Protecting Olivia

by Riley Edwards

  “Get back? What do you mean?”

  “I have to leave tonight on an op. It should be quick, a few days, tops. I would like for you to stay here. But you have a few options, Tom said you could stay at the White House in the personal residence. You could always stay with Ma or, and I can’t believe I am suggesting this, Bella can come and keep you company here. But I swear to all things holy if she pulls her crazy shenanigans with you, I’ll turn her over my knee.”

  “You wouldn’t spank your sister.” I laughed at the thought of big, tough Leo bending his adult sister over his knee.

  “You have no idea what I’d do when it comes to you. God knows I love my sister, but she’s a menace to society and needs to be leashed.”

  “No, she doesn’t, and that’s mean. She’s perfectly fine. I could always go to my place and start packing.”

  If I went back to DC that would give me something to do. I wouldn’t sit around and worry about what Leo was doing. Okay, that was a lie, I would still wonder, but at least I’d be busy.

  “No, tesorino. I want you close to my team while I’m out of town.”

  I waited to see if he’d offer any further explanation. When he didn’t, I studied his face and saw it left no room for argument. This had to be one of those times Essa was talking about when I had to make a choice to stand up to him or concede. Me staying here obviously was important to him, and really, his request didn’t bother me.

  “Okay.”

  There was no reason to make a stand when honestly, I didn’t care. I would find something to do around here.

  “Thank you. I pulled some house listings around Ma’s neighborhood. You could go by yourself or take her. Whatever you want to do. Pick one, or don’t. If there’s nothing you like, we’ll keep looking.” Had he lost his mind? Buy a house, now? “Full steam, tesorino. There is no point of you moving in here, getting comfortable only to turn and move when we find out you're pregnant.”

  “Pregnant?” I spit out. Now I knew he had lost his mind. No, if’s, and’s, or but’s. I had hooked my star to a crazy man.

  “Oh yeah. I knocked you up last night. I felt it. There’s no way I didn’t.”

  He was serious. He thought I was pregnant.

  “You felt it? You know you sound crazy, right?” I laughed.

  “Well baby, if I didn’t last night, I’m going to right now.”

  He pulled me off the couch and led me to the bedroom. He didn’t waste any time divesting us of our clothes and tossing me on the bed. He was over me in a flash, and his lips were on mine. I loved kissing him. He was gentle yet demanding. He sucked my tongue into his mouth giving me no choice but to submit. After he thoroughly pillaged my mouth, he leisurely pushed inside of me. Unlike me, he wasn’t in a hurry.

  “Please,” I begged. The burn of him stretching me set the rest of my body on fire. He awoke every nerve ending. I brought my hips up trying to hurry him.

  “Don’t move. I don’t want to hurt you.”

  I didn’t care if it hurt; I wanted him now. I planted my foot on the bed and pushed with all my might to get him to his back. I knew it only worked because he didn’t want to crush me under his weight.

  Before he could chastise me for my stunt, I slammed down on him, taking him fully inside of me.

  I screamed out, a mixture of pain and intense pleasure.

  “Dammit, Olivia.” Leo grabbed my hips and held me in place.

  “I’m fine,” I panted and tried to move, but he held me in place. I needed to move. I felt stuffed full, and the pain only intensified my desire.

  “You damn near split yourself in half.” His grip loosened, allowing me to lift a little before I slid back down. Leo groaned, and his fingers dug into my side, but he didn’t stop my movements. “Tesorino, you have exactly two minutes to get yourself off riding my cock before I flip you back over.”

  My hips rocked back on every downward stroke. I was holding out as long as I could, enjoying the look of rapture on his face. He was enjoying this as much as I was. I was so close yet willing myself not to let go. I knew the moment I came he’d take over.

  “Sweet girl, I know what you’re doing.” Leo bucked his hips, sending shock waves through my body. If he moved this was all over, and I would come. “As much as I’m enjoying watching your tits sway as your tight pussy hugs my cock, you're done playing.” He pushed up and held me in place rocking me back and forth. It was no use; I couldn’t hold on any longer. “Come for me, Olivia.”

