Page 36 of Liam

"I know." His hands slipped free of me. He shuffled his torso closer to the headboard once I released his hips. He looked down at his legs, still hanging off the edge of the bed. He didn't need to say a word. I wasn't sure if he was testing me. I didn't care. Give me any reason to touch him again, and I would be all over it. One at a time, I lifted his legs onto the bed.

"Thank you, Liam."

This time instead of saying something stupid, I used the back of my fingers to stroke his cheek. He angled his head, chasing my touch. Within a matter of seconds, we'd moved firmly out of the friend zone. Every hesitation and excuse left me. As Jamal's eyes studied me, his emotion was plain. In those beautiful eyes of his, he saw someone who was good enough. Better than enough.

I was someone he could fall in love with.

"Come sit beside me," he said.

I was reluctant to end the contact with his skin, but I did as he asked.

Once I was seated at his side, he slipped his hand into mine. Our joined hands felt like the first block of an incredibly solid foundation. More significant than anything I'd ever experienced.

Chapter Eight | Jamal

I finished my clubhouse sandwich and tidied the crumbs off my desk. Noah had brought the food from his pub when he'd arrived earlier than usual. After dropping the sandwich off in my office, he'd gone to the gymnasium to wash the floor before kids started showing up after school.

His face was covered in a sheen of sweat when he came back into my office and took a seat in front of my desk. "Been meaning to do that for days."

"I appreciate you keeping it clean in there."

Noah leaned one elbow on the arm of the chair, his closed fist supporting his chin as he studied me. He had a glean of amusement in his eyes. "Amazing how much dirt they track in."

He was making me feel nervous. "Yup."

Crossing his arms, he smiled at me. "I want to hear your side of the story."

I swallowed. "What story?"

Noah chuckled. "Liam told me what happened … or almost happened."

I rolled my eyes and sighed. "We had a moment. I thought he was going to kiss me."

"The report I got mentioned lots of tentative panting."

"Plenty of that." I touched my cheek where Liam had stroked my skin. "He was so gentle and unsure. It was breathtaking." I looked at Noah. "It was also terrifying."

"You're worried he's not serious?"

"You know him better than me. Would he do that to me? Treat me like an experiment."

"What do you think?"

My face flushed. I was embarrassed for even considering it. Liam was one of the most honest and genuine men I'd ever known. "I don't think that sweet man would hurt me like that."

"The fact you understand that about him means he's letting you in. That's something special. He doesn't do that with many people. He must trust you." Noah leaned on my desk. "And to set your mind further at ease, let me tell you something about Liam. If you were an experiment or a number, he would've tried to fuck you the first time you hung out. Liam doesn't play games."

My chest tightened. Crossing the line away from being simply friends meant we had embarked on a pathway toward intimacy. Liam had hesitated last night, giving us a moment to adjust.

We'd know when the time was right.

"Let's go and check on Ethan," I said and rolled away from my desk. We'd set him up in one of the empty rooms. A long list of youth had signed up for pottery classes with him.

I clutched Noah's arm as we stopped in the doorway of the room. Kyle was seated on a stool at the wheel, his hands on the clay as the wheel spun. Right behind him sat Ethan. His chest was against Kyle's back, his hands covering Kyle's to guide him in forming a bowl.

Kyle rarely let anyone touch him. Ethan had managed to win his trust in the short time since I'd led Kyle from the library to the pottery room for his lesson. There was a guarded look of concentration on Kyle's face as Ethan spoke softly in his ear, encouraging him.

"Your friends are amazing," I said to Noah.

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