Page 50 of Fall For Me
I’m holding my breath again, not from fear this time, but out of sheer, grudging admiration. This business side of Liam is doing nothing to help me maintain emotional distance. It’s like each day peels back another layer of him I didn’t expect to find attractive—the competence, the vision, the genuine passion beneath the polished exterior.
“We’ll discuss the financials at the office tomorrow. I have a dinner meeting.” Charles pauses. “I know I push back, but… you’re stepping up.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
“I have to go now. Tell Peyton I’m sorry I missed her.”
“Oh, I will.”
I squeeze my eyes shut. Bet he can’t wait to have words with me.
Footsteps move toward the door. “Walk me out?”
“Sure.”
Their voices fade into the hallway. The heavy front door opens and closes with a solid thud.
I remain frozen behind the wall of fabric, my muscles locked. What if Charles forgot something? What if?—
Footsteps return. Unhurried. Slightly uneven.
They stop in front of my soft cage.
The silence stretches, a rope about to snap.
Then Liam’s voice cuts through the curtain, a fresh shock to my system.
“Why are you hiding back there? You can come out now.”
19
LIAM
“I—I actually can’t come out,” Peyton whimpers from behind the curtain.
I’m wary of even asking as I grit out, “Why?”
“I’m sort of… mmm… mostly naked.”
She can’t see me, but I still turn, stick my fist into my mouth, and bite.
The images my brain conjures are unhelpful.
I release my fist from between my teeth and shake out my hand.
“How naked is ‘mostly’?” The question comes out strangled.
“Like… panties only.”
Kill me the fuck now.
I shrug my suit jacket off my shoulders and approach the window, letting it dangle from two fingers near the edge of the drapes. “Put this on.”
I stare away, but still catch in my peripheral vision her pale hand as it shoots out from the folds of fabric, snatches the jacket, and retreats.
“Turn around,” she hisses.
I don’t just turn; I pace away. Put the desk between us. Create distance. The idea of her sliding her arms into my sleeves is problematic enough on its own.
