make sense. This guy looked perfectly able-bodied and fit. He was standing in several photos so mobility didn’t appear to be an issue. And his face was perfect. Gorgeous. The butterflies in my stomach started doing hot laps as I got closer to the top of the stairs.
What could they possibly need me for?
At the top of the staircase, we turned left and stood in the doorway of a large studio. Easels and canvases were set up along one wall and buckets of Lego bricks were lined up along the other. In front of the window was a wide table with a Lego city in the center of it. The most beautiful man I’d ever seen was working on a bridge when Mrs. Brenner cleared her throat.
“Liam, honey. Dinner will be ready in a few minutes.” She picked up a digital kitchen timer by the door and set it for five minutes. “When you hear the alarm, please come down. We have a guest tonight.”
His gaze was locked with mine and I could tell he was confused. His expression was stoic but there was so much happening in the blue depths of his eyes, I didn’t want to look away and miss any of it. He didn’t say a word but it seemed as though he understood what she was saying.
“Wyatt is Avery’s friend and he’s joining us for dinner.” She smiled at her son with what looked like both pride and pity. “He might want to become your friend too.”
Liam’s eyes finally flitted away from me and focused on his mother.
She nodded as if answering an unspoken question, but then quickly stepped out of the doorway and gently pulled me along with her. “He’ll eat with us so you can get to know him then.”
“Okay, sure.” I had so many questions but I wasn’t sure where to begin. I also didn’t know what was appropriate in a situation like this. Would asking questions be rude? I wished Avery had given me some clues as to what to expect. “I’m looking forward to it.”
Her eyes lit up as if I’d said exactly the right thing. “I’m so happy to hear that. I think he’s looking forward to it too.”
“So, he knows why I’m here?” I tried to keep my tone casual but my curiosity got the better of me. “He looked surprised to see me.”
She sucked in a long breath then sighed. “He was surprised but…pleasantly so, I think.”
I nodded and followed her down the stairs with a grin tugging at my cheeks. I didn’t have a clue what I was doing there, but if hanging out with that beautiful man was any part of the job, I would gladly take it. Getting paid and a place to live was gravy.
Four
Avery sat beside me as her mother dished up a heaping serving of lasagna and salad for each of us. Before Mrs. Brenner took her seat, Liam dropped into the chair directly across from me. He didn’t wait for his mother to get settled before he dug into his dinner, eating it as if he were starving.
“Liam, manners. You know it’s polite to wait until everyone is seated and served before you begin eating.”
Liam didn’t even glance in his mother’s direction at her scolding.
I had to duck my chin to my chest to hide the small smile I couldn’t stop from forming. It was clear he didn’t give a shit about manners. He was one hundred percent focused on his food. Well, maybe eighty percent focused on his food and twenty percent focused on me.
I didn’t want to stare back, but I kept my eyes on him, trying to engage him in some kind of conversation.
He remained silent as he studied me, shoveling food into his mouth on auto pilot as the weight of his gaze became heavier and heavier on my face.
When it became too much for me to ignore, I put my fork down and wiped my mouth with my napkin before looking right at the beautiful man sitting across from me. “So, Liam, that’s a cool city you’re building.”
He almost flinched at my words and his attention briefly turned toward his mother before coming back to me.
“Maybe I can help you with it. I used to build some sweet Lego castles when I was a kid.” My parents drove by the Notre Dame campus often when I was little, and I always thought it looked like a castle. Even back then, I knew I’d attend college there