On the very first day of my holiday visit home. My mom practically shoved a gorgeous younger guy into my arms. She left me with one incredibly loaded sentence: "You know what to do." I took the hint perfectly, and I dragged him straight to my bedroom. Afterward, my mom casually asked where the kid who came for GRE tutoring went. Looking at the exhausted man lying in my bed... I trembled. 1 My company gave us an extra-long winter break, so I happily dragged my suitcase back to my hometown for the holidays. The second I stepped through the front door, my mom shoved a young, handsome guy right into my arms and left me with a deeply meaningful: "You know what to do." Then she grabbed her purse and sprinted out the door, yelling something about her weekly poker game missing a fourth player. The guy was easily 6'1", with sharp eyebrows, bright eyes, and the kind of clean-cut, effortless good looks that belonged on a magazine cover. A faint smile hung on his lips as he sweetly and obediently said, "Hey, Chloe." His eyes were so clear and innocent. He looked ridiculously easy to take advantage of. I instantly understood the assignment. I flashed an "OK" sign at my mom’s retreating back, pulled the gorgeous guy inside, and slammed the front door shut. He stared at me as I locked the deadbolt, blinking in surprise before letting out a low, incredibly attractive, "Hmm?" His voice was so deep and resonant, listening to it for too long could probably get a girl pregnant. I turned and shushed him, grabbing his warm hand and leading him straight up the stairs. His fingers were long, smooth, and perfectly manicured. I had no idea how a guy managed to have hands that soft. Though he looked a bit confused, he furrowed his brows and obediently let me pull him along. It wasn't until I shoved him onto my mattress that he finally started squirming in panic like a terrified caterpillar. "Chloe, what are you doing?" I straddled his waist, pinning his wrists on either side of his head. Once I had him trapped beneath me, I softened my voice and purred, "What do you think? "This was bound to happen eventually. We’re just speeding up the timeline a little." But damn, the guy was strong. The moment the words left my mouth, he flipped his hands and gripped my shoulders. "Chloe, you need to think this through!" He turned his head away, his gaze landing on my bare wrists. His cheeks were flushed red, but his voice was full of righteous panic. His grip was iron-tight, and he bent his long legs, trying to buck me off. I reached out and gently patted his handsome cheek. "Be a good boy. Save that energy for later." He tried to protest again, but I covered his mouth. "Shh. Don't speak." He had been struggling and twisting, but the second my lips brushed against his Adam's apple, it was like I hit his pause button. His entire body went rigid. And then, it felt like I accidentally flipped his beast-mode switch. In a dizzying spin, the innocent guy transformed into a wolf, flipping our positions and practically devouring me alive. 2 My mom is the classic traditional parent: absolutely forbade dating in high school, but the second I hit college, she started relentlessly hounding me to get married. During undergrad, she told me to go after my classmates. During my master's, she told me not to let the frat boys or teaching assistants slip away. After graduation, she told me to lock down a coworker or a boss. Every holiday, weekend, and vacation, she was setting me up on blind dates with local "eligible bachelors." Despite her frantic efforts, there was zero spark with any of them. Either they were complete toads, or I was the ugly duckling. The only few who actually met my standards? I was always too cowardly to make a move. She constantly complained about my lack of guts. She loved bragging about how my dad was the crush of their entire town back in the day. She wasn't the prettiest, and her family wasn't the richest, but she was bold. She basically hit him over the head and dragged him home. She always said if she hadn't taken the initiative, I wouldn’t even exist. She told me to learn from her. If I saw someone I liked, I needed to strike first. So, when she gave me that knowing wink while handing over this gorgeous younger guy, I completely understood. I boldly dragged him upstairs. I figured I'd lock him down first and deal with the consequences later. When he pinned me to the mattress, I realized I might have been a little too bold. An entire afternoon passed. I lay in bed, gasping for air, lacking the energy to move a single finger. The guy kept looking at me, hesitating as if he wanted to say something, but I was too exhausted to speak. I closed my eyes, drifting into sleep. Suddenly, a demonic voice pierced my eardrums: "Chloe Davis! Where is Liam?! "Wasn't he coming over for you to tutor him for the GRE? Did he leave already? "Why didn't you invite him to stay for dinner?!" ... I shot up in bed like a startled fish. Liam? The chubby kid from next door who was three years younger than me? The kid I helped with spelling in elementary school, algebra in middle school, and SAT prep in high school? The same kid my mom mentioned a few days ago who needed help prepping for his grad school entrance exams?! I remembered what he used to look like. Did losing weight really make him this hot?! I pointed a