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He enquired, “Did you have dinner?” and I nodded. “Yes, I did.” “And you?” “Yes, I did, too.”
I bent my head down and whispered. “Are you avoiding me?” “No, honey. Why would I avoid you?” he answered right away. “Oh…” I said, feeling uncomfortable.
A few seconds went by, and then he gripped my chin between his thumb and index finger and gently lifted it. This was the last thing I expected him to do.
He kissed me on the lips.
My eyes got bigger in astonishment, and his closed. He is kissing me!
He drew back right away as I was going to kiss him back. The kiss hardly lasted for three seconds.
He started to yell uncomfortably. “I’m sorry…I didn’t…I…”
I dragged him down by the fist of his t-shirt and put my lips on his, which made him stop talking. Butterflies are flying about in my tummy.
I took my hand off of his shirt and slipped it up to his neck as we kissed passionately.
He held my cheeks in his hands and tilted my head to intensify the kiss. My pulse raced as I kissed him back with the same passion.
He gently backed away, breathing fiercely, and peered deeply into my eyes. His gaze slid down to my lips.
“F**k it,” he said, and this time our lips connected in a violent kiss.
He took his hands off my cheeks, and one of them got caught in my hair as the other one slid around my waist, drawing me closer.
I sighed into the kiss as our tongues moved against each other and slowly entangled. Then he touched my bottom lip with his tongue. He sucked on my lower lip, then pulled back and put his forehead to mine.
He uttered it with his eyes still closed and out of breath. “I could never get away from you, Sophie. You’re a big part of my life.”
We both opened our eyes at the same time, and I put my arms around his torso and buried my head in his chest with a smile on my face.
I care about him so much!
Sophie’s point of view:
Alley came into the kitchen and said, “Your best friend is here.” “Wait, Levi is here?”
She nodded. “Yes. He’s waiting outside.”
I hurriedly washed my hands and dried them off before leaving the kitchen.
When I hurried to the booth where he was seated, he got up, and I hugged him fiercely, which caught the attention of other diners.
I exclaimed, “What are you doing here?” and he kissed my forehead.
He told me to sit down, and I did, across from him. “I came here because I missed you.”
I grinned. “I can’t believe you came all the way from Tampa just to see me.”
“Anything for you, Sophie.” He smirked, and I thought of what Liam had said. “He likes you.”
No. Stop talking.
I asked him, “Do you want to eat something?” and he shook his head, respectfully saying no.
He spoke more quietly. “So, what does it feel like to be Liam Whitmore’s fiancée?”
“Well, it feels a little strange because I’m getting so much attention. After the party, my Instagram followers went up a lot.”
But then my eyes lit up as I realized how much I adore Liam. “And…”
“And?” He raised his eyebrows. “Well…I fell in love with him.” “What?”
“Uh, I love him, Levi. I fell in love with him, and he even kissed me yesterday.” I said this in a quiet voice so that no one else could hear it.
He looked sad and afraid, hoping that what Liam said about him wasn’t true. “Levi, why do you look so shocked?”
He shook his head and looked down. “Are you happy, Sophie?”
“I am very happy,” I murmured, and he raised his head. “Then I guess I got late.” “Why?”
He said, “I like you, Sophie,” and my heart sank. “I really do.” I didn’t know what to say.
“Levi…I…”
“It’s fine, Sophie. I understand that you don’t like me anymore because you fell in love with him.”
“Levi, I’m really sorry. I just never saw you that way. I’m so sorry. I never thought you would…”
He smiled sadly and said, “It’s OK, Sophie. It’s OK.” “I’m so sorry,” I muttered again.
He held my hand and squeezed it softly. “Don’t be sorry, Sophie. It’s not your fault.”
Then he took my hand and kissed it. “Is this going to end our friendship?” I asked.
He grinned and shook his head. “No way. We’re best friends. Always.” I nodded, and he stood up to leave. “Are you not going to stay?”
“I just came to see you. I’m leaving tomorrow night.”
“Oh, you can stay—”
“No,” he said with a laugh. “I’m not going to Liam’s house because he doesn’t like me.”
“But…”
“It’s OK, Sophie. I’ll see you again tomorrow before I leave, OK?” “OK,” I said and nodded.
I followed him out of the restaurant, and he gave me a loving embrace. I responded. He walked along the street after kissing my cheek and waved goodbye.
I glanced back and saw Liam standing at the restaurant’s door. He had his hands in his pockets and seemed quite unhappy. He was glaring at Levi as he walked away.
“L-Liam…” I said as I got closer to him. “What are you doing here?”
He turned away from him and glanced at me. The coldness crept into his gaze. “I came to get you.” He clenched his teeth.
“OK, I’ll just grab my purse and come.”
He nodded coldly in return, and I walked inside, got my purse, and said goodbye to Alley before coming back outside.
I walked with Liam to his car, and when he opened the door for me, he motioned for me to get in. Then he closed the door.
He drove silently towards his house, and that worried me. “Liam?” I murmured gently.
“What was he doing there?” he yelled. “Who?” I said in a naive way.
Not a good question.
“Levi.” He almost spat out his name. “What was he doing there, Sophie?” “Um…he just came to see me.”
“And?”
I anxiously messed with my fingers and looked down. “He…um…he…told me that…um…he likes me.”
Liam’s jaw tightened as his hold on the driving wheel got stronger. “What did you say?”
“I… rejected him?” I couldn’t declare that I love you, so I turned him down. “Why?”
My mouth opened a little. “Why do you want to know? I didn’t feel the same way he did, that’s all.”
“What did he do?”
“He said… it’s fine…”
He didn’t say anything else, and his brows came together as if he were thinking.
I didn’t say anything either, and for the remainder of the journey, the only sound was the motor of the automobile.
He parked the car in front of the home, and after looking at him for a long time, I got out and went inside. I said hello to Helen and then went up to his room.
As I was going to put my purse away and close the door, it opened behind me and slammed shut.
Liam grabbed my arm, turned me around, and pressed his lips against mine, cupping my cheeks.
I was shocked by what he did, and my purse fell from my grasp. I gasped quietly, and he kissed me more deeply, with such passion, desire, and wrath that it made my toes curl in ecstasy.
My legs gave way, and I held on to his biceps for strength as I kissed him back. He pushed me back with his lips still on mine, and we kept going till my legs reached the bed. Then he pushed me gently, and I fell back on the bed with him on top of me.
He kissed my lips and then my jaw, and then he kissed my neck, which made me gasp. My fingers got stuck in his hair.
He suddenly halted at the base of my neck and buried his head in the crook of my neck, breathing deeply.
He muttered huskily into my ear, “You’re mine, Sophie. I won’t let him take you away from me.”
I muttered back, “No one’s taking me away from you, Liam,” to attempt to calm him down.
He raised his head, his pupils got bigger, and he put his forehead on mine. “Please don’t ever leave me. I won’t make it. I’ll break.”