Liam O’Connell, the guy who enjoyed watching action and cult classic horror films, who liked gardening on the weekend with his mother, who loved reading fantasy novels, and who dreamed of building all sorts of creations straight from his imagination.
To her, Imattered.
Falling in love with my best friend was inevitable and it happened within weeks of knowing her.
Mabel has owned me from the first letter and she continues to own me, even after two years.
I push the bowl of white chocolate truffles down the bench after taking one myself. “Here. Help yourself.”
She watches me unwrap one and plop it into my mouth before mimicking me. “White chocolate is my favourite.”
I know. “Mine too.”
We share a secret smile.
“So, Lee. Tell me about yourself.” Mabel practically moans when the chocolate hits her palate and I shift uncomfortably, my semi stiff against the seam of my dark jeans.
That sound is like music to my ears.
“What would you like to know?” I barely manage to utter the words.
“How old are you?” She reaches for another chocolate. Pride soars through me when I notice the nails with sunflowers on them. Mabel sent me pictures last night after getting them done. I love seeing her wear something I helped provide for.
I’m picturing those nails raking down my back like a total bastard. Everything I’ve felt for this girl in the last two years is magnified now that she’s physically in my vicinity. I’m feeling horny, happy, and so damn in love.
“I’m twenty.” I almost choke on my saliva when Mabel licks the melted white chocolate off her thumb like a fucking dicktease.
“No kidding. Same. What else do you do besides rescuing damsels in distress?”
That makes me laugh. “Besides rescuing damsels in distress, I go to school. I’m studying engineering.”
I’m nervous for a second. It feels like Mabel can see right through me—see that I’mLiam. I deliberately avoid saying which kind of engineering since she knows I’m studying civil. Not to mention, I’ve lied to her in the past and said I studied at another institute. I was worried if I said Vesta University, she’d scope out the entire place until she found me.
I’ve never been ready to be physically found by her, but tonight? I’m considering telling her the truth about my identity.
I’ve played out the scenario of us meeting for the first time in my mind often. In all of them, Mabel looks horrified at my hefty appearance and the light scar that cuts over my cheek, half hidden beneath my beard.
Except right now she’s far from horrified. Dare I say, she appears pretty comfortable and relaxed. Maybe learning that I’m Liam won’t be so bad after all.
She’ll be annoyed that I lied, but I don’t think she’ll toss me aside like a defective toy…
“Nice. What would you like to do in that field?” She adjusts the shoulders of her top and her cleavage bounces.
I’ve died and gone to heaven.
“Engineering is quite vast and there’s a lot I can do in it.” I redirect my gaze to the ground before she catches me staring at her. “But I know for certain I like working with my hands since I’ve always been passionate about building things from scratch.”
One of my long-term goals is to be able to work as a construction manager, overseeing projects from start to finish. The idea of one day walking on a bridge or standing in a building I helped build is a fascinating concept to me.
Mabel crosses her legs and angles her body my way, giving me her full attention. Like she’s genuinely interested in me. “What kind of things do you like to build?”
Now’s probably a bad time to tell her I built her a desk after she complained about needing a new one three weeks ago. It’s white and solid wood to match her room’s aesthetic. I was going to gather the courage to ask her for her address so I could drop it off in the next few days.
“Anything I can build. I don’t limit myself. I started with making bird houses and eventually worked my way up to things like bed frames, dressers…office desks.”
Her jaw slackens. She’s extremely impressed. My cheeks heat up.
“That’s really amazing, Lee. Most people live their whole lives without figuring out what they’re meant to do and I think there’s something powerful in finding your passion and pursuing it.” Is she getting closer to me or is that my starved imagination conjuring up this whole thing? “Who knows, maybe you’ll build the world’s eighth wonder one day.”
