The Domineering Boy Next Door

I practically lived at the library, dutifully picking up my copy of One Hundred Years of Solitude that had been gathering dust for six months.

Let's be real, I couldn't make heads or tails of that dense, philosophical prose. If it weren't for carefully curating my "Intellectual Campus Belle" image, I wouldn't have bothered with such tedious material.

My real attention was completely glued to my phone screen. The Olympic men's swimming replay was heating up, reaching the most thrilling part. Watching those sculpted athletes slice through the water, my breathing hitched without me even realizing it.

"Oh my god," I murmured under my breath, my fingers unconsciously brushing against my lips. "Those abs... that V-taper... that perfect rear..."

I've always developed a little faster than other girls. I was the first in my elementary school to need a training bra, and within a few years, my body had filled out into curves that turned heads. This... generous figure of mine attracted a lot of attention. Boys were constantly swarming me with gifts and love letters, and I even had a few secret admirers who'd follow me around.

But I knew the truth. They only saw the packaging, not the person inside. Honestly? I'd never even been with a man. It wasn't that I didn't want to, but I refused to settle for anything less than a real, spiritual connection. To take the edge off the... building tension, I'd invested in a few discreet personal toys. In my private moments, I'd let myself fantasize about chiseled male celebrities, imagining their hands on my skin, their lips tracing a path down my body...

"Sophia, you're back?"

I jumped, nearly fumbling my phone. I looked up to see a tall, familiar figure leaning in the doorway.

It was Liam, my mom's friend's son, a few years older than me. He used to hang around our family bookstore all the time when we were kids, to the point where our parents would jokingly promise me to him. But once he left for college, our paths rarely crossed.

"Liam? What are you doing here?" I quickly stashed my phone in the drawer, smoothing down my skirt as a nervous flutter rose in my chest.

He gave me a warm smile as he stepped inside, a book in his hand. "Just got here. You looked pretty engrossed, so I didn't want to interrupt." His gaze drifted, lingering for a few seconds on the prominent curve of my chest before he caught himself and looked away. "What's got you so captivated?"

My cheeks flushed with heat. I guiltily snapped my book shut. "Oh, nothing," I muttered. "Just... browsing."

I stole a glance at him. The years had been good to him, sanding down his edges into a more mature, steady presence. The prominent veins running down his forearms hinted at a hidden strength that made my heart do a little flip.

Suddenly, the air conditioning seemed to kick into a higher gear, a cold blast that only made the heat in my cheeks burn brighter. Damn it, why did it have to switch modes right now! I was terrified the little device was going to short-circuit or buzz loudly at any second. Then Liam would see everything...