“Now that the important business of my cock ownership has been settled, can I please kiss you?”
“If you insist.”
We kiss and make out a little, but don’t go too far. Olivia really wants to see some tourist places since she’s never been to L.A. before, so we have to head out soon. We’re both excited for the game tonight. She’s never seen an NHL game live, and I can’t wait to see Gabe Maguire in action again.
We visit all the places my girl wants to see and then meet everyone for dinner at The Grove before the game. Yasmin’s friend, Lita, coordinated the events at the Barnes & Noble there, and she joins us at La Piazza for some lasagna. Candi and Olivia go off and whisper for a few minutes, but I’m guessing it’s about work, so I don’t bother asking. After dinner, we all split up again.
The energy at the Staples Center is crazy. Olivia’s in her jersey and I’m in a Vortex t-shirt. Since we’re not the home team, we get more than a few glares. I’m too excited to care, though.
The game goes into double overtime and the Vortex end up taking it 3-2. Maguire scored the second goal and assisted on the last one. I’m totally pumped when the final shot is scored. I grab Olivia and kiss her hard. She kisses me back just as eagerly. She was yelling and cheering almost as loud as me throughout the game.
As we’re walking towards the doors, Olivia grabs my hand and pulls me down a corridor. “Umm, honey, I don’t think we should be down here. This looks like the way to the locker rooms.”
Sure enough, a guard comes around the corner just then. He stops us, but Olivia pulls out some type of badges and he lets us go. “To answer your question, it is the way to the locker rooms. We have all access badges.”
“What? Where did you get those?”
“Candi shot an ad for a friend of the Vortex owner last year. I asked her to call and see if she could get you in to meet Gabe Maguire. He’ll be out to see us after his post-game interviews.”
“Seriously? You are the best girlfriend ever. I mean it. This is just…awesome. Thank you so much.”
“You’re welcome. And I’ll happily accept that title.”
“It’s all yours, Ollie.”
I sweep her into my arms for another kiss. I can’t believe she did this. But, then again, I can. She’s just that amazing.
We wait outside the locker room and Gabe comes out. He signs my t-shirt and Olivia’s jersey. He also takes pictures with us. He’s really cool and even gives me a few tips because he heard that I play in the hockey league. When we get back to the house, I make love to Olivia again. This is without a doubt the best 24 hours of my life.
Chapter 12
Olivia
We got home two days ago, and true to his word, Luke made love to me only once that night. When I told him I wasn’t sore at all the next morning, all bets were off. We spent yesterday in bed. And against the wall. And on the couch. And in the shower. So pretty much everywhere. We both passed out in the middle of the night. I’m mildly sore this morning, but it’s a glorious kind of soreness.
“Good morning, Ollie,” Luke whispers in my ear. “I wish I didn’t have to go to work today.”
“Me too.”
“You can stay here as long as you want. I’ll give you a spare key. You can keep it if you’d like to. That way you can come over whenever you feel like it.”
“A spare key? That’s serious.”
“I’m very serious about you. Did I not make that clear?”
I smile at him. “You did. I’d like to give you a key as well. We can take turns at each other’s places maybe.”
“Sounds like a plan. So, here or your place tonight?”
“How about my place?”
“Perfect. I’ll stop here and grab some clothes after school lets out and then see you around 5.”
I lie in bed for a little longer after he leaves and then head over to Candi’s studio. She’s about to stop working, but she said she has things for me to do while she’s getting ready for the baby and after. I’m so excited for the baby. Yasmin and Luke are going to be the godparents, although Candi’s told us we’re all responsible for making sure Owen doesn’t rub off too much on the baby. Especially if it’s a boy. She’s joking of course—she loves Owen like crazy. We’re having a shower for her next week while the guys are playing poker. It’s going to be at Chloe and Ryan’s house. This will be the first thing Chloe has hosted since the house they designed together was finished, and I’m sure it will be insanely cool.
I walk into the studio where Owen and Candi are talking. “Hi guys.”
