Page 103 of A Beastologist's Field Notes of Fated Affection
“So you avoided me because you’re busy? You’re lying. It’s that brain of yours.” He tapped my temple. “You got in your head.”
He was right. Of course he was. He’d been able to see right through everything down to my core from the moment I met him. And it terrified me. A lump formed in my throat and I swallowed, taking another breath.
“I suppose that’s true. I never meant to hurt you, Liam. I just thought it would be easier that way.”
Now, he looked angry. “Easier? On who? You? Allright then. Tell me. Did it work? Did you go back to teaching and research with a smile on your face? Did you dive into that grant proposal happily? Did you resume your schedule and routine and not think about me at all? Was everything better, Cerise? Because it wasn’t better for me and I don’t think it was better for you either. I can’t focus on anything because all I can think about is you. I thought I could handle seeing you at the gala tonight, but the moment I found you, I was fucking gone, beautiful.”
My heart picked up its pace. I had no words to respond to his confession. No idea what to say.
He kept going. “I don’t want to be friends. So, we’re going to have the time of our lives tonight, and then you’re coming back to my room and I’m going to show you how much you mean to me.”
I shivered at the meaning behind his words. I wanted this. I wanted him to show me exactly what he was thinking. “Okay, but?—”
He held my chin in a firm grasp. Luckily we were in a dark corner and the rest of the patrons were too busy drinking, dancing and playing cards to notice the sexual tension in our booth. “But nothing. I know what you’re about to say. How do we do this? We try. I’ll come visit you, you visit me, and we see where it goes. Can you handle that?”
I didn’t answer, though my breathing sped up as I didn’t break his heated gaze.
He leaned in, lips brushing mine. “Can you handle that, sunshine?”
“Yes,” I whispered, swallowing a whimper that wanted to escape from my throat.
His lips met mine, slow and searching, but with a promise of more later.
Pulling away, he released my chin. “Let’s finish dinner and see where the night takes us next.”
All right then. I was going to try this. Whateverthiswas.
We walked down a dark alleyway,hand-in-hand. “Where are we going?” I asked, scanning the stone walls. “This feels dangerous.”
“It’s perfectly safe,” Liam reassured me. “I promise, I would never put you in harm’s way. But…technically it’s not legal so the entrance is hidden.”
Every muscle in my body went rigid. “Not legal? Oh gods, Liam…we are academics. We’re professionals…this…this is a terrible idea.”
He squeezed my hand as we stopped beside a wooden door. “It’s a fabulous idea. You’re going to love it, I promise. Trust me.”
His glasses slid down his nose and I pushed them back up. He grinned.
“I’m not going to pull some illegal prank just for fun,” I said softly.
“It’s not a prank. We’re just going to watch something.”
Shouts and cheers erupted inside. “Watch what?” I asked with trepidation.
“You’re about to find out.”
Liam opened the door, and with a hand on my lower back, ushered me inside. We were in a warehouse, crates stacked along the walls. The cheers and yells grew louder as we ventured further into the space.
Wandering through a maze of barrels, we turned a corner and stopped. Before us was a dirt ring, surrounded by tiered benches and an unruly crowd.
“Are ya’ll lost?” some man drawled, the ale in his hand sloshing as he spoke. “Yer too fancy to be in here.”
“Don’t you worry about us,” Liam said with a salute. “We’re exactly where we wish to be.”
The man chuckled, wiped his chin with his dirty brownshirt, and turned back to the center of the room where two men were brawling.
My eyes darted everywhere. Tall wooden ceilings loomed above us. Drunken spectators shouted as one man punched another in the gut, causing him to stumble. “Liam, this is?—”
“Fantastic is what it is. Come on.” He pulled me through the crowd until we found an empty bench at the back corner, hardly enough space for the two of us.
