by Zoe Norman
I push a lock of his longish hair out of his eyes. “It's interesting, because all this time, I was so focused on my hurt and didn't really do any processing of what his side of it was. He mentioned tonight that there was another woman. I don't know if she was before me, after me...during me.” I pause, surprised at how painful the thought of there having been someone after me—or worse, while he was seeing me—is. “But regardless, it's clear that he is a man who has issues. Issues enough to hurt his wife and children in such a profound way.” I drop my head for a moment, trying to find a way to say what is now plaguing me.
“Hey, eyes on me, beautiful,” he says, tilting my head up to look him in the eyes. “No secrets anymore, right? Let's get us off on the right foot and be honest from here on out, okay?”
I smile at him, having never heard more needed words in my life. “Honesty. Yes,” I repeat, taking a deep breath. “I need you to know that if I had ever, ever, known that he was married, much less had children, I would have never been with him.”
Owen nods slightly, allowing me to go on.
“There were red flags for sure. I was never allowed to go to his place. He always had an excuse. We never spent big holidays together. And there were weekends or weeks where he would disappear for days at a time then come up with some lame work excuse. But I never had any confirmation, and I talked myself into believing, when I did have a concern, that I was just being silly and melodramatic. It helped that he told me the same thing. He often made me feel like I was out of my mind being worried about him in that way. It did horrible things to my self-esteem, made me dependent on him. I'm seeing now why that was.”
We look at each other for a moment, my heart pounding as I wait to hear what he has to say.
“Olivia, I have no doubt in my mind that you are of a pure mind and soul. I think I know you enough now, know your heart enough now, to know you would never put yourself in a position to break up a marriage or a family.” He strokes my face. “Don't spend a minute worrying about me or what I think of all this. As far as I'm concerned, Jay is part of our past. We are creating our future. End of story.”
Tears prick my eyes. He is just so wonderful that it blows my mind. He gives me a lascivious grin and leans over me slowly, hovering above me, his eyes darkening.
“Now, I'd like to end your birthday with a little more lovemaking and a lot less talking.”
I take a deep breath and nod my head at him, giving him a smile.
He rolls me gently onto my back, adjusting the sheet between us. His hand comes behind my head, lifting me into his kiss. He is so strong, and it makes me feel safe. I feel him getting hard against my thigh as he moves over me until I let my legs open to him. He settles comfortably there, fitting like he was made to fit in that space. I let one foot glide over his calf as he kisses down my neck, across my collarbone. Entwining my leg around his, I draw him closer. My hands run over his strong, muscular shoulders and then down his back.
As he starts to kiss the swell of my breasts, I moan, “Mmmmm, I like that, baby.”
A groan escapes his lips as he works his way down to my nipple. He gently suckles my nipple while his hand fondles my other breast. He releases one to pay attention to the other as I writhe beneath his wicked mouth. My fingers slink into his soft hair, tugging it while he flicks my nipples with the tip of his tongue. His hips rock forward, teasing my entrance.
I know I'm wet, both from his current onslaught and from our lovemaking earlier. Wet with my desire for him, wet with the remnants of his orgasm. He slides farther down my body, tracing all my curves with his lips and pressing kisses from hipbone to hipbone.
“You're beautiful and you're all mine,” he growls before cupping my sex and letting his finger slip inside me. “So eager—I love that,” he says in a whisper.
“Always,” I murmur.
I reach between our bodies, pushing his hand to the side and grasping his rock-hard erection. I stroke him and rub his tip over my swollen, wet mound. He groans into my shoulder as I position him at my entrance. He shifts his hips forward to sink into me, stretching me, and in one slow, deliberate movement, filling me completely.
“Ohhhh fuck,” he groans into my neck. Owen holds himself deep inside me, not moving. I wrap my legs around his waist, pulling him as close as I can. “You feel un-fucking-believable. I'm afraid to move. I'll come too fast.” He rises up on his elbows, looking into my eyes.
I smile at him, a daring, cunning smile. Grasping his upper arms, I start writhing underneath him, providing friction, and moving him just the slightest bit in and out of me. His eyes flutter closed and I feel his whole body tense.
