Not when I wanted it there.
She blew out a breath. “I don’t know about you, but I could use a drink after that.”
I gestured toward the empty kitchen, following closely behind as she walked down the short hallway toward the counter bar.
“What’ll you have?” I asked, turning on my best charming smile.
Her lips twitched. “Oh? Are you a bartender or something?”
“I’ve been known to make a stiff drink from time to time.”
She leaned back against the counter. “Tequila soda, please. Extra lime.”
I nodded. “Coming right up.”
We were quiet as I worked. I could feel the tension still weighing heavily on her shoulders. The least I could do is be a safe place to exist in silence. She looked out the window, giving off an air of indifference, but I didn’t miss the way her fingers dug into her forearms.
“Here you go.” I walked over, holding the drink out to her.
She quickly took it, holding it up in thanks. “Nice touchthere at the end.” Olivia chewed on her bottom lip, staring up at me through thick lashes. “You know, the whole put some respect on my name thing.”
“You liked that, huh?” I asked, smiling.
“I did.” She hesitated, clearing her throat before adding. “And the territorial, ‘my girl’ thing was nice, too. I mean, completely unnecessary and untrue, but still.”
“Doesn’t have to be.” My beer was lukewarm at best now, but I took a swing anyway. I needed something to do with my hands other than fucking touch her. It was hard enough trying to focus on the fact that the only thing separating her skin from mine was a thin scrap of fabric.
Olivia’s silence only increased my anxiety, yet I didn’t push her. If the roles had been reversed and she claimed me as her own, I wouldn’t know how the hell to react either.
“It’d be reckless to be anything more than friends,” she whispered. “We’re both divorced with kids.”
“So? Is that supposed to mean we can’t enjoy ourselves?”
I wasn’t sure what happened to the man I’d become after my marriage ended, but I hadn’t seen him in weeks. Being here, with Olivia, was the closest I’d felt to my old self in years. Even before Sarah and I separated, I’d noticed my walls climbing higher and higher. Maybe that was one of the reasons we hadn’t worked out in the first place.
I always felt like I was doing something wrong. Like I wasn’t enough for her. Unfortunately, those thoughts had become reality when she left me for a life I never even knew she wanted. I vowed never to put myself in a position that could hurt Harper and me again, yet here I was, opening myself to potential danger.
Olivia averted her gaze. “Enjoying ourselves is one thing. Anything more is out of the question, and you know that.”
I did know that. God, did I fucking know that. But I alsoknew that the past week and a half without her had been the longest days of my life. Her silence, her absence, was fucking killing me. If I were going to die, I’d rather do it knowing the taste of her.
I placed my hand on her stomach, crowding Olivia until she was gently pinned against the counter. Conversations were a soft hum in the background. Loud enough for us to know we weren’t alone, but quiet enough to give us a sense of security we didn’t have out in the open.
Olivia’s chest heaved as she took quick, shallow breaths. Those wide, luscious lips I’d been dreaming of parted as I invaded her space.
“What I know, honey, is that being around you is turning me into a very impatient and greedy man. One of these days…” I let my fingers play with the buttons of her dress, tugging ever so slightly. “I just may snap.”
Her gaze dipped to my mouth for a moment before I stepped back out into the open. If people were looking, wondering what we were doing around the corner, I didn’t give a shit. Let them see what we did to one another. Let them see just how much of a sucker I’d become in a short amount of time, because I was damn sure enjoying the view of Olivia looking fully flushed.
“That’s not fair,” she breathed. Her voice was barely above a whisper. Heat bloomed across her cheeks, turning them a bright pink as she finished her drink.
“What’s not?” I asked, cocking my head to the side.
She waved in my general direction. “This. You. Whatever just happened.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said, winking as I finished off the warm beer. “I’m going to grab another drink. You want one?”
She nodded. “Please.”