  My orgasm hadn’t stopped pulsing through my body before he flipped us back over. “Now I’m going to make you scream. Hold on tight.”

  And he did. He made me scream not once but three times. By the time he pulled the last orgasm out of me, I was begging for him to stop. He did only after I promised never to hurt myself again. I promised, but we both knew it was a lie.

  After we were done, he gathered me in his arms and kissed the top of my head. “We better get cleaned up, your ma is gonna be here soon.”

  “Way to harsh my mellow, Leo.”

  Leo’s body was shaking with laughter under me. “Sorry, tesorino. I didn’t think you wanted your ma to find us sprawled out in bed together.”

  “No. You’re right. I’m gonna jump in the shower.” Leo started to get up with me. “Oh no, big boy, you stay here. If you get in the shower with me, I’ll be walking bow-legged by the time my mom gets here.”

  Leo grabbed my hand and gave it a tug pulling my back to him. “You know I love you, right?”

  He loved me. He said it. Leo Panther Gillonardo said he loved me. My heart jumped in my chest and thudded so hard I was sure Leo could hear it.

  “You know I love you, too, right?” I smiled down at him.

  “With every fiber of my soul, tesorino.”

  Sweet baby Jesus, I loved this man.

  ***

  My heart was pounding again, only this time it was because my mom and Peter Newton had buzzed from the lobby announcing their arrival.

  I was trying my hardest to play cool, but I was mad, and happy, and scared, and thought I might throw up.

  Maybe Leo had knocked me up. Was it too early for morning sickness twelve hours after the seed was planted, so to speak?

  The knock at the door made me jump. “Easy, Olivia. Everything will be fine.”

  Leo opened the door. There was my mom. Peter Newton stood beside her looking as nervous as I felt. Behind them, two agents stood guard. I wonder if there was still a threat on the Attorney General’s life. I looked to Leo to ask.

  “Protocol, tesorino. Everything is fine,” he assured me.

  Well, he tried to anyway. I didn’t think anything would be okay again between me and my mom.

  “Sweetheart,” my mom cried and came to me. “I was so worried about you. Are you okay? Where did you go? You can come home now. We’ll move you back into the penthouse for a while until you’re all settled. We can leave now.”

  “That’s enough, Pamela,” Peter said from across the room.

  Well, they hadn’t worked anything out if the tone in Peter’s voice was any indication.

  “Back off,” Leo demanded. “Slow down and give her a chance to talk.”

  This was not starting off well. My mother could get herself all worked up and would boss everyone in the room if not kept in check. That wasn’t going to work with Leo. He would trample over her without thinking twice. Knowing he had my back gave me the courage I needed to face my mom.

  “Why don’t we sit down and talk,” I suggested.

  “We can do that in the car. Let’s get your things and get out of Mr…. Sorry I forgot your name,” my mom sneered.

  Damn, she could be a bitch when she wanted to be.

  “Not gonna happen. And you know damn well what my name is,” Leo said.

  “This is none of your business. It’s a private family matter. You did your part. Now I’m taking my daughter home so we can speak in private.” My mom squared her shoulders and prepared for battle.

&nb
sp; “Not gonna happen, Pamela,” Leo semi repeated.

  “And just who do you think you are? I’m going to call…”

  Leo cut her off. “I’m the man who is going to marry your daughter. And being that man, I’m going to make sure that while the three of you have your talk, Olivia is not overly upset. At any time during this conversation if I feel like Olivia has had enough, I will shut this shit down so fast your head will spin. I understand this is an unfortunate situation and emotions are high, so I’ll give you a little leeway. But I’ll warn you, you’re almost at the end of your rope. I get you don’t like me, for reasons only known to you. And I’m okay with that. One day you’ll come to appreciate that I’m telling you this to help you fix what you broke with your daughter: Back off and listen to her.”

  My mom huffed and started to say something else. Something that was undoubtedly rude and would make Leo toss her ass out.

