“Down, boy!”I laughed, gently pushing him away.My cheeks hurt from smiling—when was the last time that had happened?
Olivia's giggles joined mine, the sound light and musical.“I'm so sorry!He gets a bit over-excited sometimes.”
I straightened up, wiping my face with the back of my hand.“It's fine.He's...not so bad.”
Our eyes met, and for a moment, the world stood still.A kaleidoscope of emotions passed over Olivia’s face.Her cheeks flushed and her lips parted.It felt like all the air had gone out of the room.I cleared my throat, breaking the spell.
“We should, uh, get to work.”I clutched the back of my neck and my skin was hot to the touch.
“Oh, sure thing.I just need to run out to the car and grab a couple things I brought for him.I'll be right back!”
She turned on her heel and hurried out the door, leaving me standing alone in my kitchen with Pete sitting at my feet.His fluffy tail flicked back and forth across the hardwood floor as he peered up at me expectantly.
“Alright, Pete.Let's get some work done.”I patted my thigh for him to follow and took off down the hall toward my office.Pete trotted along next to me.I looked down at him only to find him looking up at me, and I couldn't help the smile that overtook my face.No wonder he made Olivia feel better; he'd been here less than five minutes, and I’d already laughed and smiled more than I had in months.
I took a seat at my desk.A second later, there was a soft nudge at my hip.I looked down to see Pete's nose stuck through the hole of the armrest in my chair.
“What?”
He pawed at me insistently.I hoisted him up by his ass, and he settled comfortably between me and the back of the chair.I guess I have some new lumbar support.
“Pete!Oh my God!”Olivia’s hand flew over her mouth, stifling her giggle.
“Is this normal?”
“For dogs?Or for Pete?”
“Both, I guess.”
“Can’t be certain, but I’m going to go with ‘no’ for dogs.For Pete, this is entirely normal.”
“Good to know.”
“Alright, come on, Pete.Time to get down.”
“He's fine.He can stay.”
“Are you sure?”
I shot her a look that told her I was, in fact, sure.
“Okay, fine.Just say the word, and I'll take his furry butt to his bed under my desk.”
Our gazes lingered on each other a moment, and I nodded.
Olivia grinned at me and shook her head.“You really are full of surprises, aren't you?”
Without waiting for a reply, she turned and made her way toward her desk.I missed her smile instantly.She was like the fucking sun.Hot, radiant, and very quickly becoming the center of my universe.
But I needed to put some distance between us.To shut it down like I always did.To be the asshole everyone expected.
That was the only way to avoid having my heart ripped from my chest.The way it had been when I was sixteen, and I found my mother dead on the bathroom floor.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
OLIVIA
“Carter,just a reminder that I’ll be late tomorrow.I have that appointment with Dr.—”
