Liam

by Simone Grey

  Lisa eyes soften with sympathy as though she knows what I’m thinking. She knows all too well what I went through.

  “It’s been three years Ava. I refuse to let that bastard control your dating life anymore.”

  “Hey Av, what happened to HBO, it’s not coming up?” Jayden asks.

  Lisa marches over to him and snatches the popcorn and remote out of his hands.

  “Hey woman, what are you doing?” He looks over glaring at her.

  She glares right back. “You’re supposed to be helping me convince her to go out not watching TV and stuffing your face.”

  Jayden looks over at me and sighs. “Fine. Listen Av, let’s just go out for a while and if you don’t like it, we can leave, but you’ve got to at least try and go out and have some fun.”

  Looking back and forth between my two best friends my resolve starts to wilt. “You promise, I can leave if I’m not having fun.”

  Lisa grins as she bounces slightly in her heels. “I promise.”

  I sigh. “Fine. I’ll go out for a little while.”

  “Yay! Come on I’ll do your hair and makeup,” Lisa says giving the remote and popcorn back to Jayden before grabbing my hand and dragging me into my room. I can already tell this is going to be a long night.

  ***

  The inside of the club is electric. Despite all the years I’ve been in Chicago, I’ve never been to this club. Partly because I’m not much of a party person and partly because this place is always packed. Anytime I pass it, the lines are usually out the door. Temptation is easily the hottest club in Chicago. When you first step inside there is a walled off area where bouncers check IDs.

  Once you get past the main entrance and turn a corner that is where the actual club is. The energy in the building is almost palpable.

  A mixture of blues and purples streak from the strobe lights in the ceiling. The bar area takes up one entire wall. It’s filled with people sipping drinks and chatting.

  To the right and left are a series of booths, couches high tables and low tables filled with more people talking, laughing and eating.

  And in the center of it all is a huge dance floor filled with writhing bodies moving to beat of the music the DJ is playing. Looking up I see a second story with a bunch of rooms with blacked out windows.

  “It’s great isn’t it?” Lisa yells over the music.

  “Uh yeah,” I say unconvincingly. I can hear the nerves in my voice so I know Jayden and Lisa can.

  Lisa puts her arm around my shoulder. “Oh, come on, it’ll be fun. Besides you look hot tonight. Your ass in that dress looks fantastic, if I do say so myself.”

  At the mention of my outfit, I look down at myself. The top half of my dress is black with thin spaghetti straps and a deep v neck showing my cleavage or lack thereof in my case. At my hips the dress changes to a light grey and cuts off mid-thigh showing my curves. I still can’t believe she talked me into wearing this. My thick, curly hair hangs around my shoulders and a pair of two-inch black heels are on my feet.

  “Whatever I’ve seen a few guys checking you out since we walked into the club.”

  I roll my eyes. Guys don’t check me out. Especially when I’m with Lisa and I’m totally okay with that. I’m secure enough in my looks to recognize that in this friendship she’s the extraordinary one and I’m the ordinary one.

  “Are you sure they weren’t looking at you?” I ask.

  “No, you have a great body. You need to flaunt it more, instead of hiding behind those big clothes you like to wear.”

  “Why don’t you two go get a table and I’ll get the drinks,” Jayden says cutting into our conversation.

  “No, I’ll go get the drinks. What do you guys want?” I need something to do to stop my nerves from getting the best of me.

  “A rum and coke,” Jayden says.

  “Make that two.” Lisa adds. “We’ll be over there.” She points to a section of tables on the right.

  I head towards the packed bar. I manage to find an opening between two women and raise my hand to flag down a bartender. One looks my way and holds up a finger in the universal sign for ‘I’ll be there in a minute’.

  As I’m waiting, I look to my left and that’s when I see him.

  He’s standing at the other end of the bar facing another man as he talks to him. I can only see him from the side but it’s enough to draw me in.

