Ace hesitates and then asks, “If there was something I was doing that was triggering these nightmares, you'd tell me, right?”
I look at him with surprise. “Is that what you think? That you're doing something wrong?”
“Am I?”
“Of course not!” I prop myself up on my elbow so that I'm able to press my lips lovingly against his. We kiss slowly for a moment, and then I pull back, giving him a wry look. “I probably have morning breath.”
“I could care less about that,” he says as his eyes drop down to my chest.
I look down and see that the sheet has slipped and my breasts are showing. His hand is just reaching for them when I swat it aside and quickly scramble out of bed with a laugh. “I have to shower and get ready for work.”
Ace's eyes run over my naked body with lecherous intentions in their depths. “I still haven't had you in the shower.”
I quickly grab my robe and yank it on while giving him a stern look. “No, then I'll for sure be late.”
The rest of the morning goes by fast, and we just barely have time to eat breakfast together before I have to head to work. I'm no longer walking and instead taking public transit, even though the café is only a few blocks away.
After stepping off the bus, I walk halfway down the block to work and whiz through the door with a contented smile on my face. Life is good. Even with the prospect of Oliver possibly being in town, it can't ruin what I'm building here. If only I could simply move on without my past following in my wake.
Flynn looks up from where he's loading up the glass dessert displays with cookies. “Morning, Faith.”
“Morning.” I quickly store my purse in the little cubby behind the counter and grab a small, black apron. I tie it around my waist, then pull out a hair band from my back pocket so I can put my hair up in a ponytail.
“Hey, there was a guy in here yesterday asking about you after you left,” Flynn comments as he settles the top of the glass dome back on one of the displays.
My hands freeze in my hair. “Someone was asking about me?” I feel instantly cold, and goose bumps rise on my arms.
“Yeah. He wanted to know if you worked here.” Flynn's eyes connect with mine. “He didn't seem like any of your regular friends, so I told him no. I hope that's okay. You just never know these days when it comes to some of our customers. Didn't feel right giving away any type of information about you.”
Relief eases the chill I'd felt moments ago. “No, that was perfect, Flynn. What did he look like?” I ask casually as I finish my ponytail.
“Tall and lanky, with buzzed hair. Blue eyes, I think.” Flynn studies me intently. “Are you in some type of trouble? Do we need to talk to Bruce?”
I wipe my now sweaty hands on my apron and smile brightly. “No, I was just curious. The guy you described doesn't sound familiar,” I lie.
In the inside, my heart is thundering out of control.
Oliver is here.
* * *
“You didn't have to escort me home,” I murmur lightly to Caleb as we make our way onto the city bus. It's packed, and we manage to find a space where we both can sit next to one another. I'd text messaged Caleb during my break about Oliver, and I'd begged him not to tell Ben or my parents. He'd replied that he'd be there when my shift was over with, and we'd talk then.
Caleb gives me a look. “Yes, I did. If Oliver's here, you can't be out and about alone.”
I look at him worriedly. “You're not going to tell my parents, are you?”
“Faith, why wouldn't I tell them? You're in danger,” he points out.
“If you tell them that he's followed me here, my parents are going to hop on the next flight to come be with me. They can't afford that! They have jobs, and they can't just drop everything in hopes of protecting me. Then there's Ben. He can't leave Della while she's pregnant,” I hiss, trying not to gain much attention from the strangers that surround us. As I'd walked down the aisle to our seats, I'd searched all the faces to make sure Oliver wasn't on the bus. I'd been relieved to see that they were all strangers. No one looked familiar.
Caleb moves closer and says in my ear, “They are your parents, they'd want to know.”
“Then let me be the one to tell them.”
“When?” he presses.
I peer at him pleadingly. “Caleb, I finally have a really good thing going here. This is my life. Let me figure out how to deal with Oliver without having everything I've worked for blowing up in my face.”
“Nothing is going to blow up in your face. It's just going to be added protection,” Caleb points out.
