this madness. And I envy you for all those American girls… make me proud, little brother!“.

Liam laughs, „Yeah, I’m pretty sure being an asshole is not part of my curriculum“, they all laugh and Maxwell and Bertrand join the guys.

„Hey, what did we miss?“, Maxwell says smiling.

„Not much, just my brother being an ass…“, Liam laughs.

„Wait, you are talking to the next king, Liam. You better show some respect!“, Bertrand says in a very serious tone.

„Too late for that, Bertrand!“, Drake says smirking.

„Alright, who wants more beer?“, the guys put their hands up excited, „Good, let’s get this party started! My brother is leaving to the land of opportunity, we have a lot to celebrate!“

To be continued…

For more chapters go to my MASTERLIST in my bio.

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Chapter 2: Party In The USA

It’s been three days since Liam and Drake arrived in Palo Alto. While Liam has been busy buying books and getting ready for summer quarter, Drake has been out getting to know their new surroundings. Suddenly Liam hears a knock at his bedroom door:

„Come in!“, he looks at the door, closing his book.

„Hey Li, what are you up to?, Drake asks.

„Just catching up with my reading. Where have you been all day?“, he says smirking.

„Yeah, I wanted to go shortly to the coffeeshop but I met this cute girl, Meghan“, he walks into the room and sits down on a chair, looking at Liam, „She showed me around… and she invited us to this party tonight“, he puts his feet on Liam’s bed.

„Not a chance, Drake!“, Liam pushes his feet away from his bed, „I don’t know anyone yet and I’m not going to be your third wheel!“.

Drake chuckles, „She has a roommate… for what I head you two are perfect for each other, she is all about studying but she is cute, I saw her photo!“, Drake stands up, „And I’m not asking you to come, I’m telling you to because if you don’t… then her roommate is going to be the third wheel and you can’t let it happen!“, Drake smirks and Liam throws a pillow at him.

“Alright... but only because I can’t leave the poor girl alone with you two making out!”, he takes his book in his hands, lying down while Drake leaves his room.

—————

When Drake and Liam arrive at the party, they walk around looking for Meghan, finding her next to the drink table.

„Hey! There you are, I thought you guys had changed your minds!“, she says hugging Drake, „I take this is your roommate? Hi, I’m Meghan“, the petit brunette smiles friendly, shaking his hand.

„Meg, where is your roommate. Liam is already looking forward to get to know her!“, Drake chuckles and Liam throws him an annoyed glance.

„Cathy?! She should be here any minute. Last time I talked to her she was leaving the hospital to go home and change“, she says handing the guys a cup of beer.

„Is she okay?“, Liam asks.

„Oh, yeah. She is a med student doing rotation, so basically she is assisting residents…”, she sees a familiar face coming to their direction, “There she is!“, she says excited. Liam turns around to see the 5’8 blonde with big green eyes and the sweetest smile he has ever seen — she is wearing a red floral summer dress and flats. He stares at her for a moment feeling his heart skip a beat. Meghan hugs Cathy and says: „So good to see you! How was your day?“.

„Good but I’m exhausted!“, she looks at the two guys behind Meghan, „So, I see you have made new friends already…“, she giggles.

„Yeah, these are the exchange students I told you about, Drake Walker and Liam Thompson. Guys, this is Catherine Levine but everybody calls her Cathy“, she says making them acquainted.

„Hi Drake, nice to meet you“, she shakes his hands and turns to Liam, „Hi, nice to meet you“, she offers him her hand and Liam takes it, kissing her knuckles without taking his eyes of hers. Catherine blushes and looks at the others. Drake shoves him discreetly and Liam releases her hand.

„Hi Cathy, I’m Liam and it is nice to meet you too“, he can’t stop looking at her, Meghan throws a glance at Drake and he says:

„Yeah, you two get to know each other… we have to go somewhere to do something else…“, he takes Meghan’s hand and they leave chuckling.

„Can I offer you something to drink? Perhaps a beer?“, Liam asks.

„I’m not of drinking age… and I don’t really like alcohol, thanks anyways. But I’d love a glass of orange juice“, Cathy smiles and leans on the wall next to Liam. „So, you are British?!“, she looks to the side and catches him looking at her.

„Yeah, how did you know?!“, he smiles, handing her her drink.

„Your accent makes it obvious… and no American guy would be such a gentleman and kiss a girl’s hand“, she giggles and Liam blushes. 

„I’m sorry for that… force of habit... I mean, not that I do it often... I just...”, he closes his eyes afraid he is making a fool of himself and breaths deeply for a second, “I never meant for you to feel uncomfortable“, he mumbles.

Cathy turns to him, „I didn’t… I thought it was really cute“, she smiles and takes a sip of her drink. She looks at some drunk guys trying to flirt with a girl, „I don’t really know why I agreed to this… I can’t stand these parties where people only come with the intent of getting drunk!“.

„So you hate college parties then?“, he chuckles, „Do you wanna go outside? It’s kinda loud in here“, Liam says nervously, „But don’t feel pressured to go with me… I mean, it is only an offer“.

„I know, Liam… relax, I don’t bite!“, she smiles, putting a hand on his shoulder, „Let’s go“. They walk through the crowd on their way outside and make their way along the sidewalk for a couple of minutes until they arrive in front of a car and Cathy sits on its hood, „Come on“, she taps on the space next to her.

„Won’t we get in trouble if the owner sees us?“, Liam says looking around.

„Nope… because I’m the owner, come on!“, she leans back against the windshield, looking at the sky, „So, what are you majoring in?“, she looks at him.

„Political Science and Economics“, he looks at her, „I was told you are a med student…“, he smiles.

„Yes, I always wanted to be a doctor but it does take a lot of my time and energy…“, she looks back to the sky. „Are you excited about living in another country?“

Liam chuckles, „You can’t imagine how happy I am! Back home, everything is so… different“, he looks down, his voice expresses sadness, „It was fine as long as my brother was around but when he was old enough to leave, things changed… thankfully Drake was always there for me“, he looks at her shortly, „I don’t wanna bother you with these things... let’s talk about something happier“. 

Cathy turns to see him and hugs him shortly, whispering into his ear, „Whenever you need someone to talk to, just let me know“, she looks into his eyes and smiles. They sit back for a while watching the sky in silence from a moment and Liam couldn’t stop himself from look at her every now and then. Suddenly, Catherine’s phone rings and she answers:

„Hey! We are at the car… when you leave the house just take the path to the left, along the sidewalk. We are waiting!“, she hangs up. „They are coming and we will drive to our apartment. Do you wanna come?“, she smiles.

Liam smiles brightly, „Yeah… sure. But we didn’t have time to buy a car yet. Do you mind if we drive with you?“

„If you trust me with your life“, she winks at him and gets out of the hood of the car, giggling.

Meghan and Drake get closer, he has an arm around her waist. Liam looks at Cathy and smirks and Meghan says: „Okay, okay… nothing to see here! Let’s go, this party sucks“. They all get in the car and drive to Catherine’s and Meghan’s apartment. They order in some pizza and chat for a while before Meghan and Drake disappear in the apartment.

Cathy and Liam are in the living room laughing together talking about movies and whatnots, when she hears something, „Psst…“, she says holding a hand up, „What is that?“, she hears faint panting, moaning, grunts and start blushing when she looks at Liam.

He starts laughing and whispers, „What about we give them some privacy and step out for a minute?“. Cathy stands up and leads Liam to the balcony, where he sees a telescope. „Is it yours?“

„Yeah, stargazing is one of my hobbies“, she leans on the railing and looks at the sky.

„This is a fascinating hobby. What is your favorite constellation? And can you show me?“, he leans on the railing looking at her.

„Orion… but you probably already know how to find it“, she giggles.

„No, tell me more about it, please“, Liam smiles.

„Okay… According to greek mythology, Orion was a gigantic hunter with supernatural powers. He was very strong but extremely dumb and one day he said he would kill every animal on the planet, enraging the goddess Gaia, who sent a scorpion to kill him. The giant soon realized he couldn’t shoot an arrow through the scorpion’s armor and jumped into the sea to avoid the creature. Artemis hit him with an arrow after Apollon tell her, this giant was a terrible villain. When she saw the body, she realized it was her friend Orion and begged the gods to bring him back to life but they refused, so she put his picture in the sky“, she smiles excited and places herself in front of Liam. He is so close to her that he can smell the lavender scent of her hair, „Hold me tight with one hand and give me your other hand“, he does as she says, „There, you see?“, she takes his hand pointing her finger to the stars, „Head, shoulders, the belt…“. Liam chuckles and Cathy turns around, „Wait… you tricked me! You already know, don’t you!“, she looks up into his eyes, he is still holding her tight.

„Yeah but I enjoyed your lesson anyway…“, he realizes how close they are and feels a force pulling him to her. He tries to resist it and his hand leaves her waist. „It’s kinda late… you said you were tired, I should go“.

„I’d love you to stay but I actually have to wake up early“, she sighs, „ But I’ll drive you home and no discussion… it’s not like I will get any sleep now with those two putting on a show“, she giggles.

Liam stares into her eyes for a moment, „Okay… Thank you!“.

Cathy takes his hand and they walk to the car. It was a five minutes drive and they listened to some music, Liam kept glancing at her, admiring her beauty while she was focused on singing the songs out loud. 

The car stops in front of Liam’s building, „So, here we are…“, she looks at him smiling.

„Give me your phone, please!“, he says with a chuckle.

„What? Why?“, she says giggling.

„Just give me your phone, you will see!“. She hands it to him and he types something in it, „Here… now you have my number. Let me know you are alright when you get home!“, he looks at her nervously for a few seconds, not really wanting to leave. Then, he leans in slowly to kiss her, noticing she is blushing. She looks down to her hands and he goes for her cheeks instead. „Sweet dreams, Cathy“, his voice is husky and tender.