“You're an evil woman,” he moans. He rises up onto his knees before putting my ankles on his shoulders. Giving me his biggest, brightest smile, he says, “This will be quick, but it will rock your world. Happy birthday, baby.”
And with that, he makes love to me—all night long.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Owen
I'm at work, and I've had a pretty good shift so far. We had one call for a toaster gone haywire at an office in Park Slope, but otherwise it's been quiet. I've texted Olivia a few times today but haven't heard back from her. It's been three days since I saw her last, and it feels like a lifetime. Olivia is getting ready to publish her research paper, and she forewarned me that she would be busy with edits as she reached her deadline. I'm really proud of her, but I miss her. She's become my second skin, and I crave her touch, her smell...
"Hey, lover boy! You going to play your hand or what?" Tanner badgers me, knocking me out of my daze. "He's busy daydreaming over there,” he calls to the other guys we're playing cards with.
"Yeah. Hundred bucks says he was thinking about his smokin'-hot girlfriend," Saul chimes in.
"You all are just jealous bastards," I chuckle, throwing down my winning card in our round of spades. I gather my cards and lay down my four of clubs.
"I think it's time we find Tanner a woman,” I say, attempting to steer the conversation away from Olivia. “How are you not on disability with carpal tunnel from jacking off every night, man?" The table erupts with laughter as Tanner's ears turn red.
"How old are you, Tanner?" asks Saul in more of a statement than a question.
"Thirty-seven. Why?" Tanner replies.
"Ain't you tired of strange all the time?" Saul says with a hint of jealousy in his voice.
“No. No, I'm not,” Tanner replies defiantly. “Not that I've been getting a whole lot lately. I don't hit the clubs as much these days now that Maxwell is off the market.”
I shrug my shoulders and smile. "I did you a favor! Less competition this way,” I say, throwing Tanner a wink.
"You're such an asshole, Maxwell," Tanner laughs.
"I am. You're right. Tell you what. How about I ask Olivia if she has any single girlfriends she'd be willing to set you up with."
"'Willing'?!" Tanner scoffs. "You say that like I'm a fucking charity case!"
"Well..." I grin, trailing off. At that, Tanner throws his ball cap at me and we both laugh. “But seriously, I'll ask her," I finish.
"Yeah. Okay. That might be all right, I guess," Tanner says, trying to act nonchalant. Deep down, I know he's excited at the prospect of being fixed up with one of Olivia's friends.
We continue on with our game, listening to both the TV and our radios for any calls that may come through. I end up losing our card game badly and decide to play Candy Crush on my iPad. For the life of me, I can't get past level sixty-nine, which I find mildly ironic. I check my phone and notice that I still haven't heard from Olivia. I'm officially worried.
Where are you? Call me when you can.
"How about I come see you instead?" a familiar voice calls from behind me—one I know intimately.
"Olivia!” I jump up to greet her with a smile plastered across my face. “Hey, beautiful girl! What are you doing here?!"
As I turn to see her, my mouth drops at the vision in front of me. She's wear
ing a sexy navy pencil skirt that hugs those hips I love to grab on to, a white sleeveless button-down silk top, and fire-engine-red heels. Her hair is pulled back in a sleek ponytail that I'm desperate to wrap around my wrist and pull. I quickly reach down to adjust myself as I start to get excited.
"Surprised?" Olivia asks, grinning wide. "I brought dessert." She shows me the white paper bag in her hand. "I've been so wrapped up with work that I figured I'd come see you here. I hope that's okay,” she asks hopefully.
"Of course that's okay." I wrap my arms around her waist and place a hand on the small of her back, pressing her tightly against my body. I bend my head and unashamedly give her a slow, gentle, lingering kiss. God, I've really missed this woman. "I'm glad you're here," I whisper to her.
"Umm..." One if the guys clears his throat. "Ain't ya gonna introduce us to your guest, Maxwell?"
