Except all he could think of is what had just happened. What if he hadn’t come by, and Olivia had stayed obliviously in her shower until the entire house had gone up in flames?
What if he’d lost her, the only woman who’d ever meant anything to him? What if their story had ended before it even began, deadlocked by their own stubbornness?
He shook off the terrible thought and swallowed hard.
Sudden silence jarred his brain.
“Finally.” Olivia held the nine-volt battery in her hand.
Their gazes locked. The old clock ticked away moments heavy with indecision. Common sense told him no. A million years of evolution cried absolutely yes.
Olivia gave a little gasp. She always read his thoughts better than anybody. Her hand reached up instinctively to pull her robe lapels closer. “I must have forgotten to turn the curling iron off.”
“Nice try but your hair’s sopping wet. I know it was Samantha’s.”
“Brad, she’s been going through a lot lately. Please don’t add this to everything else.”
“Leaving a curling iron on is irresponsible. If something would have happened . . .” Horrifying images passed in front of his eyes. He squeezed his eyes shut to make them stop.
Olivia shook his shoulders. “It was an accident. Annabelle was fussing and Samantha was in a hurry to be on time for her first day. And the smoke detector did its job.”
She was so passionate about it. He couldn’t help but be touched about her concern for his sister. “I’ll take that into consideration. Like you said—maybe I can cut her some slack. We’ve all been through a lot.”
“Oh.” She sounded surprised that he gave in a little. Frankly, he wasn’t thinking about Samantha right now. At all.
Olivia stood on tiptoe on the chair to snap the smoke detector lid shut, giving Brad the opportunity to notice that her legs ran for miles, tanned and toned. His fingers itched to feel their silky texture, so close and tempting. Her tanned skin stood out over the pale pink of the robe. He wondered where the tan would stop.
Brad held out a hand to help her down from the chair, working hard to focus on her eyes and not the little peek of cleavage visible under her robe. As she took his hand, they both froze. His mind stuttered. “Olivia I-I came over here today because I can’t stop thinking about you. If anything would have happened to you or the baby . . .” His voice cracked on the last word as emotion overcame him and he let it all out.
“I could have lost you without ever telling you how special you are to me. That same magic I felt when I was eighteen—I feel it now, and I’ve never felt it with anyone but you. I eat, sleep, and dream about you and I want you more than I’ve ever wanted anyone else, period.”
She gasped.
He grabbed her and lowered her slowly, enjoying the contact of her hips, her breasts, as he released her slowly down his body until she stood on the floor. Those big eyes of hers softened with desire, and he knew she wanted him, too. For a flash, he wondered what it would be like with all the barriers down between them. With nothing holding them back.
As he held her in his arms, a sense of complete and swift relief engulfed him to the point of near panic. He sucked at expressing his feelings. Hated not being in control. Hated that whatever he said would matter because Olivia mattered. She could have been lost to him, like Kevin and Trish. Suddenly all their problems dimmed in comparison.
She touched his cheek, and he slid his own hand up to cover hers. In that electrifying second, all the pain and confusion that had passed in the last few weeks rose up in his chest and he heaved a deep breath.
She understood. Her other hand reached up and smoothed the rough stubble on his face. Caressed him.
“I want you to stay,” he whispered. “More than I want to breathe.”
Her touch calmed him. Mesmerized him. “You were right about me, Brad. That’s why I lashed out at you. I’m afraid of who I am without my job. Of becoming my mother, discontented and unhappy in the suburbs.”
“Quit trying to please her. She left you. That was her problem, not yours. You’re a lot stronger than she was.”
She nodded, as if trying to believe that. He stood there frozen, transfixed by the gentle feel of her hand against his skin.
He rested his forehead against hers. Inhaled her clean fragrance, basked in her warmth. The restless clock ticked away precious seconds. Her arms wrapped around his neck and locked tight.
Brad had comforted everyone, but no one had held him since Kevin died. That simple pleasure affected him beyond words. Everything about Olivia was sweet and so, so addictive—the gentleness of her smile, the softness of her touch, but most of all, the fact that she got him when no one else did.
He curled his fingers around the nape of her neck and kissed her.
The worst possible kind of kiss, so different from the other night, when it was all about lust.
This one was about need, the deep, uncontrollable kind. Far over and above the sexual kind and more about the frightening, endless kind he feared more than anything.
“I-I can’t think,” Olivia said.
“Don’t.” He wasn’t demanding, he was begging. In that moment, he couldn’t bear her to leave. He needed her. Maybe he always had.
He pulled her to him till her breasts pressed softly into his chest, well aware there was only a damp robe holding him back from her luscious curves.
He planted his mouth over hers in a move of absolute possession. There would be no thinking. Lips ground together, tongues collided as he branded her for his own. Stroke for stroke, she met him and demanded as much as she gave.
He was greedy for all of her, as if his great need could make up for the many years they’d missed. His hands traced the damp skin of her neck just below the robe and tangled in her wet hair.
The robe parted. A flash of toned leg appeared. He took advantage of the opportunity to slide his hand up her outer thigh and hover there.