trembling finger at the guy in my bed. "Liam?" His eyes widened, and he nodded obediently. "You came for GRE tutoring?" He nodded obediently again. "Then why didn't you say so?!" I hissed. I genuinely thought he was a blind date my mom had arranged! When I first saw his face downstairs, I had almost cried tears of joy. I used to suspect my parents were secret billionaires pretending to be poor to build my character. Then I suspected I was adopted and my real billionaire parents would find me. When I saw Liam today, I thought, Billionaires have nothing on this! Only my true, flesh-and-blood mother would save such a premium asset for her own daughter! But he was just a studious younger neighbor coming over for test prep! Liam looked incredibly wronged. The flush hadn't faded from his face, and his gorgeous hazel eyes were swimming with emotion. "You never gave me a chance to speak." I felt like I was having a heart attack, a stroke, and an asthma attack all at once. Hearing my mom's footsteps climbing the stairs, I inhaled sharply and locked the bedroom door. When I turned around, Liam was already pulling his shirt on. His V-shaped torso was flawless, marked only by the long, red scratches down his back. He was terrifyingly calm. He shot me an innocent look. "Why did you lock the door? Let's go out together. We should take responsibility for what we did." I slapped him lightly on the back of the head. "Look who's suddenly full of responsibility!" I grabbed his arm, shoved the window open, and pushed him toward it. "Out the window!" Liam froze, looking highly offended. "Chloe, what is this supposed to mean?" I was sweating bullets. I shoved him again. "What does it mean? It means today was your lucky day!" He grabbed the window frame and sighed. "Chloe, we're on the second floor. Are you trying to murder me to silence the witness?" Click! Rattle! The doorknob jiggled aggressively. My heart leaped into my throat. My mom’s demonic voice echoed again: "Chloe! What are you doing?! Why is the door locked?! "I asked you where Liam went!" My brain spun at hyper-speed. Hundreds of excuses flashed through my mind until I grabbed one, swallowed hard, and steadied my voice: "He finished his session and went home!" I lowered my voice, adding a tired, whiny tone. "I was on a train all morning and I'm exhausted! I knew you'd come in and rip my blankets off, so I locked the door. "I just want to get some sleep!" My mom instantly felt guilty. "Oh, honey, I'm sorry. Get some rest. I'll go downstairs and start dinner." Downstairs?! That was Liam's only escape route! I quickly shouted, "Mom! I'm actually starving! I feel like I'm dying. Could you ride your bike down to the diner and get me some of that famous BBQ brisket?!" In that moment, I truly admired my own genius. But my mom sweetly replied, "Your dad is on his way home. I'll call him to pick it up." I gasped in horror. "Mom, I'm so hungry my stomach hurts! If you take the e-bike, you'll be back in ten minutes! I'll eat it while we wait for Dad!" "Alright, alright! Brat. You're always craving junk food." Hearing her footsteps retreat down the stairs, I let out a massive sigh of relief. I scooped up the rest of Liam's clothes, shoved them into his chest, and dragged him toward the door. He stood planted like a tree, his eyes dark and unreadable. He was clearly pissed. "Chloe. We're just going to leave it at this?" My brain was complete mush. I just needed him out of my house. Without thinking, I blurted, "You already ate me, do you want to stay for brisket too?!" I pushed him down the stairs. He resisted, his expression stormy as he used my full name. "Chloe Davis, are we really just leaving it at this?" What else was I supposed to do? I couldn't afford to pay him for his services! I stopped walking. "I genuinely thought you were a blind date. I was a little impulsive. I'm sorry..." His eyes instantly turned red, like he was about to cry. I was completely baffled. I quickly grabbed two toasted bagels from the kitchen counter and shoved them into his hands. "Don't cry! You worked hard all afternoon, eat these on your way home. Be a good boy and hurry up..." Before I could even finish my sentence, Liam turned on his heel and stormed out. Watching his tall silhouette disappear down the winding suburban road, my heart finally settled back into my chest. A wave of exhaustion hit me so hard my knees buckled, and I nearly collapsed onto the floor. But I still had to clean the evidence off my bedsheets. Wanting to cry but having no tears left, I stripped the bed and started scrubbing the sheets in the sink. Having fun in bed is great, until the aftermath hits you like a freight train. As I reminisced about the steamy afternoon, I was also dying of embarrassment. "What are you doing?!" I jumped so hard I fell backward, landing square on my butt. The impact sent a shooting pain up my spine. I stammered, shivering, "My... my period started early. I accidentally got it on the sheets." My mom rolled her eyes. "It's perfectly normal. Look at you acting so guilty, people would think you committed a murder." She set down the takeout bags of BBQ brisket, parked her keys on the counter, and started nagging. "Liam's dad throws a lot of contracting work your dad's way. "You need to do a good job tutoring Liam. Don't make him walk over here tomorrow. Take the initiative and go to his house to tutor him." Go to his house?! My brain was about to explode. "He got his undergrad from an Ivy League school! Why would he even struggle to get into grad school?!" "You're just as dense as your father! With the economy these past few years, if it wasn't for Liam's dad throwing us projects, we would've starved! "It's rare that they actually need a favor from us. It's only right that we repay them properly." My mom's tone left absolutely zero room for argument. "Tomorrow, right after lunch, you're going over there." 