Page 37 of Right Number

It didn’t seem to faze Oliver at all. He just smirked, which pissed me off even more. “There was a time you craved my touch, Anna. Remember how good I made you feel? I want to do that for you again, my love…”

“I’m not ‘your love’ and if you try to touch me again, I’ll stab you with this pen!” I hissed through clenched teeth.

Oliver leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms with a big smile on his face. “Always the feisty one.”

“Weird. You’re always the creepy one,” I snapped as I grabbed my backpack and moved further down the row of seats, putting several between Oliver and me before I sat back down.

FINALLY, IT WAS ALMOST noon and the lecture was over. I quickly grabbed my things and jumped from my seat. I wanted to get out of the classroom before Oliver could follow me. Luckily, a brunette in a too-tight sweater captured his attention and I used the distraction to make my getaway. Every recent encounter I’d had with Oliver just made me question what it was I saw in him and why I was ever with him. The thought made me involuntarily shutter.

I was almost to the front doors of the art building when the worst sound in the world pierced through me. “Anna darling, why are you trying to get away from me?”

I didn’t even bother turning around. “Because I don’t want to be around you!” I shouted in frustration as I swung open the door to the art building and marched into the lobby.

Oliver was right on my heels as he made a clicking sound with his tongue. “These games you play, Anna…”

I stopped and spun around so quickly Oliver almost crashed into me. I balled my fists at my sides and straightened myself up to my full height. “They’re not games! Fucking get the hell away from me, Oliver!”

Suddenly, I felt a comforting hand on my lower back and sensed a presence behind me. “Is there some kind of problem here?” Liam leaned in and gave me a kiss on the cheek as he made eye contact with Oliver.

Oliver chuckled and put both his hands up in front of his chest. “No problem here, lover boy. Just wishing Anna good luck today.”

Liam’s eye contact never wavered from Oliver. “Well, it sounded pretty clear to me what her position was, so back off, Oliver.” Liam put his arm around my waist and pulled me to his side. It was clearly a possessive move, but at that moment, I completely appreciated he was there. I felt myself instantly start to relax into him.

Wait? Was that the feeling I’d been looking for? The feeling with Liam? Could it be the whole messed-up encounter with shit-bag Oliver was starting a little, tiny spark?

Oliver looked between Liam and me before starting to walk away. “I’ll see you later, Anna,” Oliver said with a cocky smirk. I couldn’t help myself, I raised my hand and flipped him the middle finger before he completely turned away.

When Oliver was out of earshot, Liam turned to me. “What was that about?” he asked, his voice and face filled with concern.

“Oliver’s an asshole.” I didn’t really feel like getting into the whole story in the middle of the art building lobby.

Liam reached up and gently placed his hands on my shoulders as he gazed intently into my face. “Has he done that to you before? Harassed you like that?” I chewed my lip and hesitated before answering. I wasn’t trying to protect Oliver—he could pound sand as far as I was concerned—but this was a side of Liam I’d never seen before and I wasn’t quite sure how he was going to react. Apparently, my hesitation was all the answer he needed. His eyes flashed with anger. “He has! Dammit! That fucking prick! Do you want me to talk to him?”

I quickly shook my head. “No. Let’s just drop it. He’s an annoying asshole, but harmless.”

Liam looked at me skeptically. “All right, for now, but if he does it again please let me know.”

I stood up on my tiptoes and gave Liam a quick kiss on the cheek. “Deal.”

The anger in Liam’s eyes melted away. He reached down and took my hand in his, quickly kissing my knuckles before intertwining our fingers. “Let’s go see if the list is up.”

We walked hand in hand over to where a crowd had started to gather around a large poster on the far wall. As we walked, that feeling popped up again…a spark? Maybe?

The list was hard to see over the heads of the people in the crowd, but my eyes were instantly drawn to one name. “Liam!” I squeezed his hand with excitement. “I see your name! Congratulations!” Liam looked down at me and smiled. I was so happy for him.

We both turned our eyes back to the posting and, after a few seconds, Liam was the one squeezing my hand. “There it is! Anna! Your name is in the second row of the third column! You did it!”

“What? Where?” I asked in a daze as my eyes followed to where Liam was pointing.

There it was. My name. I fucking did it!

My face lit up as I turned to Liam. He grabbed me and hugged me so tightly my feet lifted off the floor. I grabbed his face with both hands and, without hesitation, smashed my lips into his. He met me back with just as much intensity.

I was surprised—surprised I’d initiated a kiss like that with him and surprised he responded back the way he did. Was I caught up in the moment, or was there really something between us? Was I feeling the spark? Was it finally there?

When we pulled apart, Liam’s eyes were hazy and his cheeks slightly flushed. “Damn, Anna…that was…”

“Really hot?” I interrupted breathlessly.

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