„Sweet dreams, Liam“, she looks into his eyes one last time before he leaves and she drives away.

—————

After a shower, Liam lies in his bed thinking about this evening and he can’t stop thinking about her. He wanted so bad to kiss her but he was afraid of overstepping the boundaries with her. He doesn’t know her, yet he knows that there is something special about her, something that makes him nervous and his heart beat faster.  Her smile, her eyes and those lips of hers, something sensual and angelical at once. Suddenly a text comes in, pulling him back out of his thoughts. He opens it and smiles:

„I’m home. It was nice meeting you, Liam. Have a good night, x Cathy“

Quickly, he answers, „I’m glad. It was nice meeting you too, Cathy. I hope I see you around soon!“ And leaves his phone on the nightstand, knowing it will be hard to sleep thinking of her.

To be continued…

For more chapters go to my MASTERLIST in my bio.

--------------

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„Hey, how are you guys feeling?“, she asks.

Meg sneezes a couple of times before saying, „Not good… This is the worst cold I have ever had“. 

Cathy walks into the room and Drakes starts coughing before saying: „You shouldn’t come in here. If you get sick and can’t go to that concert, Liam is gonna kills us!“

She giggles and puts a hand on their forehead trying to feel their temperatures, „I’ll be fine. I’m going to cook a chicken soup for you, meanwhile you both should take your temperature“, she takes the thermometer on Meg’s desk and hands it to her, „And drink a lot of water!“

„Ohh, you are an angel! Chicken soup sounds like heaven right now…“,  Meg says, putting the thermometer under her armpit.

„Alright, you two try to sleep a little and I’ll wake you up once the soup is ready“, Cathy smiles and leaves the room.

After taking a shower, she goes to the kitchen and get’s all the ingredients on the counter. Cathy turns on the radio and starts cutting the vegetables, when her phone rings. 

„Hi there“, she smiles, holding the phone with her shoulder while she slices some carrots.

„Hey Cathy, I’m on the field and practice is gonna start in a bit but I wanted to know how you’re doing“.

She giggles, „Gosh, you are sweet sometimes…“, on the other side she hears Liam chuckling, „I’m fine, just tired. And you? Oh, before I forget this, Drake is going to spend a few days here. He and Meg have a really bad cold and we don’t want our QB to get sick“.

„Ohhh but what if you get sick? We have a concert to go to in the end of the week…“, he says worried.

„I know, I promise I’m taking care!“

„No, no, no! I am not taking any chances…“, he pauses for a short moment, „Why don’t you come stay with me?“.

„Erm, I don’t think this is necessary. I could still stay in my room and have no contact with them at all, if I wanted!“, she smiles.

„Yeah, as if you would do that! You’re a med student, I bet you keep going into their room to check up on them… am I right?“, he chuckles.

„Maybe… but whenever I go in, I have a surgical mask on!“, she smiles.

„I’m serious. You can stay in my room, I will take Drake’s… you will have your own bathroom with bathtub and all, plus I promise to not disturb you“, he tries to persuade her.

„Aren’t you afraid I could go through your things?“, Cathy giggles.

„Hmm, you can go through my things if you want“.

„Li… you know I am kidding, don’t you? I’d never do that“, she says.

„You can do whatever you want… as long as it’s you, I don’t mind. What do you say? It will be fun“, he smiles.

„I don’t know…“, she stops for a minute to think about it, „Okay, but I am not the one telling Drake that you are moving into his room!“, she laughs, „Listen, I’m cooking a chicken soup for them but I could meet you after practice…“, she says.

„Sounds great! See you soon, Cathy!“

——————

When Cathy arrives at the football field she sees Liam talking to his coach and waves at him. She puts her duffle bag on the floor and waits for him, noticing not far away from her, some girls talking about him. She reaches for her phone in her bag and writes Meghan:

„I didn’t know Liam Thompson was so popular. He has a fucking fan club waiting for him after practice!!!!“

She puts her phone back into her bag and watches as Liam runs in her direction — he doesn’t even realize that these girls were trying to get his attention. She smiles, enjoying the sight of him in his uniform.

He picks Cathy up and spins her around, „Oh, how I missed this smile!“, he puts her down and hugs her.

„Eww, you re all sweaty!!“, she giggles, „Now I need another shower, Li“, she puts her arms around him.

Liam laughs, looking into her eyes, „Don’t pretend you don’t like it!“, he brushes a strand away from her face. „I gotta go take a quick shower, do you mind waiting another 10-15 minutes?“

„Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere“, she picks up her duffle bag and he walks her to the bench before leaving. She watches people slowly leaving the field for a couple of minutes before grabbing a school book from her bag and reading it while waiting — so concentrated that she doesn’t realize the time passing. 

Liam walks behind her, putting his hands on her shoulder, „Missed me?“, he smiles, „Of course not, whenever you have a book you forget about the world!“.

Cathy stands up and laughs, „Are you jealous?“

„Always… Now, that you found out my secret, it’s time to go home!“, he laughs, taking her duffle bag from her hand and they walk to his car.

„So… do you wanna cook together?“, she smiles when he puts his arm around her shoulders.

„I remember you telling me on the phone that you were tired and you already cooked soup for Drake and Meg… so I thought I’d surprise you with take out“, he pulls her closer to him, „Did you get Drake’s keys?“, he looks at her and she nods. „I’m gonna drop you off in front of the building and go pick up our food. Meanwhile, why don’t you take a bath and relax? You deserve it!“

Cathy stops for a moment and he looks at her, „Liam… you don’t have to do this for me!“

„You take care of everybody, just let me take care of you for once“, he turns to her and brushes the back of his hand over her cheek. „If you don’t have to study tonight we could watch a movie together, what do you say?“

„Sounds lovely“, she hugs him, resting her head on his chest for a moment and she sighs deeply.

„Hey, what is wrong?“, he says stroking her back.

„Nothing is wrong, Li. It’s just… you are being so nice to me“, she looks up at him and their eyes meet.

„You deserve more than I could ever give you, sweetheart“, he kisses her forehead and closes his eyes, enjoying the feeling of her body close to his.

„I like you too“, she whispers as a late answer to his confession on that Saturday evening.

Her voice and these words pull him out of his thoughts and he smiles, „Did I really hear what I think I heard?“

Cathy giggles and pushes him away, „I don’t know what you are talking about…“, she taps Liam on his shoulder and walks a few steps away from him, „Catch me if you can!“ and runs to his car parked on the other side of the street.

„What are you doing to me, baby?“, he chuckles and runs after her. It doesn’t take long for him to reach her. He picks her up and they laugh together, enjoying this unbelievable feeling they only feel when they are together. „Now, I’m gonna cary you to the car so you don’t run away from me again!“, he looks shortly at her and shakes his head with a smile on his face. 

A couple of hours later, after dinner, Liam and Cathy were watching a movie until Liam realized that she was hiding under the blanket.

„Are you scared?“, Liam pauses the movie and chuckles, pulling the blanket off her head, „Why did you suggested a horror movie then?“

„Oh, I do like horror movies but I am still scared of them… Pet Sematery for example, keeps me awake for two days but I’ll never say no to watching it!“, she smiles.

Liam shakes his head, chuckling, „Catherine, you are something else!“, he stares at her for a moment, „Come here, I’ll protect you“. She moves little closer to him and he wraps an arm around her, pulling her even closer. She nestles into his arms and smiles, enjoying his scent and his warmth.

—————

The week went by so fast and soon enough it was Friday. Cathy walks into the apartment after her morning run and goes straight to the kitchen. From the hallway she could already hear Liam mumbling something but she couldn’t make it out. She walks slowly into the kitchen, trying not to get his attention and cover his eyes with her hands „Guess who?!“, she giggles.

„The most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen!“, he smiles, taking her hands off his eyes and kissing them.

„You are such a flatterer…“, she leans on the counter, shaking her head and he turns around handing her a cup of coffee.

„I mean it“, he smiles, „Did you sleep well? How was your run?“

Cathy drinks a sip of her coffee, „I had a great night of sleep and the run was good. Did you sleep well? Are you missing your bed already?“

Liam chuckles, „I slept… I’m not a fan of waterbeds…“.

„Li, you can have your bed and I’ll take Drake’s. Why are you so stubborn?“, she puts her cup on the sink, getting close to Liam and he puts on a hand around her waist.

„Because I want you to sleep in my room… your scent is already everywhere in there and I like it“, he looks into her eyes and kisses her forehead gently.

Cathy puts one hand on his chest, moving it up to his neck, whispering, „I gotta go take a shower…“, she smiles and looks up into his eyes. „I can’t wait to go to the concert with you“

„I can’t wait for it either“, he chuckles.

Cathy laughs, „Good joke, Thompson! Do you even know one of his songs?“

„To be honest… I know a few lines from one song. But don’t get too excited now because I will only show it off once he sings it on stage!“, they laugh together for a moment, „I gotta take a shower too. See you later after your class?“, he places a kiss on her nose.

„Yeah, have a nice day, Li“, she leaves his arms and turns around to go to her room.

„You too, Cathy“, he watches as she leaves.

——————

They arrive at the concert hall not too long after the concert started. Liam holds Cathy’s hand while they walk through the crowd, looking for a good place to watch the show.

„Are you sure, you don’t want to go to our seats. You will be able to see better from there!“, he says into her ear, “They are really good seats!“.

Cathy smiles, „Maybe later, let’s just enjoy it down here for a bit… at least from here we can dance!“

Liam chuckles, „As you wish but you can’t see anything from down here, can you?“, he tries to watch it from her height for a couple second, „Okay, hop on!“, he takes a knee in front of her.

Catherine looks at him surprised and lowers herself to him, „Li, please stand up! Don’t worry too much about me, I’m fine“.

