Chapter 16
Liam
For a second, I just look at her.
She’s wearing a flowy sundress with flowers on it, and her hair is pulled up in a messy bun. Her skin is glowing and her cheeks are pink from the late summer heat. She looks so, so pretty.
I walk up to her, grinning. “Hey.”
She flashes a shy smile. “Hey. Are you busy?”
I shake my head. “Just finishing up here. Were you wanting a personal workout session from me? Because you’re gonna need to change into some better workout clothes. I go pretty hard.”
She does that cute little annoyed head tilt, like she always does whenever I say something obnoxious. “No, thanks. I got a call from the bakery we ordered the dessert from for Micah and Aidan’s rehearsal dinner. There’s some problem with our order.”
“Oh.”
She sighs. “Yeah. Since it’s right next door to your gym and I knew you were training today, I figured we could go together and sort it out.”
“Yeah, absolutely. Let me change really quick.”
Kendall’s eyes falls to my chest. The ratty white t-shirt I’m wearing is soaked through with sweat. It’s practically see-through. Her brown eyes widen the slightest bit as she runs her gaze along my chest and stomach. I can’t help but smile.
“See something you like?” I tease.
The flush on her cheeks deepens. She looks up and meets my gaze. She shakes her head, but there’s a brightness in her eyes that wasn’t there until she stared at my chest a second ago.
“You should definitely change your shirt,” she says. She starts to smile, but then she purses her lips.
“So I should go shirtless then?”
She rolls her eyes right as a smile breaks across her gorgeous face. “God, no.”
“Yeah. It would be pretty hard for you to concentrate if I’m half-naked, wouldn’t it?”
She scoffs, but a second later it turns to laughter. I grin like the smug bastard I am, enjoying that moment of Kendall looking me up and down. I drive her crazy, but she likes looking at my body. I’ll take the compliment.
“Hey, Scott. Who’s your pretty friend?” Wes says as he walks over to us.
That playfulness inside of me instantly disappears when I see the way Wes grins at Kendall. He likes her.
That’s nothing new. Wes is the kind of guy who chats up any hot woman within a five-mile radius.
I frown at him, annoyed. It’s never bothered me before to see Wes do that. But now that he’s attempting to charm Kendall, I’m not having it.
She turns to him, offering a polite smile. “I’m Kendall.”
He shakes her hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
His gaze lingers on her even as they break the handshake. He juts his chin at me. “So what are you doing hanging out with this loser?”
She laughs. “We’re planning the rehearsal dinner for his brother’s wedding.”
“Really?” Wes looks over at me.
“I’m the best man,” I mutter.
“And I’m the best woman,” Kendall says.
Wes quickly skims his gaze along the length of her body. “You really are.”
She chuckles and rolls her eyes. A strange territorial feeling rockets through me.
Wes steps closer to Kendall. “So do you have a date to this wedding?”
“We’re leaving.” I step in front of him, forcing him back a few steps as I head over to my gym bag. I grab it and rest my hand on the small of Kendall’s back, leading her through the entrance outside.
“I thought you said you had to change?” she asks.
I unzip my bag and dig around for a clean t-shirt. “I can do it out here.”
When I glance up at Kendall, a teasing smile plays across her plush lips. “You don’t like your teammate talking to me?”
“Nope.”
“Why?”
I huff out a breath. “Because that guy fucks anything that moves. You should stay away from him.”
“Oh my god, Liam. Don’t tell me you’re jealous.”
“I’m not,” I mutter.
“You kind of sound like it.”
“I’m just saying. He’s not your type.”
“And what exactly is my type?”
“Not him.” Not any guy. Except for me.
That prick of jealousy ignites, turning hotter by the second.
I stand up and rip off my shirt, then dab the sweat on my chest and neck with it. I shove it into my gear bag and glance at Kendall.
Her eyes are two big saucers as she gazes at my bare chest. That jealousy fades. A smug, satisfied feeling pulses through me.
I grin and lean closer to her. “You know, for someone who said she didn’t want to see me half-naked, you’re spending a lot of time staring at me.”
She blinks and that dazed look in her big brown eyes disappears.
“I couldn’t really look away. Your giant chest is in my immediate line of sight.”
I grin at the insistence in her tone. I hold her gaze. “Whatever you say, firecracker.”
I pull the clean shirt over my head.
“Stop calling me that.”
I wink at her. “Never.”