  “Sit down, Pamela, and let Olivia speak,” Peter said from across the room.

  Surprisingly, my mom did just that. She sat on the couch, Peter next to her. I sat in the recliner, and Leo perched on the armrest. He never left my side. Not when I screamed at my mom for lying to me, not when she yelled back and told me I wasn’t allowed to talk to her like that. Not for the entire hour when she deflected and refused to answer my questions. There was something wrong, my mom had never behaved in such a rude, belligerent manner before. The woman sitting in front of me was not the mom that raised me. I was done. She didn’t want to talk to me; she only wanted me to side with her that everything that had happened was Peter’s fault. Forget that she’d lied to both of us my whole life. One excuse after another. She was completely irrational.

  “We’re done here,” Leo announced.

  “What? No, we're not. Olivia still needs to pack,” my mom said.

  “I see you haven’t been listening to a fucking word your daughter has said,” Leo spat.

  “Such vulgarity. And you think I’m okay with my daughter being with a man like you?”

  “That’s what you pulled from that my statement? Since you haven’t been listening. I’m gonna lay it out for you.” Oh shit, that didn’t sound good. “I’m going to continue to urge Olivia to find a way to forgive you. Not for you but for her. I don’t want her living with anger knotted in her belly. When she falls asleep in my arms at night, she’s gonna do it with a smile on her face, knowing her world is perfect. You’re welcome in that life, but only if you don’t come through that door spitting venom. Peter, the same goes for you. I’ll do my best to support Olivia in forging a relationship with you if that’s what you both would like. Olivia lives here now. In case you missed the part where she explained she didn’t want to return to Georgetown, I’m gonna reiterate that for you. When she figures out what it is she wants to do, she’ll tell you. In the meantime, she’ll be taking time for herself to heal and be happy.”

  “Thank you, Leo,” Peter said.

  “Why are you thanking him, Peter? Can’t you see he is manipulating her and bossing her around? He won’t even leave her side,” my mom protested.

  “That’s what a man does, Pamela. You’d know that if you’d stop busting balls for five minutes and listen. Leo is protecting her; he won’t let anyone near her who will hurt her,” Peter calmly explained to my lunatic of a mother. I’d never seen her so unhinged before. What was wrong with her?

  “My daughter doesn’t need protecting from me, and especially not by the likes of him.”

  “Obviously he thinks she does. And I have to say, not only do I agree with him, I’m impressed with his self-control.” Peter sat farther back on the couch, clearly uncomfortable in the direction this had gone.

  “Get out of my house.” I’d had enough. I stood up, and in the process pushed Leo off the armrest, forcing him to stand as well. “I’ve tried to be civil and ask you questions. You refused to answer. I tried to talk to you about school. You refused to listen. I tried to apologize for my behavior over the last year. You refused to hear that. Fine, you don’t want to participate in an actual conversation with me. No problem. But don’t you ever disrespect Leo. Not ever in our home, and never in front of me. I will pick him over you every day of the week and twice on Sunday.

  “I know you tried your best while I was growing to provide for me. You afforded us nice things with the number of hours you worked. But you were never there for me as my mom. You could never give me a hundred percent of yourself. I get why now. You were broken. Until I met Leo, I couldn’t understand what that meant. Now I do. You said you loved my father and could never move on because there would never be another man who loved you the way he did. I understand that now, too. I’m sorry you lived the last twenty-five years unhappy and hurt. Fix it, Mom. Peter is right in front of you. Eat crow, woman up, and admit all the shitty lies you told. Then get on your knees and beg him to forgive you. I wish you well, but as Leo told you, you aren’t welcome in our home if you’re going to act like a flaming bitch.” I took my first deep breath since I started my tirade and turned to Leo. “Please see my mother and Peter out. I have a headache and need to lie down.”

  I shut the bedroom door with a gentle click and crawled into bed. What the hell was wrong with that woman? I had never seen her act so crazy before. Sure, she was bossy and she could be a bitch when something crawled up her ass, but this was over the top.