3 My mom is a woman of her word. The second I finished lunch the next day, she shoved my old GRE prep books into my arms and pushed me out the door. Forget about tutoring, I didn't even have the face to look Liam in the eye. I made up my mind to find a warm coffee shop, play on my phone all afternoon, and then sneak back home. Who knew I wouldn't even make it two blocks before running into Liam's mom, Mrs. Miller? The Millers made a fortune in construction and moved to the city years ago, only returning for the holidays. The wealthy city life clearly suited her; she looked even younger than she did years ago. Spotting me across the street, Mrs. Miller shouted, "Chloe! Your mom told me you were coming to tutor Liam! Hurry up, it's freezing out here. Come warm up at our house!" She crossed the street, took the heavy books right out of my hands, and dragged me toward her massive house. "That boy of mine is ridiculous. He's struggling with his studying, but he won't even walk over to ask for your help. I'm going to scold him when we get inside! He needs to respect his teachers!" I wanted to die on the spot. What kind of terrible luck was this? Mrs. Miller pulled me through the front door and yelled up the stairs, "Liam! Chloe is here!" Liam was standing at the top of the staircase, one hand casually tucked into his sweatpants pocket, looking down at me from his elevated vantage point. His lips were pressed into a flat line, radiating a hint of a temper tantrum. "Come on up, Chloe." The moment he spoke, we both froze. The memories of yesterday afternoon hit us like a tidal wave, and our eyes instantly darted away from each other. Oblivious to the tension, Mrs. Miller complained when we didn't move. "You brat, why are you just standing there? Come down and bring Chloe up so she can sit by the heater." Snapping out of it and terrified of looking arrogant, I forced myself to start climbing the stairs. Liam took two steps down, grabbed the books from his mother's hands, and followed closely behind me as we went up. He led me into his home office and pulled out a chair, signaling for me to sit. Then he grabbed another chair and sat down right next to me. An English test prep workbook lay open on the desk, right next to a piece of scratch paper covered in messy, chaotic scribbles. Faint handwriting peeked out from beneath the scribbles. I leaned in closer to look. I barely made out the letter "C" before Liam snatched the paper away. Fine, don't show me. I didn't care anyway. "Did you come here specifically to tutor me?" Liam asked. Specifically? I was practically kidnapped off the street by his mother. Not wanting to give him the wrong idea, I shook my head honestly. When he didn't say anything for a long time, I looked up. Liam's face and ears were completely flushed. He was looking down shyly, twisting his fingers together. He peeked up at me through his eyelashes, then quickly averted his eyes again. My heart dropped. I think he misunderstood. His focus was on the fact that I didn't come to tutor him. My focus was on the fact that I didn't specifically come to see him. There was literally no safe way to answer that question. I stayed silent... A bizarre, suffocating awkwardness filled the room. "Hot cocoa!" Mrs. Miller suddenly pushed the door open, cheerfully setting down two mugs. After telling us to study hard, she thoughtfully closed the door behind her. The room plunged into silence once again. "Chloe..." His soft, kitten-like voice startled me. I quickly suppressed the butterflies in my stomach, violently flipped open the test prep book, and took a deep breath. "Alright, let's start with the first reading comprehension passage." Seeing the atmosphere turn strictly academic, I let out a secret sigh of relief. But as my eyes flicked over, they landed squarely on a red mark on Liam's collarbone. The heater in the office was cranked up high. Feeling hot, he had unbuttoned the top two buttons of his dress shirt, exposing it perfectly to my line of sight. The mark was dark in the center and faded at the edges. I instantly recognized it as a hickey—one I had definitely left there. Liam silently sat up straight, his long fingers swiftly re-buttoning his collar. I died of embarrassment on the spot. I wanted to dig a hole and bury myself in it. From that exact moment, the standard alphabet letters on the page started twisting and dancing in front of my eyes. My senses went into overdrive. The faint, crisp scent of his fruity cologne drifted into my nose, seeping straight into my chest and making my heart itch. He silently picked up his mug and took a sip. Feeling suddenly parched, I mirrored him and took a sip of mine. Maybe the heater really was too high. We chugged all three cups of water/cocoa in rapid succession. After