I smile down at Olivia and say, "You'd think they have never seen a beautiful woman before." I turn around and wrap my arm possessively around Olivia's waist. "Everyone, this is Olivia. Olivia, everyone," I announce, sweeping my free hand across the crowd of gathering men.
"Hi, sexy girl!"
"How did Maxwell land such a hot chick?"
“Leave him for me!" they all call out in unison as I roll my eyes and shake my head, laughing.
“You want a tour of the firehouse?” I ask with pride in my voice. This is her first time to my “office,” and I'm excited to show her around.
“Sure! I'd love that,” Olivia replies, smiling up at me as I pull her closer.
As we walk, I lean over and kiss her on the temple, and once we're out of earshot of my friends, I whisper, “I have missed you so much. Don't stay away from me for that long again, okay, beautiful?”
Olivia gives me a squeeze and looks up at me. She winks and whispers back, “You got it.”
I take Olivia around the firehouse and introduce her to some of my friends who weren't at the Hook 'n Ladder nearly a month ago. I show her where we eat, and somehow, with her appreciative comments about our kitchen, she gets conned into cooking dinner for us some night. I show her the bunk room where we sleep and the common area where we play cards and have meetings.
As we round out the end of the tour, Olivia asks, “So where's the pole?”
I stop in my tracks and turn, smirking at her. “The pole?” I grin. “You want to know where the pole is?” I look down at my tented crotch. “Well…umm…I've—”
“Not that pole! Geez! The one you slide down,” she laughs.
“Still the same thing.”
We fall into a fit of laughter, and Olivia lightly slaps my arm.
I take her hand and lead her to the other side of the truck. “It's over here, babe.”
We round the truck and there stands the pole. “Does anyone ever really use it?” she asks, removing the hair tie that holds her ponytail. She musses up her hair with her fingers, letting it fall naturally around her shoulders.
“Eh…sometimes. We're usually down here hanging out or checking equipment and stuff when there's a call so, no, not as much as you'd think.”
Olivia lets go of my hand and walks toward the pole, running her hand down the cool brass. She glances over her shoulder, giving me a sly smile. I smile back, cross my arms, and lean against the truck, watching her.
She wraps her hands around the pole and leans back, swinging herself around.
“What are you doing, Olivia?”
“You know, I took one of those pole dancing classes at my gym," Olivia tells me, wrapping a leg around the pole.
I slowly shake my head, smirking "Did you now." She's playing with fire.
“I did. It was fun. Really hard actually. I learned all kinds of interesting moves.” She swings herself around the pole again and lets her head fall farther back so her hair flows freely behind her.
As she twirls, I casually run a hand down the front of my pants and stroke my dick. Olivia's eyes follow my hand and we silently watch each other. She bites her lower lip and smirks at me. Letting one hand on the pole go, Olivia uses it to rub her breast over her top and then runs it down her belly and lower.
“Owen, is there anyone down here right now?”
I stand slowly and look around the back of the truck before returning to my spot. “Looks like they're all in the kitchen. It's just us. Why?”
Olivia spins herself around the pole and flips her hair again. She pops open a button on her blouse and starts to slide down the pole, sticking out her ass provocatively as she moves back up it. She's killing me and she knows it. I smile at her encouragingly as I continue to rub my hard-on.
“Whoa! Now that's what I'm talkin' about! That's fuckin' hot!” a voice calls out from the side of the rig.
Tanner.
Olivia falters on the pole, clearly surprised to be interrupted. She turns toward the wall of bunker gear, obviously embarrassed as she works to fasten the buttons on her blouse.
On instinct, I quickly push myself forward and move to stand in front of Olivia, protecting her. As I round the truck, I see Tanner standing there, watching Olivia with an apple in his hand, his mouth gaping.
"What the fuck, Tanner!”
“No! No! No! Please continue. This was just getting really good!” Tanner says with a quick wink as he leans against the truck and takes a bite of his apple. I know Tanner well enough to know that he's just fucking with me, but Olivia doesn't know that.
“Show's over, Tanner. Walk away. Now.” I glare at him. He just smirks and walks back into the kitchen. “I'm sorry about that, Liv,” I say, wrapping my arms around her. “He's just trying to pitch me shit.”
