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Yet, the idea of everything happening because of destiny made her heart constrict painfully.
Would anyone ever love her for her? Not because fate decreed it, not because she was the perfect daughter, not because she was the indispensable bigger sister.
Olivia drew in a deep breath and pushed away the melancholy thought. Feeling sorry for herself was as useless as an umbrella in a hurricane. It was up to her to make the best of a terrible situation.
Marek was her fated mate. Him falling in love with her, and her with him, was the natural order of things and should be a breeze. She wasn’t sure if she was ready to fall in love, especially with an arrogant and domineering vampire. Then again, her exes had always hated her take-charge attitude.
She needed someone who was her equal, who wasn't intimidated by her.
As the truth of that realization settled in her gut, she looked at her list and jotted down another pro:Equals.
Chapter Fourteen
Atexactlyeightp.m.,the doorbell buzzed.
Wow. Marek knew how to be polite. She’d half expected him to storm through the gates like yesterday. Earlier, Marek had emailed her twenty translated spells from the grimoire as he’d promised. Apparently, he’d set up an email for her in Vegas’ system. At the end of the email was a note saying he’d meet her at eight to work on more translations.
After reviewing the twenty spells—none of which was the life transfer spell—she’d called Andrea to practice more magic. Today, she’d managed to use magic to turn off a lightbulb. Well, the lightbulb had exploded, but close enough…
When Olivia opened the door, her mouth went dry, and her skin flushed hot at the sight of him. Marek wore a navy button down that deepened the color of his eyes. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, revealing taut lines of muscle. His neatly gelled blond hair emphasized his blade-like cheekbones and square jaws.
God, it wasn’t fair. It just wasn’t.
Her family’s grimoire was tucked under one arm while his other hand carried another bouquet, this one full of color—pink-striped lilies, yellow roses, blue hydrangeas.
Pleasant warmth bloomed in her chest, her annoyance forgotten. “Those are for me? Another one?” Two bouquets in two days? That’s gotta be a record.
“Yes.” His eyes skimmed over her as he handed her the bouquet. “You look beautiful.”
Her cheeks heated. She wished she could make up something smart and witty, but all she said was, “Thank you. Come in.”
Dressing up had been a risky move, but from the way Marek’s gaze devoured her from head to toe, the effort had been more than worth it. She’d twisted her hair into an updo and put on some simple eye makeup. After finishing the magic session with Andrea, she’d ordered a flowery dress from a department store.
It would’ve taken two days to be delivered until inspiration had struck and she gave them Marek’s name. As the store manager bent over backwards to fulfill her wishes, including delivering the dress within the hour, she’d felt guilty yet thrilled.
No wonder Marek acted like he owned the world if everyone treated him like a king.
Stopping right above her knees, the dress had short sleeves and was nothing special, except for the V cut dipping low over her boobs. She’d had a small panic attack while shopping, wondering what sort of woman Marek liked. Did he like tall, modelesque blondes? If so, then he was out of luck. She’d almost bought an even more risqué dress but decided against it right before checkout.
She didn’t want to wear anything that wasn’t her, to give Marek the wrong impression by pretending to be someone she wasn’t. If a romantic relationship were in their future, she would show him the real her whether he liked it or not.
Olivia located a vase for the flowers in the kitchen cabinet, all the while being extremely aware of Marek’s sensual presence behind her.
As she filled up the vase with water, she asked, her voice shaky, “How was your day?”
Ugh, why did I ask that? Small talk is the worst.
But this charged silence was even worse.
“It was good. I slept through most of it.”
Duh. She unwrapped the flowers and stuck them in the vase. “They're so pretty.” She grinned, unable to disguise her delight.
“Good.” A brief pause. “I didn’t know your favorite flower.”
“It didn’t come up on my background check?” she asked, more teasing than angry. One more thing she’d stopped holding against him.
He closed the distance between them, prowling toward her like a dangerous lion. She remained stock still, her heart galloping against her chest. She should back away, but her body refused, not when she’d craved this all day. Stopping with less than an inch separating them, his hands dropped down flat on the table, trapping her. Olivia muffled a moan when his head dipped until his hot breath caressed her ears.
