My True First [18+]

Chapter 4

He was handsome without even trying, and I failed to conceal the traitorous blush that crept up my cheeks at the sight of him.

"Hey," Liam greeted me and leaned down to kiss my cheek. The smell of his cologne seemed to overpower the vanilla scent lingering in the air of the pâtisserie despite not being that strong. He barely brushed his lips across my skin. Somehow, that small gesture seemed intimate.

"I'm sorry if I made you wait; the traffic was insane."

"It's okay." I smiled.

"Let's order something first, okay?" Liam asked, nodding toward the front of the cafe where they had displayed all kinds of pastries imaginable.

"Coffee or tea, Sky?"

"Coffee. Black, no sugar, no cream," I said.

"Anything else?"

I shook my head, unsure of what the right thing to do was.

Directing his attention to the waiter, Liam said, "Two black coffees and a chocolate éclair."

I raised my eyebrows, and he shrugged, smiling with just a corner of his mouth tipped up.

"You were looking at it," Liam said. "Unless I'm wrong, and you weren't."

"No, you're not," I replied, looking elsewhere. Admitting that no guy had ever done something like that for me would seem pathetic.

Liam took the tray with our order to the table and placed it in the center of it before gracefully lowering himself onto a seat across from me.

As he moved to hand me my cup of coffee, I caught a glimpse of something tattooed on his skin next to his neck. The way his lean muscles flexed under the thin material of his shirt was enough to make me blush again.

I found Liam attractive, which wasn't good if we were going to live together. It would create unnecessary awkwardness and complicate things.

"So," Liam said, taking a sip of his coffee, "I wanted to talk to you about the apartment and stuff like that."

"Okay." I nodded.

"I'll be honest with you- I've never done it. I mean, I've never shared an apartment with anyone. I thought that maybe we could establish some ground rules to make it easier."

Liam's eyes-a beautiful mix of hazel and green-stared into mine, making me squirm in my seat.

"Ground rules?" I echoed his words, hoping he wouldn't notice the effect everything he did seemed to have on me.

"Yeah. I mean, who does what and all that. I guess we'll split the bills, right?"

"Yeah." I nodded. "Can you cook?"

"Of course. You?"

"Same," I said.

"Then we'll take turns making lunch and dinner. Is that okay?"

"It is."

"Okay. Obviously, I'll clean our room and the bathroom, and then we'll-"

"Take turns?" I smiled.

"Yeah." Liam chuckled, playing with his coffee cup. "It seems easier than I thought it would be."

I took a bite of my éclair to give myself some time to put my thoughts into words.

"Liam," I said when I stopped chewing, "there's something else."

"What else?"

"If you want to...you know, have sex with someone, you could, just tell me in advance, so I-"