He caressed her inner thigh, teasing her, while he pushed the robe aside and rained kisses down her neck and shoulder. Her cool hands roved over his chest, skimmed his back and butt, holding him in an electrifying trance as she explored everywhere.
He remembered how it was a long time ago. Needy and frantic and desperate. Just like this.
He pulled the robe down with his teeth until he freed her beautiful breast and took the rosy tip into his mouth, encasing it in the warmth and wetness of his mouth. A whimper tore from her throat.
He pulled his mouth away and looked up at her. “Is this what you want?” He had to hear it from her lips, her choice.
She grabbed his face, looked directly into his eyes. He’d never seen such a clear, honest gaze, like she was looking directly into his soul, and it made his own heart crack open with joy. “I want you.”
With a single flicking movement of her hands, the robe dropped, exposing the sweetest curves he’d ever seen. Awe swept through him, as if he were seeing her for the first time.
“You’re more beautiful now than before.” He touched her shoulder reverently, as if she were a shrine he’d journeyed miles to worship at. Traced down the smooth curve of her collarbone. She stood there unselfconsciously, as mesmerized by his touch as he was by hers.
In a quick move, he sat on the chair and dragged her over so she straddled his legs. Her curves were exquisite, so soft, draped like a luscious curtain all over him. Their kisses grew more and more fevered, her muscles tensing and her bottom squirming as he held her tight against him.
Dimly, a distant wail cut into his consciousness. Except he was lost, far gone in the sweet taste of her, in the soft moans that emanated deep in her throat, in the velvet feel of her soft flesh tensing against his hand.
Until it became louder. At first he thought it was the baby, but no—sirens sounded up close now, slashing through their dream world, imposing an ear-sp
litting reality check.
Olivia broke their kiss abruptly, her lips pulling away with a soft smack. She jumped out of his arms and reached for her discarded robe.
“Shit,” he said.
On the kitchen counter, the baby monitor lit up, one red warning light at a time until a whole row strobed back and forth before them.
Annabelle let out a discontented wail. His first impulse was to do the same.
The baby’s cries heightened in pitch and intensity.
Brad’s whole body was humming. He reached for Olivia one last time, held her tight while he tried to slow his racing heart and take in some air.
Reality flooded back into her eyes, replacing the starry-eyed gaze that made him so crazy. She held her hands against his chest and pushed weakly. “I have to go before the entire fire department walks in.”
Flushed, her hair hanging in wet spirals, she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen.
She kissed him on the forehead. A sweet kiss, in stark contrast to the hot, wet kisses from moments ago, but it made his gut clench uncomfortably.
She stirred him too deeply, in an unforgiving way that pulled his heart from his chest and twisted it so it would never fit back in. She broke all his boundaries, left him naked in more ways than one, and he didn’t like it at all.
“I have to get the baby,” she said softly.
“I’ll field the fire department.”
“I’m . . . glad you stopped by,” she said, grinning. “To talk, that is.”
He grinned back. “I’d say we got a lot accomplished.”
She got him like no one else ever had, and that scared the shit out of him. He’d had lots of women, but this had been different. Way different. He didn’t want to feel it, didn’t want to want her because he knew too well what it would be like when she was gone. And if he knew one thing for sure, she would go.
But when he’d barged into that house, and smelled that burning scent, and feared the worst . . . well, it had scared him big-time.
Engines cut off. Sirens silenced. Truck doors slammed. Out the window, a handful of EMS guys marched up to the back door.
“Olivia,” Brad called.
She turned. “Yes?”
“Just to let you know—this fire’s not out yet.”
Her eyes twinkled. “I’d say it’s only just getting started.”
She headed for the stairs. He opened the door for the fire crew, smiling a little too widely.
CHAPTER 13
“I’m on edge waiting for my boss to call to discuss the new schedule I proposed.” Olivia lifted her gaze to her two oldest and dearest friends, who sat across from her at the ancient orange Formica-topped table at the front of Pie in the Sky. She traced the circular grooves on her coffee mug then tapped it fretfully. Agitation knotted her stomach and the smells of diner food—burgers, fries, mashed potatoes and gravy—only made it worse. “And the house still smells like burnt plastic even though it’s been three days.”
Meg and Alex exchanged knowing glances. They weren’t buying her explanations for why she seemed to be in such a funk. Meg put down her tea and sat back in the old booth. “Just tell us what’s up with Brad. We know he’s what’s bothering you, so out with it already.”
Olivia opened her mouth to speak but thoughts of her pink bathrobe and the smoke alarm and Brad’s hands roving all over her body made her choke back the words.
“Sexual frustration, that’s my diagnosis. Am I right?” Alex watched her pointedly. Saw the moment when heat flooded Olivia’s cheeks, and she was all over it. “Bingo! The cure is to sleep with him already.”
The elderly couple in the booth across glanced over and frowned. Even Buzz, the owner, looked up from the grill behind the counter.
“Alex, will you shush?” Meg’s usual soft voice was edged with irritation. Olivia felt comfort in their banter, so familiar after all the times they’d spent in this very booth near the big plate-glass window that overlooked the square. In the late Friday afternoon sunshine, there was some commotion happening outside, with trucks and trailers crowding the street next to the grassy park.
