Page 17 of The Cocky Neighbor

That fucker.

He didnotjust give me blowjob to prove his point. Anger welled up inside me as I clenched my fists until they turned red from the force.

Liam Wright was a fucking asshat, and now that he'd showed me his true colors, I was staying as far away from the man as possible.

THIRTEEN

LIAM

It was supposed to be fun. A quick way to blow off some steam so that I could finally get the man out of my mind. But seeing his vein that usually throbbed from annoyance quiver with pleasure that I’d brought him had unlocked something inside of me.

The way he responded to my touches was addicting, and this fling with him wasn't supposed to be anything more than a one-time thing. However, when he gazed at me with his expressive eyes filled with warmth and contentment from the orgasm I'd given him, I knew I was in trouble.

I had to get out of there before his warmth sucked in me and captured me until I never wanted to leave. It was difficult to walk away from the beautiful man lying there when all I'd wanted was to work him up for another round, but I'd grown up learning how to hide my emotions and restrain myself from what I wanted.

Eric Wells was an enchanting man that was worming his disobedient self into my heart, and I needed to get the hell away before he succeeded.

Leaving him like that and throwing those words at him was shitty, but he’d get over it, or maybe it was better if he hated me for it. Perhaps then he’d push me away, and I wouldn’t have to continue fighting the urge to be close to him.

Over the next couple of days, I made sure to contact Alfred if I needed anything regarding the hotel. Eric was a lot happier about this arrangement than he’d been the last time I’d avoided him, and I couldn’t blame him.

The few times I’d run into him at the hotel, he’d scowl every time he caught sight of me before turning to leave. He didn’t want to be around me, and why would he after what I did to him?

This entire situation was of my own doing, and I hated the regret that coursed through my body every time I caught a glimpse of the man I’d hurt. Wrights didn’t regret anything. We were decisive in our actions, and if we’d made a mistake, we’d turn the mistake into an opportunity that would benefit us, but I didn’t know how to turn this regret into something that wouldn’t eat me alive. But hey, at least things were running smoothly at the hotel. That had to count for something, right?

Leaving the hotel matters aside for today, I picked up some desserts from Caleb’s bakery and headed to my childhood friend’s place. He’d moved into my building years ago and still lived there even after getting back together with my brother. They planned to move back to the Wright manor after the wedding, but for now, it was nice having Noah a short walk away.

Despite being in the middle of a workday, there was a high chance that Noah was home. He was a bit of a homebody, which made being an author the perfect job for him.

Not even a minute after knocking, he opened the door as if he had expected me.

"Hey, Liam," he greeted with a happy smile as he stepped aside to let me in. His two kittens, Molly and Tom, immediately ran up to me to inspect the newcomer in their home. Although they couldn't really be considered kittens anymore with how big they'd gotten these past few weeks. Noah had adopted them when they were the size of my palm, and now they were almost full grown.

"Did you miss your Uncle Liam?" I asked as Tom rubbed against my leg. Molly took a sniff of me before deeming me boring and walking off to presumingly take a nap somewhere under the sun.

"This is why you're my favorite," I fake whispered to Tom as I picked him up, "but don't tell your sister that."

Noah chuckled and poured me a glass of water before heading to sit on the couch. Tom, the little traitor, immediately struggled out of my arms to lay on Noah's lap.

"I guess I'm just destined to be alone," I said with a dramatic sigh as I slumped into the seat next to him. Noah snorted, but there was an amused twinkle in his eye as he stroked Tom.

He looked so at peace with himself, and it was a good look on him. For the few years that he was apart from my brother, it was like he'd lost a piece of himself, and I guessed he had.

Growing up with them, they had always been a unit. I'd watched their relationship evolve from childhood friends to lovers, and while I'd been jealous, it was because I knew their love was something special. Noah and Lucas belonged together, and that was as true as saying the sky was blue.

Noah snuggled with Tom and let out a happy sigh as he looked around the room. The living room had two desks set up next to each other where Noah and Lucas worked together when Lucas didn't need to head into the office. Over the weeks, more traces of Lucas had appeared in the tiny apartment, and the place was really becoming a warm home that belonged to the two of them. The entire apartment could probably fit inside Lucas's old room at the Wright manor, but he seemed a lot happier here than at the manor.

"So, how is everything? You haven't stopped by recently," Noah said, breaking the calm silence.

"Just trying to give you and Lucas some space, you know? I'm sure you don't need a third wheel cramping your reunion."

Daily visits to Noah's was once part of my routine. I wanted to make sure that he was okay, and it was my way of resolving some of the guilt of being part of the reason why they were separated for so long.

Neither of them blamed me and everything had turned out fine in the end, but I hated the fact that I'd hurt two of the most important people to me. It was also the reason why I couldn't let Lucas down now. He’d put me in charge of reorganizing Corio City's Roslyn Hotel branch, and I would make sure I did just that. And that was exactly why I couldn't let myself be distracted by anyone, no matter how alluring they were.

"You know you're always welcome around. Besides, it's been months already. We've spent so much time together since then that we're pretty much sick of each other by now," he said with a wave of his hand, but with how his demeanor changed just by the mention of my brother's name, I knew he didn't mean his words.

"I'll believe that when the sun sets in the East," I teased, which only earned me a bashful smile from Noah. "Speaking of which, where is my dear brother? I thought he was working from home this week?"

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