Aiden turns the knob and walks in. I’m ready to lecture Hales on leaving her door unlocked, even though the dorm has security, but Aiden beats me to it. “Ash, what the fuck? Why in the hell was your door unlocked, and why did you just yell for us to come in without checking who it was first?” he asks her angrily, but you can also hear the concern in his voice.
Allison rolls those emerald eyes at him. “Chill out, Ace, don’t go getting your feathers all ruffled. You said you would be here in twenty minutes, and it’s been twenty-two, so I knew it was you. Besides, even if it wasn’t you, I knew you and Liam were on your way.”
“Allison,” Aiden growls.
She walks up to him and gives him a hug. “Relax, Hales and I are fine, nothing is going to happen.” She steps back and turns toward me.
“Hey, Liam,” she says with a smile.
“Hey, you guys ready to go?” I ask her and Hailey, looking back and forth between the two of them. That’s really my only option. If I stare at Allison any longer, I’m going to have huge issues in the land down under that I’ll have to deal with. She’s always gorgeous and tonight is no exception. She isn’t dressed up, and, honestly, I think that’s what makes her so fucking sexy. She’s just Allison, beautiful sexy Allison—who wants more. I shake my head to clear my thoughts.
“Yep, we’re good to go,” Hailey says as she links her arm through mine. She leads us out of the dorm to Aiden’s car.
Hailey looks behind us then leans into me. “She’s really into you,” she says with a smirk.
I raise an eyebrow in question.
“She is, she just doesn’t want to be another notch. I think the two of you would be great together,” she declares as she climbs into the front seat of Aiden’s car.
Aiden and Allison reach the car and discover Hailey has claimed the shotgun position. Aiden shakes his head and laughs. He’s used to her antics. I smile at Allison and shrug my shoulders as if to say, ‘What do you do?’
She laughs and gets in the back seat. I follow suit and immediately I’m aware of how close we are to each other. Her hand rests on the seat mere inches from mine. I want to lace our fingers together. Fuck, if the guys could hear me now, I would so be handing over my man card. I can’t understand why I’m so consumed by this girl. Well, that’s not true. I can still feel her lips on mine, the taste of her on my tongue—fuck, I’m getting hard. I need to think of something else, or this is going to be a long ass night guaranteed to end in a cold shower.
We arrive at the pizza place and, luckily, it isn’t packed yet. We make our way inside, and Hailey tells the hostess we prefer a booth. She grabs Aiden’s arm and drags him with her; he doesn’t seem to mind. Hailey scoots into the booth and pulls Aiden down beside her, which leaves me to sit beside Allison. God, I love my little sister. I motion for Allison to slide in the booth, she does, and as she passes me, her hand brushes mine and I’m full-on hard in an instant. Just like that. A simple touch from this girl, and I have the ability to hammer nails with my cock. I slide in quickly, hoping to hide the evidence of what she does to me.
We all decide to share a pizza and bread sticks. Hailey decides we need a little get to know you session. She thinks it’s a good idea for everyone to learn more about each other. She smiles sweetly at me. I know she’s doing this to help me learn more about Allison. I’ve bugged the shit out of her this week. Conversation flows, and I actually learn a lot about Allison, and she about me, I’m sure. I learn her major is still undeclared and she struggled with going to college to begin with. Her favorite color is purple and her favorite flower is daisies. She loves all music from Nickelback to Taylor Swift. She enjoys scrapbooking, which she said is something she and her gran do together. The more I learn about her, the more I want her. I can’t explain it, and at this point, I’m not sure I want to. She’s real. She’s not putting on a show, or trying to be something she’s not to get my attention. She’s just Allison.
Aiden and I go to the counter to pay. When we make it back to the booth, there are two punks in our seats. The punk beside Allison is leaning his shoulder into hers, obviously flirting with her. The other has his arm on the back of the booth behind Hales. I don’t know the fuckers, but I recognize them from around campus. I’m channelling all of my inner calm, so I don’t beat the shit out of these two. Aiden and I step up to the booth. Hailey’s worried eyes meet mine. She knows I’m about to lose my shit.
“Hey, hun, are we all set?” Hailey asks Aiden. I’m not sure what she’s playing at until Allison speaks up.
“Hey, babe, are you up for some ice cream?” she asks me with the sweetest smile on her face. I can see tension in her eyes. It’s obvious these guys said or did something to make them uncomfortable.
The two douche bags actually look offended, like the girls were leading them on. They huff as they get up and make their way to the back of the restaurant. I clench my fists at my sides. I want to punch them, just once is all it would take with those two. I see Hailey grab Aiden’s arm and lead him toward the door. He’s having pretty much the same reaction as I am. I’m seething mad and turn to follow the two goons when I feel soft hands encircle my arm.
“Liam.” That’s all it takes. Her saying my name, like I’m all that matters in her world, and instantly my anger evaporates just as fast as it came on. Her soft voice and soft hands instantly calming me. I cup her face with my free hand and kiss her, just a chaste kiss, but it has to happen. I rest my forehead on hers. “Let’s get that ice cream.” I pull away and lead her out to the car.
We decide to go through the drive-thru at Dairy Queen for ice cream, and then drive to a nearby park to eat it. We all sit around the picnic tables laughing and talking. I’m having so much fun, I don’t want to drop the girls back off at their dorm. Allison, however, is driving home to see her gran tomorrow, so she wants to get an early start. I’m bummed, but I understand. I know how important her gran is to her. We walk the girls to their dorm and remind them to lock the door. I don’t get anymore kisses, but Aiden and I get hugs from both of them. At this point, I’ll take what I can get. I’m starting to wonder if any amount of Allison Hagan will ever be enough.
When we get back to our apartment, I thank Aiden for getting the girls together with us and head to my room to shower. I’m lying on my bed staring at the ceiling, thinking about Allison, of course, when Aiden walks in. “Hey, man,” I greet him.
“Hey, you turning in?” he asks me. Okay, something is up.
“Trying,” I reply honestly. He knows this thing with Allison is tearing me up inside.
“Listen, man, I watched you tonight, you’re different with her. Hell, all week you’ve been different, blowing girls off, not getting together with the guys. I can tell you’re really into her, and, well, I just want you to know if you’re serious, I’m good with it.” He pauses to gauge my reaction. Of course, I’m speechless. “She really is just like my little sister. She’s been through a lot, and I want to protect her,” he shakes his head, “but the way you look at her, I’ve only ever seen that look one other time in my life.”