Page 11 of Pressure Point

“Sorry, I just really like pizza,” she said after she swallowed. “Actually, I like all food. And I tend to be kinda vocal when I eat it. It makes for some awkward meals at times. But my family says that you get used to it and that after awhile you don’t hear my noisy appreciation of whatever I just bit into.”

“I just don’t know that I’ve ever heard anyone moan while chewing.”

“I’m sure I’m not the only one on the planet, but I think I’m the only one I know who gets vocal with her foodgasms.”

“Foodgasm?” Liam asked. His eyes were wide, and his whole body was alert now, clearly more than a little unsure he’d heard her properly.

“You know, like an orgasm from eating food.”

“You just had a…” he trailed off.

Oh, shit…

"No, no…it’s uh…”

Nice job, Avery. Way to make things uncomfortable with the one person who didn’t think you were a weirdo…

“It’s just a term. Not like an actual orgasm. Just, you know that sensation you feel when you bite into your favorite food? Because it just tastes so yummy? Well, that. That’s a foodgasm.”

“Must be an American term,” he said, letting out a laugh. Pulling out his phone, he tapped it a few times, bringing the TV to life.

Avery sighed, slouching back into the couch cushions, glad that Liam was just so willing to accept her and her gawky self. Everything about the guy on the other side of the couch was just so sweet and wonderful. He made her feel so comfortable, like she could be herself, no matter what strange thing came out of her mouth next. She really didn’t have any idea what she’d done to deserve a friend like him. Other than her family and her best friend, Hazel, no one had ever accepted her this easily. She was a walking, talking awkward moment, no matter where she went or what she did. With Liam, though, she didn’t feel like she had to worry about that. And she really, really liked feeling like she could relax.

"You okay over there? Recovering from your foodgasm?” he teased.

Surprised by his jab and the coy smirk on his face, Avery picked up her pizza, took a large bite, and let out a long, exaggerated moan. Liam laughed, almost spitting out the water he’d just drunk. Throwing her head back laughing, she made sure not to choke on her food. It was one thing to moan while eating with someone she was still getting to know, but it was another thing entirely to require the Heimlich.

“Just start the movie,” she tossed back at him.

He smirked at her again, making her heart squeeze for what felt like the hundredth time since she got here. There was no way she was ever going to live down teaching him the word foodgasm, but she was pretty sure she was okay with that. She liked the idea of the two of them having inside jokes—things that would make them burst out into random laughter, while the rest of the team just thought they were crazy. It had been a long time since she had felt this comfortable with anyone, and it was a feeling that she wanted to savor.

* * *

"Wait, he just smashed the Tesseract!” Avery said, sitting up straight on the couch, her brows furrowed in confusion. “Doesn’t he need that?”

“That’s because that’s not actually the Tesseract.”

“And he said it’s the jewel of Odin’s treasure room. Are we supposed to know who Odin is already?”

Liam hit pause on the movie, turning to face her on the couch. The look of concern on her face shouldn’t have been anywhere close to as adorable as it was. Then again, everything this woman did made him melt a little inside. From her oversized T-shirt and sweatpants to all the little moans she let out while she was chewing, he couldn’t help but be more and more drawn to her with each little thing.

“I thought you said you’d seen all the Marvel movies. Other than the couple of Spider-Man ones.”

“I mean, yes, I’ve seen them, in theory,” she shrugged.

“How does one see a movie ‘in theory’?”

She shrugged again, her concerned look morphing into one of embarrassment. He could see a slight pink tint move up her cheeks, as she tried to look away from him.

“Avery…”

“Okay, okay. So, I’ve seen them in the sense that they were on in the general vicinity of where I was. My brothers were really into them, so they watched them, and then of course they were usually on in the dorm somewhere. I just might have also been reading while they were playing.”

She pulled her lips into her mouth, unable to make eye contact with him. Every ounce of him wanted to pull her into his lap and kiss her. To hold her in his arms and find out if she smelled as sweet as he imagined. But then his mind flashed to last night and how her eyes would flick over to Dash every couple of minutes. His heart sank. She was only here as a friend.

Avery was here as a friend, wasn’t she? If she hadn’t seen the movies, was she really interested in watching them in chronological order? Or had she just agreed because she felt bad for him? That was just what he needed, for the girl he had a crush on to be hanging out with him out of pity.

“If you’re not interested, then we don’t have to watch them,” he said, trying to give her an out. Please don’t take it, please don’t take it…