Bittersweet Chaos

I grasp Liam's hand as we walk into the venue together. Liam looks handsome in his dress shirt and pants, his dark blue tie matching my short cocktail dress. At the entrance of the venue I stop in my tracks, causing my hand to pull him back. Once he turns to face me, I take my free hand and grasp his tie, pulling him into me. I lean up and kiss Liam softly on the lips.

"Have I ever told you that I love you and I'm proud of you?" I smile up at him. "You've come a long way from when we first met, riding your bike past my house just to get my attention."

Liam wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me closer into him. "Well it worked. I finally got you." He gives me one more quick kiss before taking our attached hands and pulling me forward, leading me through the entrance and into the building. I take in the massive entrance, the stone work covering the building, and the massive pillars lining the entrance. This venue is gorgeous.

I try to look around, to take in more of the surroundings of the building we are in, but Liam continues walking down the hallway and pulling me with him. The sound of my heels hitting the marble floor echoes off the walls.

Tonight is a celebration dinner for Liam. He just got a promotion for winning a big case, so his father rented out a high end restaurant to celebrate with his firm. As we walk into the main dining room, everyone turns to great Liam as he walks in. I take a deep breath in as I walk in with him, preparing myself for tonight.

I stand by his side, smiling and saying hello to everyone he introduces me to. I don't even bother trying to remember the names of who I am introduced to, knowing I won't be able to remember them even if I tried. Either way, his coworkers barely acknowledge my presence. I grab a glass of wine from one of the passing waiters, immediately bringing the glass to my lips to take a sip. This goes on for the next hour, Liam socializing with everyone from his firm while I stand silently by his side. I can't help but feel eyes on me throughout the cocktail hour. I conspicuously look around, eventually finding the source.

I find a beautiful woman who looks around my age staring at me. When I meet her gaze she doesn't look away, which surprises me. Instead I find her staring daggers at me, challenging me. I'm about to ask Liam who she is when I am whisked away to the dinner table, distracting me. Liam grabs my hand and pulls me away, leading me to a table where several other men are all sitting.

Once seated I get a new glass of wine, slowly sipping it.
"Taryn, I don't think you have ever actually met my father, Michael Dawson." Liam extends his hand towards his father, pointing him out. I immediately place glass of wine back down on table and stand up from my seat, reaching out my hand towards him. "It's so nice to finally meet you Mr. Dawson, I've heard a lot about you." I keep my open hand out reached towards him and continue to smile as he takes me in, looking me over from head to toe. He makes no attempt to shake my outstretched hand.

"Liam, who is this?" I hear him ask Liam, eventually looking away from me. My heart drops at his comment, Liam's dad is not hiding his disinterest in me. Is it me? Is there something wrong with me? First there's this whole Julian being an asshole to me, then almost kissing me in the bar. The constant back and forth is giving me whiplash. Now here's Mr. Dawson acting like I'm not worthy of his time or presence. Is there something wrong with me?

Liam looks at me sympathetically. "Dad, I've told you. This is my girlfriend. I met her when I first moved to Florida years ago. I know I've mentioned her through out the years."

Mr. Dawson returns his gaze to me, again looking me over from head to toe, and then he looks away as he returns his attention to the conversation of those also at the table, dismissing me. I quickly pull my hand in, sitting back down at the table. Liam quickly leans over and whispers in my ear. "Sorry about that. Just ignore him. He can be a dick." He gives me a quick peck on the cheek the returns his attention back to the table, joining in the conversation with his father and the rest of the people at the table.