Wrong (3 page)

The look he gave me suggested that he had no idea that had ever happened. A dirty smirk spread his lips and as my cheeks burned, I shook my head, trying but failing to get used to this bizarre new reality. I was fooling around with my stepbrother, my best friend had just found out and the rest of the world was about to as well. I had to laugh.

At least until I thought about my older sister, Riley.

I’d never told her about my feelings for Liam because she was the first to declare her love for him, meaning she had “dibs” if our parents ever divorced.  But she was married now, so it couldn’t be a big deal – right?

Of course, my mother would probably still lose her mind.

Liam’s father, too.

Shit.

Suddenly, I remembered why Liam and I were so very wrong together. I wanted it. I was certain I needed it and honestly, I didn’t regret a second of it. But in my heat, I’d briefly forgotten how much chaos would come with it.

“Come on, let’s get something to eat,” Liam murmured to me, his hand on the small of my back as he ushered me out the door. I smiled at him despite my racing pulse, walking out the door and forcing myself to giggle with Aria as I reminded myself that it was all on me.

I was the one who had opened Pandora’s box.

Chapter Four

After getting lunch with our friends, I didn’t see Liam for the rest of the day, which was pure torture, especially considering the way his fingers brushed my thighs under the table all afternoon. I was worked up and ready to feel his hands all over my body but unfortunately, he held off on the sex and I knew exactly why. He was an absolute animal in the bedroom. He only ever gave his all and there was no giving his all in the gym if he’d already given it in the sack. It was why he generally slept with his girls at night. Train, eat, fuck, sleep. And repeat. He and his friends were all the same in that way and I’d known it for ages. So if I wanted him, I’d have to wait till evening, when he got back from the gym.

And that sucked. A lot. Luckily, I had a job to distract me. Not so luckily, I worked with the person I least wanted to find out about me and Liam – my sister.

Riley and I had pooled our savings last year to open our gastropub, The Queen.  The Queen’s Lounge, really, but everyone called it The Queen.  It was a cozy, fifty-seater in the not-so-glamorous part of SoHo, close to the tunnel into Jersey.  It was all we could afford and we weren’t sure it would bring in much business but we became an instant hit when Liam started coming with the guys from the gym. After training, they’d swing by to grab a bite and a beer. Women caught on to the fact that The Queen was the unofficial bar of the city’s top MMA fighters and trainees and suddenly, they were coming in hordes. And with the pretty girls came the men so before we knew it, Riley and I were set in terms of business.

“Am I all tan and beautiful?” Riley asked, tossing her newly highlighted hair when I walked in. “I was on the beach like,
every day
for the past two weeks.”

“Lucky you,” I smirked. “And here I was fixing the ice machine on my own because our repair guys went on vacation, too.”

“Oh, shut up, I know Liam fixed it for you,” Riley snorted, fluffing her hair in the mirror behind the bar. It was true – I tried for days to fix the ice machine but the second Liam caught onto my trouble, he went back there, shed his hoodie and got to work. He was in one of his simple white T-shirts and had just come all showered from the gym but he got quickly hot and sweaty again, prompting all the girls in my staff to gather round, watching and drooling without shame. I couldn’t blame them. I was among them – I was just great at disguising my ogling. “So. How have you been enjoying our favorite bad boy, Liam?” Riley cocked a sharp eyebrow at me through the mirror. My heart stopped for a second.

“What do you mean?”

“A month into living with him and you haven’t killed each other yet. I’m shocked.”

“Oh.” My shoulders relaxed. “Well, we’ve always gotten along.”

“Yeah, but I figured you’d get sick of hearing him fuck bimbos every night and I figured he’d get sick of just…
having
you there.”

“How nice of you to say.”

“What? He’s hot and single, you’re weepy and heartbroken. Who wouldn’t imagine that you’d be a total buzzkill?” Riley grinned. I snorted, rounding the bar to polish the wine glasses that had just come out of the kitchen.

“I’m thoroughly over Ethan, but you can assume whatever you want.”

“Oh, Sash, don’t get so defensive. We’re all here for you, sweetie, we get it. Ethan was your first love and your first everything. It’s gonna take awhile for you to get over him and all that… wild, rowdy
missionary
sex.” She could barely finish the sentence before bursting out laughing. “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry. You should never tell me about your sex life ever again. I’m just not to be trusted.”