“Hi, Liv.” Owen comes over and gives me a kiss on the cheek before heading to his own studio. “I’ll leave you two to your girl talk.”
“We have work talk, Owen,” I tell him.
“Uh-huh. Sure.”
I look back at Candi with one eyebrow quirked. “Why does he think we’re not going to talk about work?” I go over and sit next to her on the couch.
“Seriously? You lost you v-card a few days ago. You need to tell me all about it. I mean, Luke was nice, right?”
“Umm, Luke was very nice and that’s all I’m saying.”
“C’mon, Liv. You gotta give me something.”
“No, I don’t.”
“You’re really not going to tell me?”
“No.”
“Okay. I guess we can talk about work, then.”
We spend the next couple of hours going over billing for shoots Candi has just finished. She tells me I can start scheduling her again about a month after she has the baby. I’m a little nervous about being out of work for the next eight weeks, but I’m really happy for her.
“You’re a little quiet.”
“Am I? I was just thinking about how to keep occupied these next two months.”
“You know I’m paying you, don’t you?”
“What? You can’t pay me when I’m not working.”
“Yes, I can. I don’t want you to go find another job. You’ve become the perfect assistant and bookkeeper, and I need to know you’ll be able to start working again once I’m back. So, I’m paying you your salary.” I start to open my mouth. “No arguments, Olivia. Owen and I can certainly afford it, and I want to do it.”
We settle on the fact that I can still come in and go through the mail. The bills will still need to be paid and emails will need to be answered. It’s not going to be as much work as I would normally do, but I’m not going to fight her on this. I wouldn’t win, anyway.
Once we’re done, I take care of a few things and then head to the Forum Shops to pick up something special for later. I also go to the grocery store because I want to make dinner for Luke tonight. I have just enough time to get everything cooked. I hurry to put on my purchases and curl my hair into big waves. I’m leaning over the oven, taking out the fish, when I hear him come in the door.
* * *
Luke
“Hi honey, I’m ho—holy shit.”
As I walk in the door, I see Olivia bent over the stove in a little lace thong with some kind of skirt that skims her ass, and ribbons and bows around her lower back. She stands up and turns to me, and I almost come in my pants. What she’s wearing is hands down the sexiest bra and panties set I’ve ever seen. And I’ve seen a lot. The bra has lace cups and more ribbons with bows for straps. She also has on some heels with lacy straps. Her hair is in curls, flowing over her shoulders and back. I drop my bags on the floor as I stare at her, unable to move for a minute.
“Hi, Luke. I thought you might like a home cooked dinner after your hard day at work.”
“I think I want dessert first because I’m very hard.” I walk over and reach for her, but she dodges me.
“Dessert first? Good boys clean their plate before they get dessert.”
I reach for her again, and this time I don’t let her get away. “I’ve never claimed to be a good boy.”
“I was counting on that. But only a quickie. I don’t want the food to spoil.”
I lift her onto the dining r
oom table while I play with the ribbons on her bra. “You’ve been holding out on me.”
“No. I just bought these today. I wanted something extra special for when you came home.”
“I am a lucky, lucky man,” I tell her as I pull the ribbons off her shoulder.
Dinner is still good once we’re done since we were both pretty ready when I took her hard and fast on the table. We’re both in our underwear, and she’s sitting on my lap as we share a plate, feeding each other in between kisses. “This is delicious, honey. I could get used to you cooking for me.”
“As long as I don’t have too much homework, I’ll be happy to cook for you. Especially with your poker game next week. I mean, we can’t have you eating ramen.”
“You have absolutely no faith in me, do you?”
“Actually, I’ve put all my faith in you. I’m just not sure about your poker skills.”
“Well, thanks for looking out for me.” I nibble on her shoulder and she kisses my cheek.
“Do you want to watch a movie or something?”
“Sure, but you need to put some clothes on. This shit is seriously a wet dream come to life,” I tell her as I play with the ribbons over her hips.