“But then I'm being babysat and not truly living. I don't want that until I know for sure he's going to try something. Maybe he just wants to talk,” I add lamely.
Caleb looks at me incredulously. “Talk? If he wanted to talk, he wouldn't have run you off the road or tried to hit you while you were on your bike that day. You can't wait until the situation turns dangerous, Faith.”
“I'll be careful. Caleb, this is my life.”
He glances out our window and says, “Next stop is ours.”
When the bus slows down, we rise to our feet and step off at our stop. Caleb immediately slings an arm around my shoulders as we walk to the apartment complex. We're silent as we slip through the front door and as the elevator sweeps us up to the second floor. While I take my keys out of my purse at my door, Caleb hovers behind me silently.
The second I open the door, Caleb steps in front of me and enters my apartment. I shut the door behind us as he walks around, eyes scanning every corner before striding through the living room and down the hall.
I'm just kicking off my shoes when Daisy comes tearing through the living room to greet me and beg for her nightly dinner. After squatting down to give her a little attention, I turn and walk over to the cupboard for her kitty food. Once she's fed, I find that Caleb is standing near the island counter, arms crossed as he patiently waits for my attention.
“Have you gone to the police yet?” he asks.
I run my hands over my face warily. “There's no point. They can't do anything until he actually makes a move.”
“Asking about you was making a move,” he points out with a frown.
“Caleb, I've dealt with cops enough to know that they're going to point out that it just could have been someone that resembled Oliver.”
“He knew your name. He specifically asked for you.”
“He could have been a customer that remembered my name. I wear a name tag, remember?”
Caleb sighs and unfolds his arms to place his hands on his hips as he dwells upon the situation. “You're right,” he admits.
I walk over to him and touch his arm. “You and Zoey live right next door. There's also Ace and Jeremy on the other side of you. If anything ever happened, all I'd have to do is scream and you'd be here in a heartbeat. I'm well protected,” I remind.
“But not at work.”
“He's not going to do anything in public. If he wasn't worried about getting caught, he wouldn't have bothered with different cars back in Harrison. If he's going to try something, it's going to be when he thinks he's got me alone. That'll be next to impossible, because I'm taking the bus to and from work. And if I go anywhere, I'll make sure someone is with me,” I promise.
“How the hell can you be as calm as you are about this? Aren't you scared?”
“I don't know why I'm not freaking out.” I shrug and look at him with a sense of calmness that I never would have thought possible after everything I've been through. “I think maybe it's because I feel like I've already been through the worst, you know? Being stabbed...” I shudder and Caleb immediately pulls me into his arms. “I went through hell to pull my life together, and life is great now. I don't want to become the girl that was too frightened to walk out her front door. I want to live. I am scared, Caleb, but I'm not going to revert back to my old ways just because Oliver's in town,” I say into his shoulder.
His arm
s tighten around me. “We'll protect you. None of us will let anything happen to you.”
I sigh and ease back slightly so I can look up at him. “Can we keep this between the two of us?” I ask as I wait to see his reaction.
He scowls. “First you don't want me to tell your parents or Ben. Now you don't want your friends to know? Faith, that's leaving yourself wide open for Oliver.”
“I want to be normal, and I don't want to be babysat. If you tell the others, I'll never have any personal space. Everyone will be up in my face every second of the day. I don't want that.”
Caleb slowly shakes his head. “I think it's a bad idea not telling them.”
“But you'll respect my wishes?” I ask hopefully.
“For now,” he says pointedly, but it's obvious he's not going to keep it to himself for long. “The only reason I'm letting you have your way is because I was there when you dealt with the aftermath of Justin's attack. I am so proud of who you've become and the woman that stands before me today. I don't want to back you in a corner because I feel that's what's best for you. I want you to continue being who you are, and if you're putting your foot down and telling me no, then I am going to try to respect that.” His eyes turn deliberate. “But I am warning you right now, if there's one more Oliver sighting, all bets are off, Faith.”