Alex pointed an accusatory finger at Meg. “You’re the one who bet me five bucks they already did it.” Her gaze shifted to Olivia. “So why didn’t you? Sleep with him, that is.”
Olivia reached in the booth next to her to retuck the blanket Annabelle had just kicked off. It was a little chilly with the air conditioning. Annabelle found the corner of the blanket and began to suck on it.
“You’re the one who broke it up between us, as I recall,” Olivia said.
“That was when I thought he was using you. Before I saw all that smoking-hot combustion between you two. So what happened?”
“We almost did it. But Brad’s gone on business and I’ve had time to come to my senses. He’s made it clear he’s not looking for a long-term relationship. I have to think of what’s best for Annabelle.” The past few days had allowed her to reason this out. A fling was definitely not what was best.
No matter how desperately she wanted him.
And it would be a fling, with a man who might want her to stay but who feared commitment and raising another child. And let’s face it, she couldn’t give up the security of her job even if she could find freelance projects that might allow her to work remotely. Not as a single mother with a child to raise and put through college.
Yes, it was good the fire department had shown up. Good he was out of town. Because she didn’t want to start a dead-end romance. She’d gotten over him once, but it had taken years. She couldn’t put herself through that again.
If she expected sympathy to gush from her friends’ mouths, she didn’t get it.
Alex’s mug hit the Formica with a thud. “Olivia, what do you expect the man to do? You’re leaving for New York. Just like ten years ago. You can’t blame him for being gun-shy.”
No, she couldn’t. But he wanted his freedom and she had a one-month-old.
“Maybe you should talk with him. Have a heart-to-heart,” Meg said.
Yeah, right. Except every time they started that, they ended up peeling off each other’s clothes. Or arguing. Mostly both.
“But all that chemistry—it practically explodes,” Meg said.
“I saw how Brad looked at you at the picnic the other day,” Alex said. “Like you were dessert. A s’more. And he wanted some. More.”
As Alex chuckled at her own joke, Olivia shook her head. “There will always be this crazy hormone thing between us. But that doesn’t mean we have to act on it. That could get very messy.”
“Life is messy,” Alex said firmly. “And you’ve still got your pressed Sunday dress on with a clean hem.”
Alex’s words struck home. Her friend was accusing her of holding back on living her life just like Brad had.
Buzz approached with a fresh pot of coffee. Alex immediately held out her mug for a refill.
Buzz bent his stocky frame toward Annabelle and waggled his fingers. “Coochie coochie coo.” Annabelle kicked her feet like a bongo drummer in response. The blanket fell to the floor. “She’s one adorable baby. Anyone else want a topper?”
Olivia nodded. “Thanks, Buzz.” As he poured the coffee, she said, “You haven’t changed one bit.”
He patted his stomach under his white apron. “I think I put on a few sympathy pounds with Cheryl being pregnant.” He paused awkwardly. “I just want to say I admire you for what you’ve done, Olivia, coming back here from that big city job of yours . . .”
In the past week, so many townspeople had expressed their sympathy. That awkward stab of pain was back. Actually, it never really left, but this time Olivia decided to deal with it and place the focus on what really mattered: Annabelle. Trish would want that.
She flashed Buzz a big smile. “This baby is a wonder. Look what she does.” She leaned down to
speak to the baby, and while she was at it, retrieve the blanket. “Let’s show everyone what you just learned, honey. Show them you’re the sweetest baby that ever lived.”
The baby flashed a gummy smile that showed off two of her chins. Then she stuck her foot in her mouth. Olivia gently pulled it out and looked around the table proudly. “That’s her latest accomplishment.”
“That’s pretty acrobatic,” Buzz said.
Meg tsked. “Buzz, she just smiled. Isn’t she amazing?”
So many times over the past few days, Olivia had wanted to run across the yard and drag Brad back to show him, forgetting he wasn’t there.
Alex took a peek. “Usually I don’t think babies are cute, but she’s adorable.”
“Smart, too,” Meg added.
Olivia frowned. “Alex, you couldn’t possibly think your own babies weren’t cute.”
“Oh, yes I could. Not a one was the least bit cute until they started sleeping through the night. Honestly, I was so sleep deprived, I don’t even remember what they looked like.”
Olivia smiled at her friends. What would she do without Alex’s snarkiness and Meg’s loyalty? Or the friendship that had cheered and comforted her through all kinds of tribulations? It was like she’d never left. She’d missed them, and it made her sad these times together would be ending soon.
Maybe Brad was right. In her scramble for success, her priorities had gotten pushed out of place. “I just wanted to tell you two how much I appreciate how you’ve been there for me. I’d never survive this without you and . . . well, I love you both so much.” She grasped their hands across the table.
“We love you, too, Olivia,” Meg said, squeezing her hand.
“And we want you to be happy,” Alex added.
“Okay, I love you all, too, but I’m going back to the kitchen.” Buzz fled the table as quickly as possible.
“We love you, too, Buzz,” Meg called as Buzz waved them off. Then she turned back to the table. “Olivia’s right. She’s going back to New York next week. And she’ll have to face Brad whenever she comes back to visit. That could be really awkward.”
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