A Borrowed Life (Carly and Liam #1) (21 page)

Water splashes in all directions, and Liam's face twists into an expression of pure joy. I follow closely as my body tenses, and my flesh swells around his penis, intensifying the tension in my lower abdomen. I completely lose control and let out a long cry when everything explodes around me.

Liam's body goes limp. His arms close tightly around my body, and the heat of the water is nothing compared to the heat emanating from him.

“I love you, Carly!” he confesses in one breath. “I'm crazy about you.”

He kisses me.

“I love you, too.”

Images of our cruise come back to my mind. I can't forget the first look we shared, the one that changed everything. There were so many people around us, yet I felt like we were alone; his eyes, although at the other end of the pool, seemed to be right in front of me, taking my soul out of my body to keep it for himself. Is this love at first sight? I have to admit that I had never believed in it before him.

Liam turns on his back and I snuggle into the crook of his shoulder. He seems to be just as far in his thoughts as I am. His fingers caress my arms up and down and we stay that way for many minutes. I place a wet kiss on his sternum and I let my hand run over his abdomen. I can't get tired of watching his perfect body, completely naked under my eyes, and I still can't believe it's me who's in his arms. I can't help but think that I'm the luckiest woman in the world. I grab the soap to slide it on his chest. We don't say a word to each other, but just enjoy this moment of pure intimacy we're in.

I fall asleep in the comfort of his arms, wrapped in the satin sheets of his bed that faces a giant flat TV screen, surrounded by New York city's lights glistening in the large windows. This is such a different world from mine. I know the city well, but only down there. I never look up when I walk, because I’ve never really cared about it. It's as if the top of the skyscrapers didn't exist before tonight; as if they were mere ornaments in the city. I never really thought about the people who were living up there. It's the same city, yet it’s completely different.

My eyelids open and I'm still cuddled against Liam. He opens his eyes and smiles. He's so handsome, illuminated by the rising sun. He's glowing as if he were himself the blinding star of fire.

“Hello,” I say.

“Hello. Did you sleep well?”

“Amazing!”

He smiles bigger and kisses me.

“What time is it?” I ask.

“Half past eight.”

“When do you have to be at work?”

“Seven.”

I bolt up, but he just seems amused.

“You are late?”

“So? I'm the boss, I do what I want.”

“And no one will question you?”

“No.”

He slides the back of his fingers on my temple, slowly pushing my hair behind my ears. I smile, letting myself fall back into his embrace. He observes each of my features with renewed tenderness.

“What did Mr. Lexington want from you the other night?” he asks out of nowhere.

Wait, what? I freeze. How does he know he came to my house?

“Nothing special. How did you know?”

“I told you, I don't like you walking home by yourself so late at night.”

“So you had someone follow me?” I burst out.

“To protect you. Don't take it like that, I just want to make sure you're safe.”

“You could have told me!”

“Are you gonna blame
me
for not telling
you
everything, now?”

I'm speechless.

“I know I’m guilty of that, but I never had
you
followed!”

“If I would have told you, you'd have stopped me. You don't tell me everything, Carly. How do you think I can trust that all is well and that I won't lose you? I would never forgive myself if something happened to you. Besides, I was told you appeared afraid in his car, and knowing the man in question, it's not reassuring.”

“What do you mean?”

“I know what he's capable of, and I also know that you didn’t spend your childhood in Canada with your biological mother as he claims.”

“He told you that?”

He looks at me without answering, waiting for me to explain, but I can't. Mr. Lexington clearly warned me that he would not only get back at me but also take down Liam. Richard mentioned his intentions to do harm to those I love, and even if Liam is able to defend himself, I’m not and neither is Ethan.

“What does he want with you?”

“Nothing. Just getting to know me, I guess.”

“You really are his daughter?”

I nod. “Unfortunately, yes.”

“And you're certain that everything is fine? You know I can protect you from him if you need me to.”

“He's my father. That's all.”

“Alright.”

His expression is perplexed and I can tell he doesn't believe me, but I can't help it. I'm just a very bad liar with him. Usually it's not a problem for me, but I sometimes have the impression that Liam can see right through me; past all my skin and muscles to what's deep inside my soul in just a glance.

I get up and look for my clothes in the bathroom. They're gone. I frown, puzzled. I come back to the bedroom where Liam looks at me smiling, still lying in bed.

“Looking for your clothes?”

I nod. He gets up and we walk through the upper floor to get to the laundry room where I find them folded on a shelf. Since he was with me, I know very well that he's not the one who did it. I conclude that it's the servants who work for him. I feel a certain uneasiness that someone else did my laundry for me, even though I must admit I'm happy to have clean clothes to wear this morning.

Suddenly a door opens downstairs and startles me. Someone is coming. We're completely naked! Liam picks up a pair of pants and goes out while I hurry to get dressed. I hear a male voice speak to him, but can’t understand what is being said. Liam comes back into the room as I button my shirt.

He grabs one of his sweaters and a pair of pants and hands them to me eagerly.

“There are journalists outside. Someone must have told them you were with me.”

“Are you kidding me?”

