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Olivia is a touchy-feely person.Always has been.With me, anyway.And I’ve never thought anything of it.I can’t begin to count the number of times she’s placed her hand on my thigh.Tonight, though, it’s as if she’s wrapped her hand around my dick because that’s where I’m feeling it.
I almost choke on my words when I say, “What is it?”
She inspects me like I’m sick.“Are you sure you’re okay?”Her fingers curl into my leg while she studies me.“What’s going on, Callan?”
Rhodes saves me when he comes back to the table and announces, “The bride and groom have finally fucked off.”He eyes Sasha.“Time to go, baby.”Then, to me and Olivia, he says, “We’ll catch you guys at the wedding.”
Olivia looks at him.“What, no early morning breakfast with us before the wedding?”
Sasha stands.“Very funny, Liv.You know I’m not cut out to get ready for a ten-a.m.weddingandshow up for breakfast with you guys all in the one morning.We can’t all be queens at managing our time like you.”
“You should build Sasha a spreadsheet,” I say once we’re alone.
Olivia narrows her eyes at me.“I can’t tell if you’re being serious or making fun of my planning methods.”
I grin and reach for my glass of whiskey.“You know I fucking love your planning methods.”
“Yes, but you’ve got that cheeky look in your eyes that you get when you’re making fun of me.”
“I’m amused at the thought of you trying to manage Sasha.You have to admit that you’re very dedicated when you’re trying to help someone, and we both know Sash has even less skills when it comes to personal management than I do.She’d be running to Blair within twenty-four hours begging for her help to manageyou.”
She smacks me lightly before pushing her chair back to stand.“You’re lucky I love you, Callan Black.Also, you better be on my side if this ever happens.You’re the only person I know who can handle Blair when she goes into Blair-battle Mode.”
Olivia has told me she loves me almost as many times as she’s put her hands on my body.I’ve always taken it for granted and never really stopped and thought about the words when she’s said them.Tonight, they’re like a direct hit.They pierce through all the noise in my brain and settle inside my soul in the most confusing way.
I’ve wanted her friendship and the platonic love that comes with it for as long as I can remember, but now, there’s something more to it.Something I don’t want to get too close to because if I do, it’ll fuck everything up that we have.And that’s not something I ever want to do.I want Olivia in my life forlife; taking our friendship further would land us in a tangled mess of feelings that could end everything.
As we weave our way through the tables to leave the restaurant, I push all that down and do my best to ignore it.I also do my best to avoid all the couples who try to stop us on our way out.This is the problem with knowing too many people, and while I’m usually up for a conversation, I’m not tonight.I just want some time by myself so I can figure out how to get through this weekend, because as much as having Olivia as my plus-one for the season sounded like a no-brainer at the time, I’ve very quickly realized tonight that it may have been a grave error in judgment.
Olivia’s cell phone starts ringing while we’re standing at her hotel room door.She’s busy fumbling in her purse for her room keycard and mutters something about hockey players having a knack for calling at the exact wrong moment.Just as she stabs at the phone to answer the call, it stops ringing.
She looks at me.“In my next life I won’t even know what hockey is, let alone know any of the men who chase pucks around for a living.”
“Slade?”She’s working with three hockey players now, but Slade’s the one who gives her the most hell.
“Yes.He’s called me ten times today.Ten!”
“Jesus.”I bite my tongue because there’s a fuckload more I could say but I know she won’t want to hear any of it.
She sighs as she taps the keycard to the door and opens it.“Hayden’s gotta be happy with the billable hours, but the emotional work with Slade is equal to double those hours really.I asked him to only call me in the case of an emergency this weekend, so I’ll quickly return his call just to make sure he’s okay.”
I follow her in and survey the room.Olivia is the tidiest person I know but this room looks like a bomb hit.Her suitcase is on the bed with clothes strewn half in and half out.Other clothes lay in piles on the bed, and fuck me, two lacy bras are on the very top of those piles.One is black and one is red, and I’ve never wanted to see a bra on a woman as much as I want to see that red bra on Olivia.
While she calls Slade, I reply to a few emails that need to be taken care of tonight and ask my assistant to follow up on a couple of others.I try hard to remove my eyes from that red bra while I do this but I appear to have developed a multitasking skill that I’ve never had before and astound myself with my ability to tap out an email while committing the lace of that bra to memory.
When Olivia finishes with Slade and says, “Now, I know you’re not a fan of any kind of tea, but I have a herbal tea for you that I really want you to try,” I shove my phone in my trousers and say, “Hit me with it.”At this point, I’d drink tea all night long if it meant my mind was distracted from bras and bare skin and that sinful black dress I’ve imagined peeling from her in a million different ways.
Her brows gather together right before she plants her hands on her hips and says, “Okay, so now I know there reallyissomething wrong with you.In all our years, you’ve never once easily submitted to tea.”
The tie that I loosened at dinner suddenly feels like it’s strangling me.Between Olivia standing in front of me the way she is and using words like submit, I’m fucked.I’m generally a straight thinker and rarely find myself with chaotic thoughts.Right now, my mind is a wreck I can’t even begin to make sense of.
“It’s been a fucker of a day at work.If tea will help me unwind, I’m all for it.”
Keeping her hands on her hips—fuck me, those hips—she shakes her head.“No, I’m not buying that anymore.”
“Anymore?”I’m fighting to keep up with this conversation because all I can think about is how much I wantmyhands on her hips.
She finally drops her hands.“You’ve been off for weeks.Brushing my concern aside whenever I bring it up.Ever since you slept with Penelope, to be honest.I’m worried you’re in denial over your feelings for her.”
