Page 19 of Persuading Liam

Max shakes his head. “Yes it is, accept the gift. I have to introduce you to Elliot—he’ll want to thank you too.”

“You don’t have to—” Before the words are out of my mouth, he’s already texting.

I cringe when I hear a door slam open, followed by footsteps. “Is this her?” A younger, smaller version of Max asks. He has the Sutton eyes but also a carefree, slightly dangerous vibe about him.

“I am her,” I say, giving up because I should have known this would happen. Of course, they’d know about Liam’s living situation.

Without warning, Elliot throws his arms around me in a bear hug. “Thank you, thank you, you’ve saved my life.”

And of course, right then, when everything looks the worst it possibly can, Liam appears from behind an office door and spots his younger brother with his arms around me. I can feel his anger from across the room, see his nostrils flare, see his fists curl as if he’s trying to temper his reaction.

“What’s going on?” He asks, his voice clipped, his jaw tight. I’ve never heard him sound so intense. It sends a shock of desire right through my core.

Elliot springs away from me, clearly reading the fury on Liam’s face. “I was just thanking her for getting you out of the apartment.” He puts his hands up. “That’s all, I swear.”

Liam’s gaze flicks to me, and I feel it all the way to my toenails like a fucking lightning bolt.Holy shit. All I can do is nod to confirm.

“Well,” he addresses everyone, “you’ve met her now. You can stop crowding her.”

Elliot lets out a breath. “It was nice to meet you Marley, don’t be a stranger.”

“You too,” I answer as he slinks back to his office.

Max eyes Liam for a long time before he too makes himself scarce. Before long it’s just me and Gus and Liam and silence.

Until he spears a hand through his hair and mutters something about work to do.

Gus watches him walk back to his office before turning to me with wide eyes. “Well now, someone sounded a little jealous.”

I flare a deep, hot red and take a giant swig of my cider because how the fuck am I supposed to respond?

12

LIAM

Ipace my office about fifteen times before I calm down enough to take a seat. The second I saw Elliot’s arms around Marley, I wanted to pummel him into dust, and I don’t understand that feeling.

Max and Elliot were always the fighters, quick to use their bodies and fists to settle arguments. I’ve always tried to use my brain, but whatever caveman remnants that still lurk in my grey matter, came out with guns a-blazing and for the first time, completely overruled my better sense.

I didn’t enjoy the feeling. And I don’t understand why it happened at all. Marley is fine and all, but she’s not mine. Hell, I’m in no shape for anyone to be mine. But I can’t help the kick in my stomach that tells me she is—or at least that I want her to be.

After squeezing my stress ball a dozen times, I’m calm enough to think clearly. The only reason my reaction makes sense is that it was Elliot—a player who racks up women like a high roller racks up chips. The phrase love ‘em and leave ‘em was invented for men like him and I just don’t want Marley to have to suffer through that.

At least, that’s what I’ll try to tell myself for now. It’s the only thing that makes sense.

It takes nearly half an hour to get my brain back to a place of work and once I’m into the mire of numbers and statistics, I’m lulled into a sense of normalcy that I hope wont pop the moment I’m back home with my roommate.

An hour or so before closing, I decide to call it a night and when I leave my office, I’m shocked to see Marley still sitting at the bar, clearly tipsy, laughing with Gus.

I pause at the sight of her—her long hair falling from her ponytail, her cheeks dark pink, her eyes shining with laughter as Gus tells her some crazy story—probably about me or my brothers.

I pray that it’s not about me, but the moment I hear Gus say ‘dustpan’, I know where she’s going, and I jump into the conversation before it goes any further. Marley does not need to know about the time Gus caught me cleaning in just my boxer briefs when she and Max had first started dating. And I don’t want to have to explain that I couldn’t leave Elliot’s mess from the night before a moment longer. It was a compulsion that I don’t quite understand.

“You’re still here,” I say, doing a very good impression of Captain Obvious.

“Ta-da,” Marley sing-songs, sweeping her arms out wide. “I can’t get enough of this cider. Have you tried it?”

It takes all of my strength not to smile at how cute she looks, eyes bright, clearly relaxed, an easy smile that I wish I knew how to bring forth. “I have. It’s quite good.”

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