Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
LARK
M y body is tingling in the best way as Liam’s cock pulses inside me. Of all the things I expected to happen today, giving in to my attraction for my brother’s best friend wasn’t anywhere near being on that list.
Can’t say I’m too upset about this turn of events, though.
Liam is easily the hottest guy I’ve ever met, and the fact that he’s open to having some fun while I’m living with him might end up being my favorite perk of being back home.
With a sigh, I collapse to his chest and try not to tense when he kisses my forehead. In a bid to break the sudden seriousness of the moment, I force a nervous giggle and cross my arms over his chest, glancing up at him through my lashes.
“Wow, plant boy. Didn’t know you had all that in you under that quiet giant exterior of yours.”
He snorts, tossing an arm over his eyes. His muscular chest heaves and the light sheen of sweat makes his tattoos stand out, drawing my attention. The distraction is exactly what I was looking for to lighten the mood, so I trace a finger along his left pec that holds a colorful image of what looks like a kraken devouring a ship from below the surface.
“Did you do these yourself?” I ask in awe. “The detail is insane.”
He nods slowly, an arm still hiding his expression from view but doing nothing to disguise the low grumble of his words. “I had some help with a few details I couldn’t figure out how to do upside down, but the rest was me. I didn’t want to risk giving someone a terrible tattoo, so I practiced on myself a lot.” He points down to his right leg at a collection of smaller, less intricate images.
I drag myself up and off his chest to get a better look, righting my top as I go. When I lift off of him, his release floods out in a gush, making me cringe. “Sorry about that. You can use the towel if you want.”
Liam chuckles, using his free hand to squeeze my hip. “Don’t apologize for giving me the hottest experience of my life, little cactus.”
My cheeks flush at his sweet words. Without responding, I turn back to study his tattoos. There’s a starfish, waves, an anchor, and a small ship. If he hadn’t told me these were practice tattoos he gave himself, I probably never would have guessed. Goosebumps cover his leg when I trace them, and I smile.
It doesn’t matter that this isn’t a real relationship, knowing I affect him this way is an ego boost I’m glad to have after Jake’s constant indifference. As much as it pains me to admit, his parting words were a blow to my self-confidence, and knowing Liam doesn’t see me as some backwoods townie makes me feel better.
“You’re really talented, Liam.”
That finally gets his full attention. He moves his arm away from his face and gives me a blinding smile, dark honey eyes twinkling in the afternoon sun. “That’s high praise coming from The Neon Queen.” He winks.
I can’t help but roll my eyes at the ridiculous nickname. While I do what I can to keep my face off of social media, my work is an entirely different beast. I’m known for my technique with vivid hair colors and patterns, and people go wild for it on social media. Thanks to Quellis’s marketing skills, several of my posts have gone viral, leading to a small group of people calling me “ The Neon Queen. ”
“Nobody actually calls me that,” I huff. “It was a silly trend from almost a year ago.”
He regards me with incredulity for a second before he runs a hand through his messy hair, a calculating gleam darkening his eyes. “Tomorrow’s the Fourth, so I assume you’re not working?”
I cant my head to the side, unsure where he’s going with this. “I’ll probably try to pop in, but technically I don’t have any plans in the morning. I usually take the day off and head over to my parents around eleven a.m. for their annual barbecue. Why do you ask?”
That same hand tangled in his hair singles out a small section right in the front by his hairline. “I like the red in your hair.”
“Oh-kay…” Confusion drips from the drawn-out word at the abrupt change in subject. “Thanks. I used to change it every few months, but it’s been red for about a year now. I think I’m kind of attached at this point.”
Liam nods, that pensive look still creasing his forehead. The silence goes on long enough to make me uneasy, so I go back to tracing his tattoos, still entranced by their beauty.
“I think I’d like some red in my hair,” he says suddenly.
My head pops up, lips parted in shock. Surely I didn’t hear him correctly? “You,” I cough, clearing my throat. “You want me to dye your hair?”
He nods enthusiastically, a smile lighting his face. “A red streak just like yours. Right here.” He tugs on that same lock of hair right above his forehead. “We can be that sickeningly cute couple that everyone hates.”
I raise a brow at that, reaching up to play with his soft hair. It’s warm from the sun and in this light the damp strands look like the smoothest melted dark chocolate, spilling across his forehead. His words are so confident, so bold. Like he doesn’t remember that this is all fake, and in two weeks I’ll go back to being his best friend’s sister.
“You want to dye your hair for a fake relationship?”
Something flashes in his eyes, but the emotion is gone too fast for me to name. Smirking, he picks up my hand and brings it to his lips, planting a soft, lingering kiss on the back. “It’s just hair, little cactus. Don’t overthink it.”
