by Sarah Clay
Two seconds later I’m engulfed with a warm body pressing up against mine. I shuffle back a step, trying not to lose my footing.
Peering down to see Olivia’s wrapped her arms around me and is pressing the side of her face into my sweaty chest. I grin down at her and wrap my arms back around her. If she doesn’t care, why should I?
“Liv?” I question her. But she doesn’t move, just mumbles against me.
“I’m supposed to say sorry for unloading all of that on you last night, but I can’t. I just wanted to say thank you for listening.”
I chuckle at her half apology.
Charlie comes up beside us, wedging his head in between us and nudging us apart. She lets go and drops down to her knees.
“Oh Charlie Boy, I’m sorry I found a new sleeping buddy last night” she coos to him but freezes when she realises that I’ve gone still beside them.
“He’s been sleeping in bed with you?” I accuse.
She slowly peeks up at me, all innocent Bambi eyes. I shake my head at them both. I can’t be mad at her when she’s looking at me like that. But she doesn’t need to know that.
“I thought I told you no dogs on the furniture” I chide them both.
“I know, I’m sorry, but look at that face,” She says while scuffing up his fur.
When my smile breaks out across my face she breathes out a sigh of relief, noting that I’m not really angry.
I’d managed a shower and some cereal together with Liv in the kitchen. Liv was currently up in her room getting ready.
“Looks like your losing your friend today bud,” I muttered to Charlie who’s tilting his head in my direction. He drops down to the floor in front of me, looking depressed.
“I know, me either.”
I glance at my watch, knowing I need to head off soon; but not wanting to have Liv leave any sooner than necessary.
When we’d sat at the bench eating earlier, she was quite, I knew she was thinking over everything she’d mentioned last night. I wanted to fix all of her problems for her, but I also didn’t want to overstep whatever boundaries there were between us.
“I think that’s everything.” She calls out as she descends the stairs.
Charlie jumps up and runs over to her, sniffing her bags.
“I’m going to miss you Charlie boy,” she says when she drops down to her knees for one more pat.
He licks her all over, causing Liv to giggle. I smile over at them both, watching the way they interact.
“Please let him sleep on the bed every once in a while” she pleads with me while standing back up.
“Please Jacks, he loves it; he gives good snuggles too” she beams.
I scoff at her “Not better than me though right?”
I stand up from the sofa and walk over to her, taking her bags out of her hands. She laughs as she walks off ahead of me, still not answering my question.
“Right Liv?”
∞
I’d been having a shit morning. After dropping Liv off at her brothers’ apartment I’d come into the office and tried to throw myself into work.
Instead, I’d found myself thinking about what she was doing more times than not.
Normally by this time of the day, I’d already received a few texts from her with a picture of her and Charlie doing something around the house. Or a drawing she’d been working on. I hadn’t heard from her since I’d been in the office and it was frustrating me how much I already missed it.
“Why are you frowning?” Tony questions, as he stalks into my office and takes a seat.
I don’t know how he even knew I was frowning, considering he hadn’t looked up from his phone yet.
“Just thinking.” I lean back in my chair and look across the desk at him.
“About Olivia?” somehow he manages to hit the nail on the head with his assumption.
“Don’t look at me like that, you haven’t been able to take your eyes off of her since she showed up. You’ve been less of an arsehole around the office too. Always wearing a goofy smile when you’re looking at your phone.” I attempt to cut in but he keeps talking over the top of me.
“Don’t think I haven’t noticed that your dick hasn’t seen the inside of a Vagina for longer than it’s used too either. Probably a little blue around the gills I’m guessing.” He chuckles to himself before continuing.
“Then the same morning you drop her back off at Cooper's your huffing and puffing around here again.”
I sigh, no point in lying about it.
“Don’t know what to tell you, barely know her man. But she’s… different.”
He nods along, finally looking up from his phone.
“She’s a nice girl, good looking too” he smirks when I glare over at him.
“A big step up from Victoria, in personality alone.”
He’s not looking at me now, he’s back to fiddling on his phone. But I nod in agreeance anyway.
I hear a loud bang before a door slams, from outside my office, but I don’t bother getting up to check it. I assume it’s some of the staff members that are still getting situated properly on my floor.
“So what are you going to do?” he pockets his phone now, giving me his full attention.
“Don’t know what I can do? Coop wouldn’t be too happy with me if I did anything.”
He stands up and walks towards my door, but stops just before exiting, “I disagree, you’re one of his best friends; he knows you wouldn’t hurt her intentionally or otherwise. Not if you were serious about her. Sure, if it was some one-night thing he might feel differently. But brother seems like you may be seeking more than one night. Am I right?”
