Page 41 of Liberty
Chapter 17
LIBERTY
Funny enough,having Sterling alone made him less arrogant. He was still hot, though. Like, absolutely everything he did screamed sex appeal and confidence. Holding open doors made my insides a bit mushy. Answer a work phone call, and the power behind his demand made me slightly weak. Roll up his shirt sleeve, Jesus, help me now because Sterling Albright, as I recently learned was his last name, was walking sex appeal.
It wasn’t that I missed he was attractive before; it was that in the presence of the other two, he was overshadowed. Not because he wasn’t hot, but because I think I’ve established I could hardly handle this man solo. The three of them together were a lot to take in. Their looks, their strength, their personalities, their fucking bickering that rivaled that of preschoolers.
We stopped by my apartment to get the key to my neighbor’s place. We fed her cat, making sure to mix wet food with dry food perfectly until the dry food was absorbed into the wet food and dissolved, leaving the cat the perfect food paste. I was sure Sterling gagged from where he waited by the front door, leaning against the door frame. I locked up and returned the key to my apartment.
“Coffee?” Sterling offered like he knew I wasn’t ready to go home yet.
It didn’t matter that it was already almost ten at night and that drinking coffee would surely mean I wouldn’t sleep; I jumped at the chance to stay out longer with him. “How could I turn down coffee?”
“You can’t,” he declared as he pulled open the door of my apartment building, holding it open so I could walk out.
He was quite funny and a bit ditsy, which was something I hadn’t expected. But sweet. He was sweet. The complete opposite of the arrogance I assumed was his actual personality. It was an act, mostly. A shield to guard him against the outside world, and I admired his ability to build a defense so strong when everything around him was determined to chip away at his armor.
“You’re getting the chocolate chip cookies from this place,” he told me as we walked.
“What if I don’t like chocolate chip cookies?”
“You like chocolate chip cookies, and I’m willing to bet that these particular ones will become your all-time favorite.”
“You’re mighty confident, Mr. Albright.”
He made a sound that caught in his throat. “I like it when you use my last name.”
I laughed. “You would.”
“Do you dislike them?” He changed the subject.
“Dislike what?”
He groaned. “Chocolate chip cookies. Focus, Miss Johansen.”
Ha, I liked when he used my last name too. “Of course, I like them. I fucking love cookies.”
His eyes fell to my lips as we walked and talked. “I could listen to you say fucking all day long. But that’s getting me sidetracked. I’m going to need your trust in this, okay? Their coffee and cookie combo is to die for. Their cookies are warm and gooey and delicious. Then you dunk them into the hot coffee, two sugars with cream. It has to be this combination and this combination only.”
“What if I don’t like cream in my coffee?”
His eyebrows scrunched together. “You like cream in your coffee.”
“What if I wanted three sugars?” I teased.
“Miss Johansen, I thought we had a silent agreement that you would trust me on this. There will be no three sugars, only two. Trust is a two-way street. I trust that you will obey me, and you trust that I won’t steer you wrong.”
“I feel like we have a misunderstanding here, sir.” I wrapped my arm around him as we walked. He didn’t pull away, and I took that as a good sign, “I prefer that you trust all I say, but let me question you.”
“I’ve spent my entire life being questioned.” He sighed. “Can you give me this one?”
“Fine, fine. Cookie. Coffee. Cream and TWO sugars.”
He smiled smugly. “Why, thank you. We are here,” he announced our arrival as he pulled open the door to a small shop nestled into the corner. “Some things should be noted as we go inside . . .”
He let his warning trail off as he waited for me to respond, “Noted. Proceed with warning.”
“First, the one we already addressed. This place has the world’s best cookies and coffee.”