He looks at her and says, „How long will you leave me here in this position? Hop on, Cathy. Now who is being stubborn?!“

She giggles, „Alright! Alright! If you insist!“, she climbs on his shoulders. They watch the concert like this for a while. She doesn’t know but this is Liam’s first concert ever. Back in Cordonia, he would never be allowed to go into a place like this — too much noise, too many people, too many chances to be attacked and impossible to know where it’s coming from. He holds Cathy’s hands and is so happy he can share this moment with her.

After a few songs, Liam takes the knee again and Cathy hops off his shoulders. He takes her hand and they walk through the crowd looking for a food and beverage vendor. 

„Just so we are clear here, it’s my treat!“, Cathy says in his ear.

„Not a chance! It was my idea, I’m paying!“, Liam shakes his head smiling.

„You already bought the tickets, Li. Please, let me get this… please!“, she looks into his eyes and smiles. 

‚How can I say no to that smile‘, he thinks. „Okay, if this makes you happy, why not!“. Cathy gives him a peck on the cheek. 

After having a snack, they walk back to the place where they were before. Cathy stays in front of Liam and he places his arms protectively around her. A slow song is being played and Liam whispers into Cathy’s ear „May I have this dance?“. She turns around with a big smile on her face and nods, wrapping her arms around Liam’s neck. She looks into his eyes for a moment before resting her head on this chests. He kisses the top of her head, swaying to the music and she looks up at him, smiling — Liam leans in and whispers in her ears the only lines of the song that means something to him:

‚Every time I see you baby I get lost

If I'm dreaming, baby, please don't wake me up

Every night I'm with you I fall more in love

Now I'm laying by your side

Everything feels right since you came along

I'm thinking baby

You are bringing out a different kind of me

There's no safety net that's underneath,

I'm free falling all in you‚

After Liam declared his feelings for her, Cathy buries her face in his chest for a moment, blushing terribly. Then she looks up at him and smiles, placing both of her hands on his cheeks. There are some things she would like to tell him too but this moment feels so perfect, as if there were only the two of them in the world… as if the song was being played only for them.

Liam leans in and whispers: „May I kiss you?“, he lingers waiting for an answer.

„What took you so long?“, she whispers into his ears and he shakes his head smiling like a fool. 

He pulls a few inches away to look into her eyes for a moment. His hands move from her waist to her cheeks, one of his thumbs brushes over her lips. His heart is beating faster and faster as his face slowly comes down to hers, so close that he can smell the sweet fragrance with notes of jasmine she has on — he knows that when his lips meet hers there will be no turning back for him, his heart will be forever hers. He brushes a strand of hair away from her face and smiles gently. A shiver runs down Cathy’s spine when she feels his warm breath touching her lips and she holds her breath, closing her eyes for a couple seconds before she finally feels his soft lips touching hers for the first time. So gentle, so electrifying and intoxicating that even the background sound disappears. Liam wraps his arms around her, pulling her closer as if he could never let her go — this indescribable feeling is so powerful and unique as if he could see and taste every color of the rainbow, almost as if they could catch a smile in a bottle. It’s soft. It’s sweet. It’s love. 

After what felt like minutes, Liam’s lips leave hers… He is breathless and has a smile on his face. Liam leans his forehead on hers, staring deep into her eyes and feeling this soul connection that he has never felt before, it’s like levitating off the ground and floating with her in his arms… no words necessary anymore. Cathy smiles coyly and gives a peck on his lips, turning around and leaning against his body. She puts her arms over his, enjoying the safety of his warmth. He kisses the top of her head and they smile, enjoying this moment of bliss.

To be continued…

For more chapters go to my MASTERLIST in my bio.

——————

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„Liam, if we do this now you can shut down all the doubts and reservations that others may have about our baby. Now, let’s hear what Dr. Stern has to say, please?!“, they look at the doctor, who seems surprised about the inquiry.

„Well, it’s non-invasive because all what is needed is a blood sample of the mother to-be and a swab from the father to-be. While pregnant, you have free-floating fetal cells in your blood stream, Lady Catherine and through these cells the paternity can be determined. As far as I know, it takes about three days to get the results, it is a fairly simple and trustworthy process. If your Majesty agrees to the testing, I can arrange for someone from a clinic to come and collect the samples tomorrow — needless to say that this will be managed very discreetly!“, he says waiting for an answer.

Liam stands up, walking up to Dr. Stern, „Thank you very much. Please, arrange an appointment for tomorrow morning“, he shakes his hand and shows Dr. Stern out of the apartment. When Liam walks back to Catherine’s room, he looks at her annoyed, „Please, don’t do this ever again!“, he leans against the door and crosses his arms in front of him.

„What are you talking about, Liam? I just asked for informations…“, Catherine looks at him confused.

„Katie, you make me look like an asshole that doesn’t trust you when you ask our family doctor about a paternity test…“, he walks back to the bed and sits down by her side.

„Liam… I am sorry if you felt this way, you know it’s not like that… I just want to all of us to get along. Regina is an important person in your life, she loves you as a mother, she is family and I hope one day she can welcome me in this family too — not for me but for our child. If this paternity test is what it will take, then I think we should do it!“, she puts her head on Liam’s chest and he wraps an arm around her pulling her closer.

„Trust me, I understand but you can’t please everybody, love. And you should be careful, especially with Regina. She may be family but she has her own agenda… this palace and the power that comes with it has a way of corrupting people“, he kisses her head.

„What do you mean?“, Catherine looks up at him.

„Nothing, love… I’m still mad about the fight we had a few days ago“, he cups her cheek with one hand, „I want you to know that once we are married and you are Queen, this palace will be whatever you want it to be… but until then, if anyone says anything to offend or hurt you in anyway, I want to know and I will deal with this person properly“, he lower his lips to hers shortly for a gentle kiss. „Now, on to something happier… I have a surprise for you“, he says smiling.

„Yeah, what is it?“, she puts her hand on his and squeezes it.

„We are having an engagement ball next week… this isn’t the surprise though, I know how you feel about balls since what happened…“, he strokes her arm, holding her tight against his body, „But this time I will be by your side, holding your hand and nothing can touch you, my Queen“, he takes her hand in his and kisses it.

„Thank you, my King. So... tell me more about this surprise“, she giggles.

„You will be named a Duchess at the ball“, he smiles and Catherine looks at him surprised, „That’s the look I was aiming for!“, he laughs, „Yes, A Duchy will be bequeathed to you as part of becoming Queen of Cordonia. I have all the arrangements made, and after the ball we will be visiting your lands“.

Catherine looks at Liam nervously, „What? Wow… Do you think I can do this, it sounds like a lot of responsibility!“.

Liam chuckles, „Says the woman who is going to be Queen and mother to the heir to the throne…“, he places a kiss on her nose, „You will do fine! You are a lawyer, you know how to deal with people; you are a thinker and knows how to analyze situations, looking for the best solutions to problems; you are just and you fight for what is just… and you are the only person in the world, who can tell me what to do…“, he smiles.

Catherine giggles, „Yeah, wait until our baby is born! Then you will know who’s boss“.

„I can’t wait for this day, my love“, he puts his hand on her belly and strokes it gently, „I feel so content with my life right now. I will finally get to marry the love of my life, we are having a baby already… sometimes I fear that something could go wrong. It’s unnatural to me to feel this happy and to live such a perfect life“, he lowers his sight and sighs.

„You have been through a lot already, my King. Aren’t the years married to Madeleine torture enough for you?“, she looks at him smiling and he chuckles. „Talking about Madeleine… is she coming to this ball?“

„Unfortunately, we had to send out invites to the entire Cordonian nobility and that includes her and her family but I’m hoping she won’t come to her ex husband’s engagement party“, he stands up and pour a glass of water for Catherine, „But you shouldn’t worry about it, my love, you only have to worry about getting well“, he hands it to her, „Now, drink and try to rest for a moment. I’ll be by your side all the time“.

Catherine drinks her water and lies down, Liam lies down next to her, holding her in his arms.

—————

A few days have passed since Catherine left to London to deal with her work-related responsibilities. The result of the testing had arrived, proving Liam’s paternity to Catherine’s child — Liam shared the news immediately with Regina, hoping she would finally leave his bride alone.

Catherine arrives from London in the day of the ball and heads to Liam’s study. As she can’t find Liam’s private secretary to make sure he isn’t in an important meeting, she goes straight to him. She knocks at the door and opens it slowly, noticing the room is empty. She walks in and sits down on the couch, waiting for Liam.

Suddenly, Regina walks in, „Oh, I thought Liam was here!“. Catherine stands up and curtsies while Regina walks in her direction.

„Good afternoon. Unfortunately, he isn’t. I have been here waiting for him for the past five minutes“, Catherine waits for Regina to join her on the couch before sitting down again.

„I see he isn’t here. However, I wonder why you are here… this is not your quarter, Lady Catherine. This is the Government wing and as long as you aren’t in the presence of the King or married to him, you can’t walk in and out as you please!“, Regina says looking at her.

„Liam has never told me about any sort of rule that kept me restricted to one part of the palace, Regina. If you think me coming to my fiancé’s office isn’t appropriate, then maybe you should talk to him“, Catherine crosses her legs, putting her hands on her knees.

„Ah… Liam… Liam is blinded by your charms. At least now I know the baby is his but nothing will make me believe that this pregnancy wasn’t planed by you“, Regina stands up, heading to the bar cart, pouring herself some brandy. „I’m keeping an eye on you, Lady Catherine…“.

Catherine stands up, „Regina, you don’t really know me… The wedding is two weeks away and I’ll be marrying Liam because I love him. Can’t we just try to coexist amicably? For Liam and the baby?“

Regina laughs, „Aren’t you such a sweet thing…“, she says sarcastically, „You are either playing games or this place will chew you up and spit you out…“, she walks to the window.