“I thought you’d like it when I saw it at the store.”
“Like is not a strong enough word, Ollie. Thanks, by the way. For dinner, and for the best welcome home I’ve ever had. Not that I’ve ever had anyone except my mom welcome me home, but I can’t imagine anything better than this.”
“Oh, so I have to come up with a way to top this then, huh?”
“I didn’t mean it as a challenge.”
“Well, I’m taking it as one. As for getting dressed, I don’t suppose you brought an extra t-shirt I could wear, did you? I kind of want to wear something of yours.”
I pull the side of my lip into my mouth before nodding to my bags at the door. “I, umm, actually brought a bunch of stuff. I wanted to have enough stuff here so we wouldn’t have to plan ahead when deciding where to stay. I have my shower gel and stuff too. I hope that’s okay.”
Her smile lights up her entire face. “That’s more than okay. I’ll bring some stuff to your place tomorrow.”
“Cool.” And it is. Talking about home with her wasn’t even a bit scary. I’ve loved falling asleep with her and then waking up to her in my arms the past few days. I don’t want it to ever stop.
We finish eating and I wash the dishes while she looks for a movie. Then I carry my bags into her bedroom and she shows me which drawers I can use. I hang up my work clothes and then give her a Vortex shirt to wear. “This is your favorite shirt.”
“Besides the one I got signed, yeah.”
“Thanks for letting me wear your favorite shirt.”
“Well, you are my favorite girl.”
“You’re so cute when you’re being cheesy.”
“You bring out this crazy side of me, so I’m glad you like it.”
She peeks around my back. “I like all the sides of you, Luke. Your ass is particularly spectacular.”
“I thought you wanted to watch a movie, Ollie.”
“I do,” she says with a laugh, grabbing my hand and pulling me back to the living room.
We spend the next couple of hours cuddled up on the couch watching the movie. We actually manage to watch some of it, although there’s lots of kissing and touching going on. When it’s officially over, I carry my girl to bed and make love to her again. My life couldn’t get much more perfect than it is right now.
* * *
Olivia
We’ve fallen into an easy routine over the last week. We take turns staying at each other’s places and haven’t spent a night apart. I do cook dinner for Luke most nights, but he makes me breakfast in the morning. I do homework at the rink when he has practice, and he hangs out at the studio working on lesson plans when I stop in to go through the mail. I went to Friday night barbeque at his parent’s house with him, and we all were at his hockey game. It’s pretty great, and I can’t wait for school to be out in a couple months so we’ll have even more time together.
Tonight is Candi’s shower, and as I pull up to Ryan and Chloe’s house, my mouth literally drops open. The house is big, but not too big. It looks like it should be in some old street in Europe, but there’s lots of glass to give it a modern look. I get out and carry Luke and my presents to the door. Chloe answers it and gives me a hug as I walk in.
“Wow. I’ve never seen a house like this. It’s really cool.”
“Thanks. Ry knows I love the house in the Sound of Music so he took that design—where you walk in and have to go up or down—and made it better by actually putting things on this level, too. The party’s downstairs in the casual great room.”
Great room is right. It’s one huge room with couches, all kinds of entertainment options like video games, air hockey and multiple TVs as a giant fish tank, huge dining table, bar, and open kitchen. I’ve never been in a house that’s so big, but it’s so comfortable at the same time. I mean, the Griffin house is pretty awesome, but nothing like this. Chloe and Ryan deserve all those awards they’ve won for architecture and interior design.
I pause at a cool glass sculpture. Chloe notices and smiles. “Ryan bought me that on a trip to Seattle when we were working on our first building together. Most of the rest of the art is Owen’s, though.”
“It’s amazing. All of it. Really.”
“Again, thanks. It’s truly our dream house.”
I shake my head, thinking about how Luke could live like this if he wanted to. Except for his car, he really lives a normal middle class lifestyle. It makes me love him even more. It also makes me think about living in a house with him. Nothing as big as this, but something we could share. I think we’re maybe heading in that direction.
