“You’re a good kid, Amy. You shouldn’t be mixed up in all this.”
“I’m not a kid,” I said, immediately, and he met my eyes, a tender smile on his face. He raised a hand to my cheek, and I let him touch it gently.
“Indeed you are not.” He said. “You are a beautiful young woman, and any man would be blind to refuse you.”
I was lost in his eyes, their watery depths flooding into my soul. I had seen his face a thousand times, on the screen and in the magazines, and I couldn’t believe it was now inches from mine. Slowly, his other hand rose to my other cheek, and he dipped his head. Without even realizing what was happening, I kissed him.
His lips were soft, and gentle, our tongues chasing each other as our kiss deepened. It seemed to last an eternity, and yet when we broke apart, it wasn’t long enough. I gripped onto him and our lips met again, our breath now coming in gasps. I felt things I had never felt before, my skin lit up and a warm glow ignited between my legs. Liam seemed equally entranced, his eyes closed, and his hands began wandering my body. I didn’t have time to think, to consider what was happening. All I knew was that I wanted more, and I pulled myself closer to him, remaining careful to keep my wounds away. He tasted of brandy and sweetness, and the way he sucked on my lower lip made me moan.
Finally, we broke apart, our eyes darting over each other, playing the old trick of pretending not to look. My head was reeling as I tried to make sense of it. His hand took mine and squeezed it gently. Neither of us said anything for almost a full minute, until I heard footsteps from down the hall.
“Are you dating her?” I asked, under my breath. I had to know. Forget the implications of the fact that I had just kissed my headmaster in a fiery passion that would have burned the school down - if his girlfriend was coming back as well, I might as well slit my wrists now.
“No,” He laughed at the silliness of my question, and I felt he wasn’t lying. “Porsche and I have a different story but romance doesn’t have any part in it.”
“Oh,” I replied, looking away, as she returned to the room, first aid kit in hand.
“You’re probably going to have to see a doctor, Amy,” she said, crouching to my level. “But let’s see if we can get the biggest shard out, hmm?”
“Uh huh,” I extended my arm, glancing back at Liam. Our conversation ended abruptly, and I felt like a piece of me was unfinished.
Pulling a pair of tweezers from the first aid kit, she squinted in the light, examining the glass before clamping down on it. I braced myself, closing my eyes. The sun was almost gone now, setting fast, and I could practically see the last rays of light disappearing from behind my eyelids. I took a deep breath as I felt her brace my arm, and then she pulled.
It didn’t hurt as much as I thought it would. When you grow up with IVs, needles and endless amounts of drugs and tests, you don’t grow up squeamish. From behind me, however, I heard Liam grunt.
“Get out,” Porsche said to him, quickly slapping some gauze on my wound, which had begun to ooze blood. I couldn’t turn around, she had me gripped tightly, but I could hear him stand up. “Before you cause any more damage. You need to go. I already called Peter.”
Peter was his grandfather, the old headmaster of the school. I could only assume he was being sent home on the infamous walk of shame. I smiled slightly to myself. Even Liam, the God of acting, was human.
“Maybe we could talk in the morning? I have … questions,” I said, and Liam paused in the doorway, turning back to me. He was growing increasingly pale and I wondered if blood made him squeamish. But still, he gave me a devilish grin.
“Sure,” he said, and then he was gone. Porsche rolled her eyes, wrapping my arm in gauze before checking my other wounds.
“Come on. We should get you to the school nurse.”
“Right,” I stood, shakily, taking her arm. “Is Liam going to be alright?”
She looked surprised as she helped me towards the door.
“He’ll be fine, Amy,” she said, although she didn’t sound like she believed herself. “He always is.”
CHAPTER 10: AMY
The next morning, I was up at the crack of dawn, my head still spinning from what had happened last night. I hadn’t slept well at all, and part of that was due to the thin walls in the dorms. I knew I had it luckier than some of the students who had moved across the world to be here, some of them so young. I heard what I assumed was crying or moaning through the walls. And at first, my heart broke for whichever poor girl was so heartbroken that she was sobbing into her pillow.
By 3am, however, I had little pity for it, having been woken up twice. I actually fell asleep with my fingers in my ears, and they rang with exhaustion as I walked down the halls.
As soon as I knew Liam would be in his office I briskly walked down the hallways, trying not to draw attention to myself. In the hours since dawn, I had painstakingly done my makeup and paid more attention to my hair than I normally did. I put on the one pair of high heels I owned, trying not to pitch forward when I walked.
The hallways were mostly empty. The school officially opened at 8am but classes didn’t start until 9am, and so I passed very few students.
Liam’s door was closed, but I could see him through the shadowy glass window. Taking a deep breath, and checking my reflection once more, I knocked twice.
“Yes?” His reply was brisk and curt through the door.
“It’s Amy,” I said, my voice shaking. “I was hoping we could discuss those…questions I had…”
There was a silence and a shuffling of papers. Suddenly, the door opened. Liam stood there, looking crisp and sharp in the morning light; his shirt rolled up to his elbows and his pants perfectly pressed. The smell of a woodsy cologne drifted from his neck, and when he moved his arm to usher me in, I saw the ripple of lean muscle.
Once I was inside, Liam closed the door behind me, and sat on the edge of the desk, watching me intently.
“How um…” I gulped. “How are you?”
“I’m fine,” he said, his eyes never leaving mine. “How are you?”
“Also fine.” I blushed, looking down at my shoes. For a moment, neither of us said anything, and then we both spoke at once.
“About last night…”
“Amy, last night…”
We both stopped, and laughed, awkwardly, nervously. Finally, he spoke again.
“Amy, last night was a mistake.”