I love the idea of replacing the memory of my last experience with Jake with one of Liam, so with a smile, I stand and grab his hand in mine to help him to his feet. “Why wait for tomorrow when you have a perfectly good house just down the road?”
His grin grows even brighter, almost childlike in its exuberance as he hurriedly runs back to the water to rinse himself off before practically jumping into his board shorts. “Hurry up, let’s go!”
Laughing, I follow his lead and pull my shorts back on while he folds the blanket for me, tucking it back into the waterproof pack. By the time I have my shorts secured he’s got us all packed up and ready to go, so all that’s left to do is to grab the boards and head back to shore.
“Okay so let me get this straight,” Kelsey giggles. Liam and I had to swing by the salon for supplies and she’s been watching me with wide, knowing eyes since I told her our plans for the rest of the evening. “You blew his mind so hard he now wants to match his hair to yours?”
Shifting through the bottles of color on the back wall, I snort. “Jesus, Kelse. No! He just really wants to sell the fake relationship thing. If I have to see those two asshats around town I might as well fuck with them as much as possible.”
She nods sagely. If there’s one thing Kelsey understands, it’s cheating exes. Her now-husband is the most wonderful guy and treats Kelse like a queen, but the guy before him was a narcissistic, cheating asshole. Needless to say she’s been very supportive of my revenge plot, no matter how childish.
I slam a bottle of color back down on the shelf and groan in frustration. “I can’t find the damn red.”
Kelsey raises a brow. “You have like, seven bottles of red in front of you.”
Rolling my eyes, I pin her with a droll look, to which she snickers. “When you told me you were coming back, I hid a few bottles of candy apple in our office just in case. They should be in the top of that little storage closet in a white basket.”
I kiss her cheek with a grin on my way by. “You’re too good to me, Kelsey Elizabeth.”
It’s her turn to snort. “I know.”
After finding the bottles exactly where she said I would, I grab one and almost drop it when the landline rings. I decide Liam can fend for himself with my staff for a few minutes and pick it up .
“Hello?”
“Larky?” a familiar voice asks. “Oh my gosh I didn’t know you were already working again! Things not going well at the salon?”
My grimace is instant, and of course Liam chooses this moment to barge into my office, closing the door behind himself with a look of wide-eyed fear written across his normally stoic face and his hair in complete disarray. I would bet anything at least one of the stylists got handsy.
Probably Jeanie. She’s been happily married for thirty years but still flirts with every good-looking man around. Says a little jealousy keeps things spicy at home.
I would laugh at his obvious distress if there wasn’t a screeching banshee on the other end of the phone. Forcing faux cheer into my tone, I finally tune back in and intentionally ignore her little jab about me being back at work. “Hey, Madisen, I’m actually on my way out, so what can I do for you?”
“Oh, well I need a root touch up before our engagement photos next week and was hoping someone could fit me in last minute. It didn’t seem all that busy when I walked by this morning.”
I barely manage to hold back the snort at that. We don’t even open until eleven a.m., and I highly doubt she pried her snooty butt out of bed before then. “Hmm, yeah, we only have a couple of stylists working this weekend because of the holiday.”
Checking the schedule, I actually do see that Jeanie has an opening on Monday. “Would Monday at two p.m. work for you?” I ask politely. I may not like the woman, but this is a business, and I can be professional.
She squeals, the sound so loud I have to physically pull the phone away from my ear. “That’s absolutely perfect! Thank you so much, Larky. I’ll see you then, kiss kiss!”
The dial tone sounds before I have the chance to tell her any other details, but I just shrug. If she wants to assume the appointment is with me, I won’t correct her. I will, however, warn Jeanie that the wicked witch of the East Coast is flying in on her broom.
Liam leans against the door, patiently waiting for me to finish calming myself down. “Rough call?”
“You have no idea.” I sigh. “That was she-who-shall-not-be-named, calling to schedule a root touch up before her engagement photos next week.”
Liam scoffs, disbelief lacing the short sound. “Must be nice being so delusional. Did you really give her an appointment?”
I nod. “I’m running a business. It would look bad if I refused someone an appointment just because I was being petty over a man I don’t even care about.”
His eyes flash, a smug grin stealing across his mouth briefly before he fixes his face into a more neutral expression. “Your brain is hot as hell, Red.”
Laughing, I thread my fingers with his and lead him out of the building into the dwindling daylight, excitement over our evening eclipsing my annoyance with my ex-best-friend. I won’t say it out loud and risk exposing my confusing feelings, but I think Liam’s brain is hot as hell, too.