Sneak up on Me

Chapter 3

3

Honestly, I am a sucker for green eyes. And trust me, this guy had them. Emerald green eyes set in the perfectly chiseled face of dreams. The kind of face girls search frantically for in the high school crowds, and cannot find. And that's only his face. My eyes travelling down his tall body, stopping in their tracks as I realize I'm checking him out shamelessly.

"Come, I will take you to my father," he says in a deep and serious voice.  

His father... What? So this is... James. Wow. The cute kid grew up to become the epitome of sexiness. Too bad we were never friends, maybe if we didn't hate each other he would pay attention to me.

I step through the door and put my bag on the floor, and turn to follow James.

"Oh my gosh! This is so cute!" Ash squeals as he goes to pick up a large Ancient Greek vase, covered in paintings of naked women weaving baskets, succeeding in gaining my attention.

"Ash!" Walking towards him with my finger outstretched, I shake it at him and lay out the rules. "Do not touch anything." The stupid grin falls of his face and he sits back in his seat, glancing down worriedly at the expensive looking chair his butt is on. James looks amused as he leans casually against the wall, watching the scene. "Do not talk to anyone, do not look at anyone, and DO NOT get out of that chair." He nods his head emphatically - I'm not reassured.

Taking me by the arm, James starts to lead me out the door, when we hear a huge crash. Spinning around, we turn to see Ash laying on the floor groaning and the chair tipped over onto its side. Opening my mouth to let out a string of insults, I am cut short by a gentle tug on my arm and a low chuckle coming from beside me. Sending one last glare in Ash's direction, we turn and walk out the door.  

He leads me through the halls, passing many valuable statues and paintings along the way. Calculating in my mind all the hours they must have spent to obtain these items, I come face-to-face with a giant door, pulled back roughly by a large strong hand gripping my arm. A second later and I would have been face-to-door. 

"You live in your own little world," he says with a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. His lips.... Look away London! Fixing my hair and trying to look as dignified as possible, I rise to the occasion.

"At least they know me there." Lifting my head up to meet his gaze, I see the corners of his mouth twitching, as if he is trying really hard not to laugh. Grrr. "I can take care of myself!" Pulling my arm out of his grasp, I brush myself off and open the door, not looking back to see the smirk that I know is on his face.

Entering an elegant looking room furnished entirely in dark wood, and red furniture (a man's room through and through), I see an old looking man sitting at his desk reading some papers. At the sound of the door slamming, he looks up, startled, and his eyes light up.

"London!" Liam greets me. Standing up and walking to me, he gives me a hug. Pulling back slightly, he holds me by the shoulders and studies my face.

"What a beautiful young lady you grew up to be! You must have all the young lads chasing after you wherever you go." He chuckles and closes his eyes, as if remembering something. Indicating somewhere behind me he adds, "Much like James over there and the ladies!" As he turns around and makes his way back over to his desk, softly shaking with laughter, I turn around and see James rolling his eyes and looking quite annoyed. In the middle of an eye roll, he eyes meet mine and twinkle softly, his mouth turning up slightly.

Trying my best to ignore him, I turn away quickly and take a seat in front of Liam's desk. "I am so glad that you contacted us! It has been so long since we last saw each other. Of course, it's understandable the you needed time to deal with things. I was so sorry to hear about your parents. They were such wonderful people. It's awful to think that that could happen to any one of us anytime. So many others too..." Shaking his head sadly, he sighs. "How have you been holding up?" Opening my mouth to respond, I am cut off suddenly.