I smiled and acted good-natured about it to hide the fact that I was sweating over my sex life as of last night. Once boring, it had become quickly hotter than hell. “Alright. Very funny,” I said, offering a grin. Any other day, I would’ve been at least a little salty about the remark, but I’d just made up for years of bad sex with Ethan in barely twelve hours with Liam, so suddenly, I didn’t care. And I could tell I wasn’t giving Riley the huffy, embarrassed reaction she was hoping for because she suddenly put her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes at me.

“Something’s different,” she said, her disappointment tinged with curiosity. I paused in the middle of racking a glass.

“What do you mean?”

“You usually get all pouty and wounded when I talk about your shitty sex life.”

“I guess I’m growing up?”

“Doubtful. I think you’re fucking someone,” Riley said, her eyes getting wider and wider. There was no way she knew but my heart was already beating faster as the wheels turned in her head. “Oh God, no, that would be so wrong,” she muttered, clasping a hand to her mouth. “Sasha.” She stared at me, eyes so wide I thought they might pop out of her head. “You’re fucking that
chubster
who delivers the napkins!”

I let out the breath I was holding. Never had I been so relieved to be accused of sleeping with some random guy. “Riley, I… no. I’m not sleeping with him. Or anyone.” It wasn’t a lie. I hadn’t had sex with Liam. Not yet.

“Oh my God, yes you are! I watch you two flirt all the time! You were just too embarrassed to hook up till I was out of town!” Riley gasped, bouncing on her heels with her signature over-the-top excitement. “Oh my God, Sash. That is so cute. Seriously, don’t be embarrassed. A lot of girls like big bellies. I mean, Trav’s getting a bit of a beer gut,” Riley stuck out her tongue as she spoke of her husband. “But I still love him. Even though he was a boring asshole the whole vacation. He’s starting to get so damned lazy,” she muttered under her breath, almost to herself. There was a pause. “But at least he doesn’t look twelve months pregnant like your little fuck buddy!” she cackled, doubling over again.

“
Oh
-kay, Riles.” Our staff was starting to trickle in so I just stretched my lips into a tight smile and shut up, hoping to stop the conversation before they could hear.

“Don’t worry, girl, I’ll keep your secret,” she winked. I gave a thumbs up, not even wanting to get into this. I knew she’d drop it eventually and she did, because shortly after opening, we were so slammed that I had to come out of the office and get behind the bar to sling drinks.

“I see you’ve got the seats roped off,” a pretty redhead called over the counter. She nodded at the three seats at the end of the bar that we kept reserved every night for Liam and the boys. “When do the fighters get here?”

“Oh,” I smiled, still getting used to the fact that we were practically a tourist attraction thanks to Liam and his friends. “I’m not positive they’re coming by tonight but if they do, it’ll be past 9PM.”

“Then we’ll be here past 9PM!” Red declared, toasting her Cosmo before turning to relay the info to her friends. They squealed in excitement as Riley came up behind me with a groan.

“I hate how these little sluts come here just to ogle Liam,” she muttered, running a credit card. “It’s so pathetic.”

“What’s pathetic about it? He’s every girl’s type and they’re giving us business.”

“I just don’t want him sleeping with groupies. He’s better than that,” Riley muttered. I raked my bottom lip between my teeth. I didn’t know what constituted a groupie, but if it was a girl who actively sought after a guy, then I was a total groupie for Liam. Riley glared at me. As usual, she misinterpreted my silence. “Don’t get all quiet, Sash, just say it.”

“What?”

“You think I’m jealous because you think I still have a crush on Liam. Which I do not.”

Except you do
. Riley had claimed since marrying Travis that she was no longer attracted to Liam, but every time she got drunk enough, she slurred on about how she’d divorce Trav in a heartbeat if our mother split from Liam’s father, Vic. “I mean look at Liam. Look at those abs. Look at that
ass
. Am I not a woman? What am I supposed to do?
Not
want to fuck him? I’d let him do whatever he wanted to me. Just fucking
look
at that man.” It was always unbridled, nonstop and hilarious, and I’d always have to hustle Riley into another room so she didn’t say anything loud enough for others to hear. She was still infatuated with Liam. I knew she was but I wasn’t going to point that out, especially not now.

“You’re just protective of him. The way he’s protective of us,” I said to quell the situation. It was a total lie but I just wanted the conversation to end. I’d yet tell Aria all the details of my insane hook-up with Liam last night and all that pent-up scandal was still bouncing at the tip of my tongue, desperate to come out. Of course, I wasn’t going to let it come out at Riley.

