Complications(24)

Olivia took in a deep breath and rested her arms on the counter, trying to dispel the desire coursing through her veins. If they continued like this through dinner, she would be so worked up by the time they finally made it to the bedroom that one touch from him would send her flying. In order to distract herself, she asked, “What’s his name? Or is it a she?”

He shrugged, crouching down in front of a bottom cabinet to take out a cast iron skillet. “I’m not sure. And it doesn’t have a name.”

Olivia sat up straighter, “Surely you’ve named it. You’ve been feeding it for so long, haven’t you?”

He tossed her a smile, “Is calling it ‘Cat’ too heartless?”

Olivia rolled her eyes in amusement, “You’re so bad. And so unimaginative.”

“Well, you can name it then,” he offered, dripping a few drops of olive oil into the skillet.

“But I haven’t even seen it,” she protested.

“And you have to see it in order to name it?”

“Of course you do.” Alex turned to her then, crossing his arms over his broad chest. Her brain went fuzzy as his green sweater stretched over his perfectly sculpted muscles. She wondered now if he got any of them doing yard work. Most likely, she thought, remembered how large the backyard was. “Haven’t you ever had a pet before?” she asked, returning her eyes to his.

Olivia was immediately confused when he averted his gaze at the question. He went completely cold on her in an instant and he turned back around to the stove, murmuring, “No.”

Well, that was weird, she thought. Olivia frowned, wondering if she hit a soft spot for him. But before she could open her mouth to apologize, he walked to the fridge and opened it.

“Is salmon okay with you?” he asked, his voice cutting through the sudden silence.

“Salmon sounds great,” she replied brightly, trying to shake off the oddness of the moment before.

“I already made some quinoa earlier and the salad is ready to go. Let me just pan fry this really quick and broil it. We should be ready to eat soon,” he explained. Then he paused and looked over his shoulder at her. Warmth had returned to his eyes and Olivia felt relieved. “Sorry. I just realized I must sound like an incredibly boring eater.”

Olivia shrugged and smiled softly, trying to ignore the sudden pang of self-consciousness, “You’re a healthy eater. There’s nothing wrong with that. Besides, I doubt you look like that because you eat ice cream and pizza all day long.” She probably seemed like a glutton to him, owning a cupcake shop and all. And she happily had dessert every night. The most dessert-like thing she would probably find in his fridge was fruit.

“Look like what?” he asked, his tone innocent. She laughed when she realized he was deliberately fishing for compliments. But it helped to lighten the mood. And the sexy grin he threw her reminded her of the long night ahead of them.

The end of dinner couldn’t come fast enough.





Chapter Nine




Alex and Olivia burst into the dark bedroom, the door hitting hard against the wall. Alex didn’t care. He only cared about stripping off Olivia’s clothes and pushing inside her heat.

His lips left hers as his fingers grasped the bottom edge of her top, her sweater having been discarded somewhere between the kitchen and his bedroom. He pulled it over her head in one swift move. Before it even hit the floor, his fingers were over the buttons of her jeans, his hands shaking in anticipation.

Want, need, desire pulsed through him like a drug. He had to have her. Now.

Luckily, this beautiful woman seemed to feel the same way about him. Her hands slipped up inside his sweater and he groaned when she dragged her fingernails teasingly down his abdomen.

His cock jumped as she hurriedly tugged his sweater off. He could already feel beads of moisture gathering at the head of his shaft. A growl of frustration rose from his throat at the sweet torture.

Alex pushed his hand down her panties when he finally got the button undone, way past impatient at this point. He nibbled at her ear, his lips curling into a smile when he found her wetness. He slipped two fingers inside, feeling her walls clench around him. She moaned and moved her hands to his shoulders to steady herself.

Alex leaned back so he could see her face. He wanted to see what he did to her.

He watched her expressions as his arousal grew to an almost painful height. Olivia looked helpless against her own desire. He could tell when he pushed her to the edge so he backed off. He could tell when she wanted more so he gave it to her. The ebb and flow of her arousal was so plain to him and it brought a knowing smile to his face.

“Stop, please,” she begged him, her blue eyes wide and glazed. But they took on a determined edge as her fingers undid his belt and flicked open the top button of his jeans. He felt frozen with desire as she stepped away from his grasp. He let his fingers slide out of her slick opening and she tossed him a shaky smile. “It’s your turn, for once, since you didn’t let me last time.”