"This is mine! Get your own!"
"Kinsley! Becca! C'mon, breakfast is ready!" Penn called out. We sprang into action and raced to the kitchen, slipping and sliding in our blankets and socks. I almost wiped out when we rounded the corner to the kitchen and Becca couldn't stop laughing for five solid minutes.
Liam quirked his eyebrow at us. "I thought I got you Becca-proofing supplies."
I held up my leg and arm, which were both sporting bruises courtesy of my best friend aka spawn of Satan. "I keep forgetting to wear them. Maybe we should just wrap Becca up in bubble wrap. She packs a lot of punch for a small package."
The boys laughed. "I veto the bubble wrap," Penn joked.
I waggled my eyebrows as I stepped up to inspect the meal they'd cooked. "You’ll rethink your decision after she karate chops you in the stomach."
Becca bonked me on the arm as a warning.
"I hope you guys like bacon and waffles."
My eyes lit up. "Waffle for me please!" I grinned and took a seat at the table. Becca followed suit.
"What, we cooked it and we have to serve you?" Liam teased, already preparing a waffle on a plate. I shot him my best puppy dog eyes.
"Oh, please. Turn those off. They don't affect me." Yeah right, in two seconds flat I had a waffle, orange juice, coffee, and maple syrup placed in front of me.
I winked up at him. "We'll do the dishes."
We spent most of Sunday lazing around on the beach. Liam rubbed sun block into my skin, taking extra time to get every surface he could find. I smiled over my shoulder at him and he bent forward to kiss me.
"Do you remember our conversation last night?" he asked.
"The one about the relationship status?" I asked, biting my lip and looking back out toward the ocean.
"Mhm. Just wanted to make sure you were conscious of what you were agreeing to."
I laughed and admitted I'd worried about the same thing. "So you're my boyfriend? Liam Wilder is my boyfriend?"
He chuckled. "Well I don't refer to myself in the third person, but yes, Liam Wilder is your boyfriend and... he's a lucky guy." He ran his hand beneath the strings of my bikini and I feared he would untie them as quickly as he had the night before. I slapped his hand away playfully.
After that conversation was over, I felt much less stressed about the situation. Being around him was easy and fun. Sure, when he pulled out a soccer ball and the four of us were playing around I could hardly concentrate from the way he looked in his swim trunks, but maybe I'd get used to that eventually. A few times I caught him watching me in the same manner and I had to stifle a laugh.
All four of us tried to prolong the day as long as we could. I was loading my plate in the dishwasher after dinner when Liam wrapped his arms around my waist and nuzzled my ear. "You don't have to go home. You can stay and I'll take you to practice tomorrow."
God, that was tempting. The feel of his arms around me blocked out most of my functioning brain cells, but I still had enough sense to shake my head. Liam was a force of nature in my life. If I let him, he'd breeze in and turn everything upside down until all that was left standing were my feelings for him. I had to put some healthy distance between us, just for a night.
I spun around in his arms and wrapped my hands around his neck. When I popped up onto my tiptoes, I was almost level with his face. "I should go home and call my parents… check my email, you know, wrap my head around what normal life is like again."
He chuckled, "This could be normal life."
I shivered at his insinuation. "Don't try and convince me. My desire to leave is already dwindling."
“Sounds like I should keep trying to convince you then." He dipped his head and kissed my neck. My eyes fluttered closed and I let out a small sigh.
Then I snapped back to reality. "Nope. No. No. Liam!" I pushed away from him and he held up his hands, trying to contain his laughter.
"You play dirty! Becca, let's go!"
She felt the exact same way I did, which is why we all but sprinted from the house, waving goodbye to the boys and not letting them get near us. We hopped into my car and I locked the doors behind us just for good measure. The second we were inside and safe from our hormones, we started cracking up.
"Those boys are dangerous," I accused as I started my car and backed up out of the driveway.
"Good thing you were there for moral support or I wouldn't have left. Penn probably would have had to kick me out three weeks from now when I’d barricaded myself in his room."