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Liam is hovering over me, supporting himself on all fours so as not to crush me under his body weight. My breath hitches in my throat, and for a moment I forget how to speak. He’s so close that I can feel the heat radiating off his body. I shiver, and I don’t miss the same tremble run through his hard muscles. Desire and hot electricity jump from his skin to mine, and I’m suddenly very aware of the way my chest is pressed against his arm, and the way his solid, muscled thigh is resting between mine. I feel like my body’s come alive, like every nerve is on fire, and when he huffs out a laugh, I almost lose it right there and then.
“Nice try,” he says, his voice low and husky. The way he’s looking down at me, I’m pretty sure he has no idea what kind of effect he’s having on me right now.
“Worth a shot,” I manage, but he doesn’t move off me right away like he usually does.
“Damn straight.” Liam gives me a lopsided grin, and my stomach does a flip. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were enjoying this a little too much, Vivi.”
“I...” I fumble for a response, anything to defuse the tension, but nothing comes up.
And that’s when I realize he’s right: I am enjoying this. Too much.
Theo’s face comes back into my mind—the man I love, and the reason I’m here—and my stomach drops. Whatever electricity was raging in me evaporates, and I’m left with nothing but conflict and shame. “We should go,” I say, looking away, suddenly wanting to be anywhere but here. “The others will be wondering where we are.”
“Right. Yeah.” Liam rolls off me, running a hand through his hair and pulling his eyes away from mine. “It’s getting late.”
We pack up and head out of the studio, and the tension that settles over us is no longer the good kind. Even still, I catch myself missing the feeling of his body over mine... and I’m pretty sure I can feel his gaze on me as we drive back to the safe house.
ChapterTwenty-Five
“Holy shit, are you serious?”
“Callie...” I put a hand over my eyes, pacing back and forth with my phone pressed to my ear. I’m standing on one of the outside balconies on the second story of the safe house, watching the world below with a sense of growing dread.
“But nothing happened though, right?” my friend presses. “I mean, it’s not like you slept with this guy.”
“Of course not,” I reply. “We didn’t even touch each other. It was just this... I don’t know. This moment.” I throw up a hand. “I can’t even explain it. It got me all worked up for like, a second, and now I can’t move past it. I’m just...” I sigh. “I’m confused. That’s all.”
Confused. Yeah, that’s one way to put it. I’ve spent the past two days giving Liam a wide berth, hardly daring to look him in the eye, and all because I can’t keep my fucking head on straight. I’m supposed to be with Theo—and I am with him. Hell, I love him, as much now as I did before. So why am I suddenly going all starry-eyed for his best friend? It’s bad enough that I put him on his brother’s shit list and got him kicked out of London. Now I can’t stop thinking about the man he put in charge of protecting me, and even though my feelings for Theo run as deep as ever, I can’t get those green eyes and that easy, good-natured smile out of my mind.
Fuck, maybe confused is the right word.
“You sure it’s not Stockholm Syndrome?”
“For the love of... Callie, I’m not being held hostage.”
“Fine, fine. But you do fancy this guy, don’t you?”
“I... I don’t know. Maybe.”
“Well, Vivian,” my friend says, “I hate to say this, but I don’t think I’m qualified to be giving you relationship advice.”
“Yeah, my situation’s not exactly ‘standard,’ ” I agree, wincing. “I’m probably just going stir-crazy. This business with Lucas has got me all wrapped around the axle.”
“You think you can get out of... Wherever it is that you are?”
“I told you, Callie, I’m not—”
“I know you’re not being held hostage,” Callie says, sounding exasperated. “I’m asking if you can get away for a few hours and clear your head. Maybe go get a drink somewhere.”
I sigh. “You know I can’t do that, Callie. I can’t be seen in public until this media circus dies down. You’d think my face wouldn’t have made it all the way to Bath, but—”
I stop dead in my tracks.
“You’re in Bath?”
“Shh,” I hiss into the phone. “Callie, you can’t tell anyone. Fuck.” I run a hand through my hair. “This is why I shouldn’t be flapping my gums while I’m distracted. Don’t breathe a word of this, okay?”
“You know I won’t,” Callie replies. “You’re crazy, Vivian, but you’re worth keeping my mouth shut for.”
