7. Emily
“So, tell me about this Liam boy.” My ma strokes my hair from where my head lies on her lap. Her fingers gently massage my scalp in a soothing motion.
I shrug, “There isn’t much to tell, ma. I just met him a couple of weeks ago. But I don’t know how to explain this feeling. I just want to be near him. All. The. Time.”
She chuckles softly. “I know how that is, mo stór. And do you know how he feels?”
I give a small shake of my head. “No, but it’s almost as if he gets tongue-tied around me.” I turn over to look up at her. Her blue eyes, which are nearly identical to mine and Declan’s, soften. “He gets all stiff and struggles to make eye contact with me sometimes.”
“Have you spent any time alone with him?”
“Just in passing. But…” I smile. “Whenever we glance at each other from across any room. My breath stalls, Ma.”
Her smile widens, and her head tilts slightly.
“My skin gets tingly as soon as he walks into a room. It’s like I sense him before I see him.”
She chuckles and I blush.
“You probably think it’s silly,” I say with a sigh and then turn back to my side.
“No, my love. In fact, I know exactly how that feels.”
I stare at the intricate swirls of the blanket at the end of my bed.
“Do you think… Do you think you can talk with daid about me possibly exploring something with Liam?” I whisper as if I’m afraid my father is on the other side of my bedroom door.
Her hands pause and move to my shoulder. I turn my head and meet her eyes.
“Of course, Emily. I’m sure he will understand once I explain to him how you're feeling.”
“Thank you, ma. I really think there is something there.”
She gently caresses my cheek with the back of her forefinger as she stares down at me.
“When you know, you know.”
As I’m walking down the steps of the mansion, I spot Liam walking in my direction. His head is down, looking at his phone, but his steps falter and his head whips up. When he sees me looking at him, his eyes widen slightly. Pocketing his phone, he licks his lips, and then slowly walks up to me.
“Hi,” I whisper.
He clears his throat and offers me a small smile. “Hi, Emily.”
The way he says my name sends chills down my spine. I subtly bite my lower lip before returning his smile.
“What are you doing today?” he asks, shifting on his feet.
“I was actually headed toward the garden. Do you want to come with me?”
He dips his chin and rubs a hand on the back of his neck. “I’m here to get my next orders from your daid, Em.”
“But he did say you need to watch me, right?”
His brow rises. “At your ma’s party.”
“Semantics,” I say, flicking my hand in dismissal. Each beat of my heart pounds in my ears as I try to mask my nerves. This will be my chance to spend some alone time with him.
“Uh…” he glances toward the mansion and then back at me.
“Here.” I hand my blanket and journal to him. “You can say you helped carry my things for me.”
He chuckles under his breath and then a smirk tilts his mouth.
“Alright, let's go.”
I sit next to Liam on my throw blanket surrounded by wildflowers. He only just started to relax, and we’ve been out here for about twenty minutes. We’ve been watching the clouds flow by and the energy between us is tense with longing.
Our conversations are not nearly as awkward as that day in the foyer, but I can’t seem to form coherent sentences around him.
And you said he gets tongue-tied.
I snort.
“What?” Liam says.
“Huh?” I ask.
“You just snorted, what’s so funny?” the smile he gives me makes my stomach flutter.
I shake my head and roll my eyes. “It’s nothing.”
He nudges me with his shoulder. “Come on, you can tell me.”
I stare into his hazel eyes which soften as he waits for my reply. Mustering up my courage, I release a deep breath.
“You make it hard for me to come up with sentences that make sense.”
A slight breeze causes a strand of my hair to fall from the clip it’s in. Liam swallows tightly and then reaches out. There is a slight tremble in his hand when he pushes the strand behind my ear.
“The feelin’ is mutual,” he says quietly.
My heart somersaults. I feel the skin on my cheeks and neck heat.
“I got you something.” He whispers.
Surprise flashes across my face. “What?”
He stuffs his hand into his pocket and pulls out a slender rectangle-shaped box.
“I had heard you lost your butterfly necklace and so…” his sentence trails off as he opens the lid of the box.
A beautiful silver butterfly pendant sparkles on an equally exquisite silver chain. There are several small stones encrusted in the pendant and the light reflects off it like a dream.
“This one has a small tracker in it that will help us find you if anything goes wrong.”
When I knit my brows and look up at him, he chuckles.
“You know the lives we live, Emily.”
I smirk because he’s right. We live dangerous lives whether we want to or not and it means safety needs to be at the highest priority.
“May I?” Liam asks, gesturing to the necklace.
I smile widely. Turning my back toward Liam, I scoop my hair over my shoulder.
His arms reach over, and he places the necklace on my neck. Every brush of his fingers on my skin sends electricity down my spine and my heart racing.
“There.” He whispers before clearing his throat.
My hair falls to my back when I return my gaze to Liam.
His eyes quickly glance at my lips before rising back to mine. My body warms as desire begins to heat my blood.
When I lick my lips, Liam’s eyes track the movement, and I watch as his pupils dilate. My chest rises and falls rapidly as my breaths begin to shallow.
Liam’s hand rises and he cups the side of my face – his hand rests at the hollow of my neck. His callused thumb caresses my skin softly and my eyes flutter.
“This is a bad idea,” he says, though I’m not sure if he meant it for me or him.
He leans in, his lips stopping inches from mine. The swirls of green and amber are nearly hidden from how blown his pupils have gotten.
He closes his eyes tightly and breathes in deeply before releasing it.
“Fuck it,” he says and his lips crash against mine.
My heart soars at the feel of him. His lips are soft, yet firm. His movements are gentle, yet hungry. It’s everything.
Our tongues meet, stroke for stroke, and I’m completely lost in this kiss, lost in Liam. His fingers slide up from my cheek, and he removes my clip.
My core tightens when he grips my strands in his fist and deepens the kiss. I moan into his mouth and a satisfied groan escapes him.
Just as I make the decision to climb onto his lap, his phone pings, breaking our trance.
Liam pulls his mouth away from mine so fast as if he lost himself in me as much as I did him. He’s panting so hard, and I can see his heartbeat from the vein in his neck.
He shakes his head as though clearing his mind and then pulls his phone from his pocket.
His face hardens when he stares down at the screen.
“I gotta go.”
My heart falls and I can’t stop my shoulders from sagging.
He pockets his phone and then studies my face. His eyes soften and he strokes my cheek with the back of his fingers.
“I’ll see you later, okay?” he says softly.
I nod and chew on the inside of my cheek.
His forefinger and thumb grasp my chin and tip my head up, so I have to look into his eyes. He smiles at me and then presses a soft kiss to my lips. When he pulls away, he shoots me a wink and then rises from the blanket, and toward the mansion.
There’s definitely something there.