  A little while later, Leo came into the room and shut and locked the door. I watched as he took his gun out of the holster and set it on the nightstand. He even locked the door at home if his gun wasn’t on him.

  “Why didn’t you lock the bathroom door in California when you were in the shower? Your gun was off.”

  “I didn’t want the door locked if you needed me,” he answered.

  He broke his one non-negotiable rule for me. In case I needed him.

  In an effort to hide what that meant to me I made a joke. “Sure you did. You were hoping I’d come in and be wowed by your gigantic cock.”

  Leo threw his head back and laughed long and hard.

  Perfection.

  “You like my gigantic cock.” He laughed.

  “Now that I know all the neat tricks it can do, I like it.”

  “Just like?” he asked, getting into bed next to me.

  “I’m pleading the fifth to prevent any further head swelling,” I giggled and cuddled into him.

  “My head is already swollen,” Leo said and slapped my butt.

  “I knew you were gonna say that. Lame.”

  Leo’s hand started stroking my hair. “I’m proud of you. You did well today.”

  “Thanks. I’m sorry she was such a bitch. I don’t know what’s gotten into her.” Leo stopped stroking my hair. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing. I’m sorry I have to leave tonight.”

  “It’s okay. Bella will keep me company,” I taunted him.

  “Ma’s a better choice or MJ. Call MJ if you get bored, he’s a stick in the mud. Perfect company for you. Speaking of, I left you all the contact numbers you’ll need. All the family’s home and cell numbers and the number to the office. It is a direct line to Rena. She’s Zane’s personal assistant. If there’s an emergency, she’s the only one who will be able to locate me. You also have the team’s cell phone numbers. Though they’ll all be with me, except Jasmin and Linc, they’ll be around. Don’t be surprised if Jasmin comes around under the guise she’s checking on you. She’s a nosy gossip. I also printed the house listings.”

  “I’ll be fine. I’ll ask your mom or Bella to take me to see the houses.”

  I really didn’t want him to go so soon. I was trying not to let my disappointment show.

  “Your car is downstairs next to where we parked. Full disclosure, Jaxon installed a tracking device. Every member of the team has one and please don’t take your earring out.”

  I ignored the fact my car was downstairs, not wanting to know where it had been. The truth was I didn’t want to drive that car again.

  “You'
re tracked? Is it in your watch?” I asked, and fiddled with the high-tech looking gadget on his wrist.

  “No.” Leo stopped for a moment. “We all have chips implanted in our shoulders.”

  That was a little scary, and I didn’t want to examine why he needed a permanent tracking device.

  “That’s good.” Instead, I focused on the benefits of such an implant. If Leo needed help, his team would find him.

  “Come here and kiss me. I want to make love to you one more time before I have to go.” Leo didn’t give me a chance to move. He pulled me on top of him and kissed me breathless.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Leo

  I looked down at Olivia sleeping in our bed. I fucking loved that – our bed. I really didn’t want to leave, but Siles needed to be taken care of. Zane offered for me to stay behind and pull someone up from another team, but I needed to do this. I wanted to be the one that ended Siles’ life.

  If I didn’t leave now, I was afraid I would climb back into bed and love on her again. I double checked all the numbers were left on the counter by her car keys and her new cellphone. I wasn’t joking when I threatened to give my baby sister a paddling if she got Olivia into trouble. Olivia thought she was cute and that was the issue. Everyone thought Bella was cute and funny, because she was, right up until she talked you into climbing a water tower to see if you could swim at the top. True story, she did that once while in high school. There were no limits to her hair-brained schemes.

  I drove on autopilot to the barn where we were meeting up. With every mile that took me farther from Olivia, my chest tightened a little more. This needed to be done.

  When I pulled up to the barn, everyone was already there. No doubt I would get a rash of shit for being late. I rushed through the security protocols and took the stairs to the basement two at a time. Now that I was here, I was eager to get this op started.

  “Loverboy finally decided to show up,” Jaxon started.

  There was no use in stopping it. I leaned against the door and settled in for their ball breaking session. Hell, if I were them, I do it, too.