  His dirty blond hair is cropped close on the sides with the longer strands in the middle sticking up all over the place. He’s tall at least six foot two or six foot three with broad shoulders and muscular arms. Tattoos are woven down the one arm I can see all the way to his wrist. The guy standing in front of him is still talking when suddenly he looks over and directly at me. A gasp leaves my lips and my eyes widen.

  Holy shit. He is gorgeous.

  If I thought he was attractive from the side, having the full force of him looking directly at me, even from across the bar, has a flush heating my cheeks. My heart rate spikes, and a swarm of butterflies take up residence in my stomach.

  I don’t know how long I stand their staring at him. It could be a few seconds or a few minutes, but once I realize it embarrassment rushes through me and heat scalds my face. Hastily I look away just as the bartender reaches me.

  “What can I get ya?”

  I fumble through the drink order. I can feel him watching me. Probably trying to figure out why a random chick at the bar was staring at him. Although with his looks, I’m sure he gets stared at all the time. I shift from one foot to the other.

  We’re not even standing next to each other, yet I can still feel his gaze on me. It’s unnerving. I’ve never felt this awareness of another individual before. Relief feels me as the bartender comes back with my drinks. It takes everything in me not to look back as I make my way across the room to the table Lisa and Jayden are sitting at.

  Unsurprisingly there are a few men and women standing around the table trying to get the attention of both of my friends. I shake my head, a smile forming on my face. Some things never change. Back in college guys would flock to Lisa and girls would flock to Jayden any time we went out.

  I set our drinks on the table just as Jayden is saying “I’ll come find you in a little while, I want to hang out with my friends.”

  The two women pout a little but nod and walk away. The two guys talking to Lisa leave as well after she murmurs something to them. Immediately I feel guilty.

  “You guys didn’t have to send them off” I say

  “It’s alright. Besides, we’re here to hang out with each other” Jayden says taking a sip of his drink.

  “Girl, do you see who’s staring at you?’ Lisa asks, her fingernails digging into arm.

  “What?” I look around and that’s when my eyes collide with Mr. Gorgeous from the bar. I hastily look away again as butterflies swoop and swirl around in my stomach.

  “Oh my god! He’s still looking. Do you know who that is?” Lisa asks excitedly.

  “No.” I pry her fingers off my arm.

  “That’s Liam Trace.”

  When I just stare at her blankly, she gapes at me.

  “Oh, come on, Av I know you don’t pay attention to social media and the blogs, but you have to have heard of him and his family. Right?”

  “No, I don’t think so.” While the last name does sound vaguely familiar, I can’t put any faces with it. Especially that face. There’s no way I would forget it if I’d seen it before.

  “He’s like a freaking billionaire. His dad is a self-made millionaire who owned two clubs, including this one and a restaurant. When Liam graduated from college, he took over the businesses; expanded and opened two more restaurants, including Tempest and three more clubs in other cities.”

  My eyes widen with every word out of her mouth.

  “Hey, didn’t he use to date that model Isabelle Rodriguez? I think I saw it on one of those blogs. Man, she is fine.”

  Lisa and I both pause to look at Jayden.

>   “You were reading gossip blogs?” I ask incredulously.

  Jayden is the most laid-back person I know. He doesn’t like drama and rarely pays attention to gossip and magazines, which is why him picking up one and reading it is so surprising.

  “What? I was in the checkout line at the grocery store and it just happened to be in front of me,” he says defensively.

  “Anyways, he was totally checking you out a minute ago.” Lisa grabs my arm excitedly.

  “I doubt it, besides you just heard Jayden he dates models. Why would he be checking me out?”

  Lisa’s eyes narrow on me. “Because you’re fucking hot. He or any guy in here would be lucky to catch your eye.”

  “Yeah, Av you’re beautiful and if a guy can’t see that then he’s not worth your time anyway,” Jayden adds.

  I can’t help but smile at their words. These two have come to mean so much to me over the past five years. They are the family I wish I’d had growing up.

  Just then Cardi B’s latest hit comes on and Lisa jumps up, “Oh, I love this song. Come on yall let’s go dance!”