With that, he leaves me alone in my office not even waiting around for a response.
Tony, a man of few words; but the ones he does speak are always important.
I pull my phone out, deciding to send her a message.
Me: How’s the apartment? Missing Charlies company yet?
I throw it down on my desk feeling like a fucking teenage boy, but I get a reply almost instantly.
I smile at the thought that she may have been waiting to hear from me too.
Olivia: So much, can he come stay with me? Please…
Me: Sorry pretty girl, if you want my dog you’ll have to come back.
Olivia: I can’t… it wasn’t fair of my brother to ask you to put me up at your place.
Me: He didn’t ask, I offered remember? I’m still offering.
Olivia: I don’t think Victoria would be too happy about me being back there.
Me: Her opinion doesn’t matter.
Olivia: Thought you said what nearly happened between us couldn’t happen again?
Me: Apparently I’m an idiot…
I wait for a reply but it never comes. I put in a few more hours of work, sifting through emails and paperwork.
When my desk phone rings, I hope for a second that it might be her. So, you can imagine my disappointment when one of the receptionists downstairs tells me she’s got Cooper on the line for me.
“What are you doing calling me on here?” I ask when I take the call.
“Hello to you too Bud. I tried calling your mobile, wouldn’t go through?”
I look over at my phone and see I have no signal. I’d been noticing it happening ever since I moved on to this floor, I’d have to look into it. I switch my phone off, intending to turn it back on in a couple of minutes; to let it find the tower reception again.
“Anyway, I was just calling to thank you for having Livvie stay with you. And for dropping her back at the apartment this morning. I was a little surprised she’d gone back there. I spoke to her earlier though, she was cooking up a storm and keeping busy. Kept grumbling out a plan to try and steal that damn dog of yours though.”
I laugh out loud out at that, of course, she was.
“Yeah, they were pretty smitten with each other” I admit to him while scrolling through my unanswered emails.
“She seems pretty s
mitten with someone else too. Anything I should know?”
I groan out, trust Cooper to lay it out on the line like this.
“Actually, on second thought, I don’t want to know. I’m just going to say one thing and we’ll leave it at that.”
I stop scrolling and lean back in my chair, waiting for whatever he has to say.
“Your one of my best friends, I know you’ve had to work for everything you’ve got in life and I admire the fuck out of you for it Jack. You’re a good man. But Livvie, Livvie is my sister. She’s still young, fuck, I mean she’s only nineteen man. I’m not blind though, I saw your interest in her; the second you handed over your jacket that first night. You don’t share shit of yours. So yeah, real smooth.”
He chuckles to himself. After growing up with nothing of my own, I guess I was a little protective over my belongings. Cooper's voice cuts off my thoughts again.
“If you hurt her though Jackson if you let her get hurt; I’ll never forgive you for it.” He summarises.
I hadn’t realized I’d been holding my breath the whole time Cooper was speaking. But after assuring him that it would be fine and that I would never, we got down to business. He would be away for a few more days yet. He was trying to implement a new contract; that didn’t have us hanging by the balls if we missed the next deadline and instead lit a fire under our Technicians arses.
He’d also let me know that he’d purchased a car and had it delivered to Liv, she’d be able to get around without relying on public transport. On top of that, she would be using it to come into the office tomorrow.
Coop had some illustrations he needed finishing up and he promised she would be perfect for the job. I didn’t doubt him though. I’d seen some of her work while she was staying with me. She was fucking talented.
I decide to call it quits not long after Coops call and head home. I was sure Charlie would be in full on mopping mode at this point and I wasn’t exactly being efficient with my time or wayward thoughts at work either.
∞
When I make it in the door, it’s just like I’d expected. Charlie had greeted me, but it wasn’t with as much bounce as usual. I’d let him outside and instead of barging out like he normally did, he’d just sulked past me.
I’d barely had time to change into a pair of track pants and t-shirt before I hear a knock ring out from my front door. I make my way over and open it up, spotting Victoria leaning against the door.
“I hear your house guest has left” She taunts, slipping under my arm and into my house.
I sigh in frustration and close the door before following after her, not wanting her here after the conversations I’d had with the boys today.
She makes herself comfortable on my sofa before I can even stop her though, patting the spot next to her for me to join. I walk further into the room but don’t make a move to sit.
“Thought we could spend some time together.” She quips.
I shake my head in her direction, before rolling my eyes up to the sky.
I guess we were having this conversation.
“Look, Vic, I don’t want to be an arsehole. But I’m going to be honest with you; yeah?” she nods along, but I notice her body grow tense.
