I sighed at the meaning of those words. God, he was a talker...when he wanted to be.
Jace coughed. "Your closet is through the bathroom." He pointed to a closed door. "You can have a quick shower and get yourself dressed."
He fumbled for a moment by the door and I watched him. I couldn't find two words to put together, so I said nothing at all. Jace nodded, looking unsure as he closed the bedroom door behind me. As soon as he was gone from sight, I felt empty.
***
I ran a hand through my hair as I paced the floor of my bedroom. What the hell had I done wrong? Olivia hadn't said a word to me since we were in the elevator. My stomach felt as though it were being chewed from the inside out. My nerves were fucking shot.
It was obvious there was something wrong...but what? I'd run through the day a thousand times and I couldn't find the glitch that spun my perfect picture into this tense evening we faced.
"Shit," I whispered aloud as I sat down on the edge of the bed. This was not the mood I wanted Olivia in when she met my mother. My mother and sister were the two most important people in the world to me. Never before had I ever shared them with another person in my life, except Caleb. But, I wanted Olivia to meet them. It hadn't taken her long to climb the ladder of my affections. She was quickly becoming the most important person in my life.
It was her face I wanted to wake up to each morning. It was her hair I wanted to run my fingers through when I kissed her lips. It was her I wanted to see in my kitchen every morning...barefoot...and hell, I don't know what I want.
I dragged my hand over my face as I shook the almost thought from my mind. All I knew was, I wanted Olivia...in every way. She was the yin to my yang.
Whatever it was I'd done to upset her, I had to fix it.
Chapter 24
I took a deep breath of air into my lungs and sighed. Damn...she smelled so good. I snuck another peek at her in the passenger seat at a red light. She looked good. The little white dress she wore was cut perfectly to accentuate all the right curves, while at the same time, pulling off that modest look women love. Her heels were nude to match her handbag and she wore a stunning gold watch. Her wavy hair was down around her shoulders...just the way I loved it.
A flashback of the first time I'd ever seen her shot though my mind. I remembered the way her red lips looked as they lifted at the corners in the formations of a smile. She looked like an angel then...and she looked like one now.
"What are you staring at me like that for, Jace?" She asked, breaking through my thoughts.
"You're beautiful." I grinned and she blushed. My cock jumped at the pink in her skin and I pressed the gas, focusing on the busy streets.
"How many women have you brought to meet your mother?"
"None." I answered honestly. I had never desired to bring a woman home to Karen's gentle heart. Regardless of my attempts to keep the women in my life separate from my family, one had weaseled her way into Karen's life. Without my consent or knowledge, Lexie targeted both Karen and Jaylah's pity during her efforts to ruin me. After a tiresome court battle, Lexie agreed to disappear from not only my life, but from my family's life...at a cost.
Olivia's eyes bugged. "None?" Her fingers toyed nervously with the handbag on her lap. "You've never brought a woman home to your family?"
"No." Why was she so freaked out by this?
"Oh," she pulled her bottom lip into her mouth and I made a split decision to stop at the nearest Starbucks for her favorite white hot chocolate.
I pulled the car into the drive through and she sighed in obvious relief as I ordered her drink.
"You're getting me a hot chocolate?" She asked.
I raised my brows. "You looked like you needed it."
She nodded. "Oh, I do." The quick smile fell from her face and she looked into her lap. "Are you sure about this?"
I tensed. "About what?"
"About me meeting your family?" She took in a deep breath and I wanted to kiss away the worry marring her brow. "I mean, I will understand if you're not ready."
"I am ready." I drove up to the window, paid the lady and handed Olivia her drink. As I pulled back onto the busy street, I said. "If I was not ready, I would not be doing this."
"Okay." She took a long sip of the hot, sugary liquid.
"If you're not ready for this, I will understand." I said gruffly. I fucking hoped she didn't want to back out of this dinner. I could only imagine the disappointment fringing Karen's tone. After Jaylah's meeting with Olivia, Karen was dying to meet her.
Olivia thought for a moment and I held my breath. "No. I want to meet her."
"Good." I breathed a breath of release. "I did not want to cancel."