Connections (3 page)

He released her, stepping back a few paces.

She caught herself rethinking her new plan almost immediately, but she needed to be strong.
 
This was best for the both of them.

His eyes burned into hers, his body just out of arm’s reach.
 
She crossed her arms over her thin tank top, suddenly aware of her nipples poking through the material.

And then he said in a solemn tone, “Okay, darling.
 
Whatever you need, anything you want, I’ll gladly give it to you.”

“How are you feeling this morning?” Christie asked, her voice breaking up slightly over the phone.

Olivia blew out a long breath, dumping ingredients into her mixer while attempting to balance the phone between her shoulder and her ear.
 
A strand of hair fell over her eyes and she blew it back in frustration.
 
“Exhausted.
 
Last night was…” she trailed off, not even knowing how to accurately describe it.
 
“God, I don’t even know.
 
Alex showed up around nine.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Christie practically yelled.
 
“What did he have to say for himself?
 
God, what a douche!”

Olivia sighed and then bit her lip, debating how she should tell her very…opinionated friend about what happened last night.
 
“It wasn’t like that, Christie.”

“Don’t tell me you forgave him.
 
Please, Livy, not after he—.“

“His cousin was in a car accident.”
 
That silenced her friend.
 
“And he said his phone died at work so he didn’t even know until he got home and was getting ready for dinner.”

“Oh.”

Olivia placed a hand on the kitchen counter of her cupcake shop to steady herself.
 
“But I told him last night that if we’re going to continue our relationship, then I want to slow it down a bit.
 
Meaning no more sex and sleeping over.”

“Bravo.
 
I bet he likes that idea,” Christie said in amusement, slowly coming to terms that she couldn’t hate Alex anymore.

 
“Yeah, so, that’s where I’m at right now.”
 
Sarah came through the kitchen door, on time for her shift.
 
She waved at Olivia and went to the sink to wash up before starting.

“It’s weird how much I know about this guy.
 
I’ve never even met him, but I’ve already gone through a love and hate relationship.”

Olivia laughed, “Yeah, well, hopefully we’ll be able to change that soon.
 
I haven’t talked to him since he left last night, but I’m still supposed to go to his cousin’s engagement party with him this weekend.”

“You mean, she’s still having it?
 
Even after the accident?”

“That’s what Alex said.
 
Apparently, she’s on pain meds, but they didn’t want to cancel it because everything has already been paid for.
 
They’re just pushing back the wedding.”

“Well, in that case, scope out any hot guys for me, okay?” Christie said.
 
Over the line, Olivia heard the street noise fade and the sound of a heavy door being closed.
 
“I just got to the gallery, so I’ll talk to you later.”

“Okay, and I’ll definitely check out Alex’s friends for you,” Olivia said, smiling.

* * * * *

Alex’s feet pounded hard on the grey pavement, his breath coming out in little puffs of white air.
 
He hadn’t gone on a night run since he’d met Olivia, but it felt good to get his heart pumping and his lungs working again.
 
The crisp fall air stung his face and helped clear his mind.
 
Which was exactly what he needed.

Because if he was going to get through Olivia’s demand, he was going to need a hell of a lot of distractions.

He could understand why she played the ‘no sex’ card.
 
Their relationship had progressed quickly, but Alex didn’t know how he was going to be around her without touching her when he wanted, or kissing her when she bit her bottom lip, or burying himself deep within her when he lost his mind with how much he wanted her.

Running and cold showers, buddy
, he thought to himself.
 
A lot of cold showers.

But not seeing her almost every day just seemed wrong and unnatural.
 
She’d become such a big part of his life this past month that he was having trouble coming to terms with her demand.

But he needed to take it slow.
 
For her.

And for his sanity.

Last night when he thought she was about to break it off with him, he’d felt fear like he’d never experienced before.
 
The thought of her leaving him riled him into a frenzy.
 
He thought he would have lost his fucking mind if she had.

Maybe a little breather was what they both needed.
 
Because they made each other crazy.
 
Absolutely crazy.

At that thought, he pushed his body harder, sprinting the rest of the way back to his house.
 
By the time he reached home, his chest was burning deliciously, but it didn’t help the images of Olivia in his mind.

With a groan, he unlocked his front door and stepped into the warmth of his house.
 
And after the biting chill of his run, his house seemed too hot.
 
Too overwhelming.

His blood was pumping, making him feel overheated.
 
Alive.
 
It reminded him of the way he felt sinking into Olivia, feeling her clench around him as though she loved nothing more than the feel of him inside her tight heat.

“Fuck,” Alex whispered, feeling himself harden in his sweats.
 
One day in and he was already torturing himself.

By the time he finally stripped off his workout clothes to jump in the shower, he had a raging hard on for Olivia and her sweet moans, luscious hips, and full breasts.

Under the hot stream of water, he gripped the base of his erection tightly, dragging his hand slowly up its length.
 
Pleasure pricked at him, making him groan, the sound echoing in the enclosed walls.
 
A thousand different images of Olivia flashed through his mind as he began to pump harder and faster.

Olivia on her knees in front of him, her soft, pink lips wrapped enticingly around the head of his cock.
 
Olivia bent over the arm of his couch, her generous ass upturned for him.
 
Olivia riding him in that greedy way he loved so much.

A few moments later his knees shook as the force of his release overcame him.
 
White, hot flashes of pleasure struck him as he bucked harder into his hand.
 
Groaning helplessly, he watched as streams of his seed washed down the shower drain.
 
And when he was spent, he leaned his head against the tiled wall of shower, breathing heavily.

Fuck
.

