Taken by Melissa Toppen

gestures towards the door. I don't know what else to do so I follow him outside.
                  I stop as soon as we reach the bottom of the staircase, my gaze falling firmly on Liam who stops when he realizes I am no longer beside him. “You slept with her?” I ask, cocking my head to the side daring him to lie to me.
                  “I did.” He admits, shame and regret distort his features but he doesn't say anymore.
                  “How long ago?” I ask. I don't know why it's important but I feel like I need to know.
                  He looks away, takes a deep breath and then meets my eyes once more. “A week before I met you. She's the last person I slept with. After the first night we met, I wasn't interested in any other women. From the moment I laid eyes on you, I knew you were it for me.” He says, standing stiff as a board as if preparing himself for the verbal lashing he thinks he's going to get.
                  “Wait, are you saying you stopped sleeping with anyone after the first night we met? You didn't even know me!” I exclaim, like it's the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard.
                  “I knew I had to have you. And not just in my bed.” He says, stepping towards me, close enough to touch me but he keeps his hands shoved in his pockets. My heart swells but it doesn't make the sting of him sleeping with Michelle go away. My stomach curls in jealously at the thought of her on top of him. A little older, more experienced, her auburn curls falling over her naked torso as she rides him.
                  I close my eyes and shake my head violently as if trying to force the thought out. It's his past, he didn't know me, I tell myself. I open my eyes to find Liam staring at me. I know he's waiting for me to say something.
                  “Is there any other co-workers of mine that you have slept with?” I raise my eyebrow with the question.
                  He scuffs his feet on the concrete, his eyes losing mine for a beat before he looks up again. “Not that I know of.” He says, embarrassed.
                  “Not that you know of?” I question him in disbelief.
                  “I'm not proud of my past Addison but that's what it is, the past.” He says, staring at me as if he's seeing right through me, his mind somewhere else. Like flipping a light switch, the moment is gone and he looks at me again. “It's not who I am anymore.” He says, reaching out to take my hand. I let him, as he guides me off the bottom step and pulls me into his arms.
                  “I'm sorry.” He says into my hair. I want to be angry. Hell, I want to go back there and punch Michelle right in the damn face but I know it's not her fault. Damn him and his 'colorful' past.
                  “Like you said, it's in the past.” I say, pulling back to give him a weak smile. I can't be mad at him for something he did before he ever met me. That would be like him being mad at me for being with Grayson. People change, sometimes it just takes the right person to instill the change in the other. I can see it on Liam's face that I  have changed him and the thought makes me smile.
                  “I'll never understand how I got this lucky.” He says, looking down at me adoringly. “I love you.” He whispers against my lips before placing a soft kiss to my mouth. Goosebumps run the length of my body, leaving me with a crawling sensation across my skin.
                  I don't think I will ever get used to the way my body reacts to his touch. It's magnetic, like a force I can't fight against. He takes a step back and reaches out his hand to me. “Shall we, Ms. Grant?”
                  “Why yes Mr. Mason, we shall.” I give a goofy curtsy before taking his hand and letting him lead me away from Strike