I Swear I Still Hate Him (Atlas Lawson) novel Chapter 170

Chapter 170

Emery’s POV

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You know how people always say when you’re stuck in a terrible moment, your brain just shuts off and your body takes over?

Yeah. I used to hear that and think, Please. Be serious. You can’tst black out and do something dumb without thinking.

Well. Turns out you absolutely can. Because I didn’t even give myself one second to come up with a plan.

The second I heard Atlas say he needed his robe, my body move before my brain could file an objection. I lunged for the closet door and shoved it shut with both hands, planting my feet hard against the polished floor like I was in some weird life-or-death game show.

Why the hell wasn’t there a lock?

Or a key?

Or a giant emergency button labeled idiot girl hiding in closet, send help?

On the other side of the door, I heard Atlas pause. Then the handle moved.

“What the hell?” he muttered.

My whole body went rigid. I pushed harder, my palms flat against the wood, arms straining. Thank you, Gia, for dragging my ass to the gym. I never wanted to admit she was right about upper body strength, but if I made it out of this alive, I might actually buy her flowers.

Atlas pulled again. The door shook under my hands. My heart jumped so high I thought it might actually leave my chest and confess everything for me.

“I don’t remember locking this door,” he said, more to himself than anyone else.

Please.

Please just go.

I screamed the plea silently in my head, every muscle in my body locked tight as I leaned all my weight against the door.

Then… Nothing. Silence. Complete, beautiful silence. I blinked,arely breathing. And then I heard footsteps moving away.

Oh my God.

He was leaving.

A shaky breath slipped out of me, low and relieved. My shoulders loosened a little. My grip on the door eased just enough for me to feel the first tiny spark of hope. I was going to survive his. I was actually going to….

That was when I made the mistake.

I shifted. Just a little. Just enough to stop bracing like my life depended on it. And apparently Atlas, hockey player that he was, decided that if the door wouldn’t open politely, he was going to use his entire body like a battering ram. One second I was thanking the universe,

The next…

The door flew open.

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O

14:02 Wed, Mar 11 = M

Chapter 170

Fast.

Too fast.

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I barely had time to gasp before I lost my footing completely. And then everything happened at once. I stumbled backward, my butt hitting the floor hard enough to send pain shooting up my spine, and before I could even process that, Atlas came crashing in right after me. All six-foot-something of solid hockey player. Straight on top of me. The air whooshed out of my lungs. For one stunned second, all I could do was blink up at him

His weight pressed me into the floor, not hard enough to hurt, but enough that I felt every solid line of him. One of his arms was braced beside my head, the other catching his balance before he crushed me completely. His face was so close I could see the shock blow wide through his eyes.

“Emery?!”

“A…Atlas…” I blinked up at him. “Hi?”

He stared at me, drenched in confusion, breathing hard, hair messy, chest bare, and looking so unfairly good that my brain chose that exact moment to stop functioning altogether.

“Shit,” he said immediately, voice dropping. “Are you okay?”

Okay?

Ha.

That was a hilarious understatement.

I wished the floor would open up and swallow me whole. Or better yet, that he’d just crushed me enough to knock me out so

I wouldn’t have to live through the embarrassment of being caught hiding in his closet like a lunatic.

I should’ve said something. Anything.

Instead, I just stared at him.

Because Atlas was so close.

Way too close.

His eyes were locked on mine, not annoyed like I expected, not even angry-just concerned. Really concerned. And somehow that was worse. His stupidly pretty lashes looked even longer up close, which felt unfair because men should not be allowed to have lashes like that. His nose was sharp and straight, the kind that made me want to trace my finger down to the tip just because. And his mouth…

Oh God, his mouth.

Soft-looking. Pink. Right there.

Before I could stop myself, my tongue darted out and wet my lips. I watched as his whole expression changed. His jaw tightened. His eyes dropped to my mouth for one dangerous second before snapping back up.

Would be lying if I said I wasn’t a little addicted to the effect I had on him.

“Stop doing that,” he said, his voice suddenly strained,

I blinked, “Doing what?”

But I knew exactly what,

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O

14:02 Wed, Mar 11 = M

Chapter 170

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He was still so close. Just a little closer, and I could kiss him. I wanted to kiss him. Badly. My gaze slipped back to his lips, then to his stubble along his jaw. I could practically feel it against my skin.

Wait… Was I having a concussion? Did concussions make you horny? Because I felt very horny. Like ninety-nine point five percent bad decisions. Then I felt it. Something firm pressed against me, and my entire body went still.

Oh…Oh my.

Without thinking, my eyes dropped. And there it was. He was hard…Again. Atlas’s face turned so red I don’t think I’d ever seen a man blush that hard in my life. Which, annoyingly, was kind of cute. Then reality hit him all at once. He moved fast, but careful pushing himself up just enough to give me space. “I think you hit your head.” I smiled at him because apparently, my dignity had packed a bag and left.

“I think I did,” I said dreamily as he helped me sit up, his hands gentle under my arms. “And I think your dick’s really big.”

Atlas made a strangled sound that turned into a laugh.

“Yep,” he muttered, shaking his head as he carefully pulled me to my feet. “Definitely a concussion.”

I swayed the second I got to my feet, and Atlas’s hands tightened on my waist immediately, steadying me.

“Easy,” he said, his eyes scanning my face. “You dizzy?”

“Yes,” I admitted.

“From hitting your head?”

I looked up at him.

“….Probably not just that.”

He closed his eyes for a second, like he was fighting for his life.

And honestly?

Same.

Then he moved fast, stepping back just long enough to pull on a pair of shorts before coming right back to me.

“Excuse me,” he said gently.

Before I could ask what he meant, he slid one arm under my knees and the other around my back and lifted me like I weighed nothing.

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