The Paid GirlFriend

Chapter 3

"I just want you to be happy," my mom admitted.
"I am happy," I huffed, resting my head on her shoulder.
We were sitting on the porch swing, the weather nice
and warm in Princeton, Illinois, "I have friends, I have a
roof over my head and I tolerate my job."
"But what about a boyfriend? You haven't been with
anyone since that Kyle fella," Mom murmured, stroking
and kissing my hair.
I blushed. I drove the two hours to my parent'a house
on a mission, and it was to forget Liam Collins. After
our "date" I packed a few outfits and ran out the door
like a bat in hell.
My mother just had to bring up the fact that I've been
single for a while.
"Meredith has a son a few years older than you, I could
talk-"
"Mom," I groaned, leaning away from her to drop my
head in my hands. "I'm fine. Please drop it."
She sighed, squeezing my shoulder. "I'm just worried
about you sweetie. Ever since your father got sick I've
just felt so guilty for dropping this burden on your
shoulder. You should be having fun and partying like
kids do your age."
I rolled my eyes, dropping my hands. "Me? Party? As if,"
I snorted, purposely ignoring the first part. There are
times when I hate my parents for putting me in this
situation, what normal person wouldn't? But I was not
about to tell my mom that.
She giggled, "you know what I mean."
I straightened my back, playing with the end of my hair.
I do need to talk about him at some point. Knowing
Tonya and Devon they would just tell me to fuck him
and leave him before things got complicated. "There is
this one guy..."
That perked my mom up, "who?" She nearly squealed
out.
"He's older than me, I think. We went on a date..."
sorta, "...but I don't know if I want to start a relationship
with him."
Mom snorted, "and why not? I'll assume he isn't bad
looking if you went on a date with him."
"He's the exact opposite of bad looking," I sighed,
smiling a little dispite the warning bells that rang
whenever I would think about him. I was getting too
close, too attach, to Liam in such a short amount of
time. I refuse to grow feelings for a man potential of
breaking me.
"From that goofy smile of yours I'm guessing he's Brad
Pitt, George Clooney handsome?"
"A thousand times more," I groaned, ducking my head.
When my mom didn't respond I looked up to see her
staring out of space, her green eyes glassy and spaced
out. "Mom?"
She snapped out of it, "sorry honey, just trying to picture
what you said. I have to meet this man of yours. Why
won't you see him again? Is he an," she dropped her
voice to a whisper, "asshole?"
My grandfather on my mom's side was a pastor.
Cussing was taboo and foreign to her.
"The perfect gentlemen," I sighed, slouching my
shoulders.
My mom frowned, "I'm so confused."
"I, we-" I stopped myself, taking a deep breath. "He
makes me feel certain things, things that go beyond
being attractive." My bottom quivered. "I'm so scared of
having feelings for him, mom," I croaked. "He's so
perfect and I don't understand why he would choose to
go out with me. I know I sound like a teenager but what
if it's just to get in my pants? And then what? I don't
want to get hurt."
My mom sighed and put her arm around my shoulder,
"honey that's just love. It's all about taking risks. Now I
don't mean to say that you should put all your heart into
it but at least give him a try. You're young, you're going
to make mistakes, but it's your decision if you're going
to learn from it or not. Pain and heartbreak are sadly
apart of life so it's useless to try to run from it."
.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.
I winded up staying at my parent'a house for the whole
weekend, after calling Devon to take on my shifts. It
was refreshing to spend time with my dad and have my
mom give me words of wisdom that only come with
age.
But now to return to the real world.
I spent the two hours going over what I was going

to say to Liam, anticipating his prescence when I got to
my apartment. I was most worried about his reaction
more than anything, not that I suspected that he would
hurt me. But this will be the second time I've stood him
up. What if he decides I'm not the worth the effort? That
I'm too emotionally damaged and leave me to rot and
hate myself forever?
When I got to my apartment garage I immediately
looked for a fancy, shiny car that screamed Liam
Collins, CFO of multi-billionaire company. I scowled
when I saw there wasn't one besides the obviously-used
and run down cars that matched the building.
With a sigh I hauled my butt out of the car and walked
towards the elevator.
Another day, another disappointment.
When I stepped into the elevator, after passing a elderly
woman who was getting off, I pulled my abandoned
phone out and saw that I had twenty-one missed calls,
all from a unknown number.
Looks like someone got my number finally.
I sighed and scrolled through my text messages as the
elevator stopped at my floor. I didn't bother looking up
as I walked to my door since it was the last one at the
end of the hall. When I did get to it something caught
the corner of my eye.
And Liam Collins scared me for the second time in
barely a month.
He sat on the floor next to my door on top of his suit
jacket and his usually scruff was a small beard now.
His pants were wrinkled as if he slept in them and his
phone was clutched in his hands. Liam didn't bother
looking at me, preferring to look straight a head.
"Good evening Ms. Welsh," he sneered, his lips pulling
as he tapped his finger against his phone.
"Liam, how long have you been sitting there?" I gasped,
kneeling down on knees and placing a hand on his
shoulder.
"A day," he sighed, leaning his head against the wall
and rolling his neck to look at me. "Maybe more. I don't
know. I think I got drunk."
I wrinkled my nose when I caught a whiff of his breath.
"Do you want to come inside?"
"Why do you run from me?" He asked, ignoring my
question.
"Liam, I think you should get cleaned up-"
"Stop avoiding the question," he hissed, his eyes
suddenly filled with anger. "Am I not good enough for
you? Is there someone else?"
My eyes widened as I quickly shook my head.
"Then what Sabrina?" He growled, making a move to
stand up. I quickly reached out to help but he shook his
head.
"Can we at least go inside?" I sighed, slumping my
shoulders. He nodded.
.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.
While Liam went to the bathroom to freshen up I put on
a pot of water to make some tea as I searched for
something to eat in my fridge. All there was was cake
that probably went stale and left over spaghetti. I found
some veggie chips in the pantry and pulled those out
and poured some in a small bowl just when Liam
stepped out of the bathroom. I gave him a small smile.
"Got us a snack," I said in a soft voice, placing them on
the dining table. "The tea should be done in a while."
He nodded, his eyes never straying from my face as he
sat down.
"Where were you?" His voice was quiet as well.
"My parents," I sighed, sitting in the chair next to his. "I
needed sometime to think."
He pursed his lips, "I understand," he said slowly after a
while, "but next time tell me okay? I got kicked out of
the diner when they refused to tell me where you were."
I gaped at him but said nothing. I wonder if Tonya and
Devon were there? Surely they would've told me
something, especially since it concerned me.
"Are you going to answer my question?" He finally asked
after a few moments of awkward silence.
I took a deep breath. "I-I don't know what your
expectations are of me," I admitted, picking at the lint
that attached itself on my pants. "And I don't want to
get hurt if you don't want me like I want you."
"Sabrina-"
"My feelings for you are so strong already and I barely
know you," I huffed, blinking my eyes rapidly as they
began to burn with tears. "So if we do, you know, get
into a relationship we'll have to do it slow and I don't-"
Liam shut me up by placing his finger against my lips.
"Sabrina, sweetheart, please shut up."
My eyes shot up to look up at him.