Catherine takes a deep breath, „Alright… my door will always be open for you though, if one day you decide to be a part of my family“, she says leaving the room annoyed. On her way out, she sees Liam at the end of the hall and she smiles. He jogs to her, picking her up and spinning her around.

„Oh, my love!“, he puts her down, placing kisses all around her face, „You can’t imagine how much I’ve missed you“, he places his hand on her belly, stroking it and looks into her blue eyes for a second before kissing her passionately.

„Liam… someone could see us…“, she caresses his cheeks, giggling, „I’ve missed you too. I was in your study waiting for you but now I need to go to the boutique to pick up my gown for tonight“, she places a kiss on his lips.

„Okay, love. I’ll try to finish my work within the next hour and I’ll meet you in our apartment… I can’t wait to show every inch of you how much I’ve missed you!“, he smirks.

„Hmm… I’d love that, my King!“, she smiles, „But now I have to go… I love you!“, she places a kiss on his cheek.

„I love you too!“, he embraces her once again before letting her go to her appointment.

————

Liam waits for Catherine at the bottom of the stairs. It is the first time they will be announced together in front of the court and he can’t wait to see his future wife.

When Catherine finally appears, walking down the stairs, she catches Liam’s eyes, sweeping over her body, his mouth slightly ajar. As she arrives at the bottom, she hugs him, smiling „You look dashing, my King!“

„You… look… stunning!“, he looks at her beautiful red gown that accentuates her curves. „More than stunning, no word could do you justice, my love!“, he takes her hand and kisses it, taking a moment to admire her beauty. „Are you ready?“, he asks.

„Lead the way…“, she smiles and they head to the door, waiting for the herald to announce them.

„His Majesty, King Liam of Cordonia and Lady Catherine Spencer“, they hear their names and the doors open up. Liam looks at Catherine and winks, she smiles and they walk into the room full of nobles.

After entering the ball room, Liam danced the Cordonia waltz with Catherine while the room watched fascinated by the two of them. Liam has never looked so happy and in love before. Afterwards, both of them started to do their rounds - Liam walking up to some diplomats to greet them while Catherine heads to Maxwell and Drake.

„Hey you too. Long time no see!“, she says smiling.

„Katie! I can’t believe you guys are finally getting married…“, Maxwell says excited.

„Max, you say it as if they’ve been engaged for twenty years“, Drake says and Catherine giggles.

„You know what I mean… true love winning in the end… this is just like a fairy tale coming true!“, Maxwell raises his glass and they toast to Liam and Catherine. They talk for a while before Catherine goes through the crowd greeting their other guests until she finally joined Liam for a short moment only the two of them. Catherine tells Liam about her talks to their friends and their well wishes, when suddenly she notices Liam’s facial expression changing. She looks behind her and sees Madeleine coming at their direction.

„If this isn’t the woman who destroyed my life…“, Madeleine says with a fake smile.

„I think you are giving me far too much credit, your… how should I address you now, Madeleine? Is your ex-majesty to your satisfaction?“, Catherine raises a brow at her and Liam tries to suppress a laugh, while Madeleine can’t believe her ears. „About me destroying your life, I believe you have managed it all by yourself! Now, excuse me please I have other guests to greet“.

Madeleine narrows her eyes at Liam, „Are you going to allow her to talk to me like this?“.

„You had it coming, Madeleine! And why did you even bother gracing us with your presence?“, he holds his stoic expression.

„That engagement interview you two gave… you embarrassed me, Liam! You came across as if you were forced to marry me to consolidate your power and at your first chance, you threw me out…“, she says hurt.

„I’m sorry if you feel this way. I already told you, I’m sorry I could not offer you anything other than a title but you were the one to offer this arrangement, if my memory doesn’t fail me. I love Catherine, I always loved her and I never hid it from you. I am sorry you think I embarrassed you, I am a man in love and this is how it came across to the people, I can’t hide the way I feel after so many years trying“, Liam looks away, trying to find Catherine, „Anyway, I hope you enjoy the festivities, I have to go find my fiancee“.

„Liam…“, she holds Liam’s arm, pulling him closer to her, „One last advice… keep her on a short leash! Don’t allow her to destroy the monarchy“.

Liam furrows his brow, „Catherine is exactly what this monarchy needs, she is a breath of fresh air, people can relate to her kindness and passion“, he discreetly frees himself from her grip, „And Madeleine…“, he narrows his eyes at her, „Next time you decide to put your hands on me, don’t! And this isn’t a friendly request, it’s a warning“, he leaves without looking back.

Catherine is talking to Hana and Drake, when Liam walks behind her putting a hand on her waist. She looks at him and smiles, „I see you survived that conversation“, she giggles.

Liam chuckles, „Yes, indeed but let’s try to focus on something else“, he looks at the time, „I wanna ask you to join me in the gardens to watch the fireworks“, he takes her hand and kisses it.

„I can’t wait to see it with you!“, she says excited.

„Hana, Drake, the others will be joining us in a couple of minutes. You should come with us now, so you can choose a nice spot for the show“, Liam says, putting a hand on Drake’s shoulder.

„Wonderful! I haven’t seen a celebration like this in a while“, Hana says and they head out. 

They walk through the crowd on their way outside and while Drake and Hana look for a spot, Liam takes Catherine to the place reserved for them. He helps her to sit down on the blanket before following her, „You are the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen, my Queen“, he kisses her lips gently, „It is quite difficult to handle an event like this with you by my side… you make me wanna kiss you every second of the evening!“

Catherine giggles and quickly enough the lawn fills up with people ready for the fireworks. Soon the countdown starts and the sky brightens in different colors in honor of the couple. She leans against Liam’s chests and it feels as if there were only both of them in the world. He wraps his arms around her and says, „I love you, my Queen!“

She turns her head to him, „I love you too, my King!“.

To be continued...

For more chapters go to my MASTERLIST in my bio.

—————

Tag List

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@elbenmond @marywrites-things @furiousherringoperatortoad

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„Hey… you’re up already!“, Meghan says handing Cathy a glass of orange juice, „How was your run?“.

„Good morning you two! Good actually… hey, do you guys know how I got to bed?“, she takes a sip of her drink and sits down for a moment.

„Liam carried you to the bedroom“, Drake says, „He was really looking forward to talking to you last night but when we got here you were asleep on the couch“, he takes a sip of coffee.

„Yeah, I asked him to carry you to bed so we could chat for a while in the living room. He is really sorry for what happened on the field last night…“, she grabs her hand and gives a squeeze.

Catherine looks at them, her face is blank, „Well, as I said before, Liam and I aren’t dating… he can do whatever he wants with whoever he wants and it’s none of my business. He can date both girls for all I care!“, she stands up and puts her glass in the dishwasher. „You guys enjoy your breakfast, I need a shower!“

As Cathy leaves the room, Meg glances at Drake, „And then shit hits the fan…“. Drake nods and she continues, „Will these two ever communicate?“.

„Liam is usually good at it but he is so crazy about her… I don’t know, he has never been this insecure“, he sighs. „We have to try to keep this situation from snowballing somehow“.

„I know… We can try to bring them together but in the end it is up to Liam and Cathy“, she stands up and gives Drake a peck on the lips. „Maybe we should plan something for the week, let’s go to the movies all of us and see how things go from there“.

Drake stands up picking up the dishes, „Yeah, let’s do this!“.

—————

Liam is in the library, trying to find a book for one of his Poly Sci classes. He has been trying to keep busy but he spend most of his nights awake, thinking of her. He walks through the aisles, looking for the right one, when suddenly he sees Cathy on the other side of the building, trying to reach for a book. 

He watches her for a few seconds and smiles for a brief moment — she looks beautiful wearing her hair up in a messy bun — but his smile soon fades, he knows he messed up badly. He walks around the tables, making his way to her.

„Do you need help with something?“, he says leaning on the bookshelf and smiling at her.

„Erm…“, she glances at him shortly, getting back to the book, „No, thanks. I am fine!”, she says struggling to reach for it. “And congratulations on making the team“.

Liam puts one hand on her back and she stops for a second, breathing in his scent as he gets closer. She looks at him and he gets even closer to her, taking his eyes off her only to grab the book. 

“Thanks!”, he says, taking a look at it, „Surgical Intensive Care Medicine… sounds interesting!“. He looks back at her smiling.

„Yes, it is! Thanks for the help but can I have the book now?“, she turns to face him, bitting her lower lip.

„You can but I need a kiss first“, he taps on his cheek, trying to flirt with her.

Cathy rolls her eyes and sighs, „You know what? You can keep it then!“, she shakes her head, walking around him.

Before she can leave, he grabs her hand gently, „Hey, hey… I was just kidding! Of course you can have it!“, he hands it to her.

„Thanks!“, she turns around ready to go and he says:

„Cathy… please listen to me… I am sorry for what happened the other day. You have been ignoring my texts and I know I deserve it but can we please talk about it for a minute?“, he walks up to her, wrapping his arms around her, pulling her to his chest.

Cathy turns around to face him, taking two steps away from him, „There is nothing to talk about, Liam. It’s not like you need my permission or anything…“, she shrugs it off. Liam tries to say something but before he can, she says: „We are good, you don’t have to worry about it. I get it… it’s a new country, a new life… you wanna have fun. Just leave me out of this mess, please!“, she looks at the book shortly, „And thanks again!“, she says turning around and leaving.

Liam watches her as she goes, scratching the back of his head and whispers, „Fuck!“. He  closes his eyes, resting his head on his hands for a second. „You bloody idiot…“, he says upset at himself. He sits at the floor, leaning against the bookshelf and staring straight ahead, ‘maybe it’s too soon for that but I need to find a way to break through her walls’

—————

A couple of days later, after class, Liam walks into the coffeeshop to meet up with Drake, but he isn’t there yet. He buys himself a coffee and looks for a table for the two of them. He goes through his texts, seeing one from Meghan:

„We are going to the movies tonight… all of us… no excuses!“ 

He had planed on studying but he was happy he would get to see Cathy again. Going through his social media feeds, he sees a new selfie she posted with a couple of friends, all in scrubs. A smile escapes him, when he sees her laughing.

