Anywhere With You (12 page)

I pull up to the apartment and shut the truck off. I lean over and kiss her on the forehead. I hate to wake her up, she looks so peaceful. I grab the bag from the pharmacy and quietly get out of the car. I send Aiden a text telling him to open the door. I make my way to the passenger side, unbuckle her seat belt and scoop her up in my arms.

“Liam?”

“It’s me. We’re back at my apartment. Let’s get you into bed.” Allison mumbles something I can’t really make out, but it sounds like “safe”. I pull her tight against my chest.
Fuck, this girl has weaved a spell on me.

“You’re safe baby, I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

I reach the door and Aiden is already there holding it open.

“How is she?” he asks as his eyes take in Allison cradled against my chest.

“She’s good. Just bruised and swollen. I stopped at the pharmacy,” I motion my head towards the bag I am holding in my hand for him to take.

“Damn, what all did you get?”

I shrug, “I picked up more Advil, plus an ace wrap and an ice pack. I also picked up a few snacks that I know she likes.”
I have done nothing but watch her since we met
.

Aiden looks at me and smiles, “You’re hooked aren’t you?”

“More than you know my man, more than you know.” I continue down the hall and stop at my bedroom door.

“Liam, Hales is already in there asleep. After we got your text she was wiped out, so I convinced her to go on to bed. I had to promise that if anything changed, I would wake her up.”

Fuck!
I want Allison in my bed. I want to take care of her. I turn and headed back towards the living room, she can sleep on the couch and I would take the chair.

“Um, Liam, Blitzen is here, remember?” Aiden smirks. He knows this is killing me and he’s enjoying the hell out of it.

“Fine,” I mumble as I walk into his bedroom. I lay Allison down on the bed. As I do, she reaches for me.

“Liam.”

“Shh. You’re in Aiden’s room,” I tell her.

“Here,” Aiden says, handing her a shirt of his to sleep in.

I glare at Aiden and he smirks at me, yet again. He knows what it does to me to have her in his clothes. He knows that I want her in my bed with me.
Asshole!

Allison starts to sit up. “Let me help you.” I lean down and place my arm around her back and gently lift her so that she is sitting on the side of the bed.

She looks up at me with a small grin, “Are you going to help me change?” My heart stops. This beautiful amazingly sexy creature is looking at me with innocent trusting eyes asking me to help her remove her clothes for bed. Before I can get my brain to function so that I can respond, Aiden is protesting.

“Ash, I can go get Hales. She just laid down, I’m sure she wouldn’t mind helping you,” Aiden suggests.

Allison looks at Aiden like he is crazy. “Why would I wake her when Liam can help me?” she says it so matter of fact like me undressing her is as normal as breathing. My stalled heart is now thundering in my chest. It’s beating so loud, I am sure that they can both hear it. Somehow I am able to make myself speak above the thunder inside my chest. I cup her cheek in the palm of my hand. “I can get Hales if that would make you feel more comfortable.”
Please say you still want me to do it
. Hell yes, I am being selfish, but my protective instincts are in overdrive when it comes to Allison. I will always want it to be me.

Allison smiles up at me and winks before turning her gaze on Aiden. “Can you give us a few minutes so that I can change?”

Aiden gives me a warning look before nodding his head and backing out of the room. I know that he’s worried that I’ll hurt her but what he doesn’t realize is that I could never, would never. I will protect her with everything in me. I stand there staring into her green eyes and I am overcome with emotion. I’m going to do it. I am going all in with this girl and I’m excited at the concept. There are no doubts floating through my mind. I crave her like anything I have never known. Suddenly, I need to make it real. I need her to tell me that it’s me. That no other man will ever touch her again, because the next time I’m not so sure that I will be able to stop until I kill the fucker!

