Series Starter : Firsts in Series Collection

by Kaylee Ryan

  After a few minutes Hailey says, “I’m going to go check on her.”

  “No.” I stand from the table. “Let me do it.” I quickly excuse myself and head down the hall. I know that I, as well as Allison, are going to be the topic of conversation, but I can’t bring myself to care. I want to be there for her.

  I stop in front of the bathroom door and lean my forehead against it. I can hear her soft cries. I knock softly. “Allison, it’s Liam. Can you let me in, sweetheart?”

  “Just give me a minute, I’ll be fine,” she chokes out.

  “Please,” I whisper.

  I hear her shuffling toward the door and then hear the handle turn. When she pulls the door open, her face is blotchy and her eyes are red and swollen. Without even thinking, I step inside and shut the door. I pull her close to me and wrap her in my arms. I kiss the top of her head, and as I do, she begins to cry harder. I’m not sure how long we stay like this, but while I’m holding her I lose a piece of myself to Allison Shay Hagan.

  She pulls away from me slowly. “Sorry about your shirt,” she whispers.

  I pull her chin up with my thumb and forefinger, so she’s looking me in the eye. “Are you okay? Do you want to talk about it?”

  She shakes her head. “I feel like such a baby. It was years ago, I should be able to talk about it.”

  “Is there something in particular that upset you?” I ask softly as I hug her back to my chest and slowly rub my hand up and down her back.

  “Not really, it’s just…” she sniffles.

  “What, baby, what happened?”

  “It’s just family dinners. I miss those, for the last eight years it’s just been Gran and me.”

  I can’t get words to pass through the lump in my throat. My only reply is to pull her tighter. As I do, she in turn wraps her arms tight around my waist. After getting my emotions under control, I pull away from her and cup her face in my hands. I wipe her tears away with my thumbs. “You are amazing, you have so many people who love you, Aiden, his parents, Hailey. My parents adore you.” I swallow back my emotions. “You have me,” I whisper, never tearing my eyes from hers.

  “Liam,” she murmurs.

  Her plea sends me over the edge, and I slowly bring her face to mine as I lean down. I stare at her lips and then back to her eyes, letting her know my intent. I need to kiss her more than I need my next breath. I wait, as my intentions set in, I can see when understanding flashes across her face, she licks her lips. I lean a little closer, closing the space between us. Hesitating, giving her the opportunity to stop me.

  She doesn’t.

  When my lips touch hers, I feel the tremor in my hands, which are gently holding her close to me. She must have felt it too because she places her hands over mine as I continue to caress her cheeks while I kiss her. She opens her mouth, and I slip my tongue inside. The taste of her on my tongue causes me to release a deep moan, and as I do Allison slows the kiss and rests her forehead against my chest.

  “Liam.”

  “Mmm.” Again I’m at a loss for words. I have kissed my share of girls and not once did any of those kisses elicit this kind of reaction from me. I’ve never in my life felt this kind of connection with any other human being.

  “What are we doing?”

  I kiss her forehead before I pull back to look her in the eye. “I was kissing the most amazing girl I’ve ever met.” I need her to know she’s different from anyone else I’ve ever been with.

  She blushes. “I want more, Liam. Not that I expect a proposal next week, but you’ve already made it clear you won’t make a commitment, so what are we doing?”

  I shake my head and pull her back to my chest. “I don’t know, baby. All that I can tell you is that kiss was incomparable to anything I’ve ever felt. You wreck me, you know that?” I ask, searching her face for understanding.

  “Well, since that was officially my first kiss, I don’t have anything to compare it to, but this feeling,” she grabs my hand and lays it over her heart, “this connection that makes my heart race is uncharted waters for me. I wish I could hold onto it and never let go,” she sighs, “but I need all of you, Liam. I don’t want to share you, and I can’t just be a fling. My heart can’t take it.” She brushes her hand across my cheek. “If you ever decide you can give me all of you, you know where to find me.” She lifts up on her tiptoes and gives me one last chaste kiss on the lips. “Thank you for listening…and for the kiss,” she says as she turns and walks out of the room.

  I stand here, trying to regain control of my emotions while her words race through my mind.

  Chapter 11

  Allison

  When I hear the knock on the door and then Liam’s voice, I cry harder. I’m so embarrassed I didn’t control my emotions in front of everyone. My parents have been gone for a long time. I should be able to tell people about them without turning into a blubbering idiot. I’m missing Gran, and to see Liam and Hailey so carefree with their parents, even Aiden, I lost it. I just need a minute to get myself under control. When I hear Liam’s whispered, “Please,” I find myself opening the door. As soon as he sees me, he steps into the room, shuts the door, and wraps me in his strong arms. I feel safe and content, that feeling isn’t one I have much experience with. I always feel like I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop.