„Why are you smiling like a fool?“, Drakes stands in front of him.

„Erm… nothing, I was just looking at some photos“, he puts his phone in his bag, „So, we are going to the movies? What are we gonna watch?“.

„I don’t know, some French movie Meghan has been talking about for a while“, he sits down on a chair in front of Liam. „So, what’s going on in your life? I haven’t seen you around, even though we live together“.

Liam chuckles, „Well, you have been busy with Meg and I… I’ve been try to focus on school and football“, he takes a sip of his coffee. „I saw Cathy yesterday, she was walking through the campus with this guy“, Liam looks away for a second, „Do you know if she is seeing anyone?“

„Not that I know of. I think Meg would have told me… but I’ll see if I can find out something“, he takes a look at his phone, „I feel like I keep repeating myself but did you try to talk to her yet?“

„I did but it didn’t go well. She probably thinks I am an asshole and I totally feel like one… when did things get so complicated?“, Liam sighs.

„You tell me! But things will get better… just keep trying. Now, let’s go get ready to see our girls“, Drake gives Liam a pat in the back and they stand up, leaving the coffeeshop to go home and get dressed.

Almost an hour later, Drake and Liam walk up to Meg’s apartment knocking at the door.

„Hey guys, come in!“, she smiles and holds the door for them. Liam says hi and goes directly to the living room and as Drake stands in front of Meghan, he kisses her gently and she smiley. „Hey you…“, she whispers.

Drake smiles back, „I missed you…“, he places a kiss on her nose. „But we really should get going soon. Where is Cathy?“.

Meg takes his hand in hers and they walk into the living room, „Cathy is not coming“.

Liam looks at her surprised, „Why not?“, he says.

„I forgot she has something to go to in Sanfran, some medicine related party or gala… I don’t know the specifics“, Meghan gives Liam an apologetical look.

„Is she still here? I got some tickets to that concert you told me she wanted to go to“, he asks.

„Yeah, in her room… but how did you get it? They were sold out?!“, she smiles.

Liam looks at Drake and smirks, „I… let’s just say that I got lucky!“

„Yeah, lucky and poor… they costed a fortune!“, Drake chuckles and Liam gives him an angry look. „What? I didn’t know it was a secret…“

„This is so sweet, Li… she will love that! Why don’t you go tell her?“, Meghan smiles.

Liam stands up and walks out of the living room, making his way to Cathy’s room. He knocks gently at the door.

„Come in…“, Cathy says, standing in front of the mirror. He opens it, noticing that she is struggling to reach the zipper of her dress.

„Let me help you with that“, he says, walking into the room. He positions himself behind her and suddenly he feels nervous, admiring every inch of bare skin he gets to see from her. Slowly, he zips her dress up and looks in the mirror to see her. „Wow…“.

Cathy smiles friendly, „Thank you for the help“.

„Of course… Y-you look stunning!“, he suddenly realizes how close he is from her and takes a step back.

Cathy turns around, „So, can I help you with anything?“

„I just wanted to say hi“, he lowers his sight, „I know you are mad at me and rightly so but I really miss the time we spent together… I miss you and the way you make me smile“, he looks at her.

„I miss the time we spent together too, Liam. But right now I can’t... It’s just too complicated“, she smiles sadly.

Liam reaches for her hand, brushing his fingers over hers, „Just tell me what you want me to do and I’ll do it“, he raises her hand and brushes his lips on it „There is something I’d like to ask… Would you like to…?“, suddenly they hear the buzzer.

„Sorry, I think it’s Adrian“, she walks to her window and takes a look to see who is at the building entrance, „I gotta go… but what is it you wanted to ask?“, she turns to him, making her way out of the room.

Liam gives her a half hearted smile, it breaks his heart that she is going out with another guy, „Nothing too important… I have a game tomorrow, do wanna come?“.

„Sorry, I’m spending the day in San Francisco. But good lucky at your game and… Liam, please take care. Football is a dangerous sport, don’t hurt yourself!“, she says worried.

As she is heading to the door, Liam pulls her into a hug and they stay like this for a few seconds, in silence. He cups her cheek with a hand, „I’ll take care… have fun in San Francisco, Cathy“, he says, feeling defeated. They leave her room and make their way to the living room, where she says hi to drake and Meg before leaving the apartment.

Meghan looks at Liam sad face, „What happened?“

„I didn’t tell her… I mean, she is going out with another guy. She is spending the day with him there…“, he closes his eyes and pinch the bridge of his nose.

„Li, it’s not like that…“, Meghan tries to explain.

„It doesn’t matter… I fucked up, now she is getting to know someone else“, he open his eyes, looking away, „I… you have fun at the movies. I don’t feel like doing anything tonight, sorry“. Liam walks out of the room heading to the door.

„Li… you don’t have to be alone!“, Drake walks after him.

„Yeah, I know but I’d like to be. I’ll be fine, I just need sometime…“, he opens the door and leaves.

—————

Cathy arrives at home around 9pm that Saturday, after her day in San Francisco. She hear some voices in the kitchen and goes there to say hi, finding Drake and Meg cooking.

„Hey!“, she says smiling.

„Hi Cathy, how was Sanfran?“, Meghan asks, walking up to her to give her a hug.

„It was nice to spend some time with my mom and my brother but we didn’t do much. What you been up to? Oh and how was the game?“, she asks curious.

Drake smirks, „You know the usual…“. Meghan giggles, shaking her head and he continues, „The movie was better than I thought and the game was good, we won!“.

„Really? I thought you would be out celebrating then!“, Cathy smiles.

„Li got tackled and now he has a headache or something… so he went home. Are you hungry? We have enough for all of us“, Drake says.

Cathy looks at Drake worried, „What? Drake, you can’t leave him alone…“, she walks out of the kitchen and runs to her room, coming back with her school bag. „He could have a concussion… dam it, I told him to take care!“, she says nervously. „Give me your keys, please. I’m gonna go check up on him!“. Drake looks at her confused, not understanding why she is so worried about a headache. „Drake, give. me. your. keys… now!“

Drake hands her the keys and she leaves. He looks at Meghan, „What the fuck... What did just happen?“

„I think they are going to be fine…“, Meghan giggles.

—————

Cathy walks into Liam’s apartment, looking around to see if she finds him before heading to his room. He knocks at the door and Liam says:

„Drake, I’m not in the mood…“

„It’s me, Cathy“, she says, „Can I come in?“.

Liam feels butterflies in his stomach when he hears his voice, „Yeah… yeah, come in!“.

Catherine walks into his room, she sees him lying in bed and she worries, „Li, Drake said that after the game you weren’t feeling well… I had to check up on you“.

„Drake was exaggerating!“, he looks at her and she sits down by his side, picking up a few things on her bag, „I’m fine, it’s just a headache“.

„A headache could be a sign of a concussion, Liam“, she brushes her fingers through his hair, „Okay, now let me see… now look at the penlight and follow the light with your eyes“. Liam does as she says and she continues, „No light sensibility… this is good! Now sit down, please. Do you know the finger-nose-finger test?“

„I don’t think I do… Cathy, I really appreciate your concern but I don’t have a concussion“, Liam says, cupping her cheek.

„Once you are cleared I’ll leave you alone but for now… let me do my job!“, Cathy smiles, „Touch your index finger to my index finger and then to your nose. We will repeat it several times, with both hands and I’ll be moving my finger. So let’s go“. After a few minutes Cathy says, „Good… now tell me, do you feel nauseous? Dizzy? Is your vision blurred?“

„No, no and no!“, Liam chuckles.

„Okay…“, she smiles, „You seem fine. I’m gonna leave then but if you feel something strange, please go see a doctor?!“.

Liam takes her hand, „I hope I feel something because I really wanna see you… you are my doctor now“, he chuckles.

„I’m not a doctor yet, Liam… and I’m serious, promise me!“.

„Alright!“, he smiles, „I can’t believe you were worried about me…“

„Of course I am, Li. I do care about you…“, she brushes he thumb over his cheek and try to get up to leave but Liam holds her hand.

„Please, stay a while longer…“, he pulls her closer to him and she giggles, „Won’t you tell me how your date went?“

„My date? Li, it’s not like that. Adrian and I are just friends… and I am not his type anyway!“, she smiles.

„Sorry to break it to you but you are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, you are kind, intelligent… every guy could count himself lucky to have you!“, Liam looks down and sighs.

Cathy tilts his chin gently up, „Don’t tell his boyfriend then, Liam…“.

Liam stares at her for a short moment and then starts laughing, „Shit, I really should shut up… I am making a fool of myself, aren’t I?“

„A little bit…“, she smiles.

„But before I do shut up, I wanna tell you something“, he tucks a strand behind her ear, „You are not the only one who has never been in a relationship, Cathy… The closest I got to that was kissing my childhood friend and it didn’t go too well...“, he shakes his head, „What I am trying to say is… I’m still figuring things out, learning to deal with my feelings. I have never felt like this before and it breaks my heart to know that I hurt you... because I really like you“, he holds her hand.

„Li…“, she looks deep into his eyes trying to find the right words. 

„You don’t need to say anything right now, Cathy“, he smiles and opens his nightstand picking up the two tickets he bought for them, „I… Meg told me you wanted to go to a Shawn Mendes Concert“, he shows her the two tickets, „I was thinking about asking you out… but now… why don’t you keep these and take Meg or another friend with you?“, he hands them to her.

„What? But these tickets were sold out for months!“, Cathy looks at Liam in disbelieve, „Li, this is the sweetest thing a guy has ever done to me… thank you“, she hugs him.