  I shake my head, “I’ll sit this one out. You two go ahead.”

  “Are you sure?” Jayden asks.

  “Yeah, I’m good here.”

  “Okay.”

  They both take off to the dance floor and I settle back into my seat content to people watch. As I look around the club, I find myself looking over at the bar to see if Liam is still over there, but I don’t see him.

  I tell myself it’s for the best. I tell myself I imagined the spark I felt with him. He’s a freaking billionaire that dates models and I’m the furthest thing from both of those things. He’s so far out of my league it’s not even funny. I tell myself all those things in hopes that I’ll believe them.

  A half hour later I’m nursing my second coke and Lisa and Jayden are still on the dance floor but now they’re surrounded by other men and women vying for their attention.

  I’m just taking a sip of my drink when I see somebody approach me from my peripheral vision. Looking over I see a guy dressed in a button down, blue shirt untucked and wrinkled jeans approaching.

  “Hey sweetheart. What are you doing sitting over here all by yourself?” I stiffen at the term of endearment.

  Sweetheart. I freaking hate that word. What’s supposed to be a term of endearment brings back bad memories for me.

  Although he’s standing on the other side of the table, the stench of alcohol is so strong it’s nearly suffocating. And it’s not just any alcohol. It’s the smell of whiskey. That and his cologne combine to create a scent that is overpowering. It takes everything in me not to gag.

  Fighting to keep a straight face and not cover my nose I reply, “No thank you. I’ve already got one” I lift my drink up so he can see it.

  His eyebrows knit, and his mouth gapes open slightly like he can’t believe I just turned him down. Then like flipping a switch a smirk crosses his face.

  “Then how about you dance with me?” His words are slurring slightly. It doesn’t take a genius to realize he’s drunk.

  “No thank you, I’m just people watching,” I say politely.

  Just as quickly as the smile appeared on his face, it vanishes. Before I know it, he’s invading my personal space and standing way to close for comfort.

  My back stiffens the stench of alcohol nearly choking me.

  “What’s your problem? I just wanna dance. Why are you acting all funny?”

  I start to respond when I hear a deep voice say, “I believe the lady said no.”

  Looking to my left I see the guy from the bar that I couldn’t stop staring at.

  My breath catches in my throat at seeing him up close and personal.

  He’s not looking at me however, his eyes are trained on whiskey-breath standing next to me.

  Whiskey-breath’s eyes widen “H-hey, Liam.”

  “What do you think you’re doing, Lenny?” he asks folding his arms over his chest. The action causes the muscles in his arms to bunch and flex in ways that have my thighs clenching beneath the table.

  Lenny holds his hands up in surrender. “I was just trying to buy her a drink or dance.”

  Liam’s eyes narrow and then he looks at me and it’s like a punch to the gut.

  What the hell is wrong with me?

  “Is he bothering you?” Having the force of his eyes locked onto mine has a warmth invading my stomach and spreading outwards. His eyes widen slightly when they lock with mine before he turns back to whiskey breath.

  “I was just trying to enjoy my drink,” I say.

  “I think it’s time for you to home.” Liam looks over his shoulder and motions to somebody with two fingers. Two big guys immediately come over and escort Lenny out despite his protest.

  Then it’s just him and I.

  “Are you alright?” he asks.

  “Yes, thank you for stepping in” I fidget with a stray curl.

  “No problem, Lenny’s a regular around here. He’s usually harmless, I don’t know what the issue was tonight,” Liam says running a hand through his hair. The deep and husky quality to his voice has my thighs instinctively clenching together.

  Holy shit, if I thought he was gorgeous standing across the room, it’s really no comparison to what looking at him up close and personal is like.

  High cheekbones. A strong jaw. Full lips. The clearest green eyes I have ever seen. Broad shoulders. He’s like a work of art. It takes me a minute to realize that I’m staring again and I recognize belatedly that his eyes are sweeping over my face slowly, like he’s committing my features to memory.