  Liam holds me tight as I attempt to explain my breakdown. After a few minutes, he tells me I’m amazing and I have Aiden and his parents, as well as Hailey and their parents. After a short pause, he also tells me I have him. That simple statement sends heat surging throughout my body. What I wouldn’t give to have this man be mine. To always know he’d be there to wrap me in his arms and cherish me, just like he’s doing at this exact moment, as if I’m the most important person in his life.

  “Liam,” is all I’m able to get out, my mind is reeling. I want him to want me. I want to be enough for him. I want all of him. There’s no way I’ll settle for less.

  The connection we have is unexplainable. I look into his eyes and the want I see there mirrors my own. He leans in closer, and I know he’s going to kiss me. I want him to kiss me, just this once. I’ll take his kiss as a token of what I can never have. Liam is a no commitment, sexy football god. I’m one of many women who swoons over him daily. As he leans in closer, I can feel his breath against my face. He hesitates, and I know he’s expecting me to stop him, but I don’t, I want this. I want my first kiss to be Liam, a reminder of this overwhelming chemistry flowing between us. I lick my lips and within seconds his lips touch mine. Liam has my face cupped gently in his hands. I feel him start to tremble. I place my hands over his as he deepens the kiss. I open my mouth, inviting him in, and he takes full advantage. Once his tongue slips in I hear him growl deep in his throat, and I know I need to stop this. I want him, and he is unattainable in my eyes, and we have to stop.

  “Liam,” I breathe. “What are we doing?”

  Liam kisses my forehead as he proceeds to tell me he’s ‘kissing the most amazing girl he has ever met’. I melt and right then I lose a piece of my heart to him. I know he can never be mine, but he has a part of me, which is crazy because we just met; all I know is he just does. I’m glad I’m still in his arms, or I would be a puddle of lust on the bathroom floor.

  I can feel his chest rising and falling. I can feel the steady beat of his heart. I look up into his eyes, getting lost in a sea of deep blue emotions. He proceeds to tell me our kiss is basically the best kiss of his existence. My resolve is beginning to crumble. I’m so tempted to throw caution to the wind and have a fling with Liam. Instead, I put on my big girl panties and do the responsible thing. I tell him if he ever decides he can give me all of him, he knows where to find me. I give him one final quick kiss on the lips and leave him there in the bathroom.

  I walk back into the kitchen and take my seat next to Hailey. She looks at me in question and I shrug my shoulders. She smiles at me, like she just discovered the cure for cancer. I pick up my fork and continue t
o eat. It’s Aiden who breaks the tension.

  “Ash, you have got to taste Mrs. Mac’s dirt cake,” he says as he shovels in a humongous bite.

  Mrs. Mac smiles at me. “Would you like a bowl?”

  “Yes, please, dinner was great.” I stand up to carry my now empty plate to the kitchen.

  Liam appears at my side. “I got it,” as he grabs my plate and walks to the kitchen. Mr. Mac stands to follow him.

  The remainder of the day is uneventful. We all sit down to play a game of Back Alley Thirteen, Liam, Aiden, and Mr. Mac play their guitars and we all sing. We laugh and joke until it’s time to leave. Aiden and Hailey keep giving me questioning looks. I smile at them to let them know I’m good. Liam continues to dote on me, grabbing me drinks, holding my chair for me, and such. All of my senses are on high alert. When we leave, he holds the door for me again and helps me into the back seat of his Pathfinder. The drive back is quiet, since we’re all full and worn out. When we arrive at the dorm, Liam hops out and opens my door for me. I smile and say, “Thank you”. I give Aiden a hug, then link arms with Hailey as we head to our room.

  We’re barely through the doors of the building before Hailey pounces on me for information.

  “What the fuck was that?” she says with a huge smile on her face.

  I look at her as if she is crazy. “What was what?” I can tell she isn’t buying my poor attempt to evade her questions.

  “Don’t play dumb with me, Allison Hagan. What is that chemistry between you and my brother? Holy shit, sparks were flying all damn day.”

  “You’re crazy, there were no sparks. Liam was just being...nice, that’s all,” I say, my voice cracking. Yeah, that was real convincing.

  “I call bullshit. What you’re forgetting is he’s my brother, and I know him all too well. Never in my life have I seen him be attentive to any girl, unless he was trying to hook up. He ran from the table to chase after you and see if you were okay. Then he was in the bathroom with you for a while.” She smirks.

  I throw myself down on my bed and cover my head with my pillow. I contemplate how much I should tell her. Liam is her brother after all, but she’s my roommate, and I need someone to talk to about all of this. Aiden would never understand. I take a deep breath, remove the pillow, and say, “We kissed,” and quickly cover my face back up.

