Amy Bensen 04 Unbroken Read Free

Is it Chad? Is something really wrong with him while I’ve just been mentally berating him?
    I unhook my belt and jump to my feet, rushing through the open curtain to find Liam and Tellar in deep conversation, their heads low.
    “Liam,” I say, drawing the attention of both men, “is something wrong?” He steps away from Tellar, meeting me halfway down the aisle. “Is Chad okay?” I ask as he stops in front of me, my hand flattening on his chest.
    “I haven’t talked to Chad,” he replies, “and you told me you don’t want to talk to him, either. We can try him now.” He reaches for his phone.
    “No.” I grab his arm, stopping him. “Not now.” I search his unreadable expression. “What aren’t you telling me, Liam Stone?”
    He cups my face. “Nothing is wrong. The opposite, in fact—though I know it will be hard for you on this day to see it that way.”
    “What are you talking about?”
    “We don’t have to hide anymore, Amy. No more safe house. Tellar arranged to have all of our things shipped home, and—”
    “You’re right—after Chad’s bombshell, I didn’t need another surprise. You should have told me before we took off in Texas that we were returning to New York, instead of back to the Hamptons.” I grab the lapels of his jacket. “I’m not ready for this, Liam. We aren’t ready for this. We can’t be sure it’s safe.”
    “If I wasn’t sure we’re safe, we wouldn’t be here. And hiding makes it look like we have secrets.”
    “Don’t you think it looks funny that Chad just happened to have a fireproof folder in his backpack?”
    “Not when we know what the police didn’t tell us. He planted data on a failed version of the cylinder inside.”
    “Which means someone is going to come asking us more questions.”
    “Of course they will—so we aren’t giving anyone a reason to believe we have something to hide. Now is the time to come out of the shadows.”
    My lashes lower, hurt and anger knifing through me, and I don’t even really know where it’s directed. At Chad. At the past. I just . . . don’t know. “It’s too much in one day.”
    “You’re afraid, and you’ve had six years of reasons to be. You’ve had to hide in the past, but you don’t anymore.” He pauses when I don’t react. “Look at me, Amy.” I inhale and let it out, my lashes lifting as he softens his voice. “Let’s start a real life together.”
    My fingers loosen on his jacket. “I want that. You know I do, but it’s hard to believe this is over. Running, hiding, looking over my shoulder—those are the only things I’ve known. Forever, it seems.”
    “I’m going to make sure you know so much more, baby. You have my word.”
    “Car’s here!” Tellar calls.
    Liam arches a brow. “Shall we go home?”
    “Home,” I repeat, and the word is awkward on my tongue.
    “Yes.” He runs his hand down my hair. “Home, baby, but just know this. We can live anywhere you want. We can buy the restaurant that used to be your family home and rebuild it.”
    “You don’t want to live in a tiny town like Jasmine Heights, and I don’t want those memories.”
    “We can travel and see the pyramids in Egypt and Mexico. We can live in tents, for all I care. The point is that home is where we’re together .”
    The idea of freedom and a home I choose with Liam is surreal, considering the years I spent huddled alone in a tiny apartment. “I like your house in Manhattan. I like the city. It became familiar and right to me those six years I was there. I want to stay.”
    “Not my house in Manhattan. Our house. Our home.” I nod, and he shakes his head. “Not good enough. Say it. Our house. Our home. ”
    My heart squeezes with his insistence. “Our house,” I repeat. “Our home.”
    He smiles and kisses my forehead, urging me to our seats where we gather our things. Still tentative about our return to the city despite Liam’s assurances that we are safe, I head to the exit, where we grab