He wanted to see her.
 
He wanted to talk to her.
 
But he’d only seen her last night, and he wasn’t sure how much she wanted to slow down.

Alex kept his mind carefully blank as he finished his shower.
 
But when he slid into bed, he couldn’t help but check his phone, wondering if she attempted to call or at least text him.

Nothing.

Fighting back disappointment, Alex decided he would be the one to text her.
 
He hated playing games like this, but he wanted to hear from her.

Goodnight, darling.
 
I hope you dream about me.

Alex pushed ‘send’ and fell back against his pillow on his side of the bed.

His phone dinged a couple minutes later, illuminating the dark room.
 
He reached over and read what she wrote back.

I’m sure I will.
 
I’ve been dreaming of you since we first met.
 
Goodnight.

A grin spread over his face, his heart thundering.
 
He caught of whiff of lavender, Olivia’s scent, and he felt more relaxed right at that moment than he had been for the past few days.

If Olivia was being one hundred percent honest with herself, she would have to admit that she was nervous.
 
Really nervous.
 
She felt like she was fifteen again, waiting for her Homecoming date to come fetch her.

Except she wasn’t fifteen anymore.
 
And Alex Matlock was hardly a Homecoming date.
 
The idea seemed laughable when she pictured his dark eyes and sinful mouth.

Alex was the type of man who’d probably never had those awkward teen years.
 
He was the little boy girls giggled over in grade school, and the type of boy girls flirted with shamelessly in high school.
 
He was the man women lusted over…and he was coming to pick Olivia up right at this very moment.

Olivia had promised Alex she would accompany him to Beth’s engagement party before their big fight.
 
But the aftermath had been relatively calm…too calm, because Olivia hadn’t seen Alex since he left her apartment that night.
 
When Olivia said she wanted to slow things down, she hadn’t counted on how literally Alex would take her meaning.

Things were so slow between them that it could be considered glacial.

Yet, he always texted her goodnight.
 
And she’d talked to him on the phone a couple of times over the past few days.

But he hadn’t asked to see her.
 
And Olivia had been an inch away from demanding a date, or a movie night, or even going out for freaking coffee.
 
Anything at all and Olivia would’ve been happy.

So, Beth’s engagement party came as a welcome reprieve.
 
And she couldn’t wait to see Alex.
 
Her body was practically humming with nervous energy and sweet anticipation because not only would she be seeing Alex’s childhood home—which is where the party was being held—but she’d also get to meet his family and friends.

She was less enthusiastic about meeting his father, who would undoubtedly be there, but she was anxious to see Beth again and meet his aunt and uncle.

A knock on her door sounded and before Olivia even had time to tell herself to ‘play it cool,’ she was tugging open the door.

Alex’s lips quirked up at her apparent eagerness but he said nothing about it.
 
Instead, he took in her emerald green dress at the same time she took in his dark green sweater that stretched deliciously over his broad shoulders.

His brows rose as his gaze lingered on her outfit, “I didn’t get the memo that we were matching, darling.”

Olivia groaned out loud.

“Oh God, people are going to think we’re one of those couples now.”
 
Sighing, she opened the door wider, “Come in.
 
I’ll go change.”

The sound of his laugh followed her into the bedroom and he appeared in her doorway a moment later.
 
Leaning against the door frame with his hands casually tucked into the front of his pressed dark grey slacks, he watched as she rummaged through her closet.

Which didn’t help Olivia’s focus at all.
 
She could feel his gaze on her.
 
She imagined stripping out of her dress for him slowly, wanting him to lose control around her like before.

Olivia’s ‘no sex’ rule was backfiring in her face.
 
She was realizing that now.
 
She’d forgotten just how potent her attraction to him was.

She finally grabbed a lavender dress that she’d once worn to an old friend’s baby shower.
 
It was a flowy dress that cinched at the waist, which flattered Olivia’s hourglass figure.
 
And it was perfect for an engagement party.

She turned to Alex with the hanger in her hand.

“I, um, need to change now,” she said hesitantly, her eyes on his.

He gazed at her with his lips set in an even, soft line.
 
But the heat in his eyes made her want to shiver.

“Okay,” he replied smoothly, shifting subtly on his feet.
 
But he made no move to leave.

Olivia’s eyes narrowed a fraction.
 
He was testing her.
 
Or maybe he was testing himself.
 
It didn’t matter.
 
Regardless, her heart began to thump wildly in her chest.

Damn, he’s handsome
, she thought with a mental shake of her head.

His hazel eyes pierced her from the doorway and something in her wanted to tease him.
 
Something in her wanted to wreak havoc on his control, the very control that she’d foolishly demanded from him.

She raised her hand to the strap and his eyes tracked her every movement intently, as though in anticipation.
 
But just as she pushed the strap off her shoulder, Alex pushed off the doorway suddenly and retreated to the living room.
 
A part of her was relieved.
 
A part of her was startled.
 
A larger part was disappointed.

But with a quick glance at the alarm clock perched on her night stand, Olivia decided she didn’t have time to ponder over his reaction.
 
They would be late if they didn’t leave in the next few minutes.

Olivia emerged from the bedroom a few moments later, struggling to zip up the back of the lavender dress.
 
Alex was sitting on the couch, silent, with his elbows propped on his knees.
 
He was staring at the blank screen of the television, seeming to be deep in thought, so she stepped closer to him.

“Alex, can you help me with this?” she asked quietly, almost in embarrassment.
 
He stood up wordlessly, his eyes skimming over her half-bared back.
 
He ran a strong hand over his mouth and he caught her eyes for a brief moment before she faced forward.