  Self-consciousness sets in. My hand instinctively goes to the bridge of my nose when I see his eyes pause and lock onto the freckles that rest there and spread out over my cheeks.

  He has a quiet authority and commanding presence about him that has this calming yet alarming effect on me. I feel comfortable in his presence yet, I want to jump his bones at the same time. It makes no sense. I’ve never seen somebody so attractive in person. In magazines or on TV sure, but never in person.

  His eyes come back to mine before he holds out a hand. “My name is Liam.”

  I cautiously place my hand in his and a swirl of electricity shoots down my arm and through my body warming places that haven’t been active for a very long time, if ever. I drop his hand, but not before I see the slight widening and darkening of his eyes.

  “Ava,” I reply.

  “Ava,” he repeats, and a shiver runs through me at the way he says my name in that deep, sexy voice of his.

  Discombobulated, I pull my eyes from his face, trying hard to focus on something else when I notice a bracelet tied around his wrist. The thread is blue, and it has the beads with the letters on them spelling out his name in black and white. Different shades and shapes of blue beads surround the ones with his name spelled out on them. It’s one I know all too well and something I never expected to see around his wrist.

  “Where’d you get that?” I ask pointing to his wrist, before I can stop myself.

  He tears his eyes away from my face to look down at his wrist. “The children’s hospital, on Van Buran. I volunteer there once a week. One of the kids, Be-“

  “Benji” I say finishing the name for him.

  He looks at me, shock clear on his face. “You know Benji?”

  I hold up my opposite wrist, which displays the same style bracelet only instead of blue beads, mines are purple and spell out my name.

  A shocked laugh leaves him.

  “I volunteer there every Tuesday.”

  He leans one hand against the table.

  “No kidding. I’m there on Thursdays. How did you meet Benji?” he asks.

  “Well, I read the kids a different story once a week and Benji has turned into my little helper of sorts. He helps me pick the stories and he even acts out some of the voices if one of the stories has a lot of characters. One day while I was there, he handed me this bracelet. He looked at me
with those big puppy dog eyes and made me pinky promise to never, ever-“

  “Ever, take it off,” Liam finishes the sentence for me and this time we both share a laugh.

  Shock reverberates through me, as I stare into those gorgeous green eyes. I can’t believe he volunteers at the same hospital I do, one day apart. If he’s visiting the same place, I am that means he also goes to the children’s cancer ward. Curiosity and some other unnamed emotion surge through me. It makes me curious to know more about this man.

  The last time I was curious enough to want to know more about a man it ended terribly. But looking at him, I can’t seem to help myself. It feels like there’s some invisible string pulling and tugging us together in a way that I’ve never experienced before. Its unnerving.

  Trying to shake it off, I go to ask him another question.

  “So how did you meet Ben-“

  “Hey Liam, can I talk to you for a minute?” a feminine voice says.

  I look over my shoulder to see two women standing with their eye’s laser focused on Liam. And not just any women.

  They look like freaking supermodels. The one standing closest to him has blond hair and green eyes. Her friend has long brown hair and brown eyes. Both are wearing low cut dresses with their curves and legs on display.

  And the way the one closest to him is staring at him; the lustful gleam in her eyes makes it clear that she’s been with him in ways I know I never will. The other one has this faraway look in her eyes like she wishes she could.

  Reality slams into me so quick, it feels like I just got smacked upside the head.

  What the hell am I doing? Nearly letting my guard down like that for a man who dates supermodels and celebrities. This man who is a fucking billionaire. He could quite literally walk into a room and have his pick of single females, hell maybe even some of the married ones as well.

  Liam frowns over at the woman.

  “Actually, I’m busy right now. Did you need something?”

  “Yes, you.” the blond one saunters closer and puts her hands on his chest.

  Liam quickly removes her hand from his chest and takes a step back.

  “Then you must have the wrong man, As I said I’m in the middle of a conversation. Enjoy the rest of your night ladies.” He turns his back to them.