chapter 4
1442 Words
Monday – 8:00 AM
Donovan Industries Lab, Aldridge University
The lab is my sanctuary.
White walls. Glass. Silence.
I'm here an hour early. Not because I'm nervous. Because I need to remind myself why I'm doing this.
Revenge.
Not whatever is happening in my chest every time I think about those two boys.
The door opens at exactly 8:00.
Stefan walks in first. Black sweater. Damp hair. A grin that says he knows exactly how good he looks.
He sets a coffee in front of me. “Oat milk. Two sugars. Don't argue”
I don't argue.
Then Liam enters.
No coffee. No smile. Just black jeans, a gray t-shirt, and those storm-cloud eyes that haven't left my face since the moment we met.
He doesn't say good morning.
He just looks at me.
Up and down. Slow.
Like he's memorizing every inch.
“Good morning, C.R,” he says finally.
His voice is low. Rough. The way he says my name sounds almost like a secret.
I grip my coffee tighter. “It's Miss Rhys”
“Not anymore.”
8:15 AM – The Rules
I stand in front of their workstations.
Stefan leans back in his chair, arms crossed, watching me like I'm entertainment.
Liam sits forward. Elbows on the table. Eyes locked on mine.
“Rules,” I say. “There are three.”
“Only three?” Stefan grins. “I was hoping for a challenge.”
“Rule one. You don't touch me without permission.”
Stefan's grin falters. Liam's eyes darken.
“I'm serious,” I continue. “I don't know you. I don't trust you. Physical contact is off the table until I say otherwise.”
Stefan holds up his hands. “Fair.”
Liam says nothing. He just tilts his head. Studying me.
“Rule two,” I say. “No games. I've been played by experts. I won't be played again.”
“Understood,” Stefan says.
Liam still doesn't speak.
“Rule three.” I look directly at him. “Stop staring at me like that”
“Like what?”
“Like you're hungry.”
The room goes silent.
Stefan whistles low.
Liam's lips curve. Slowly. Deliberately.
“What if I am hungry?” he asks.
My stomach flips.
“Then eat before you come to my lab.”
“I'm not hungry for food, C.R”
My face goes hot.
Stefan bursts out laughing. “Liam! You're supposed to ease into it, not just…”
“I don't ease.” Liam's eyes never leave mine. “I go after what I want”
“And what do you want?”
He stands up. Walks around the table. Stops inches from me.
“You,” he says quietly. “I want to know what you look like when you're not pretending to be cold. I want to hear what sound you make when you stop thinking for five seconds. I want…”
“Liam.” My voice comes out breathy. Weak. “Rule one.”
“I didn't touch you”
“You're breathing on my neck.”
“Am I?”
He leans closer. His lips almost brush my ear.
“Tell me to back up,” he whispers.
I don't.
Stefan clears his throat. Loudly.
“As much as I'm enjoying this,” he says, “Can we please do some work before I have to watch my brother get arrested?”
Liam pulls back.
But his hand, his fingers, brush my waist as he steps away.
Accidental?
Not a chance.
10:00 AM – The Heat
We settle into the work.
Stefan asks questions constantly. Not because he needs answers. Because he likes watching me explain things. His eyes track my mouth when I talk.
Liam doesn't ask anything.
He just watches.
Every time I move, his gaze follows. Every time I stretch or lean or push my hair back, his jaw tightens.
At 10:00, I reach across him to grab a notebook.
My arm brushes his chest.
He catches my wrist.
Fast. Gentle. His fingers wrap around the bone like he's testing how fragile I am.
“You did that on purpose,” he says.
“Did I?”
“You've been finding excuses to touch me all morning.”
“I have not.”
“At 8:30, you handed me a pen. Our fingers touched. At 8:47, you leaned over my shoulder to check my screen. Your hair touched my cheek. At 9:15…”
“Okay.” My face is burning. “Maybe I'm not used to sharing space.”
“Liar.”
He pulls me closer. Just an inch. But it's enough.
“You like it,” he murmurs. “You like knowing I'm watching.”
“Liam…”
“Tell me I'm wrong.”
I can't.
Because he's not wrong.
His thumb traces circles on my wrist. Slow. Deliberate.
“Rule one,” I whisper.
“You haven't told me to stop.”
“You haven't touched me.”
“This isn't touching?”
“This is... hovering.”
He laughs. Low. Dark. The first time I've heard him laugh.
“C.R.,” he says, “when I touch you, you won't have to guess.”
He releases my wrist.
I step back.
My whole body is trembling.
12:00 PM – The Wall
Stefan has been uncharacteristically quiet for the last hour.
I catch him watching me. Not the way Liam watches, hungry and intense. Stefan watches like he's solving a puzzle.
“You're staring,” I say.
“You're interesting.”
“I'm really not.”
“You survived something that would have broken most people. You rebuilt yourself from nothing. And now you're sitting in a room with two men who clearly want you, and you haven't flinched once.”
“I flinched.”
“Barely.” He tilts his head. “What are you afraid of, C.R.?”
“Nothing.”
“Everyone's afraid of something”
I look at Liam. He's leaning against the wall, arms crossed, still watching.
“Being wrong about people,” I say quietly. “I'm afraid of being wrong about people.”
Stefan's expression softens.
“You're not wrong about us,” he says.
“How do you know?”
“Because we're still here.” He gestures around the lab. “We could be anywhere. Doing anything. But we're here. With you.”
Liam pushes off the wall. Walks toward me.
Stops when our chests are almost touching.
“You asked what I want earlier,” he says. “I want to earn your trust. I want you to stop looking at every kindness like it's a trap.”
“Kindness is usually a trap.”
“Then let us be the exception.”
His hand comes up. Hovers near my cheek. Not touching. Waiting.
“Can I?” he asks.
My throat closes.
No one has ever asked.
I nod.
His palm cups my face. Warm. Rough. Gentle.
“This isn't a game,” he says. “You're not a bet. You're not a challenge.”
“Then what am I?”
He leans in. His forehead touches mine.
“Ours,” he whispers.
Behind us, Stefan makes a sound. Soft. Almost pained.
“Liam,” he says. “You're making it very hard to share.”
Liam doesn't pull back. His thumb strokes my cheekbone.
“Then don't share,” he says. “Take turns.”
Stefan appears at my other side. His hand settles on my lower back.
"C.R.,” he says, “look at me.”
I turn my head. Liam's hand slides to my jaw. Holds me gently.
Stefan's face is inches from mine. His eyes are darker than I expected. Hungry.
“You said no touching without permission,” he says. “I'm asking. Can I kiss you?”
My heart stops.
“Not today,” I hear myself say.
Stefan nods. Doesn't pull away. “Tomorrow?”
“Maybe.”
“Maybe is better than no.”
Liam's thumb traces my lower lip.
“When you're ready,” he says, “we'll be here.”
They step back at the same time.
Like they rehearsed it.
I sink into my chair.
My whole body is on fire.
4:00 PM – The Exit
The lab door closes behind them.
Stefan's voice drifts through the glass: “She's going to destroy us, isn't she?”
Liam's answer: “Probably.”
Then silence.
I press my hands to my face.
My lips are still tingling where his thumb touched.
This is a mistake.
But God…
I want to make it anyway.
- Writer
