Page 36 of Icebound Attraction

Suddenly, I feel a warm presence on my back and a breath on the back of my neck that I'd recognize between a thousand and one. There's only one that has such an effect on my body.

“Good to see you,” Liam whispers in my ear.

He turns me towards him and scrutinizes me with his shining eyes. A horde of butterflies dance in my stomach and my heart beats wildly. Liam's hands are still on either side of my shoulders and he's grinning with a smile that borders on indecency. I get the impression he's enjoying torturing me.

I swallow the lump in my throat and stammer out a less than charming ‘hello’.

“Are you hungry?” he asks, letting go of me.

My shoulders tingle where his hands used to be.

“Uh, yes...” I struggle to articulate.

Liam disappears for a moment and returns with a plate containing various slices of pizza. As he hands it to me, my fingers brush against his and a bolt of lightning shoots through me, nearly knocking everything to the ground.

“Did you enjoy the game?” he asks nonchalantly, his gaze shifting from my lips to my eyes.

It looks like he's trying to make conversation, when that's the last thing he wants to do.

I nod without saying a word.

“Come and sit down.”

As I look around for an empty seat, I suddenly feel Liam's hand on the small of my back. He pushes me through the crowd to a small table in the corner. I put the plate in front of me and sit down on the bench. To my surprise, Liam sits next to me, not opposite. Our legs touch lightly and my cheeks flush.

To keep my hands busy, I take a slice of pizza.

“You were really good today,” I end by saying to fill the silence.

He laughs.

“Better than the training session you attended, yeah, for sure...”

“I didn't want to say it.”

“Oh, you can. That day, I was really out of shape.”

He scratches the back of his neck, as if this admission were costing him.

“I had a lot of things on my mind, including my difficulties in studying. And... your help really helped me see things more clearly.”

He suddenly looks up at me and I feel suspended in an abyss. I swallow my mouthful with some difficulty. His arm slips behind me on the back of the seat, like it’s natural, and his body turns slightly towards mine. We look into each other's eyes again.

The tumult around us echoes in my ears like absorbent cotton. I can think of nothing but the desire to feel his lips on mine.

“Isn't the pizza good?” he asks mischievously.

I look away and bite hastily into my margarita, while he grabs a piece to do the same.

He's doing it on purpose, I'm sure. He's playing with my nerves!

It's confusing, but now that we're sitting side by side and just eating, I feel good and my body relaxes. We can be together in silence, without it feeling weird.

When we've both finished, Liam smiles in satisfaction and leans in a little closer to me. He looks deep into my eyes, and I feel as if I'm drowning in the ocean of his blue irises.

“I really have to keep working on my article,” I exclaim suddenly.

“Let me take you home,” he offers.

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