Chapter 26

“Sounds even better.”

Liam’s shoulders relaxed. “All right then.”

Above them the sky was brilliant. Wide open. Powder blue.

Baby blue.

There wasn’t a cloud to be seen for miles. The colors around Liam had become more vivid. Even the burned grass seemed revitalized. Though Liam had driven down this drab stretch of highway every day for the past six years, he didn’t seem to recognize it. The port, with its giant iron structures groping and lifting merchandise like sluggish mechanical monsters, looked like a space station on a distant planet. Liam’s jaded eyes were seeing things from a new perspective. He felt the summer wind caress his arm and it set his pulse racing. At his side, Kieran was smiling from ear to ear. Liam reached for his hand, remembering what that hand could do. How terrific it felt on his skin. He squeezed it gently.

With the music playing, the orange sun burning, and Kieran’s warm fingers under his palm, it almost felt like they belonged together.