finishing his third cup, Liam shook his empty mug and murmured, "Chloe, why am I getting thirstier the more I drink?" Pfft! I almost spit my drink everywhere. I barely held it in, but a couple of drops escaped the corner of my mouth. Liam’s hand shot out with a tissue. Before I could take it, he bypassed my hand, leaned in, and gently wiped my lip himself. His eyes grew darker, a heavy heat rolling behind them. His long fingers suddenly gripped my shoulder. By the time I processed what was happening, the owner of those hands had his eyes half-closed and was leaning in closer and closer. Liam's eyelashes fluttered, his red lips parting slightly. I didn't even notice when the buttons on his shirt had come undone again, revealing a generous expanse of his chest. The situation was rapidly spiraling out of control. Right as we were about to cross the point of no return, the door swung open. "I sliced some fresh fruit for a break—" "BANG!" Terrified, I jerked backward and tumbled right over the back of my chair, crashing onto the floor. Liam pulled me up, hastily buttoning his collar with one hand while snapping at his mom in frustration. "Mom! Why didn't you knock?! "We were focusing so hard on the material, you scared us half to death!" I had no idea if Mrs. Miller saw anything, but my face felt like it was on fire. I pulled out my phone, shoved it back in my pocket, rubbed my butt, rubbed my head, picked up the workbook, and put it back down. I was flailing like an idiot trying to find an excuse. Finally, my brain supplied one: "My dog needs to be fed! I have to go feed the dog!" Without waiting for a response, I sprinted out of there like I was running for my life. The entire walk home, I was paranoid that Mrs. Miller had seen everything. I mentally noted that parents shouldn't be so trusting. You can't just invite any "tutor" into your house. It was below freezing outside, but I was sweating buckets by the time I got home. Who knew Mrs. Miller was cut from the exact same cloth as my mom? A woman of action. The very next day, Liam arrived right on schedule at my front door. 4 Mrs. Miller came with him, carrying bags of expensive gifts, her attitude incredibly warm, enthusiastic, and polite. She claimed it was just a small token of appreciation for me tutoring Liam. I looked in the bags. Premium health supplements, luxury skincare sets... these were not "small tokens." My parents exchanged a look and absolutely refused to accept them. Mrs. Miller spun a few heartfelt stories, successfully buttering everyone up. Amidst the laughter, she patted Liam's arm. "You silly boy, it's rare that Chloe is home. Don't waste time, go let your sister teach you." Liam took the cue perfectly, standing up straight and saying politely, "Thank you for the trouble, Chloe." Hearing this, I knew they were trying to isolate us into a private study session. My scalp prickled. I picked at my nails, shifting uncomfortably. "Oh, what a shame. We actually have to visit her grandmother this afternoon," my mom suddenly announced as I was about to stand up. "Oh, no problem! He can just come back tomorrow," Mrs. Miller replied smoothly. "Well, she might not have free time recently. Mrs. Jenkins set Chloe up with a few local boys. She has to go meet them." Mrs. Miller gasped in shock. "Chloe doesn't need blind dates! A girl as beautiful as her? Any family would fight to have her. Plus, she's so young, there's no rush." She glanced at Liam and added, "Who knows, maybe Chloe already has someone she likes." My mom waved her hand, looking dismissive. "She's turning 27 after the New Year! And she has no guts. If there's a decent match, she needs to meet them early before someone else snatches them up." "That's true. Liam isn't getting any younger either. He'll be 24 after the holidays. Speaking of which, I'm even more anxious..." My mom patted Mrs. Miller's hand. "You have nothing to worry about! Liam is so handsome, I can't imagine how many young girls are chasing him. You’ll have a headache just trying to pick one for him..." My dad and I watched the two moms expertly spar back and forth. My mom was essentially saying Chloe and Liam are not a match, while Mrs. Miller was aggressively hinting Chloe and Liam are a perfect match. After thirty minutes of psychological warfare, Mrs. Miller forced a smile, insisted Liam and I exchange numbers so we could coordinate our "study sessions," and reluctantly left. I was a bit surprised and confused. The second Liam left, I grabbed my mom. "We aren't going to Grandma's this afternoon..." "You idiot!" My mom poked me in the forehead, looking at me like I was a lost cause. "Don't let Liam's pretty face fool you! "While we were chatting, his eyes were practically glued to your body! "Guys who are that smooth and pretty are never reliable!" She glared at my dad. "Especially guys in the contracting business! There's too much temptation. Young girls throw themselves at them. They still have women chasing them when they're 50!" Feeling targeted, my dad grumbled defensively, "Who are you insulting?! I have a clean record! I think Liam is a great kid. He's honest and doesn't have any bad intentions!" "Besides, is it our fault we're handsome?" I sighed, suddenly feeling inexplicably annoyed. So, my mom didn't like Liam.
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