Page 72 of Fix Them Up
Is that what he would be like in bed? Demanding, coaching, and maybe a little stern. Would he guide my hands to places he wanted them? Would he place my hand in his hair as he –
‘Don’t look at me like that, Red,’ Liam said, his eyes darkened. ‘Or I’m – no, we’re – going to do something you’ll regret in the morning.’
‘What – what do you mean?’
‘You know what I mean.’ Liam stepped forward, taking the plate from my hands, his warm hands lingering on mine. His thighs brushed mine as he leaned forward.
‘Oranges,’ he murmured near my hair. ‘That smell has been driving me insane. At work and then at home, too.’
‘Has it?’ I asked in a voice that sounded so foreign.
I craned my neck up to look at him. His eyes were tracking mine, gazing into me like he was trying to read me. I glanced down at his lips. They looked so full and soft. Liam’s hand reached up to hold my jaw.
‘This okay?’ he murmured.
‘Yes.’
He leaned down and ran his nose along my neck, making me arch into the touch. This – this was incredible. Liam hummed appreciatively and kissed my neck right where it was sensitive. I gasped at the contact. It was such a soft, delicate kiss, but my body did not register it as soft or delicate. It was burning up from the inside, white-hot.
‘You make the sounds I imagined, too,’ he said so quietly I could have missed it. My hands reached his biceps to pull him towards me. I needed more of him.
Liam’s other hand grazed where my shorts met my thighs. ‘Driving me mad in these shorts. When I saw you in them the first time at your house.’ His hand moved further up, and I shivered. ‘I didn’t know where to look. I thought it was a good thing you kicked me out. It was a good thing you didn’t want to hire me. Because at least I didn’t have to see you in these shorts.’
I inhaled sharply, lust-addling my thoughts for a moment. Then, I remembered where I was and who said those words to me.
‘Liam. What are we doing?’
It was like a pint of water had been thrown on Liam’s head. He stepped back, and subtly rearranged his boxers.
‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to –’ Liam ran his hands through his hair. ‘I swore to myself I wouldn’t go there, even when I wanted to. Then, I couldn’t deny it anymore. Not when you felt so good in my arms when we danced.’ His eyes followed my curves, lighting little fires across my hips and my legs. ‘So I told myself I would ask you out properly once I spoke to Yasmin.’
I gasped. ‘What – you. You want to ask me out?’
‘Yas and I agreed to give each other a heads-up when we started seeing someone seriously so we didn’t confuse Abigail. It’s not the kind of conversation I wanted to have over the phone. They were due back tomorrow. But then they came over this morning –’
‘Wait – Liam. What are you saying?’
Liam took the final step and closed the space between us. My hands couldn’t help but wrap themselves into his hoodie. It was softer than I expected, and my squirrel brain idly wondered if he had a thing for cashmere. I could see the flecks of gold in his brown eyes and ridiculously long, dark eyelashes. His eyes searched mine, then got caught on my lips.
‘I like you, Kat.’
‘You like me.’
‘I like you. I think I’ve liked you since you ran at me with a lamp.’ His lips twitched. ‘Or maybe since you called me a prick in the church car park. I liked you even more when you were determined to renovate a house all by yourself, with absolutely no experience.’ He tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear. ‘And I couldn’t resist helping you because when your beautifulface drops in disappointment, it’s like a punch to my stomach. I can’t stand it.’ Liam shook his head, like he still couldn’t quite believe it himself. ‘So yeah. I like you.’
‘No, you don’t.’
‘Yes, I do.’
‘I annoy you.’
‘You don’t annoy me.’
‘Liar! I’ve seen it on your face!’
Liam gave me a small smile. ‘I think you’re entertaining. Chaotic. Captivating. But you don’t annoy me. Usually.’
‘“Usually” implies I annoy you sometimes.’
