I stare at our joined hands, trying to understand the connection between us. It must be the confidence Liam exudes. It’s such a different experience when compared to the guys I’ve been around before, with those sexual encounters being subpar at best.
I somehow break away from his hold, dropping back into the group’s conversations. Liam lets me get away with avoiding one-on-one conversations for the rest of the night. Like the gentleman he pretends to be, he pays for dinner, putting an end to our bizarre date.
Outside of the restaurant, I strategically insert myself into Noah’s offer to take Maya back to the Bandini team’s hotel. Liam doesn’t look the least bit pleased based on the clenching of his jaw and the way his eyes narrow at his fuckboy friend.
You win some, you lose some. And I don’t want to be the one to lose anything.
The car ride back with Noah and Maya is filled with sexual tension, with me unable to escape them since my body is wedged between them.
I decide to break the awkward silence after a few minutes. “Did you know some versions of paella include mussels in them? Remind me to order mine without them when we have dinner tomorrow.”
“Hmm.” Maya stares out the window, leaving no room for a back and forth. No worries, I can talk enough for the two of us.
“And we can visit the beach while the guys practice tomorrow. What do you say? Me, you, sangria, and shirtless Spanish boys?”
Noah turns his head toward me. His deep blue eyes assess me before moving onto Maya, lingering on her face. “Just what she needs. More men hanging around her, wanting to fuck around.”
Alrighty then. I’ll take Sore Subject for two hundred, please.
Maya turns toward me and mouths a silent apology. I instantly regret joining these two for a car ride because the whole situation is awkward as fuck. My lips remain sealed for the rest of the trip, no longer in the mood to deal with a brooding Noah.
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.”