I guess that's the best offer I'm going to get. “Okay. If I see Oliver again, I'll let everyone know what's going on,” I agree.
Once we're in agreement, Caleb tells me he has plans with Zoey. He reluctantly leaves, but not before insisting I lock the door immediately behind him. After he's gone, I feel wary and a bit unsettled knowing that Oliver is in town, but I refuse to let fear raise its ugly head. I'm going to go on with my life like normal.
So with that decided, I take a shower and change. Ace said he'd be over around eight, and as usual, I want to make a meal for him. I never knew cooking for a guy could be so pleasing. I love seeing his eyes light up when he spies the meal I've usually got set up. Ace has admitted to growing up with nannies, and he's never had any real homemade dinners with anyone other than his family's cook. Whenever they'd had family dinners, it'd been catered or they'd gone to restaurants. I like giving Ace a sense of normalcy.
I'm just pulling ingredients out of the cupboards when I hear a knock on the door. I glance at the clock with surprise. Ace isn't supposed to arrive for an hour yet. Feeling slightly uncertain, I walk over to the door and peer out the peephole.
It's Ace.
I unlock the door and swing it open with surprise. “Hi. You're early...” My voice trails off when I see that he's all sweaty and wearing a tank and gym shorts.
He grins at me. “Not really. I just wanted to drop something off before I shower.” His smile fades, and now he looks adorably uncertain. “I did the research like you asked me to, and I...uh, wanted to give you this and not have you feel like it's going to weigh our evening down. So here,” he says, shoving a white plastic bag in my hands. “Put it away for now, and if you ever think it's what you want, we'll try it. No pressure,” he adds gruffly.
I look down at the bag in my hands with bewilderment before turning my attention back on him. “What is it?”
He shakes his head. “We're not talking about it tonight.” He leans in and kisses my cheek. “See you in bit.” He's gone before I can make sense of the weird conversation. I slowly shut the door and cautiously open the bag.
I have no clue what it is until I pull it out of the bag. It's a fantasy restraint kit...in pink. I'm momentarily stunned, and then I study the plastic package intently. It's a sheet set. It includes one black fitted sheet with attached pink restraints in all four corners. It also includes a pink blindfold. My lips part, and a slow grin forms on my lips. He's willing to explore his darker side with me! Now that he's willing, I'm going to take him up on his offer before he can change his mind.
I quickly make a hasty retreat to my room where I begin to strip the bed of its sheets. Tonight will be all about us. I want it to be perfect. Even as I begin to slip the fitted sheet on over the mattress, I know things are going to fall apart soon. This is why I want tonight so badly. Once it comes out about Oliver, Ace will be done hiding our relationship, and Caleb's going to be furious.
Regret flickers through me as I realize Ace is going to be mad as well.
At me.
I should have told him about Oliver.
Chapter Thirty-two
Faith
The second I dry my hands after we'd just finished washing our dishes from dinner, I feel Ace's hands slide around my waist as his chest presses into my back. A shiver runs through my body when I feel warm lips on the sensitive area of my neck. His tongue swirls along my skin, then his teeth nip gently.
My breath catches in my throat as I lean back into him, giving him full access to whatever he wants. His warm hands slide up my ribs to cup my breasts through my bra. “Mmm. I can't get enough of you,” he murmurs as he places another kiss on my neck. “I had every intention of going slow tonight and just enjoying your company, but I'm so fucking addicted to your body.”
I tilt my head to the side, baring more of my neck to him. “We can talk later,” I say a bit breathlessly in agreement.
One second my back is to him, and within the next, he's got me turned around so I can face him. He grips me around the waist and lifts me up so that my legs wrap around his hips. His lips claim mine as he carries me across the room and to the hallway, his warm hands squeezing my butt.
