CHAPTER EIGHTY EIGHT
Alyssa wasn’t surprised when she woke up with a banging headache. She had taken a lot of alcohol because of how much she needed to celebrate the occasion of Liam and her putting aside their differences and willing to start again.
She smiled widely as she got off her bed to start her day. Inasmuch as she tried to reduce how much she smiled, she failed woefully.
She decided to go for a walk around the palace, with the hope and intentions of bumping into Liam in the process.
The first place that struck her mind was the garden. She had missed the lake and the moments they shared there. She felt a gush of excitement wash through her as she took slow steps towards there.
Just as she walked towards the lake, she found Liam standing there, throwing small stones into it and smiling calmly.
Alyssa could feel her heart flush in excitement as she stared at him for a moment.
“You can come closer! I know you’re standing there”, Liam’s sudden voice caused her to jerk up in surprise.
She cleared her throat and walked closer to him, trying to hold her feet that turned out to be wobbly.
“How did you know I stood there”, Alyssa asked the moment she reached where he stood.
Liam laughed aloud, after which he pulled her closer to his chest and placed a kiss on her forehead.
“I got your scent. It’s difficult to ignore”, he winked at her while she blushed and chuckled.
“Good morning”, he finally said, placing quick kisses on her cheeks and down to her neck.
Alyssa laughed aloud, especially when she felt a tingly feeling at each part of her body his lips touched.
“Good morning, handsome!” She greeted back as her eyes beamed.
They shared a moment together; gazing into their eyes and passing numerous messages which they couldn’t utter with their mouth.
“I checked for you earlier…you were still asleep”, Liam finally said as he turned her until she was now facing the lake too.
Alyssa nodded in approval to what he said. She was unable to spew how she had gone to drink last night, just because she needed to celebrate their reunion.
“I’m glad that we are finally here…together”, Liam noted as he peered piercingly into her soft eyes.
Alyssa nodded and stared at the reflection that laid on top of the lake. It was a beautiful sight which she missed dearly.
Silence erupted in the atmosphere as the two lovers stared at the lake, with her minds wandering off in thoughts.
“I accepted you because that was the best thing to do. I mean, Timothy was the only reason”, Alyssa spewed and for a minute, Liam thought that he had heard wrongly.
“Just Timothy?” Liam stuttered, hoping that she would make things clearer in no time.
Alyssa nodded, still with her gaze fixated on the lake.
Liam was devastated that his face which wore a smile quickly transited into a frown. His only thoughts were that Alyssa holds no feelings for him anymore. Thoughts like this made his heart break into tiny bits.
Alyssa looked up at him and observed the change in his expression. She could decipher the look Liam wore on his face because, like a book, she knew every detail about him.
“I understand how you feel”, she stated, but he chimed out almost immediately.
“No! You don’t. I’m uncertain if you understand how it feels to love someone who holds no feelings for you anymore”, Liam spewed as he gulped down hard.
“I still have feelings for you!” Alyssa declared as everywhere turned dead silent.Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.
Liam glared at her, with shock written on his face. Alyssa stared back at him, meaning every single word she had just uttered.
“It’s just that what you did to me…taking Timothy away from me. That would have changed the feelings I had for you, forever, even if I had loved you”, Alyssa said as flickers of pains flashed past her eyes.
Liam made to talk, but no words were ready to leave his lips.
“I had to think of Timothy, and that was when I realized that he would need a father in his life. That propelled me to open my heart to you once again”, Alyssa explained, after which she took in a deep breath.
Liam was stunned that, for some minutes, he only gaped at her as though she were an alien.
He understood every single word in her utterance, and that was what heightened his fear. He was scared that he would hurt her again, that he would do something more terrible than what he had done before.
“I’m scared that I would destroy things again”, Liam confessed, but was shocked when he saw Alyssa laughing aloud.
He meant every single word he had just uttered, and it surprised him to see her shoving it aside with mere laughter.
“I’m dead serious about this. You are too precious to get hurt again, and you’ve had a rough life. I’m scared that I may put you through worse situations”, Liam said and again, Alyssa broke into another round of laughter.
“I messed things up in the beginning. I was the one who got mad at you for disguising as the prince, while I held a bigger secret!” Alyssa explained, but Liam wasn’t ready to hear any of that.
“I should have known that you wouldn’t do that by your will. You have a good heart, and the last thing you would ever think of is hurting the man you love. I should have thought of that before turning my back against you!” Liam explained while Alyssa chuckled and walked into the lake.
The water felt so good on her feet that for a minute, she closed her eyes to take in the pleasure that came from it.
“Let’s avoid the past. The future is brighter and that should be our focus!” Alyssa said as she gestured for him to come closer to the water.
Liam smiled at her as he obliged to her request. He approached her but flinched when he felt some water splashing right to his face.
Alyssa started laughing as she went on with pouring some water from the lake on him with her hands. Liam threw a fierce gaze at her, after which he rushed into the lake and pinned her down until every part of her cloth got soaked in it.
“Stop!” Alyssa finally pleaded when it was clear that she was the one losing out.
Liam gave a wicked smirk and dipped her into the water again, ignoring her yells and pleas for mercy.
Liam finally stopped when he caught sight of how beautiful she looked, with water dripping from her hair.
“You’re beautiful!” Liam commented, staring into her eyes piercingly and licking his lips in delight.
He cupped her cheeks into his hands and placed a soft kiss on her lips. They smiled at each other as their heart beat went on the rise.
Just then, someone clapping from a distance interrupted them and abruptly, they turned to face the side the noise had come from.
It was Nat. He had a wide grin on his face that made Liam and Alyssa flush in embarrassment.
“Sorry to interrupt such a sweet moment. But breakfast is ready and you both need to eat to gather some strength”, Nat said with his head bowed in respect.
Liam threw a dead glare at him, after which he held Alyssa and led her out of the lake and towards the breakfast hall.