„Then, you’ve been hanging out with the wrong guys, love. You deserve the world“, he strokes her back, „I hope you enjoy the show next week… let me know how it went“.

Cathy puts a hand on the back of his neck and whispers, „Crazy idea… why don’t you come with me? Not as my date, just you and me having fun together“, slowly she leaves his arms to look at his face.

He smiles and stares into her eyes for a moment, „I’d really like that, Cathy“, his voice is tender and quiet.

„Good… now I really should go. I’ll be back tomorrow to see how you’re feeling“, she smiles.

„I’ll be waiting. Have a good night, Cathy“.

„You too, Liam“.

To be continued…

For more chapters go to my MASTERLIST in my bio.

——————

Tag List

@gardeningourmet @bella-ca @coldcollectornight08

@elbenmond @marywrites-things @furiousherringoperatortoad

@hopefulmoonobject  @give-me-ernest-sinclaire

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Feeling Liam’s warmth and his kisses, Catherine slowly opens her eyes and sighs satisfied, enjoying his presence, „Good morning, Liam“, she says in a husky sleepy voice, turning around to face him.

„Good morning, my love“, he smiles as bright as dawn on a dazzling summer’s day when their eyes meet, „God, you are beautiful… I am so glad I didn’t dream it and you are finally mine…“, he leans in for a gentle kiss.

„I’ve always been yours, Liam…“, she nestles into his arms closing her eyes and listening to his heartbeat, „Even though there were forces keeping us apart, I have never stopped loving you“. She raises her head shortly to look into his eyes, „A paper will make it official but it won’t change my feelings for you, my love“.

„I will always love you, Katie… never forget that! To me there is nothing more important than you“, he caresses her cheek, „I’d give up everything and anything for you and our baby. I appreciate everything you are putting into this relationship… I know you love your job and…“, before he finishes his sentence, she says:

„I love you, Liam. My job is important to me but you and our baby are everything that matters to me and if loving you and spending my life with you includes being the queen of a country, so be it. As long as you love me, I’ll be fine!“, she smiles looking at his excited eyes. „And I can’t wait to have a palace full of children running around…“, she giggles.

„A palace full of children? I’d love that but a palace is a very big place, my Queen. Are these the pregnancy hormones talking?“, he chuckles.

„Maybe…“, she laughs, kissing him. Suddenly, her face expression changes and she jumps out of the bed, running to the bathroom.

Liam goes after her, but the door is locked, „Honey, let me in…“, he listens to her throwing up. Although everybody keeps telling him that it is a normal thing, he is still concerned — Catherine hasn’t been eating well and he could swear she is losing weight. After a few minutes, he says: „Love… please… open up the door“, he hears the flushing sound and she brushing her teeth. Soon she opens the door looking pale and he pulls her in for a hug, „Please, don’t lock the door when you are feeling bad...“, he kisses her hair.

„Sorry, force of habit…“, she looks up at him and tries to smile, „So, what are we doing today?“

„We are driving to your sister’s for breakfast. The entire family will be there to celebrate our engagement and afterwards we will drive to the airport“, he kisses her lips gently, „Hopefully, you will eat something, honey. At least try…“

„Okay, I promise I’ll try, Liam… next week I got another appointment, this time with my doctor in Cordonia and you can ask for a third opinion on my morning sickness“, she giggles, giving him a peck on the cheeks and moving aside. „We should get dressed, drive to my parents first to change these clothes and then go to my sister’s!“.

Liam smiles and they pick up their scattered clothes, getting dressed to leave.

—————

Catherine’s family was very excited for them and to have Liam as a new addition to the family because they knew he loved and respected Catherine and it was clear to everyone that she was completely in love with him. Liam enjoyed to be treated as just another person, around her family he was Liam — no titles or influence. This was one of the things that made him fall in love with Catherine, in her eyes he sees the man behind the crown. 

After a couple of hours sharing the details of their engagement with her family, they left to the airport on their way to Cordonia. Catherine was feeling tired and fell asleep in Liam's arms. Her lack of energy, due to her difficulty to keep food and liquids down, has not gone unnoticed and concerns Liam still. He is glad though that she was able to eat some fruits for breakfast.

Catherine wakes up a few hours into the flight to Cordonia and doesn’t find Liam by her side. She looks around and sees him in another seat, working on his laptop. She stands up and walks up to him and when he sees her, he smiles, „Hi love, did you sleep well?“, he takes her hand and pulls her onto his lap.

Catherine giggles and puts one arm around his neck, kissing his forehead, „Yeah but I missed you… what are you up to?“, she turns to the other side and looks at the computer.

„I’ve been working on our engagement announcement and getting prepared for our interview. We have it set up for 10am on Sunday, about 1pm the announcement will go out to the media outlets and the interview will be shown on TV at 8pm. Monday morning we will have a press appointment in the gardens, where media outlets will be able to take some photos and ask a couple questions and that’s it, once the news are out you will be officially Cordonia’s Queen-to-be“, he strokes her back. „Do you wanna see the announcement?“, she nods and he opens a file, showing the Royal Crest and she reads:

‚HIS MAJESTY KING LIAM OF CORDONIA

AND LADY CATHERINE SPENCER

ARE ENGAGED TO BE MARRIED

The King of Cordonia is delighted to announce his engagement to Lady Catherine Spencer.

The wedding will take place next month, in the capital. Further details about the wedding will be announced in due course.

His Majesty the King and Lady Spencer became engaged this month during a private holiday in New York. King Liam has informed close members of his family and also sought the permission of Lady Spencer’s father.

Following the marriage, the couple will live in the capital at the palace.’

Catherine turns her head back to Liam and smiles. He brushes her cheek with his fingertips and smiles back, „This day is going to be the happiest day of my life. I can’t wait to be your husband. I love you, Catherine. Everything I’ve been through has made me a better man and brought me here because this is where I need to be… by your side“.

„Liam… you are gonna make me cry, baby“, she brushes a couple of tears away and smiles. „I love you too!“, kissing him passionately, losing herself in the kiss, leaving his lips only when the pilot announces that they are preparing for landing. They giggle together and Catherines takes the seat by his side.

—————

After driving through the empty streets of Cordonia, Liam and Catherine arrive in the evening at the palace, heading directly to Liam’s study, where he planed on telling the news to Leo and Regina. Catherine was quite nervous — they were the only family Liam had and she hoped they would be happy for them. 

Leo was the first one to walk into the room and he smiled widely when he saw Catherine, „Good to see you again, Katie! You are looking so much better than the last time we talked“, he hugs her.

„Nice to see you too, Leo. What have you been up to?!“, she smiles and he walks up to Liam.

„Please, don’t get him started!“, Liam hugs his brother smiling. „Good to see you, brother. Thanks for running the show whilst I was gone!“

„My pleasure! And he is right, Katie, you wouldn’t be able to look me the same way if I told you!“, he glances shortly at her, turning his head back at his brother, „You look different, little bother… I don’t know, somehow happier“.

Liam smiles, „It’s because I am. I have an announcement to make but let’s wait for Regina…“, as he says her name there is a knock at the door and Regina walks in.

Regina smiles as she sees Liam and walks up to him, hugging him. She exchanges a few words with him, turning to Catherine surprised: „Lady Catherine! I didn’t expect to see you back in Cordonia… ever, actually. How have you been?“.

„I’ve been good, thank you, Ma’am. How have you been?“, she smiles politely.

„I’ve been busy traveling but I’m glad to be back home“, she looks at Liam, „So, now that I’m here, what is it that you wanted to tell me, Liam?“, she smiles.

„Well, thank you both for coming here on such a short notice“, he holds his hand out for Catherine to take and brings her to his side, „Leo already knows that Catherine and I have been seeing each other for the past two months. I asked her to give us another chance and after proving myself and showing her the sincerity of my intentions, she finally agreed“, Liam looks into her eyes, holding her hands in his, „Yesterday I asked her to be my wife and much to my delight she accepted my proposal“, he kisses her ring finger and looks at the others, „The announcement will go out tomorrow but I wanted to share it with you two first“.

Leo smiles happily pulling both of them into a hug, „This is wonderful news, Liam! You are a lucky lucky bastard! But you already know that… This woman is good for you, little brother, don’t you mess it up!“, he turns to Catherine, „You take care of him, Katie. My brother has the purest of all hearts and he needs a strong intelligent woman by his side, I’m glad it’s you!“. Catherine smiles and looks at Liam, who is smiling like a fool.

They look at Regina, who is trying to grasp what is going on but doesn’t seem very excited for them. She looks at Liam and says: „You two have all the time of the world. Why do you want to get married so soon? So many things happened after Lady Catherine left Cordonia… you should get to know each other first.“.

„Regina, I believe congratulations are in order here!“, Leo says narrowing his eyes at her. 

Liam pulls Catherine protectively into his arms and says, „Because I love her, I have loved her since the day she came to Cordonia for the social season and had my father not conspired against us, I’d have married her years ago. My biggest regret was letting her go and I don’t need to waist more time, I know exactly what I want and I’m not here asking your permission, Regina. I’m informing you that our wedding is in a month from now“.

„I’m sorry, Liam. I’m just looking for your best interest… I didn’t mean to come off rude. If this is what you two want… congratulations!“, she tries to put on a smile.

„Yes, this is what we want“, Liam looks at Catherine, who looks a little uncomfortable with the situation and he strokes her back, „Okay. We just got back from New York. If there is no more questions, I’ll take Catherine to our apartment and come back to finish up a few things for tomorrow“, Liam throws an angry glance at Regina and she lowers her sight.

„Regina and I will leave you alone. Have a good night, you too!“, Leo puts one arm around Regina’s neck and leads her out of the study. Liam looks at Catherine, noticing she seems a little troubled because of Regina’s reaction and says:

„Don’t worry about her, she will come around“, he leans in for a kiss.

„I’m not worried… I guess, I just hoped she would be more supportive towards you“, she brushes her knuckles on his cheeks.

