Collided: Dirty Air (Book 2)(26)

Once we arrive at the hotel, I crawl over Maya’s lap, desperate to get out of the backseat as soon as the driver parks the town car. Their kind of sexual tension makes it difficult to breathe without a rescue inhaler.

“See you later, Maya. And Noah, grow a pair or drop the grumpy attitude.” I throw them a peace sign for good effort, hoping to send some positive Gandhi vibes their way.

My plain hotel room greets me. I unlace my sneakers and tug them off, abandoning them at the entryway. A knock at the door surprises me. Maybe Maya left something in my room earlier?

I open the door without checking the peephole. “You should fuck Noah and get it over—” Nope. Definitely not Maya. The same blue eyes I spent the night staring into look back at me.

Liam’s smile makes my insides feel mushy and hot, a simple look disarming me. “Tempting, but I’d rather not.”

“I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess you paid the concierge to find out my room number.”

“Not to creep you out, but it was almost too easy to get your information.” He leans against the doorframe.

“If the concierge was a woman then that would explain it.” My eyes linger on his face, memorizing his soft-looking lips surrounded by weeks-old stubble. He has a faint scar running down one of his eyebrows, another hint of his mischievous past. He’s a knockout in every sense of the word—in looks, in personality, and in knocking the air out of my lungs.

“Are you going to keep staring or are you going to invite me in?” His husky laugh sparks some functioning brain cells.

“I like you right where you are.”

Letting Liam into my room would be the worst idea of all ideas. No matter how much my body wants me to say yes, my mind wins, solidifying my defenses.

He sends me an irresistible cocky grin. “I’d like you much more in bed, but I can compromise.”

My jaw pops open.

He doesn’t give me a chance to speak, thank God because I don’t know how to respond. “I didn’t like how tonight ended.”

“So, you decided to come here because…?” My eyebrows lift.

“We have to plan a redo of our date.”

“Yeah, that’s not happening.”

“If you don’t, then I get to choose something from your list.” He dares to smirk at me, the creator of said list.

“Also not happening. Pretend the list never existed.” I cross my arms.

He steps toward me. “Impossible.”

“I’m sure you’re bound to move onto something more entertaining soon enough. Men tend to have limited attention spans.”

“You’re such a naughty girl when you want to be.”

“How do you make something innocent sound sexual?” I stare into his beautiful eyes, framed with dark lashes that put women’s falsies to shame. His eyes remain focused on my lips.

“Add it to my list of talents. You know, all three of them.”

Whoa. He remembers how I told him he had two talents three years ago? His attention to detail catches me off guard. Enough so, that Liam surprisingly tugs me into his body as one of his hands wraps around the base of my neck. His thumb rubs against the sensitive skin there, making my skin pebble.

He leans forward, closing his eyes, while mine remain wide open and not ready.

“Wait.” My hands push against his chest. His eyes snap open, his lips agape.

I pull out the power card, ready to slap a label on our attraction that no guy likes to hear. At least not a man who offers to make me a custom vibrator and looks at me like he wants to taste me, fuck me, and mark me for the night.

“I want to be friends. Just friends.” Words pour from my mouth as defenses get thrown up left and right, protecting me from the one person I can’t control.

Liam hits me with a pained look, his eyes wide as they flash with an unknown emotion. His body stills as he catches his breath. Weird. He leans in once more as his thumb brushes across my neck. His refreshing smell overwhelms me, playing with my senses and my mental control.

I pull my hands away from his warm chest. He plants a kiss on the top of my head, his lips pressing a second longer than necessary. Two whole seconds leave my body buzzing and my head swimming. My heart squeezes at the tender notion, unable to believe someone like him is capable of something like that.

“If that’s what makes you happy. I can be friends.” He hesitates on the last word.

“I hope so because I’m not going anywhere, and you don’t want to make things weird between us. You have enough haters this season.” I smile up at him.

I can’t help questioning why his eyes look sad. He pulls away from the door, his fists tightening at his sides.

“Have a good night, Sophie. Thanks for a night I’ll never forget.”

You and me both.

He recovers from his odd behavior, sending me a signature wink over his shoulder before he enters a waiting elevator. I let out a sigh as he disappears behind closed doors, sealing me off from the seduction trap that is Liam Zander. I may be willing to compromise on my list, but I can’t with my heart.





9





Liam





Friend-zoned. Me. Liam Zander.

I agreed to Sophie’s ridiculous notion last week because I wasn’t sure what to do. She caught me at a moment of weakness, hitting me with too many emotions. My last friend experience with the opposite gender didn’t end well and left a gaping hole. My reaction to Sophie’s request surprised me, damn nearly disabling me for the night with memories of Johanna.