Which was still a relatively new feeling.
Liam’s face when I’d opened my apartment door had made the whole wardrobe crisis worth it. He’d gone still, his jaw actually dropping slightly, and I’d watched his throat work as he swallowed.
“Sunshine.” His voice had been rough. “You’re trying to kill me.”
Now we were seated at a corner booth at La Bella, candlelight flickering between us, and I still couldn’t quite believe this was real.
We were really here. Out in public, together as a couple.
His gaze held mine with so much affection swimming inthose green eyes that butterflies took flight in my stomach. I nibbled my bottom lip and his gaze dropped to watch the movement, affection quickly turning to hunger that made me feel more powerful than anything we’d checked off my list.
“This is really nice. Thank you for bringing me here.”
His hand found mine across the table, our fingers intertwining. “You deserve nice. You deserve a guy who wants to show you off, not hide you away like some dirty secret.”
The guilt in his voice made my chest ache. We’d both played a part in keeping us hidden, but I wasn’t going to lie—it was a relief being out in the open together, getting to claim him as mine.
“We’re here now,” I said. “That’s what matters.”
His thumb traced circles on my palm, and I tried to focus on the menu instead of the way that simple touch made my whole body hum. The waiter came and went. We ordered, though I couldn’t tell you what because I was too busy watching the way the candlelight played across Liam’s features, softening the angles of his jaw and making his eyes even more mesmerizing than usual.
God, I was so gone for this man.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked.
“You,” I said coyly, taking a sip of my wine. It was nice to be twenty-one. Drew and I had celebrated our twenty-first birthday in September. Liam and I had celebrated privately later that night when he’d licked whipped cream off places that had nothing to do with birthday cake.
He laughed, and the sound wrapped around me like a warm blanket. I wanted to bottle it. Wanted to remember this exact moment forever—especially the way he looked at me like I was the only person in the room.
“What about me?”
I hummed in my throat. “About how you fill out that shirt for one.” His smile turned hungry again. And I knew that look because pleasure always followed.
“What else?” His voice sent shivers through me with how rough it was.
“And what your reaction will be when you learn I might’ve forgotten to wear underwear under this dress.”
“Sunshine,” he growled.
Our waiter arrived with our food, and I bit back my smile at the look of sheer willpower it took Liam not to haul me out of this room and check my underwear situation for himself. Despite the heated looks he sent me the whole time, we fell into easy conversation as we ate, talking about our classes this semester, his hopes for the hockey season, what I loved most about my dance classes. It was all normal stuff.
But it made the date even better.
“You keep looking at me like that and we’re not going to make it through dessert,” Liam said, his voice low enough that only I could hear.
I gave him a coy smile. “Who said anything about dessert?”
His eyes darkened. “You’re playing a dangerous game.”
“Maybe I like danger.” I traced my finger around the rim of my wine glass, watching his gaze track the movement. “Maybe I like watching you try to keep it together in public.”
“Ava.” My name sounded like a warning and a prayer all at once.
“Liam.” I mimicked his tone, batting my eyelashes innocently.
He flagged down the waiter for the check so fast I almost laughed. Almost. But then he switched seats and hishand was on my thigh under the table, sliding up my bare skin, and suddenly nothing was funny anymore.
“You weren’t lying,” he murmured against my ear, his fingers brushing higher. “No underwear.”