„Yeah, she can’t get over my divorce… but I don’t care“, he kisses her forehead.

„Well… Okay, maybe she just needs some time…“,she smiles trying to ignore what just happened, „So, let’s go?“. Liam takes her hand and they leave the room.

—————

Walking through the hallways of the palace, Liam chuckles and Catherine looks at him smiling.

„What is going on in this mind of yours?“, she brushes her hand over his arm.

„Nothing… I just thought of something. Would you like to move in with me? I mean… into my bedroom? We will be married in a few weeks anyway. I’d really like that“, he raises her hand and kisses it.

„And miss you sneaking into my room late at night? I don’t know…“, she giggles, „It’s so sweet of you to think about it but I’d like to keep some traditions alive and moving in together could be one of them“, she gives him a peck on the cheek.

„Hmm… If this is what you want“, he opens the door to his apartment and when they walk in he presses her against the door, „Is this really what you want, Catherine?“, he smiles a traces kisses from her neck to her décolleté.

„Hmm, are you trying to seduce me into accepting your invitation?“, she closes her eyes enjoy his kisses. Liam’s hands roaming over her body, trailing lower and stopping between her legs. She presses herself against his touch.

„Is it working?“, he smirks and she turns around.

„Hmm, care to give me a hand?“, he unzips her dress, revealing her back and a chill goes down his spine as he touches her naked skin. She turns around, looking into his eyes and lets her dress falls to the floor exposing her firm breasts to him and he groans.

„To answer your question… No, it’s not working“, she winks at him with a naughty smile on her face. Catherine kisses his cheek and walks past him to her room, closing the door behind her. Liam smiles and sighs, throwing his head back, then he looks back at her direction and walks up to the door, knocking on it.

„Honey?“, he tried to open the door but it’s locked, „Let me in, love… you can’t… you can’t do this to me. I am suppose to work a little bit, but how can I concentrate if you leave me high and dry?!“, he hears Catherine giggling behind the door, „I can hear you… let me in, please“.

„Bye, Liam. See you when you’re back!“, she walks into the bathroom to take a shower.

„Fuck“, he whispers, „I’ll be back in one hour and if you don’t open the door then… I promise I’ll have it removed by tomorrow!“, he says smiling and leaves shaking his head.

One hour later, after being in bed for a while waiting for Liam, she decided to go to his study to check up on him. A few feet from the door she could already hear Regina’s voice arguing with him about something. She stops before the door and listens to the conversation.

„Liam, this is too soon! You barely know her…“, Regina says.

„I don’t remember to have asked for your council on this matter, Regina“, he pauses, leaning on his desk, „Look, you don’t need to waist your time here with me because it is not up to discussion“, Liam says and there is a silence in the room. „We are expecting a child, Regina… everything is so perfect in my life right now, why can’t you just be happy for us?“, his voice softens and Catherine smiles, listening to him.

„A child? How far along is she?“, she asks.

„Eight weeks… we saw the baby, listened to its heart beat… it’s such an amazing feeling! I’m going to have a child with the only woman I have ever loved and I couldn’t be happier“, he says smiling.

„So you two are two months together and she is about eight weeks along? Liam, this kid could be anyone’s child, please tell me that you are not this naive!“, she pauses and Catherine frowns by the sound of her words, „Look, this woman could be taking advantage of you. This child will be the crown prince or princess of this country, you own it to your people to at least be sure it is yours! Who knows with how many men she has been in the past months?“, Regina raises her voice, „You could be raising a bastard… an impostor!“. Catherine feels as if the wind was knocked out of her. She waits for a reaction from Liam but she doesn’t hear anything coming from him. She looks carefully through the slightly ajar door and sees Liam walking to the bar grabbing a bottle of Whisky and a glass. She closes her eyes, fighting the tears, scared he is falling into Regina’s trap and considering her ideas as he doesn’t respond to her accusations.

Catherine shakes her head and steps back, walking briskly through the hallways on her way out of Liam’s Government wing. She needs some air and wanted to go for a walk as she sees Leo getting home, parking his car in front of the Entrance of the palace. She walks down the stairs and he sees her.

„Hey! What are you up to?“, he asks.

„Hi Leo, I need a car“, she says trying to pretend everything is okay.

„Hmm, have you talked to Li? He could call the driver… or I can do it for you!“, he smiles friendly.

„No, no… I went to his study but he is busy with Regina. I’d rather drive myself, there is a couple of errands I would like to run“, she says.

„My car is outside, but what kind of errands are you planing on running at this time of the night?“, he smirks.

„I’m a woman, Leo. Do you really want me to give you a list of the things I need moving into a new home?“, she smiles.

„Okay, okay. You can take my car! The Audi parked over there. When you get back, please leave it at the same place and the keys in Liam’s study“, he hands her the keys.

„Got it! Thank you!“, she says, smiling and leaves the palace.

Leo watches as she heads to the car and says: „Hey, do you even know how to drive stick?“

Before entering the car she says: „I’ll figure it out!“, quickly she get’s in and drives out. Leo shakes his head, hoping she won’t destroy his brand new car.

———————

Almost two hours later there is a knock at Leo’s bedroom door. 

„Leo? Are you awake?“, Liam says.

„Hmmm… Now, yes. Come in!“, Leo hides his face under a pillow and Liam turns the light on.

„Have you seen Catherine? I have been waiting for her for over an hour, I have looked all over the palace and I can’t find her“, he asks worried.

Leo sits in bed and looks at Liam confused, „She isn’t back yet? She said she had to run some errands and I gave her my car keys“.

„Errand? What errands?“, Liam asks nervous.

Leo puts his hands up, looking at Liam, „No idea, brother. She said she went to your study but you were busy with Regina and that she needed to go… she never told me where she was heading to!“

Liam closes his eyes and cover them with one hand, „Fuck!“, he turns around, punching the wall.

„What has this wall ever done to you, Liam?“, Leo asks worried.

„She probably heard parts of my talk to Regina, freak out and left“, he sighs, „She is pregnant with my baby, Leo, why would you give her your car keys this late at night?“, Liam raises his voice.

„What? She is pregnant?“, Leo jumps out of the bed. „Liam, I had no idea…“.

Liam breaths deeply, „I’m sorry, I know it’s not your fault. I’m just worried sick… Regina said terrible things… I gotta go find her, Leo“. 

„We will find her, Li. I’m coming with you“, Leo takes a white T-shirt and sweatpants he had thrown over a chair and puts them on, „Let’s go, we’ve got no time to lose!“.

(to be continued…)

For more chapters go to my MASTERLIST in my bio.

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She kept her promise and called Liam twice a day — she needed him and his love as much as him hers. After spending the day listening to the most horrific stories and trying to console and encourage these women, all she wanted was to hear his voice. Liam, on the other hand, knew by the sound of hers how emotionally drained she was feeling and he’d try to make her feel loved. Somedays, when she was too quiet, he would try to take her mind out of her worries by telling her about new projects he was trying to implement or how the kitchen construction was coming along; or even how Drake and Leo got into a fistfight playing basketball because Leo called Olivia ‚that bitchy red devil‘, not knowing that Drake is kind of dating her. 

They miss each other so much — Liam couldn’t wait to have her in his arms and feel the touch of her skin again and Catherine missed his deep blue eyes and was longing for his musky scent.

——————

4am:

Liam’s phone rings, waking him up from a pleasant dream. He looks at the display and sees Catherine’s photo and smiles.

„Good morning, beautiful“, he answers with a sleepy voice.

„Oh, no! I’m so sorry for waking you up, honey! I thought it would go straight to voice mail“, she says afraid that he won’t be able to sleep anymore.

„Don’t worry, my love. I’ve been waiting for your call… how are you today?“, he smiles

„I’m feeling better, still not completely fine but I’ll manage!“, Catherine feels the nausea beginning to rise again.

„What? Are you sick?! Why didn’t you tell me?“, he asks concerned.

„I saw the doctor two days ago and he told me I’m sun-struck… nothing too serious though“, she tries to calm him down.

„Oh love, you should have told me. I’ll take care of you when you arrive... By the way, are you ready to fly back to me?“, he smiles.

„My luggage is already packed and in the car. We will drive to the airport in about 1h, we should be there about 11am but we won’t fly out until 9pm“, she pauses and calculates the time difference, „Which means that if everything works out well I’ll get to Germany around 11pm-12am... Maybe it’s better if I spend the night in Germany and fly to you in the morning?!”.

„What? No, love! I’ll be in Germany waiting for you… Tomorrow we can sleep in and spend the day in bed together, don’t you worry about it. Also, I can’t wait one more day, I have to see you“, he sounds excited.

„I can’t wait to see you either, Liam. I never thought I could miss someone this much. I feel like I don’t ever wanna be away for you again…“, she says it quietly, touched by her feelings towards him.

„Oh, beautiful. Now is not the time to be sad… I’ll be holding you in my arms in a few hours. ‘I miss you deeply, unfathomably, senselessly, terribly’.“, he closes his eyes trying to remember her scent.

„Look at you quoting Kafka at 4 in the morning! I can’t… this is getting too deep for me!“, they laugh together for a moment. „I… I have to go check on my colleagues. But I want you to know that I love you and I can’t wait to be with you!“, she looks outside and sees the rising sun lighting the sky.

„I love you too, Catherine. I’ll be waiting for you“, Liam hangs up and turns to his left side, looking at a photo of him and Catherine on his night stand. He is holding her in his arms and looking at her whilst she smiles widely. She looks so beautiful and happy and it warms his heart. He opens the drawer and picks up a small velvet box. It’s been sitting there since he came back from their trip through the Mediterranean. Liam knows it is too early but his heart is certain that she is the one. He opens the ring box and looks at his mother engagement ring. It is the same diamond band with a five carat oval diamond in the center he had planed on giving her 4 years ago — he doesn’t know when he will propose but he knows that this time everything has to be perfect.

