Page 38 of Holiday Home 4
Starting with Avril’s destination. Acting as though she’d been planning to kiss him on the lips, the devious woman deviated at the last possible second. Her lips brushed against his, yet ultimately landed on his cheek, kissing it in an almost—for Avril—chaste manner.
That, of course, meant that they could both expect a devilish smile to take root when she pulled her mouth back. Only for her to shock them a second time. After releasing him and pulling back, Avril folded her arms, no smile to be found.
“See?” she said, looking at her best friend. Expectantly, anticipatorily. “Simple. Easy as that.”
In response, Anna pushed Avril. Not hard, not filled with fury, but with enough insistence to back her up a step. Glaring at her best friend for a moment more, Anna turned to Liam. Expectantly, anticipatorily.
Liam swallowed, staring into Anna’s stunning eyes. Behind her, Avrilnowtook up that devilish smile. She gestured for him to hurry things up.
Mystified though he was, Liam went with the flow. Reuniting with Anna’s lips, he breathed her in. This kiss lasted far longer than he anticipated, with Anna unknowingly mimicking Avril when she wrapped her arms around his neck. A good ten to fifteen seconds passed before it finally ended, and Anna, arms still around his neck, threw a “there, are you happy?” glare at her best friend, who had shifted around them to get a better view of the action.
One corner of Avril’s mouth remained raised as she answered Anna’s stare with a nod. It didn’t seem to soothe Anna’s… annoyance? Liam wasn’t sure what was going on in her head. This was a far cry from how she’d acted the last time Avril had kissed him in front of her.
He supposed it was a good thing, all things considered. How couldn’t he see this as a good thing? Barring any unforeseen consequences, he’d just felt the lips of two of the most beautiful women alive back-to-back. It was like a dream, fantastical. Those same thoughts reemerged within his mind.
“Stop kissing him in front of me,” Anna said, tightening her stare.
Avril rubbed her arms, acting as if she’d been waiting out in the cold the entire time he’d been here. “It was just a peck on the cheek. Can’t I have one more before I’m thrust back into the cold? For warmth?”
“It’s not that cold out today,” Anna said, refusing to relent before Avril’s playful pouting.
“To me it is,” Avril grumbled.
With a roll of the eyes, Anna finally released him. Yet, Avril didn’t step into the vacant space. Was that meaningful? Anna wasn’t livid with Avril for kissing him in front of her, but Avril was willing to obey Anna and not kiss him again. Was that the new order of things?
Liam remained unbalanced by the whole situation. It had stopped being a secret that he was involved with both women long ago, though it was rarely addressed—and certainly not when they were all together. He’d expected that to be the way of things. Yeah, Avril was okay with being flirtatious and forward, but Anna wasn’t.
And yet, Anna’s glare was already fading. As if, outside of Avril being so cavalier about kissing him, she wasn’t all that upset. Which seemed to suggest that the women had reached some sort of understanding about displaying their affection in front of one another.
If that was the case, this change felt more like a colossal leap than a small step.
I guess it makes sense,he thought, only to correct himself a moment later. No, no, it didn’t. It still didn’t make sense. Instead, it was somewhat—and somewhat was doing a lot of heavy lifting in the phrase—understandable.
Anna and Avril lived together. They saw each other and presumably talked to one another every day. They were best friends, after all. Meanwhile, he was away most of the week, only getting a handful of hours with them at a time. There wasn’t any way for him to stay fully abreast of what happened in this apartment while he was a city over.
But man, I wish I’d been a fly on the wall for that chat. If it did happen.
It might have. It might not have. Was it Avril who’d broached the subject? How? And how had Anna first taken it? Liam felt himself beginning to spiral, consumed by curiosity.
“Ready to go, Liam?” Avril asked.
He started, snapping back to reality. Anna and Avril looked at him, and he realized that although he’d heard Avril’s question, he’d stayed silent for a few too many seconds following it.
“Uh, yeah, I’m ready. Where are we going?”
“Like I’d ever tell you that,” the beautiful redhead said, spinning about. “Now, come on.” As she departed, him in tow, she glanced toward Anna. “We’ll be back around six or seven. You can kiss him again then.”
But until then, he’s all mine,her smile seemed to imply.
Chapter Sixteen
Endless Sweets
Where they ended up, Liam would never have guessed. Not because it was some bizarre location, which hehadbeen prepared for, or because it was ridiculously upscale, which he’d also been prepared for. Instead, it was because the place Avril parked them in front of was closed. It was always closed on Sundays at this time. Everyone knew that.
As was always the case, the rules didn’t seem to apply to Avril Knight.
Climbing out of her car, she began boldly walking toward a set of glass doors that ought to have barred her entry. Yet, before Liam did the same, she proved that assumption wrong. Inserting a key into the doors, she swung it open and headed inside.