Life Support (The Breathe Series Book 2) (26 page)

“What? What’s wrong?” she asks, pleading for answers to my abruptness.

Once inside our room, I turn and shut the door, locking it for good measure. I grab her arms firmly and turn her around to gently push her against the closed door. My hands are pressed on either side of her shoulders, caging her in.

I lean in close and run my nose up her neck, growling, “Just what do you think you’re doing in this amazing dress, Olivia? You’re killing me here!”

Olivia grins and places her fingers under my chin, lifting my face so our eyes meet. “Baby, you don’t like my dress? Is it too tight?” She runs a hand down over her breasts and down toward her stomach. “Are my heels too high?” She raises her leg and rubs her calf against mine as she slides her hand the rest of the way down the front to her leg.

My eyes following her every move and she’s making me hard. She sees it and grins wickedly.

“Or maybe, just maybe, my dress is too short?” She slowly moves her hand up her thigh and starts to push up the hem of her dress. “Is that it, baby? You’re scared someone might see my—”

I don’t let her finish before my mouth is on hers, my tongue plunging into her mouth. A deep, growling moan rolls from my lips. “Fuck, woman. It’s all of those things,” I whisper into her mouth. “I can’t decide if I want to fuck you or spank you. Either way, it’s a win for me.” I moan as I kick her feet apart with my foot and nestle into her body, pressing my hardness against her core. Removing her hand from the back of my neck, I roughly guide it to my cock and rub it along my length. “Feel that? You always fucking do this to me. I love it and I hate it. But right now, I’m loving it.”

Olivia grips my erection through my slacks and I groan into her skin as my mouth finds hers again. My hand skims down her shoulder and cups her breast through her dress, my thumb dancing across her taut nipple. I can feel that she’s not wearing a bra, and it makes me wonder if she’s wearing any underwear at all.

“Umm…excuse me.” Marc knocks on the door, interrupting us. “I’m not hearing a whole lot of talking in there. Charlotte and I are hungry and we’re ready to go. So wrap it up already or we’re heading out without you. Horndogs…” Marc murmurs as walks away.

“Shut up, Marcus. Get it, Olivia!” We hear Charley yell from the living room.

Olivia and I start laughing and press our foreheads together. I cup Olivia’s face in my large hands and pull her to me for a soft, loving kiss.

“Tell me we’ll always be like this, Owen. Like we can’t get enough of each other.”

I kiss her neck and whisper into her ear, “Forever, baby.”

Dinner is amazing. Olivia chose a very chic sushi restaurant that opened a few blocks away from our apartment. The candlelit restaurant is intimate and the food is phenomenal. Liv and I will definitely be coming back here.

Through dinner, Olivia and I sit on one side of the table. Marc and Charley on the other. The girls are opposite each other and have been busy chatting and catching up. It’s nice to see Olivia so excited and animated with her best friend.

“You’re looking good, man! Glad you and Charley could make it out here to see us.” I smile, raising my glass of single malt scotch.

Marc’s glass hits mine in a soft clink and he smiles back. “It’s twofold actually.”

“Oh? Don’t tell me you have another best friend in the city,” I joke.

“No. You’re enough for me.” Marc chuckles as he takes a sip of his scotch. Leaning forward on the table, he continues, “I’ve been approached by the local NBC affiliate to be the weekend desk reporter and do field work during the week with an emphasis in sports. I’ll be interviewing with them on Monday.”

“Holy shit, Marcus! That…that’s awesome!” I say excitedly. “That’s major!”

“It’s pretty much my dream job, Owen. I can’t believe how quickly my career has taken off. People would sell their firstborn to have an opportunity like this. I mean, it sets me up for bigger things—like going to a national market.”

“What does that one think of all this happening?” I ask, nodding my chin toward Charley. I know their relationship is new, but I also know that Marc is whipped.

“She’s been great about it, actually. Very encouraging. I…I just don’t know how this will affect our relationship. I want the best of both worlds—the dream job and the dream girl. I just don’t know if I can have both. I don’t want the long-distance thing, but I don’t like the alternative either.” Marc sits back in his seat with a thud.

“She is pretty much your match. She’s a female version of you!” I laugh.

“You have no idea.” Marc confirms. “She balances me out. It’s hard to explain.”

“No. No need to explain. I completely get that,” I say, looking at Olivia. “Go to the interview on Monday and see what happens from there. You and Charley can worry about the other stuff when it comes.”

“Hmm? What are you guys talking about? I heard my name,” Charley chimes in as she snuggles into Marc’s side with a smile.

He wraps an arm around her and lovingly kisses her temple. I’ve never seen Marc like this—gentle and loving. It looks good on him.

After we finish up dinner, Olivia and Charley head to the restroom to freshen up before we head out to the club while Marc and I fight over who is paying the bill. Marc insists on paying because he and Charley are staying with us.

“Seriously, do not make me beat your ass like I did in the eighth grade. I’m not afraid to give you another shiner,” he threatens, albeit weakly.

I throw my hands up in defeat. “My face is much too pretty for you to damage,” I chuckle. “That motherfucker hurt too! And all because I jumped out from the bushes and scared you.”

“Dude! You were dressed as a clown in full makeup and in the dark!
And
you had your dad’s motorized tree trimmer running. It was my worst nightmare come to life! Only when I heard Travis laughing behind you did I realize it was you, you twisted fuck!”