————————

11am:

Bastien and the Minister of Foreign Affairs walk up to Liam’s office. They stop in front of Liam’s secretary and Bastien says:

„Mr. Jones, we have an urgent matter to discuss with His Majesty. Would you please announce us“, Bastien seems nervous and agitated.

„Unfortunately, I can’t. His Majesty is on a phone conference with the president of France and he asked not to be disturbed“, he gives Bastien an apologetical look.

„Mr. Jones, you either go inside and tell His Majesty that we have to talk to him now or I will. I don’t have time to discuss the urgency of this matter with you!“, says the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

„Alright, Mr. O’Callaghan!“, he excuses himself and enters Liam’s office, closing the door behind him. After less than a minute, he walks out and says: „King Liam awaits you“.

Mr. O’Callaghan and Bastien walk in and bow their heads as they see the King.

„Mr. O’Callaghan, to what do I owe your visit today?“, Liam looks at both man worried, „Please have a sit!“. 

„Your Majesty, I must apologize for barging in uninvited but I have some… upsetting news“, He sits down in front of Liam. Liam looks at him and at Bastien and his heart sinks. „I was contacted by the US Department of State less than one hour ago. There was an attack on an United Nations humanitarian convoy in Iraq this morning“, Liam lowers his head, closing his eyes pinching the bridge of his nose with his thumb and middle finger, „Two cars were affected, the others fled the scene when they realized what was happening…“, Liam looks up at him again. „Four Iraqis died in one car. Another car lost control… Two Iraqis and a French citizen needed medical assistance, an American citizen is missing“, Liam stands up, turning his back towards them, feeling the air being knocked out of his lungs. Tears threatening to spill out as he tries to keep his composure. He waits, hoping Mr. O’Callaghan would tell him that it is someone else but in his heart he knows that this American is the love of his life. „They found a passport a few feet away from the scene, it belongs to Lady Catherine Spencer. It was near a car where two men were found dead, witness suggested that they might have been involved in the attack“.

Liam clenches his teeth, „Bastien… I need information on our special operators force, now!“, he stares at the wall.

„They have initiated protocol one hour ago, my King. We received a distress signal and they went underground…“, before Bastien can ends his sentence, Liam raises his voice:

„What the fuck does it mean ‚they went underground‘?“, he closes his eyes and breaths deeply, covering his eyes with his hand, „I’m sorry… I… shouldn’t have…“.

„Don’t worry about it, Your Majesty“, Bastien answers and Mr. O’Callaghan says:

 „We have a paramilitary unit in Iraq without the knowledge of the Iraqi Government, Sir. If this story gets out, the Americans will deny any knowledge of this operation and Cordonia will get involved in a diplomatic crises“. Liam nods, understanding what is at stake, and Bastien continues: 

„They should be on their way to the Jordanian border, their final destination is Israel. But the concern right now is that Lady Catherine doesn’t have her passport with her…“.

„The Americans will send an embassy official to the border and he or she will make sure she gets into Jordan and Israel“, Mr. O’Callaghan says.

Liam lowers his head and leans on the sideboard in front of him: „Are we sure they have her?“, Liam says under his breath as he braces himself for the worst.

„There is no 100% guarantee but we are hopeful. We are expecting to hear from them within the next 20 hours, my King“, Bastien says.

„Okay… if this is all, I’d like to be alone now but keep me updated!“, Liam says.

The two men excuse themselves and leave the room. He brings his hands to his head, pressing on his temples and he falls apart crying. His head is spinning with all these ifs... ‚What if they don’t have her? What if she is hurt?‘, he talked to her in the morning… he was so close to have her back and now this. He turns around, now facing his massive wood desk… everything on it seems so unimportant now. He grips the desk, feeling the anger building up in his chest and he flips it over making a loud noise — everything flies everywhere and Liam falls to his knees sobbing. He can’t keep his facade anymore whilst his world is falling apart in front of him.

Bastien comes in quickly, afraid something terrible had happened: „Your Majesty, are you alright?“, behind him is Liam’s secretary trying to see what was going on in the room. They watch Liam in his weakest moment for a second, there is no answer from him, until Bastien turns to his secretary, „Not a word about what happened today in this room!“, his secretary nods, „Clear his schedule, I’ll take the King to his quarter!“. He walks up to Liam and asks „Your Majesty, can you walk?“, but Liam doesn’t answer. He helps him up and talks to his team through his ear piece, „Send the doctor to the King’s quarter, right now!“. He puts Liam’s arm around his shoulders as they head to Liam’s quarter, he says:

„I can’t breath… I… I can’t…“, Liam gasps for air but it is visibly difficult for him to breath.

„You are having a panic attack, your Majesty. The palace doctor is on his way and you will be fine in a minute. Just try to calm down and everything will be okay“, Bastien says taking Liam to his apartment.

——————

1pm:

Bastien is in Liam’s office waiting for Drake and Leo. They walk in chatting, not knowing what was going on and suddenly they stop as they see the aftermath of Liam’s break down.

„Holly smokes, what the heck happened in here? And where is my brother?“, Leo asks worried. 

„Drake, please close the door behind you“, Bastien says as Leo walks up to him, „There were complications in Iraq… and Lady Catherine is missing. We have reasons to believe that our team has her but we can’t confirm it until they reach Jordan… there is nothing we can do now, just wait“, Bastien gives Leo and Drake a helpless look.

„Oh, my God! Liam must be freaking out right now, where is he?“, Drake says looking at all the documents and papers scattered around the room.

„His Majesty is in his room, he was sedated and will be out for the next few hours but it would be good if one of you could stay in his room with him. We don’t want him to wake up and do something he will regret later…“, Bastien sighs scared for his King’s wellbeing.

„I’ll be here holding the front while you, Drake, go to my brother. If there is any news on Lady Catherine’s situation, I want to know and I will be the one to break the news to my brother, understood?“, Leo says concerned, afraid Liam won’t bounce back from a loss like this. Bastien nods and leaves the room with Drake.

———————

9pm:

Liam slowly wakes up. He looks to the side and sees Catherine’s photo, suddenly he remembers pieces of what happened earlier. Drake, who is on the couch near to the window, notices him moving in bed and says: „Hey, how are you?“.

„Did it really happen? Where is she? Where is Catherine?“, Liam jumps out of the bed and looks at him confused.

„Hey, hey, calm down… we are still waiting for news, they will come in any time now but you have to relax, Liam!“, Drakes tries to take him back to bed but he refuses.

Liam walks to the sideboard and opens it looking for something: „Where is the bottle of Whisky that I had in here?“

„You were sedated, you can’t drink alcohol now!“, Drakes answers.

„Try and stop me!“, Liam tries to leave his room but Drake stands between him and the door.

„You can die by mixing both of them and I won’t stand here and watch you do that again…“, Drake screams at his friend.

„Get out of my way, Drake! I... I just want to numb this pain… I can’t bear the thought of losing her“, tears run down his cheeks and Drake comes in and hugs him.

„I’m not going anywhere, Liam. I’m not letting you give up now and make this situation even worse… If you drink now, Spencer will be so pissed at you when she gets back… she will kick your ass, Li!“, they let out a weak laugh.

„Is she coming back, Drake?“, he whispers. Liam knows that Drake can’t answer this question but all he needs now is some reassurance.

„Of course she is! Spencer is tough, Liam. There is no way she will allow anything to come between you two again. Whatever happened there, she will find her way back to you and you know that!“, Drake pats him on the back and Liam sobs.

„I am so scared for her… the kind of things that she could have been through…and what those fucking bastards can be doing to her right now, if we failed to protect her. I swear to God, if they put their hands on Catherine I am going to kill each one of them!“, Liam walks back to his bed, „I can’t lose her, Drake… I will never accept that!“, he lays down again.

„You won’t lose her, Liam!“, Drake brushes a tear away from his cheek as the bedroom door flies open.

Leo walks in and looks at both of them, both with tears in their eyes: „What is going on here?“, he wonders as he has never seen Drake crying. Drake turns around:

„Nothing… we were just talking…“, Drake answers.

„Sure…“, Leo look between both of them again before walking up to Liam, „How are you, little brother?“, he asks concerned.

„I’ve been better, as you can imagine…“, Liam brushes the tears off his face.

„Right... No need to cry, we found her!“, Leo smiles.

„Couldn’t you start with this news, Leo?“, Drake says from the other side of the room.

„Sorry, I got distracted with you two ladies weeping!“, he looks at Liam who looks back at him relieved but annoyed at his brother’s remark, „Oh yeah… so, the Americans contacted us and she is already in Jordan. They are flying Katie and her security team to Tel Aviv on a helicopter”.

Liam has never felt relief like this. He closes his eyes and breathes deeply, „How is she, Leo? Did they inform us about her health?“, he grabs his brother’s hand and Leo puts his other hands over his.

„I talked shortly to the doctor from our special unit. She seems to have a mild traumatic brain injury, he believes it’s a concussion but they won’t know for sure until they get her to the hospital. Other than that, bruises, scratches and possibly a broken rib but she is responsive“, he watches as Liam exhale his worries.

„Was this caused by the car accident? Did anyone saw what happened?“, Liam asks worried.

Leo looks at Drake who is also interested in his answer and back at Liam, „I didn’t get much background detail, most of it only Catherine can answer and I wasn’t able to talk to her — I was told that whatever happened, she put up a hell of a fight…“, Leo sees Liam clenching his fist, „But she will be okay, Liam and this is the only thing that matters now!“

„Those bastards…“, he takes a deep breath and gets up, „Tell Bastien we will need the plane in 30 minutes. We are flying to Tel Aviv“. Liam walks into his walk-in closet to get dressed and bring his love back home.

(to be continued…)

For more chapters go to my MASTERLIST in my bio.

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