“The arrangement we had between us was fun, it worked. But I don’t think it’s going to continue working any longer. I am sorry you had to come out all this way. But we” I gesture between the two of us “won’t be doing this anymore.”
She’s glaring at me now. “You’re breaking up with me?”
I scoff in her direction. “Victoria you know that’s not what we were.”
She stands, nodding along to my words, but it doesn’t look like she really agrees with them.
Just as she attempts to move in my direction, I hear another knock coming from the front door.
Opening it up slowly this time, I’m surprised to see Olivia standing there.
She’s balancing a couple of containers in her arms, I watch as a smile spreads over her face and she steps inside the house.
“I think I got used to cooking for more than just myself” she shrugs in explanation.
I close the door behind her, my mouth is practically salivating. Whether from the sight of her beautiful face or the aroma coming from the food.
“Oh, how sweet of you Olivia” Victoria remarks, coming to stand beside me in the entryway.
The smile Olivia was wearing only seconds ago completely vanishes at the sight of her.
I don’t want her to get the wrong impression, so I take the containers from her arms; before walking them into the kitchen.
I call out over my shoulder. “I’m glad you did, I was getting hungry and I’d become accustomed to being fed.”
When I walk back out of the kitchen, I see neither woman had moved.
However, Olivia was doing her best to ignore the nasty glare currently being directed at her.
“I’m sorry, I tried calling… I should go. Give Charlie a hug from me.”
She spins to leave, but I quickly stride up and grab hold of her arm. It’s then I remember I’d forgotten to turn my damn phone back on.
“Victoria was just leaving” I prompt.
Olivia still has her back to me when Victoria whines in my direction.
“Really, just like that Jacky; we weren’t done talking”
I feel Olivia trying to pull away from me, but tighten my grip; not enough to hurt her.
“That’s not necessary, I’ve said what I needed to say Victoria.”
Chapter Eleven
Olivia
I stand staring at the door Victoria had just stormed out of. Jacksons Chest against my back.
I don’t know what I’d expected just showing up like this, but it definitely wasn’t this.
“I didn’t know she was coming over” Jackson prompts, gently pulling on my arm, I turn around to face him but don’t move any closer.
“Hmm,” I mumble while biting down on my lip.
I hear him groan before wrapping his arms around me. “She’d only just arrived a few minutes before you. I told her that our arrangement was not going to be continuing and then you knocked on my door, I’m damn glad you did.”
I lean into his chest a little further, inhaling his clean Jackson scent. We stand like that for a couple of minutes, me breathing him in; him resting his chin on my head.
“Have you eaten?” I shake my head against him and he pulls away from me. “Eat dinner with me.”
∞
We’d eaten together at the kitchen bench, sitting side by side; catching up on each other’s day. But now I was curled into his side on the sofa, he’d put a movie on to watch. It had been on for the past hour and I couldn’t tell you anyone who was in it, or anything that had happened.
Instead, I’d been distracted by Jacksons soft touches and gentle kisses.
“I think he’s afraid if he takes his eyes off of you again you’ll disappear.” Jackson's voice startles me out of my relaxed state.
I smile up at him before looking over to Charlie. His head was currently resting on my lap; each time I’d stop patting him, he would nudge my hand to get me to start again.
When Jackson let him in from outside, he’d tackled me onto the floor and hadn’t left my side since.
But at the mention of disappearing, I look down at my watch and sigh. I should really get back to Coops apartment.
Jackson moves his hand to cover the clock face.
“Stay” he whispers into the top of my head before kissing me there.
I shouldn’t, I should get back in the Kia Cerato Coop had gifted me and drive back to the apartment.
But right now with Charlie beside me, and being cuddled into Jackson's side; there was just no way I could drag myself away.
“Okay, but only because I miss my snuggle buddy” I coo over at Charlie; scratching him behind his ears. When they perk up and his tail starts wagging I can’t help but laugh at his reaction.
“Nuh-uh, not tonight Charlie;
she’ll be in my bed” he declares.
I look up at him, smiling at the sexy grin he’s wearing; before he tucks me back into his side and continues watching the movie.
∞
I wake with a start; the sensation of being carried upstairs. Jackson's arms gripping me in close to him.
“Shh babe, it’s just me; go back to sleep.”
I lean back into him and whisper “I didn’t bring any clothes with me to sleep in.”
He doesn’t answer me, just continues to carry me up the stairs and into his room. Depositing me on his bed before pulling his shirt over his head and throwing it on top of me.
Of course, my eyes drop straight away, with no control over them at all. His stomach muscles flexing as he stretches his arms above his head.
When I drag my eyes up to his face, he’s peering down at me with a brow raised and his mouth smirking.