  “I knew it!”

  Before I know what’s happening, Hailey’s on my bed, pulling the pillow away. “You kissed him?” she questions.

  Unable to speak and feeling the heat engulf my cheeks, I nod my head yes and look up at the ceiling.

  “This is awesome. Wouldn’t it be great if you guys ended up getting married? We would be sisters for real.”

  “Seriously, you’re not mad, or think this is weird?”

  “Well, when things start to heat up with you two spare me the graphic details, but no, I’m cool with it. Liam is a great guy, he just has his priorities all out of whack. I would love to see him get serious and what better person than my new roomie-BFF?”

  “I’m sorry to disappoint, but it doesn’t mean anything. Liam has made it clear he would never consider a relationship, and I don’t want to waste my time on a fling, so it’s never gonna happen with us.”

  Hailey laughs. “Oh, it’s so gonna happen, just like I told you earlier. I’m going to enjoy watching this play out. The show so far has been AH-MAZING,” she sings as she hops back to her bed.

  The first week of classes goes smoothly. Hailey and I’d already mapped out where we needed to go, so we could ensure we’d be on time. That’s yet another thing she and I have in common, neither one of us like to be late. Thursday night we’re hanging out in our room trying to figure out how to celebrate our first week. Neither one of us has classes on Friday, so we’ll have a three-day weekend for this semester. Hell yeah. I haven’t seen Liam at all this week. Of course, I’ve gone out of my way to avoid him and Aiden. I gave Aiden the excuse I was busy with diving into my classes. He bought it, thankfully.

  My cell phone starts singing LMFAO “Sexy and I Know It.” Aiden’s ringtone. He programmed it himself. He’s quite proud of his selection and often calls when we’re together just to remind me.

  “Hey, Ace,” I chirp.

  “Hey, you. What are you and Hales up to tonight?” he asks.

  “Well, we were actually just discussing that. How about you?” I want to say how about you and Liam, but I don’t want to be obvious. It’s been a week since I’ve seen him.

  “Nothing really. Liam and I are just sitting around, thinking about going out for pizza, and wanted to see if you and Hales wanted to come with?”

  I pull the phone away from my ear. “Hey, Hales, Aiden said he and Liam are going out for pizza and they want to know if we want to come with.”

  “Yes. How much time do we have?” she responds as she jumps off her bed and starts rummaging through her closet.

  I laugh at her antics. “Yeah, we’re in. Where do you want to meet?” I listen to Aiden tell me he and Liam will pick us up in twenty minutes. I quickly say goodbye, so I can get ready.

  “They’ll be here in twenty minutes to pick us up,” I tell Hailey as I laugh at her throwing clothes around our room.

  “Get your ass in gear, missy. We only have twenty minutes, make that nineteen. What are you going to wear?”

  I shrug my shoulders. I’m a what-you-see-is-what-you-get kind of girl. I want Liam to want me, but I want him to want the real me. I refuse to pretend to be someone I’m not in order to earn his affections. “What’s wrong with what I have on?” I question her.

  Hailey rolls her eyes at me. “Nothing, I just think you should change it up a little is all. My brother is chomping at the bit for you, and we just want to give him the little push he needs.”

  “What do you mean he’s chomping at the bit for me?” I question her, hands on my hips.

  She sighs. “He’s called and texted me more this week than he has in our entire lives. He wanted to make sure you were okay after Sunday.”

  “Wow. Okay, well, I guess that’s a good thing. I told him I wanted more, Hales. Do you think he’ll ever be able to give me that? Give anyone that?” I ask her, sadness in my voice.

  Hailey nods her head yes. “I do, he’s really into you. Liam’s just working through his emotions right now. He’s never wanted anyone like this before, or cared how they were doing. This is all new to him. Give him time to adjust to the thought of being in a relationship.” She brings a pair of distressed capri jeans and a spaghetti strap tank over to me. “Put these on with some flip-flops. They’ll show off your curves, but it’s still really casual, so it won’t look like you’re trying too hard.”

  I don’t respond, instead I make quick work of changing my clothes, then let Hailey touch up my makeup and hair, which I’d straightened today. We barely finish when we hear a knock at the door.

  “Come in!” we both yell at the same time as we giggle.

  Chapter 12

  Liam

  I pester the shit out of Aiden until he finally breaks down and calls Allison and invites her and Hailey out for pizza with us. Luckily, they agree, and soon Aiden and I are on our way up to their dorm room to pick them up. Aiden knocks on the door and a chorus of, “Come in,” and a lot of giggling rings through the door.

  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.