“Yeah. I’m just protective of him. I love him,” Riley murmured, over-pouring a beer as she gazed out the door. I tried not to overanalyze the look on her face. I didn’t have time to anyway. The bar kept filling up and it only got worse when Liam rolled in with A.J, Max and a couple other guys. The usual ruckus was made as the crowd parted for them, our regulars and bartenders chanting “
Cage Kings
” the name of the gym and the camp that produced so many of the absolute warriors we watched at the bar during fight nights. We wore our Cage Kings T-shirts and blasted the volume on the flat screens. Regulars who didn’t watch MMA became fans after spending enough time at our bar.

“
There
are my boys,” Riley grinned, sliding pints across the bar as they took their usual seats.

“Lookin’ good, Riles,” A.J said.

“I got tan! You noticed?”

“Always.” He tossed her a wink. Liam smirked, exchanging a look with me.

“Good workout?” I asked casually, trying to mask my nerves since he wouldn’t take his eyes off of me. My pulse heightened as he leaned back and took his time to answer me, prioritizing his gaze on my T-shirt. The thin cotton was spattered in beer. I didn’t have to look down to feel how it clung tighter than usual to my breasts. Liam indulged in far too long a stare before replying to my question.

“A little distracted today, but decent overall.” He gave me that crooked little grin that never failed to slay my heart in half a second.

“Distracted? Why?” Riley cut in. “Thanks for saying hi, by the way.” She leaned over the counter and presented Liam her cheek, which he kissed. “You okay, sweetie? What’s got my big strong man so distracted?”

It was at this point that Max and I exchanged looks. He and I seemed to be the only ones who ever detected the blatantly flirtatious way in which Riley spoke to Liam.
She wants him
, he mouthed to me, his dark blonde hair still wet and dripping onto my bar. I smirked as I wiped the droplets off with a rag and slid him a pint, mouthing back,
oh yeah.

“Is it a girl?” Riley pressed on when Liam gave her some generic answer about his distraction. I went stiff, catching Liam’s mischievous eye before he turned back to Riley with his answer.

“Actually, Riles, yeah. It’s a girl.”

My heart stopped. I flashed him a look but while he grinned wickedly for me, he wouldn’t look at me.
Liam. Don’t you dare
, I willed him silently, my heart pounding as Riley gasped and began her interrogation.

“No way. You finally developed feelings for one of your little groupies?” she asked scandalously. “How the hell did you let that happen, King Playboy?”

Liam laughed as he leaned over the bar, his sexy, bite-able shoulders stretching the cotton of his white T-shirt. “It’s one of those long-time-coming situations,” he said. He looked at me, his green eyes gleaming. “Spanning almost a decade, really.”

Riley slapped her hand to the bar. “No!
You?
Holding in feelings for that long? Shut your mouth!” I bit my lip, feeling the heat of A.J and Max’s stares. They knew about Liam and me. If they didn’t know for sure that we’d hooked up, they were definitely suspecting it now because of the way I was blushing, shaking my hair into my face and busying myself with glasses that were already polished. Riley was incredulous. “Are you hearing this, Sash?” she grabbed my arm to physically pull me back into the conversation. “Liam says he’s been in love with a girl for like, ten years and didn’t start doing something about it till now. I’m calling total bullshit. Right?”

My heart pounded but I shrugged casually as I gazed at Liam. “I don’t know. It could be true,” I murmured.

“It is,” he said, his stare intense on me. I forced myself to look outwardly unfazed.

“So like, what, you used to date her and she got away?” Riley asked, dying of curiosity. Liam took a drink and gave that low, sexy laugh.

“I never dated her. Never so much as touched her till last night. But it was well worth the wait,” Liam grinned before wincing and shifting in his seat. A.J laughed.

“Dude’s getting hard just thinking about it.”

“A.J! Please don’t talk about my stepbrother’s hard-on in front of me,” Riley scolded, despite the fact that she liked to guess Liam’s dick size every time she had tequila.

“Sorry. Thought it’d be a crowd pleaser,” A.J snorted, nodding at the girls behind us who were no doubt staring and eavesdropping. He called out to them. “I’ve seen it in the showers. Solid ten inches. But he’s got nothing on me!”

We all groaned but with that came a burst of giggles from the girls and suddenly, A.J was off and mingling with Red and her friends, drinking from their Cosmos and dropping all the same lines I heard him use every week.