She admired him for a courage that she could never have. "So, how did you know that it wasn't the alcohol in me last night?"
"I didn't. That's why I came by so early, I figured you might still be drunk." He grinned charmingly, and she felt the rest of her anxiety beginning to melt away.
"I didn't have that much to drink last night."
"No, but you never know how you're going to feel about someone the next morning."
"Oh and how did you feel about me?"
"Very good," he said with a small smile. "Sit down," He patted the bed beside him.
She eyed him guardedly. She knew that if she got close to that bed, and him, her thoughts and emotions would get all tangled up again. But she desperately wanted to get close to him, to touch him, and to have him touch her. Besides, she didn't think he would hurt her. He could have done that last night if it was what he'd intended. She bit on her lip nervously as she released the desk and made her way to sit down beside him.
"Come on," he said and pulled her toward the head of the bed. "Lie down, you look tired."
She went rigid beneath his touch. Her eyes flew to his as memories suddenly assailed her. She found she couldn't breathe or even move. He slowly moved his hands away from her, and she was finally able to breathe again. His gaze was intense as he searched her face. Sera lowered her lashes before he could read too much in her eyes.
"It's okay," he said.
She fought back the tears that threatened to fall. She had worked diligently to rid herself of her dread of men, and although she had gotten better, she still couldn't control some of her instinctive, involuntary reactions. She hated herself for it, hated herself for the weakness, and hated the fact that he had witnessed it.
He slid his jacket off and lay down on the bed to give her some space. He didn't touch her, didn't force her to lie down. No matter how much he wanted to hold her, he restrained himself from grabbing her. Her back was rigid as she sat on the bed; small shivers racked her delicate spine. A raging anger suddenly tore through him. Something had happened to her, someone had hurt her. His hands clenched at the thought and he had to take a deep breath to steady himself.
He never felt like this; never let his anger reach such a point. It was dangerous when it did;hewas dangerous. But the idea of anyone harming her was pushing him toward a perilous edge. He didn't understand why he was unable to resist this girl, why she got to him in a way that no one else ever had.
"You're safe with me Sera," he said kindly.
She lifted her lashes to look at him. He could see the tears that shimmered in her eyes, the self-loathing that filled them. Those tears touched something inside of him, something savage and protective. He was tempted to pull her into his arms, and shield her from the rest of the world, but he knew that if he tried to touch her now she would bolt like a frightened rabbit, and never come back. That wasn't an option.
She bit into her bottom lip, straightened her back in determination, and scooted back on the bed. She lay down beside him, forcing herself not to tremble as he wrapped his arms around her. She hated herself enough for letting him see her weakness without making it worse by shaking like a leaf in his embrace. He drew her closer so that her head rested upon his chest.
She found herself relaxing. He had given her no reason to fear him; it was unfair of her to do so. His warm body, steadily beating heart, and enticing aroma served to comfort and relax her even further. She stifled a yawn as she melted beneath his soothing touch.
"I can't stay long," she whispered, trying to keep her eyes open. "I'm supposed to meet Kathleen for lunch."
"Okay, just rest for awhile."
He kissed the top of her head, and her eyes started to close. Liam remained staring at the ceiling long after she had drifted off to sleep. He couldn't quell the protective drive swelling through him as she lay trustingly in his embrace.
His body craved and responded to her in a way that it never had to anyone else. But it was more than just his body that yearned for her. She was so warm, caring, and delicately fragile that he couldn't resist her. In the library he had only planned to say hi, and to see her, but he had lost himself in her dazzling warmth.
He couldn't seem to get enough of touching her, of holding her. It was a treacherous game that he was playing; one that he was sure to lose. She had been hurt once before, and he could bring her nothing but more sorrow. It was against the rules, rules that he had made for the safety of all of them.
Sera stirred a little, her hand twitched upon his chest. He clasped hold of it and ran his fingers along her silky skin and delicate bones. Bones that could so easily be broken. His body tensed at the thought. He was losing his mind, he knew that, but he didn't particularly care. He kissed the top of her head. Rules be damned, sanity be damned.
He didn't really know her, but for some reason, he knew that he wasn't going to be able to let her go.
CHAPTER 4
Sera woke with a start. Her heart raced as she realized she didn't know where she was. The room was shadowed and unfamiliar. Loud, boisterous laughter was echoing through the hall outside as people shouted to each other. Then she felt Liam's arm still wrapped around her waist, and she heard his deep, solid breathing. She lifted her head to look at the clock on his nightstand. The bright red numbers announced that it was five forty three.
"Crap," she whispered. "Crap, crap, crap!"
She carefully lifted Liam's arm. His eyes instantly flew open. They were a brilliant green in the dim light of the room as they landed upon her. "What time is it?" he asked sleepily.
"Quarter to six."
"Oh." She stiffened as he pulled her back into his arms. "You missed lunch already."
