Collided: Dirty Air (Book 2)(42)

“Lay off the inquisition, would you? I’m twenty-two going on fifty since I have the personality of a grandma. You don’t need to worry about me so much.”

“You’ll always be my baby girl. But I’ll work on it, just for you.” My dad gives me one of his classic goofy smiles.

We clink our mimosas together.

I offer a genuine smile. “I’ll toast to that.”

We laugh together when I knock over my glass.

“I’m glad some things never change.” Dad cleans up my spiked juice with a cloth napkin.





“Did you know Niagara Falls isn’t close to here? Maya told me, and I’m disappointed I missed that tiny detail.”

“You missed a six-hour driving detail? I’m shocked.” Liam mockingly scoffs as he covers his heart.

He looks rather normal in jeans and a T-shirt. Dare I say he appears domestic, all barefoot while reading a book in a chair off to the side of his bed. I lie on his comfy mattress, pretending to scroll through my phone while I sneak glances here and there. Somehow, he makes reading look sexy.

“Why are you reading A Game of Thrones? Can’t you just watch the TV show like everyone else?”

Liam turns to the next page. “I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that.”

“What’s so wrong with what I said?” I continue, wanting to distract myself from him licking his finger before flipping the page.

Liam stares at me like I asked if I could have his first-born child. “Everyone knows the books are better than the movies or TV shows.”

“Says who?”

“Says everyone who reads books!”

I feel some sense of relief as Liam and I fall into our usual casualness. We both ignore last week’s late-night phone call. Well, more like I’ve ignored Liam every time he mentioned it until he eventually gave up. Turns out, I can evade topics like he overtakes cars. Thank God he can’t read my mind. Liam keeps to himself, acting like a perfect gentleman and friend. He gives me exactly what I want. Except I know his dirty secrets, like how his voice sounded when he came while getting me off.

I snap back into the conversation. “Okay, so you really love books. Got it. So, Niagara Falls is really that far away? I’m still disappointed.”

“Whoa. You lasted a whole minute without bringing up your failed plan again. I’m surprised because you’re usually so well-versed in your little ideas.” Liam’s playful smile pulls at my heart. Stupid, stupid heart. I thought we were in this together. You fickle bitch, acting all excited after one incident of phone sex.

“I think Google lied to me. It’s the only explanation. Maybe someone on Reddit hacked my feed and messed with my head. You know, kind of like how our phones show ads about stuff we talk about aloud but never search for. Talk about freaky.” Call me a nut, but the one time I talk about kayaks to a friend, ads popped up on my phone for a sporting store all week.

“The conspiracies. Do you think they accessed your Pinterest boards? That would be a total breach of secrecy and the worst kind of hack.”

My eyes bug out of my head. I sit, searching for my phone somewhere within the thick comforter. “What do you know about Pinterest?” I whisper. My Pinterest is my diary, not meant for the eyes of people like him.

“The secrets are in the boards.” His attention turns back to his book as he avoids eye contact with me, a smug smile displayed on his face. I want to wipe it right off of him.

“How do you know these things? Who is giving you inside information? Tell me now.” I hit him with my best glare.

Liam’s lazy grin expands as I drag my finger across my throat. “I’m not above offing whoever has loose lips around here.”

He gets up from his chair and sits next to me, the mattress dipping beneath him. His weight makes me sink closer to him. The scent of him wreaks havoc on my body and gives me limited mental clarity to deal with the situation at hand.

“Pinterest her interests.” He chuckles.

I glance at him, my eyebrows pinching together. “You either missed two-thirds of a haiku or you just made a terrible joke.”

He shrugs, not telling me anything.

“Have you seen my boards?” I go from avoiding his touch to clutching his shirt like a cheesy 1950s movie because I need direct eye contact to differentiate the truth from jokes. My Pinterest includes boards of my future wedding, my dream house, and pins of random babies dressed up for Halloween. Basically, all my deepest desires.

We both look at my hands touching his golden chest. A zing of energy spreads across my fingers, the same feeling I ignore daily. His eyes snap back to mine as he licks his bottom lip. I lean into him, tempted to brush my lips against his.

No. This is a bad idea in all capital letters.

I let go of him, putting a foot of distance between us, just in case.

“I will neither confirm nor deny.” He shakes his head.

My heart beats faster. I need to change my account name and update my passwords. Either I have a hacker on my hands or an inquisitive man who doesn’t believe in standard rules of privacy. Or maybe both because I wouldn’t put much past Liam, seeing as he bribes kids and doesn’t follow the status quo.

He scoots in close again. “You look like you’re about to pee your pants any second.” Charming, Sophie. “Relax and watch.”