Page 33 of Knot Really Engaged
I shiver, my eyes fluttering closed as a wave of desire washes over me. “How so?” I manage to ask, my voice breathy and filled with wonder.
He pulls back, a devious smile playing on his lips. “I told you, not everything I said today was a constructed lie.”
“What’s the truth?” I dare to ask.
My breath catches in my throat as Liam’s piercing blue eyes hold my gaze. A shiver runs down my spine, his intense stare igniting sparks of desire low in my belly.It’s as if he can see straight into my soul, unraveling the tangled emotions that are suddenly surging from a place I didn’t even know existed. The air between us crackles with a palpable tension.
Liam leans in, his woodsy cologne enveloping me, filling my senses with its intoxicating scent. “That I think you’re gorgeous and that from the moment I saw you, I wanted to get to know this version of you,” he murmurs, his deep, gravelly voice caressing my skin like a physical touch. “Grown-up Audrey seems like the kind of woman I would like to spend more time with, you know.”
My cheeks flush hot as his words sink in, a wave of arousal coursing through my body. Get to know me? But there’s also a wave of panic running through my chest, even as a thrill of excitement slides down my spine. I press my thighs together,trying to calm the ache growing between them, a desperate attempt to regain some semblance of control.
What would he think if I suddenly begged him to kiss me again, like he did last night. I didn’t know why I asked him if he knew how to kiss, but his response. Never in my life have I been kissed like that. My lips are still tingling and if possible I would want a lot more of those.
For him to touch me the way no one has ever done it.
Make me feel the way his words had done from the moment he began this delicious lie.
I swallow hard, my mouth suddenly dry as I struggle to find the right words that don’t include, please fuck me right here and now.
“I . . . uh . . .” I stammer, my tongue feeling thick and clumsy in my mouth. I’m usually so articulate, so quick-witted, but under the intensity of what I believe might be his hungry gaze, I find myself at a loss.
“Do I make you nervous?” The corners of his mouth quirk up in that lopsided grin that’s already becoming my undoing, a boyish charm that’s impossible to resist.
He reaches out, his fingers caress the curve of my jaw, leaving a trail of liquid fire in their wake. “Because you make me feel things I’m not used tofeeling. I’m usually more smooth than this, but with you . . .” A husky chuckle rumbles from deep in his chest, the sound giving me goose bumps. “There’s just something about you, Audrey.”
My name on his lips is pure sin. I suck in a shaky breath, my pulse hammering triple time. Part of me wants to run, to flee from this combustible attraction before it consumes me whole. But another part craves his touch, yearns for the simmering tension that crackles between us like a live wire.
What am I doing? I can’t let Liam derail me so easily. I’m here to help him, not start a fling. Aren’t I?
I take a steadying breath, trying to rein in my riotous emotions. “I’m flattered, Liam, really. But as you are aware, I just got out of a . . . complicated situation. I’m not looking to rush into anything new right now.”
His thumb grazes my lower lip. I bite back a gasp, my eyes fluttering closed for a brief moment as I savor the sensation. “Who said anything about rushing?” His voice is a low, tempting rasp that makes my toes curl. “Just getting to know each other. No pressure.”
Reason wars with reckless desire inside me, a battle that threatens to tear me apart. This man is danger embodied—his tousled chestnut hair, thosepenetrating blue eyes, the rugged angles of his jaw. He could upend my life with just a smirk, and part of me yearns for that chaos, craves the thrill of the unknown.
But God, I want to tumble into that abyss, to lose myself in the depths of his eyes and the warmth of his touch. It’s a temptation that’s becoming harder and harder to resist, a siren song that calls to me on a primal level.
Liam must sense my internal battle because he leans back, giving me space. “Hey, I don’t want to make you uncomfortable. Just . . . I want you to know that not everything was a lie. To think about it, so when you’re ready . . .” His voice trails, just as his gaze holds the promise of infinite possibilities if I’m brave enough to take that leap.
I give a jerky nod, struggling to find my voice again. “Okay. Thanks for being . . . understanding.” The words feel woefully inadequate, but they’re all I can manage since I’m too flustered, and yes, also very horny.
He flashes that knee-weakening grin again, his eyes crinkling at the corners in a way that makes my heart skip a beat. “My pleasure, gorgeous.” With a wink, Liam turns and saunters away, his broad shoulders and lean hips drawing my gaze like a magnet.
I’m left flustered and off-kilter, my mind reelingwith the implications of what just transpired. What have I gotten myself into? Part of me chides my impulsiveness in even entertaining this . . . Whatever it is with Liam. It’s a risk, a gamble that could end in heartbreak and disaster.
But I know that if I accept anything from him, it would become a very complicated turn of events.
With that, I head back to my room. Today is not a good day to throw caution to the wind.
Chapter Seventeen
Liam
I sauntertoward my bathroom to shower, my heart pounding in my chest as I replay the conversation with Audrey in my mind. What was I thinking, opening up to her like that? I run a hand through my hair, frustration and desirewarring within me.
I can still feel the softness of her skin beneath my fingertips, the way her breath hitched when I leaned in close. It took every ounce of my self-control not to close the distance between us, to capture her lips with my own and show her just how much I want her.
And remembering the way her hazel eyes sparkled with a mix of trepidation and longing is enough to send a rush of heat through my veins. I want her, want to unravel the mysteries that lie beneath her guarded exterior and discover the passionate woman I know is hiding within.