I drop to my knees in front of her so that we are eye level. She raises her eyebrow at me in question. I place my hands on both of her cheeks before leaning in and placing a kiss on her forehead. “Allison, I know that you said you want more, that you want it all.” I swallow back the lump in my throat. Just because I am positive this is what I want doesn’t mean that I am not scared as hell that I still won’t be enough for her, be what she wants. I take a deep breath and continue. “I want you, all of you. I never want to go through what I went through tonight ever again. When I saw his hands on you …” I shake my head to attempt to erase the memory. I gently pick up her hand and cradled it against my chest right above my heart. Her eyes soften and I know she can feel the thunderous rhythm that is playing inside me. Gently I kiss her hand. “I want to be with you, only you. I want to be the one who holds you at night, the one who gets your kisses and your smiles.” I brush my fingers across her cheek.

I feel her hand tremble against my chest. She is just as affected by me as I am by her. “Liam, you know I don’t want casual. I don’t expect you to propose but you told me yourself you don’t want a serious relationship. How can I be sure that you have really changed your mind?” She places her soft hand against my cheek. “I feel such a connection with you that it would only be a matter of time before I fall head over heels. You have the power to break me, break my heart. I’m not sure that I can take that chance.”

“Baby, I’m taking a chance too. I have never felt this way about anyone. Never has my entire world been turned upside down because of a beautiful girl consuming my every thought, every emotion.” I take a deep breath, this is it, I am going to let this girl in. I am giving her the power to destroy me. “I’m taking a chance too, beautiful girl, but you have to take one on me as well. We’ll be in this together you and me. You’re all that matters,” I whisper as I crush my mouth to hers. I need to taste her. I need her to understand that this isn’t a game, not just a hook up. She is mine … I want her to be mine, need her to be mine.

I am trying to process what Liam has just said. He tells me that I am all that matters and then he crushes his mouth to mine. I moan deep in my throat. I can’t control it even if I wanted to. The taste of his lips on mine is annihilating my common sense. I don’t want to fight this anymore. I want him and his kisses. I reach up and wrap my arms around his neck and pull him in as close as I can get him. He pulls his lips away and I groan at the loss. He continues his assault on my senses by placing kisses on my cheek, down my neck. He pulls away breathing heavy as his hands make their way to the hem of my shirt. Without question or thought, I raise my arms in the air. Liam gently pulls my shirt off over my head. He then takes my hand and helps me stand. I watch as he places kisses on my color bone, down my chest working his way down my stomach. Once he reaches the waist of my jeans he looks up at me with hooded eyes seeking my approval. I can only nod my head as I run my hands through his hair. Liam slowly unbuttons my jeans and slides them down as he continues to pepper kisses on my thighs.

Once my jeans hit my ankles, I step out of them one leg at a time, with Liam’s assistance. He then stands and wraps an arm around my waist while wrapping his hand behind my neck to pull me close. He again crashes his lips to mine and kisses me with so much passion that if he wasn’t holding onto me, I would fall to the floor in a puddle of lust. I never want him to stop. I want to spend every second of every day wrapped in his arms being consumed by his kisses.

Suddenly, there is a knock at the door. “Ash you guys done in there?” Aiden yells through the door.

Liam pulls away and places his forehead against mine. “He has impeccable timing. You might want to answer him baby, I don’t think he would trust me if I said that you were fine.”

“Give us a minute, Ace,” I yell back. How I am able to find my voice and use it is beyond me. What started out as me flirting with Liam, asking him to help me change turned into confessions and scorching kisses. I am perfectly capable of changing on my own, my hand doesn’t even hurt.
What has gotten into me
?

“What are we doing, Liam? What does this mean?”

Liam stares at me intently. “I would like to think that I was kissing my girlfriend while helping her change,” he replies sheepishly.

“Girlfriend?” I whisper.

“Girlfriend,” he whispers back

I try to control my emotions at this sexy man calling me his girlfriend. I am also trying really hard not to let my insecurities consume me. I just had my first kiss a few months ago and now here I stand in nothing but my underwear with Liam’s sexy body wrapped around me calling me his girlfriend.
Holy Shit!
I should be nervous being exposed to him, my first time ever being exposed to a guy. However, I’m not nervous. Liam makes me feel safe, protected, wanted.

