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He shrugged off the praise, bringing my hand up to kiss the back of it with a smile. “I’m glad you like it, but let’s eat. I heard through the grapevine that you were limping today, so afterward I can give you a massage, if you want?”
Amazing food, the best company and now a massage to top it off? I was going to get spoiled by this. Squeezing his hand before reluctantly pulling away, I nodded. “That would be amazing, though just to be clear, I’m not sure I’m up to anything more strenuous.”
While I loved feeling him between my thighs, I needed a bit of recovery time. The longer we did it, the less time I’d need, but for now, the only thing on the agenda was cuddling.
He didn’t bat an eye. “I figured. To be honest, I wouldn’t want to start anything until that limp was gone anyway. I don’t want to make it worse when you have to be on your feet all day for work.”
Warmth bloomed in my chest, and I fought the urge to forget the dinner entirely just to pull him into a hug. He had no right to be this amazing. It did funny things to me, and the longer we were together, the more used to it I was becoming.
The rest of dinner passed in silence, my hand gravitating back to his at some point. Eating with my non-dominant hand was tricky, but the small circles he drew on my skin were soothing, and I wasn’t about to give that up for anything.
Before I could move to do the dishes, though, he took them with a shake of his head. “Nope, I’ll do those later, but for now, you and I are going to bed. I don’t have any oil on me, but if you have scented lotion, that will work also.”
I didn’t bother arguing; instead, I led the way back to my room and nodded. “I have lavender-scented body lotion.” He nodded, closing the door behind us and gesturing to the bed.
“Perfect, now lie down however is most comfortable. You can be nude or clothed. I can make it work either way.”
I only had to consider it for a second before I was tugging at my clothes, wasting no time in falling face-first into the sheets with a contented sigh once I was completely free of them.
Oliver’s hand trailed down my back, and after a beat, he asked. “Where’s the lotion?”
It took me a second to remember, but when I did I answered. “It’s in the bathroom cupboard, on the top shelf.”
He disappeared for a second, the skin he’d touched tingling with awareness now. He was back and kneeling over me on the bed in what felt like a blink. The mattress sagged under us, his knees pressing on either side of me as I heard the cap to the lotion open.
Barely a second later, his hands rested on my back, the smooth glide of them soothing as he worked from my neck downward. I hadn’t realized just how many knots there were until he started on them, talented fingers finding them one by one and working them out.
By the time he finished I was boneless under him, the pleasant hum vibrating through me wiping away the dregs of my bad day. The scent of lavender hovered in the air as he laid down next to me, his hand tracing circles over my back as he smiled.
“Does that feel better?” He asked, and immediately I nodded.
“It’smuchbetter, thank you.”
Silence lingered for a beat and then he prodded lightly. “What happened with Emily, anyway?”
I didn’t even bother biting back my groan. I should’ve known he’d want to hear it, and it wasn’t as if it were that bad…
Deciding, I answered honestly. “She noticed I was limping today and decided she was going to play judge, jury, and executioner. For the most part she was just rude, but she tried to trip me while I was carrying dishes and then threw coffee on me when I told her to act like an adult.”
I didn’t even have to mention her connection to Diana this way.
Before I could sink any further into sleep, Oliver hesitantly spoke. “Does this have anything to do with Diana? I remember that they were good friends before.”
Well, so much for not telling him that.
Rolling partially to face him, our noses inches away now, I nodded. “She blamed me for Diana getting into trouble with the sheriff, but just like that wasn’t my fault, this isn’t yours either, Oliver.”
I caught the flash of guilt spearing through his eyes before he hid it, looking away with a grimace. “I wish you didn’t have to deal with this.”
That was better than feeling guilty, at least…
Scooting closer until we were side to side, his warmth enveloping me like the best blanket in the world, I answered.
“I know, and I appreciate that, but you can’t control someone else’s actions. The only thing you can do is handle your own.” Shifting up on tired arms, I kissed his head.
“I don’t want you feeling guilty over this, okay? None of this is your fault.”
He grimaced, a war waging across his features. I didn’t say anything, content to run my fingers through his hair as he came to terms with it all. After a beat, he sighed.