“Did you make that, Liv?” Yasmin asks, pointing to the diaper cake I assembled.
“Yeah. Is it bad?”
“Are you kidding? It’s beautiful.”
“Thanks. Don’t tell anyone, but Luke helped me a little.”
“I won’t tell, but that’s kind of awesome. I never saw him as the kind of guy who would do something like that. He’s a great guy, but he was always a party boy before you.”
“That’s what I always thought, too. We spend most nights at home, though.”
“I’m so happy for both of you. You’re great for each other.”
“Why are you making Liv cry at my shower, Yasmin?”Candi asks as she waddles over.
“She’s not, Candi. I was just touched by something she said.”
“Ah. You were talking about Luke. Did you get any sex details from her? She won’t tell me anything.”
Yasmin laughs. “I didn’t ask and I doubt she’s going to offer me any details on her own. Besides, for as much as you hound us, you never talk about what you and Owen do.”
“That’s between us, but I’ll let you know that being pregnant has made me extra horny.”
“I didn’t need to hear that,” Maggie says as she walks up.
“Sorry, Maggie.”
“It’s fine. I’m not a prude, but talking about my sons and sex will never be a normal thing for me.”
I blush and Candi winks at me. Maggie notices. “Things seem to be going well with you and Luke, Olivia. It was nice to have you over on Friday night.”
“They are great. It was great to be there. Thanks again for including me.”
“You’re always welcome, Olivia. Rose is over all the time already. Would you like to invite your parents to join us this week?”
“Umm, not really.”
“Hold up, Liv. Have you told them you’re dating Luke?” Candi asks, her eyes narrowing.
“It hasn’t come up, no.”
“Are you going to tell them?”
Chloe and Alex have come over now, and they’re waiting for my answer, along with everyone else. “I want to. I do. I just know they have a bad opinion of him because of his past behavior, and I don’t want them to
cause problems.”
“Isn’t your dad having that party for his 20th year at work? You should take Luke as your date. I think it would mean a lot to him.”
“Has he mentioned it to you?”
Candi looks conflicted and then answers. “Yeah. He really wants you to invite him, but he doesn’t want to pressure you.”
Oh God. I’m such a bitch. I need to take him with me so I can show him how important he is to me. “I should have realized that he wanted to go. I’m definitely going to take him with me.”
Everyone else seems happy with my answer and walks off to mingle. Candi, however, isn’t done with the conversation. “What are you going to do if your parents don’t accept your relationship with Luke?”
“I’m hoping that won’t be the case.”
I’m evading and she knows it. “I know you’ve never gone against them, Liv, but that boy loves you and I believe you love him. I want you to think about that when you make your decision. We both know how they are.”
She’s right and I know it. They’ll never accept Luke, no matter how great he is. I just hope they won’t try to forbid me to see him. It may be the first time I have to defy them because I can’t imagine my life without him.
I force myself to relax and enjoy the rest of the shower. We play some games and Candi opens her gifts. Owen already designed and built the baby a custom crib and they bought all the big stuff themselves. We just bought them clothes, and little things like diapers and bath stuff. They also asked us to donate to a local children’s charity in their baby’s name once he or she is born.
* * *
Luke
My playing is shit tonight. I can’t stop thinking about the party Olivia’s parents are throwing next week, and how she hasn’t asked me to go with her yet. I know she’s not ashamed of me. At least I don’t think she is. But for some reason she doesn’t want me there. Actually, I know the reason. Her dad hates me. I want to change his mind, though. I’m not the guy I was a year ago, or hell, even six months ago.
I had started to change before Olivia and I got together, and her love for me has just made things even better. I won’t say I don’t ever look at other girls because any guy who says that is lying. But I don’t have any desire to do anything with someone else. It’s all about her. Once, I thought being this serious with someone was a death sentence, but instead I feel free and so fucking happy I have to pinch myself sometimes to make sure I’m not dreaming.
Learning To Love (The Griffin Brothers Book 4) Page 12