I take a deep breath. I’m tired of fighting it. I’m going to take a chance on Liam, just like he asked me to. I just hope that my heart can take it when he walks away and realizes I am not what he wants after all. I take another deep breath “Well, I guess you better help your girlfriend get changed before Aiden starts beating down the door.”

The smile that lights up Liam’s face is one that I’ve never seen before. He kisses me tenderly then engulfs me in his big strong arms for the greatest hug I have ever received. “You’re really mine?” he asks me pulling back only far enough to look into my eyes.

I nod my head yes. I’m not capable of more than that, my emotions are running rampant.

Liam pulls away, reaches back and pulls his dress shirt off. He pulls the t-shirt he has on underneath of it off, and has it over my head before I know what is happening. He shrugs back into his dress shirt and buttons it up. “I can’t have my girl sleeping in another man’s shirt, now can I? It’s bad enough that you’re sleeping in his bed.” He takes a deep breath. “I know he’s like a brother to you, but I want you next to me wrapped in my arms. I want you to be the last thing I see before I fall asleep and the first thing I see when I wake up,” he says as he kisses below my ear, trailing down my neck. I feel him slip his hands under his t-shirt and caress my back. The next thing I know he has my bra unsnapped and is helping me pull it through my sleeve.

“Tonight is the last night you will ever sleep in another man’s bed. I am going out tomorrow and buying a futon so that if Blitzen is here there will still be enough places to sleep for Hales, him and Aiden. Because you my beautiful girlfriend, will be in my bed with me.” He then picks up all of my discarded clothes, places a kiss on my temple and says he will be right back as he leaves the room with my clothes.

I can hear him talking to Aiden in the hallway. He tells Aiden that he needs to get me something real quick before he can come back in. Well actually what he really says is, “Don’t fucking go in there, I’ll be right back, she’s not decent yet.” I don’t hear Aiden’s reply.

Liam comes rushing back into the room holding a pair of sweatpants. “I know these will swallow you but I can’t stand the thought of you sleeping in just a t-shirt in his bed.” He looks almost embarrassed at his admission.

I roll my eyes at him as he drops to my feet and begins dressing me in his sweats. He gently pulls me off the bed to pull them up over my hips. “Let’s get you tucked in so that we can get this night over with and get you back in my arms where you belong.”

I slide under the covers as Liam bends down to kiss me goodnight. “Goodnight, my beautiful girlfriend,” he whispers, then turns and walks towards the door.

“Liam,” I call out to him.

He turns to look at me, “Yeah baby?”

“What did you do with my clothes?”

He smiles his panty melting smile. “I put them in my room where they belong.” He winks then turns and opens the door. “Keep your fucking hands off my girl, Emerson,” I hear him tell Aiden as he passes him in the hall.

Aiden enters the room shaking his head. “What was that about?” he asks me

I smile. “He brought me a pair of sweats to sleep in,” I say shrugging my shoulders.

Aiden picks up his shirt lying on the chair. “I see that he found you a different shirt to sleep in as well.”

“Yes, he is having a hard enough time with his girlfriend sleeping in another man’s bed, the clothes he could easily fix,” I say like I hadn’t just announced news that I was sure would affect all four of our lives in some aspect.

Aiden’s mouth drops open in shock but he is able to quickly recover. “Did you just call yourself Liam MacCoy’s girlfriend?” he questions me, like I have lost my ever lovin’ mind.

I smile again. I’m unable to prevent it. I’m happy. “I did,” I say confirming that he heard me correctly.

“Would you mind elaborating on that subject for me?”

I sigh, “Liam and I have been tip toeing around our attraction for one another since the day we met. He knew I wanted more and he wasn’t sure that he could give me that. He now says that he can. I’m taking a chance on him.” I pause to gauge his reaction. “We’re taking a chance on each other.”