Kissed by Mistake, Loved by Design

Something was wrong.

I was trying to be intimate with my boyfriend, but his reaction was off.

I was wearing the lace lingerie he'd been begging to see me in for months, but he hadn't even touched me.

The room was dark.

I leaned in close, my breath warm against his ear.

Your surprise, I whispered.

Do you like it?

His breathing hitched, becoming ragged.

A thrill went through me.

It was working.

I looped my arms around his neck and kissed him deeper.

But just then, my boyfriend's voice echoed from outside the room.

"Anybody home yet?"

"The lights are on, but nobody's home?"

I froze.

A wave of ice and fire shot through my veins.

If Ethan was out there then who was I kissing right now?

In the pitch-black room, I scrambled off him, clutching the front of my lingerie to my chest.

"Who are you?!" I hissed, my eyes wide with terror as I stared at the shadowy figure before me.

A moment later, a low, cool voice answered.

"Liam."

I froze at the name.

He was Ethan's roommate!

I'd seen him a few times when I'd come over to visit.

My impression of him was that he was aloof and quiet, a man of few words who seemed to keep the world at arm's length.

A nerd I think.

We'd never exchanged more than a brief nod.

The memory of what had just happened rushed back, and my face burned with shame.

"What are you doing in Ethan's room?" I demanded an answer.

"Borrowing a charger."

His answer was simple, but my panic didn't ease at all.

I was standing here almost n*ked at that time.

A man and a woman, alone in a dark room.

If Ethan walked in now, there would be no explaining this away.

In a desperate rush, I grabbed my discarded clothes and my phone and dove into the wardrobe.

"Don't let Ethan see me. Please," I begged in a small voice.

Liam was silent for a while, then he walked over and closed the closet door for me.

At that exact moment, the bedroom door swung open.

Ethan walked in and flipped on the lights, flooding the room with brilliant glare.

"Hey?

Liam, what are you doing in my room?"

Liam picked up a charger from the desk.

"Came to borrow this."

"Oh," Ethan said, his tone casual.

"By the way, have you seen Chloe?

She told me she was coming over today."

"Haven't seen her."

A nervous sweat broke out on my back.

Today was our one-year anniversary.

Before leaving work, I'd texted Ethan telling him I had a surprise for him tonight.

He was working late, which gave me plenty of time to come over and get ready.

My plan had been to offer myself up as his present, the moment he walked through the door.

I never imagined it would turn into a disaster like this.

"Something's wrong with my computer.

Can you come take a look?" Ethan asked.

"Sure."

After Liam led Ethan out of the room, I scrambled out of the closet, threw on my clothes, grabbed my things, and slipped out of the apartment.

On the way home, I sent Ethan a text.

[Hey babe, I'm not feeling well today, so I couldn't make it over.

Sorry.

I'll have to owe you your surprise.]

He replied almost instantly: [Are you okay?

What's wrong?

Do you want me to come over?]

[No, it's fine.

I'm already in bed.

You should get some good rest too.]

Right now, all I wanted was to be alone and calm my racing heart.

[Okay.

I'll come see you in the morning then.]

[Okay.]

I put my phone down and breathed a sigh of relief.

When I got home, I went straight to the bathroom and drew a hot shower.

The warm water soothed my tense body, offering a moment of peace.

But the fragmented images of the night kept replaying in my mind, unbidden.

Liam, hadn't responded to me at all.

Not when I held him, pressed myself against him, kissed him with everything I had.

He hadn't crossed a single line.

Even when I'd taken his hand and he'd done nothing more than let out a heavy, strained breath.

But given the difference in our body sizes, he could have easily pushed me away.

He was more than strong enough.

But he hadn't moved.

He had simply let me do as I pleased.

The thought made my heart race and a flush spread through my body.

Liam's reaction wasn't it a little strange, too?

Did he know it was me in the room at that moment?

I quickly shut down that line of thought.

I was the one who had made the mistake.

It would be shameless to try and shift the blame onto him.

He had been willing to cover for me, to lead Ethan away.

I should be grateful.

The next morning, Ethan arrived with bags full of groceries.

"How are you feeling now? Any better?" he asked as I emerged from my room.

"Yeah, I'm fine.

I was just a little tired yesterday."

"It's getting late. Go get ready. I'll make some breakfast for you."

I nodded.

By the time I came out of the bathroom, Ethan was already busy in the kitchen.

Ethan and I worked at the same company.

Our office romance had been going on for over a year, and he treated me like a queen.

Whenever he had a day off, he would come over and cook for me.

With him around, I barely had to lift a finger.

He even took care of the laundry and cleaning.

He planned elaborate dates for every holiday and always chose the perfect gifts.

On the rare occasions we argued, he was always the first to apologize, never letting me shed a single tear.

I'm a slow lover.

It takes a lot for me to open up.

So at first, I had approached our relationship with a let's just see how it goes' attitude.

But after a year, he had passed every test.

That's why I had decided last night that it was time to take our relationship to the next level.

I just never expected it, to go so spectacularly wrong.

After he had prepared a lavish spread of my favorite dishes, he called me to the table.

"All your favorite dishes. Try them," he said, his eyes full of expectation as he served me a bowl of rice.

"Mmm," I nodded, a warmth spreading through my chest.

Even though last night was an accident, I still felt a pang of guilt toward him.

Halfway through the meal, I couldn't help but ask, "So your roommate, Liam what's he like?"

"Liam?" Ethan paused for a second.

"He's a good guy. But um... a nerk to be honest, why asking?"

"It's just whenever I see him, he seems so cold. I was just curious what he's like when you two are hanging out."

"He's a bit of a slow burn himself, and yeah, he can be a bit of aloof. But he's a good person underneath it all."

"Right."

"Is he single? Does he have a girlfriend?"

"Never seen a woman come looking for him. He's pretty much alone all the time, so I'd guess he's single. But a lot of girls at the office have crushes on him."

Liam worked at our company, too, though in a different department.

He was incredibly handsome, so his popularity was something I'd heard whispers about.

"Hey, why are you so curious about him all of a sudden?" Ethan asked, taking a bite of food.

"You haven't fallen for him, have you?" he teased.

It was a joke, but I immediately denied it.

"No! Of course not!"

Ethan laughed.

"I'm kidding. I know my girl only has eyes for me."

"You know it."