I'm lost in his kiss until he curses into my mouth, and Ace loses his footing. He nearly drops me until he regains his balance and carefully puts me down. “Babe, that cat has got to go,” he growls with frustration as he quickly bends down and picks up Daisy—who probably chased after his feet while he’d been carrying me. The second she realizes he's striding to the bathroom, she begins to wiggle desperately in his hands. “We don't need an audience tonight,” he tells her with a hint of satisfaction before he sets her down inside and shuts the door firmly. “What the fuck was I thinking getting my girl a damned cat,” he mutters under his breath.
“I heard that,” I say with a laugh.
He turns his head and gives me an adorably woeful look. “Why couldn't you have wanted a bird or a guinea pig?”
“I wanted something to cuddle with.”
That woeful look abruptly turns roguish. “You've got me to cuddle with. Does this mean I can return her now?” he asks as he stalks towards me.
“Absolutely not,” I admonish with an amused smile.
He wraps his arms around me and walks me backwards to my room, his lips stealing soft little kisses. “Why's your lamp on?” he asks with a frown as he peers around my head from where we stand in the doorway of my room. His entire body stills when he sees that I'd put the fitted sheet on the bed and the pink blindfold is also there.
I watch his reaction closely as he processes what I want tonight. His eyes are still focused on the bed, but I'm facing him so I can see his eyes darkening with anticipation. In the blink of an eye the heat disappears as his eyes slide back to me. I see doubt within their depths. “I didn't give it to you with the implication that we'd try it tonight.”
“You made that very clear,” I assure. “But I want to try it. I want to be with you this way, Ace.”
He's silent for a moment as he stares long and hard at me. “You can't tell me that the idea of being restrained doesn't frighten you at all, Faith.”
I need to be completely honest with him. “It does, but just a tiny bit. I think anyone would have a little bit of uncertainty their first time using restraints. The most important thing is that I trust you.” I give him a knowing smile. “You'll make it good for me, right?” I tease.
“More than good. I'll make you scream,” he promises.
“No screaming. The last thing we need is Caleb breaking down the door and finding me restrained to my bed.” My nose wrinkles just from the thought of that horrible scenario.
“I ca
n muffle your screams with my mouth,” Ace offers wickedly.
“So, are you all talk, or are we going to do something?” I ask, egging him on.
He immediately sobers up, which is not what I was expecting. “Sit down,” he says quietly, nodding at the bed.
My heart sinks. He's not ready for this after all. I swallow my disappointment and walk over to the bed. I sit down and wait.
Ace walks over and squats down in front of me so that I have no choice but to keep my eyes on his. “Being bound can be scary, Faith. I don't mean to bring my past into this, but I've had women balk at the idea, and some have agreed to it up until it's time for the restraints. It's not for everyone. Do you understand what I'm saying?”
I nod as I listen.
“Restraints have never, ever been about me wanting to hurt anyone or to abuse the privilege they are giving me, so that I can be in control. I've never done anything that they haven't wanted me to, and how far things go is always up to them. They may not have control over their bodies, but they are in full control over the situation, you get me?”
Once again, I nod as I try to push down the jealousy I'm feeling.
His eyes continue to stay locked on mine. “We'll try this tonight, but I want to make it clear that you're in control of what happens. It's just me and you. I won't do anything more than touch you, kiss you, and of course put my dick in you. I'm going to keep things light tonight, so no extras. If you find that you like it, we can gradually add things to the experience, but for now, all I want is to concentrate on you and what you're feeling. If at any time you want me to stop, you say the word. Don't think for even a second that I'll be upset. You tell me to stop, you hear?”
I nod, my heart leaping at the realization that we're going to go ahead and do this tonight. I'm full of anticipation but also nerves.
“Now, the reason I bought this kit is because it gives the illusion to being restrained, but if you yank hard enough, the fitted sheet will tug off the mattress. You're not entirely helpless, and if you panic, you can free yourself easily. I hope to God that never happens, Angel. You need to be completely honest with me tonight. Don't hide what you're feeling until you panic.”
Building Faith (Long Beach Series Book 2) Page 29