Olivia looks up at me and smiles weakly.
“Have I told you today how fucking beautiful you are?” I take her chin in my hand and lift her face up to me.
“You did, but I never tire of hearing it,” she replies as she leans her back against the pole. Whatever tension Olivia had in her eyes is replaced with a dark, seductive edge. She's back with me again. Thank God.
I take hold of her hand and place it on my crotch. “Feel that? That's all because of you.”
Olivia inhales as she feels my hardness then starts to squeeze and stroke me.
“And that little dance you did for me?” Olivia looks up at me and nods her head slowly. “That was sexy as hell.” We are just inches apart, and I reach out, running my hand along the curve of her breast, down her side, and around her to rest on her ass.
Olivia slides her hands up my arms and around my neck, pulling me down for a kiss. My lips move against hers, coaxing them apart, and then my tongue finds its home in her mouth. Our tongues brush each other, soft, wet, and hot. My cock grows and thickens immediately under her hand as she continues to touch me.
“I missed you, Owen,” she whispers into my ear as I kiss down her jaw, her neck, her collarbone.
“I missed you too,” I murmur against her skin. “I missed your smile, your smell, your soft skin.” I continue kissing her while deftly undoing the buttons on Olivia's blouse. “I missed you wrapped around me.”
Olivia smiles against my skin. “Baby, you better not start something you can't finish here, because I'm going to expect you to finish if you keep this up.”
I stop kissing her, stand up straight, and look around. I grab her hand and pull her down the hall. “Come on, baby. Follow me.”
I drag her into an empty room and through another closed door into a bathroom. I guide her inside, closing and locking the door behind her. There is no time for words, just time for fucking.
I spin Olivia around and push her against the wall, my mouth crushing hers. I kiss down her neck as I lift her skirt around her hips. Seizing her lacy panties, I rip them off her body, disintegrating them.
“Owen,” Olivia groans with a mixture of surprise and excitement at my aggressiveness. She whines as I nibble on her shoulder before spinning her around abruptly.
“Hold onto the sink,” I say authoritatively. Olivia does as she's told and white
-knuckles the cold porcelain sink as I quickly undo my belt and zipper, letting my pants pool at my ankles. I grasp Olivia's hip with one hand and my hard cock in the other and line it up with her entrance before I thrust into her. “Fuck!” I yell.
“Ahh… shhh…” Olivia pants. “Someone will hear you.”
I bend over her to kiss down her back as I thrust into her hard and fast. “Baby, I can't be gentle. I've been waiting for this.” I grip her hips and pound into her faster. I can feel her inner muscles quivering already. “Were you a good girl, Olivia?” I ask, growling hotly into her ear. “Did you do as I asked?”
I made Olivia agree not to touch herself or bring herself to orgasm while we were apart these last few days. In return, I agreed to do the same…and I've been regretting that stupid agreement ever since. Not touching myself while thinking about Olivia is like not being able to breathe. It can't be done. I'm conditioned for it.
“Yes...yes! I've been good. You feel so good, baby. Oh God! Oh God!”
“That's not God, Liv. That's all me,” I say through a tight jaw. “Who's fucking you, Liv? Whose dick is buried deep inside of you right now?” I ask as I alternate long, slow thrusts with fast and hard ones. “Look at me in the mirror, Olivia. Who's. Fucking. You?” I growl, each word emphasized with a punishing thrust of my hips into her.
Olivia throws back her head and brushes her hair away from her face, looking me straight in the eye via the mirror, “You are! Owen, I love it when you fuck me like this. Please don't stop!” Olivia cries out.
I reach my hand around her, my fingers finding her clit and drawing quick circles. “You're gonna come for me quick, aren't you, Olivia? You missed me just as much as I missed you… Missed my cock filling you up…”
“Yesss…” she hisses while bracing herself against the sink and pushing back against me slightly as my fingers continue their assault on her clit. “Owen, I… Oh God, Owen! It's...I'm…”
“Come for me, baby. Come on me. Give it to me,” I grind out, pulling her back against me again and again.