I almost dread thinking who that could have been. My dear father surely found out I was at Liam's place and decided to follow through with his threat.

“I'll get you a cap and sunglasses.”

He walks out again. I have no desire to wear clothes too big for m
e
a classic symbol of the walk of sham
e
but the restaurant's logo is all over my uniform and no way am I going to let them know where I work! I put the pants on and I tighten them with a belt, and then pull his T-shirt over my head. It could almost make me look like a boy if it weren't from my long hair.

Liam comes back with a faded red cap and a pair of glasses. He can barely hide his smile when he sees me in his clothes.

“Don't you dare make fun of me!”

“I wouldn't! You are beautiful, no matter what you wear.”

I smile back hiding all my hair, even my bangs, inside the cap. We eat quickly and try to sneak out to Liam's car in the underground parking garage.

“Do you have my things?” Liam asks.

“In the bag, Mr. Walker,” confirms Javen.

He lets me get in and sits beside me, slipping his arm around my shoulders and smiling at me reassuringly. His look tells me not to worry, that he’s got everything under in control.

“Does this happen often?” I ask.

“No. I never talk to journalists and they know it. They stopped wasting their time with me a long time ago.”

“Why do they think it will be different today?”

“Because these aren't journalists, they're paparazzi. They only want a photo or something crunchy to sell to gossip magazines who will make up the stories.”

“Ah.”

“They get nothing from me usually, so no, I'm not used to dealing with this kind of stuff first thing in the morning.”

The tone in which he finishes his sentence doesn’t make me feel good. He seems upset and border line angry, and I immediately feel uncomfortable. I mean, I come in his life and mess up his whole routine. He had work this morning, but he stayed with me. I finish work late at night, so I'm used to getting up later.

We leave the parking lot and three men with cameras stand in front of the car. They see us and take pictures, but the tinted windows probably prevent them from really seeing inside. Liam stretches up to his driver.

“Make sure they don't follow us.”

He's right. The worst thing that could happen would be them knowing where I live.

Liam's cell phone rings.

“Daniel,” he says, recognizing the caller I.D. “No, I said an hour… Fuck! Alright, I'm on my way.”

He turns to me before adding that he will be there in forty-five minutes. I shake my head and whisper that it's fine, that he doesn't need to drop me home before he goes. I'm in no hurry because I'm off today. Javen can drop me after, no problem.

“Are you sure?” he mouths as he presses his hand on the handset.

I nod to confirm.

“Yes, it doesn't bother me at all, I promise.”

He holds his breath, hesitating a moment, then sighs and responds to Daniel that he will be there in ten minutes. I don't know who Daniel is, but it's not really my business. He's obviously related to his work.

We stop in front of a huge glass building. Liam turns to me and pulls my face against his, pressing a soft kiss on my lips.

“What are you doing tonight?” he asks.

“I don't know. Do you have plans?”

“Maybe. Stay free,” he orders before getting out of the car.

“Okay.”

My smile grows on my face and I know I look like a child right now, but he causes that the feeling in me. I feel so light and safe with him, it's almost like a falling back into childhood again. Or perhaps it’s love that’s making me feel this way? Don't we always say that a loving heart is a young heart?

I fall back into the seat, my eyes sparkling with happiness. I notice Javen's stare in the rear-view mirror. He has a wide smile, but remains polite enough not to say anything.

I have the apartment all to myself today as Sean begins his new daytime schedule. I seize the opportunity to rest and go swimming before dinner. I haven't been to the pool since the cruise, and it'll do me good to release the tension of the past few days.

I roll my sweater over my head, remove my pants, and find myself in a bikini at the deserted pool of the gym. The evening promises to be fresh, and a shiver runs through my body as the breeze blows on my skin. As usual, I don't mind and dive in. The cold is chilling, but after a few seconds I can't feel it anymore.

I do one length of the pool and reach the other side, push my feet against the wall, and throw myself in the opposite direction. I stop abruptly and take my head out of the water to look around; I swear I felt someone's hand brush my ankle, but I must have been dreaming, because there's nobody else here. And no one could come and go so fast without me seeing them.

I pull myself together and resume my laps when suddenly, a figure appears ahead of me as I get to the edge of the pool, and I accidently swallow chlorinated water at the same time. I thrash my hands toward the surface, but I can't get out. I need air and fast! I try to pull myself out of the water, but something pushes me towards the bottom. Fingers wrap around my throat and push me under.

My head starts spinning and my heart wants to explode as my arms and legs go numb. I can no longer fight. I begin to suffocate slowly and painfully, swallowing more and more water. I give up. I won't win. My body softens. Everything goes black around me and I feel nothing. It's over, I'm leaving this world.

Suddenly, I see a smile. Eyes as blue as the azure sea and brown messy hair. Liam… A shock gives me a brief breath of life when I see him. What will he say when he finds out I gave up? My chest tightens painfully at the thought. Suddenly, my convulsing legs hit against the cement of the pool and propel me to the surface. My opponent's strong grip around my neck drags him into the water with me as he wasn't expecting this sudden movement.