Big Men of the House(19)

I awoke to a knock at the door.



“Sophia, what are you still doing asleep?” my stepdad called.



I looked over at my clock and realized it was Noon. “Sorry! I'm getting up now.” I sat up in bed and looked over at my laptop and smiled. I couldn't wait to see if Liam sent me a message.



I flipped open the computer and went on Facebook. No new messages.



My heart sank but then I realized that he probably slept in too.



I wrote him a quick little message:



Sophia: It was fun talking to you last night. Hope you slept well!



I closed the laptop and got dressed for the day. My romance novel was staring at me from the corner of the room. I was so close to finishing it but I had other things on my mind.



“How'd you sleep?” my mom asked as I walked downstairs.



“Very nicely,” I said, yawning.



“I left some pancakes for you,” Liam said.



“Thanks!” I slapped a couple pancakes on a plate and drizzled syrup all over them. I sat down at the table and zoned out,fantasizing about Liam. What do I do next? Should we meet?



Meeting sounded scary but thrilling. What if he was a murderer or something? Or what if he was exactly who he said he was? There was an easy way to find out. Call Megan.



I finished up my brunch and went to my room to call her on my cellphone.



After a few rings, her voice mail popped up: “This is Megan, leave a message if you want but I probably won't check it.”



Her voice mail was pretty spot on. Megan never took the effort to check her inbox. I settled for a text message saying that I met a guy named Liam and he said he knew you. I waited for a reply and got none. I figured she had partied way too hard and was probably passed out with a guy in her bed.



I went back to the computer and say a reply from Liam.



Liam: I slept very good. I had a lot of fun too last night.



Before I knew it, I found myself sending this message:



Sophia: Do you wanna meet?



My hands were sweating as I waited for his response. Minutes went by that felt like an eternity. I paced back and forth and even screamed into a pillow. I felt so stupid for sending him that. We had only talked for one night and I already wanted to meet him.



Liam: Yeah let's meet!



I let out a big sigh of relief. Then the adrenaline started pumping through me again. I was going to meet Liam.



Sophia: That's great! When do you want to meet?



Liam: How about tonight?



I was giddy as I typed back to him.



Sophia: Tonight works for me. Where should we go? I don't think my parents would be cool with a strange boy coming over.



Liam: Same with my parents. How about somewhere in between? I know a nice hotel we can hang out at and chat.



A hotel? Isn't that getting a little presumptuous? Oh who the fuck cares!



Sophia: Sounds perfect!



Liam gave me directions and the room number he'd be in. I couldn't believe I was going to do this.



I spent the day rummaging through my closet, looking for an outfit that would impress Liam. I tried calling Megan again to see if she had anything I could borrow but she never answered. My brain had conveniently forgotten that earlier I was trying to figure out if Liam was telling the truth or not.



As the clock struck closer to the meeting, I began to get incredibly nervous. I walked around the house aimlessly, hoping that time would pass.



“What are you doing, Sophia?” my mom asked.



“Oh nothing,” I said.



“Well Liam is going to be out of the house tonight so it's just you and me for dinner.”



“Actually Mom, I'm going to be eating at a friend's house tonight.”



“I see,” she said, sounding disappointed. “Megan's house?”



“Yeah. Sorry Mom, but I already made plans.”



“It's okay, honey,” she said, kissing me on the forehead. “You have fun tonight.”



“Thanks Mom,” I said, going back upstairs to my room. I worked on my make up, darkening my eyes and putting on classic red lipstick. I slipped into a tiny black dress that accentuated every big curve of my body.



I sneaked out through the back door when my mother was in the bathroom. I didn't want her seeing what I was wearing. She would know in an instant that I had been lying to her.



I drove to the hotel, my hands sweating on the steering wheel. I couldn't believe I was meeting this stranger after having only one conversation with him. But it felt right. It felt like this was how it was supposed to happen.



After an hour of driving, I came across the hotel Liam gave me the directions to. For some reason, I was expecting some sleazy motel with blinking neon. Instead, it was like the Ritz Carlton. The tower reached took the clouds and the valet took my old beat up car.