Page 47 of The Cocky Neighbor

That was right, I loved Liam Wright. I knew I had it bad when I had started finding even his bizarre clothing choices endearing.

A couple of months ago, I never would have believed I was capable of falling in love, yet here I was with the most unlikely man who was somehow perfect for me.

I watched as he talked and laughed with our friends. Then, he turned to me as if he felt my gaze on him, and his face lit up when he saw me. My heart almost stopped at how beautiful he was.

He said something to our friends, then walked up to me and took me into his arms immediately. If we were near each other, he always liked having physical contact with me by holding me in his arms or even just holding hands.

"Hey, stranger," he said, "I haven't seen you around these parts before. Can I buy you a drink?"

"Let's skip the pleasantries and get to the good part already.My place is nearby. What do you say?" I said, playing along. He laughed and pressed a kiss on my lips.

"You're so forward. I love it," he softly said as he kept our faces close together.

My breath caught at that word. It was one tiny, little word, but it held so much meaning. It was a word that I was terrified of, but now I couldn't even remember why.

"I love you," I breathed against his lips. The words came out easy, and they felt so good on my lips. He broke out in the smuggest smile I'd ever seen on him. I rolled my eyes and pushed out of his arms. "Don't get all cocky about it."

He pulled me back into his embrace and popped a loud kiss on my lips. "I love you too. You came into my life destined to become a huge pain in my ass—" I growled. He was smart enough to continue before I made his words come true, "—but you'remypain in my ass, one that I never knew I needed. You made everything more colorful and so full of life."

If I was a more sentimental man, I might have swooned at his words, but I wasn't. Instead, his declaration brought a huge, confident smile to my face. With this man by my side, I didn't have to worry about turning into someone I didn't want to become. He accepted me exactly the way I was.

Liam held me tight, bringing me the sense of home that overwhelmed me every time I was in his arms. Surrounded by his warmth and the loud, happy chatter of my friends, I knew I was exactly where I was meant to be.

I had a spectacular life with a fulfilling job, friends who I knew would do anything for me, and the man who had wiggled into my heart and filled the space I hadn't even known was there. He occupied the hole in my life, making sure that I wouldn't be able to live without him now.

Life couldn't get better than this.

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