I am laughing hard by the time I see the women approaching. Both have a look of curiosity on their faces as to what could possibly have me so amused. We share the story with them as we load up into a cab outside the restaurant. It is really good to have Marcus here.

Our cab drops us off at a posh nightclub twenty minutes away. As Marc, Charley, and Olivia wait at the back of the line to get in, I make my way up to speak with the bouncer.

“Hey, man. How’s it going? Listen, I’m FDNY,” I say, showing him my badge. “Think we could avoid this mess and get me and my friends inside quicker?”

Without a second thought, the burly bouncer nods his head and stands aside to open to velvet rope into the club. I stand back from the line and get Marc’s attention. He looks surprised, but he ushers the women to the front of the line, much to the grumbling of the other people patiently waiting.

“Looks like you’re Mister Popular tonight,” Marc teases.

“I just work for the right people,” I reply as I slip the bouncer forty bucks for letting us in early.

We fight our way toward an unoccupied high-top table. The ladies take a seat on the two open chairs while Marc and I stand behind our women.

“First round is on me. Marc? Charley? What will it be?” I ask.

“I’ll stick with scotch,” Mark replies as he looks to Charley for her drink order.

“What are you getting, Olivia?” Charley asks while grabbing the drink menu off the table.

“Mojito.” Olivia and I say simultaneously. Olivia nudges my chest with her shoulder and looks up at me with a smile.

“Okay! I’ll have that too.” Charley grins.

“Easy enough. I’ll be back.” I call to the group as I make my way to the bar.

When I return with the drinks, I see the girls twisting in their seats to the music that is blasting through the club. The place is packed with writhing, sweaty, scantily clad bodies. Charley and Olivia are watching the others on the dance floor and appear to be busting at the seams to get out there and join in. I hand out the drinks and the women quickly take a few big swallows before motioning to Marc and me that they’re diving into the sea of bodies.

I lean over and plant a wet kiss behind Olivia’s ear, eliciting a shudder and a beautiful smile. “Have your fun, but remember that I’m watching and you’re coming with me later.”

“Of course I coming home with you!” she clarifies, giving me her brightest smile.

“You’re coming. In our bed and on my dick.”

Olivia’s eyes grow wide as she drains the rest of her mojito. She mouths, “I love you,” and I repeat the same as she leaves her empty glass on the table and saunters onto the floor. I’m mesmerized by her hips as they move seductively in step with the beat.

I take the seat previously occupied by Olivia and watch as Marc mauls Charley before she pulls herself away and onto the dance floor to join Olivia. Both women turn to look at us, and we nod from our table in appreciation as they start to move. They may not be the best dancers here, but Olivia and Charley are probably the most enthusiastic. They move around each other, swaying their hips and arms in the air, moving their bodies to the thumping bass.

Fifteen minutes of ogling later, Marc and I have finished our drinks. I tell Marc that I’m going to the bar for another round and ask him to keep our girls in sight. Nearly fifteen minutes later, I’m back at our table with our drinks. I look to the dance floor, searching for Olivia, but I’m met with an ocean of gyrating bodies moving with the rhythm.

“Where are the girls?” I ask Marc, who is distracted by his phone.

“Hmm?” Marc says without looking up from his device. “Oh! I was just checking some work emails. They were just right there.” He lifts his head in the direction where he last saw the girls dancing together. “Aaand now they’re not. Don’t sweat it, man. They’re big girls. They can handle themselves,” Marc reassures me, slipping his phone back into his suit jacket.

“You did see what the girls were wearing tonight, didn’t you?” I ask rather gruffly. “Olivia’s barely wearing two hankies sewn together. Of course I’m going to worry about her.”

“Seriously. They’re fine. Have a little faith in your woman.”

“I trust Olivia with my life. It’s these other assholes here that have me on edge.”

A few minutes pass and I’m growing more and more agitated that I can’t see the women. I would be fine if I could just see her—make sure she’s okay—and, yeah…okay, watch her move. I scan the crowd again, and a few people move, clearing the way. When my eyes hone in on Olivia, she has more than Charley keeping her company. I start to get up from my seat and remember that Olivia is an adult. I trust her implicitly. It’s the guy who is dancing with her that makes me see red.

I’m a guy. I know exactly how guys think, and I guarantee that he’s only thinking about getting under her tight, sexy-as-hell dress.

I sit back down and observe for a bit. If he makes a move, I’ll make mine. I watch as Olivia moves away from the creep only for him to follow. She shakes her head no, denying his advances, and frustratingly pushes him away. When he smirks and forcefully grabs her hips to press himself to her ass, I lose it. I’m up and out of my seat before the next beat hits. I stalk across the dance floor, shoving and pushing my way through the sea of people that separates me from Olivia.

“Owen! Calm your shit!” Marc hollers after me before pushing off his stool and following me onto the floor.

When I reach Olivia, I grab the shoulders of the guy who is grinding on her and pull him off Olivia. “Get the fuck off her, asshole!” I yell.

The man staggers back, bounces off Marc’s solid chest, and knocks into the people behind him. Unfazed, the guy pushes himself off the crowd and charges at me. He throws a punch, hitting me square in the gut. I wasn’t expecting the hit, so the fucker knocks the wind out of me. When I double over, I hear Olivia shriek. Then I look up at the guy, who has a smug look on his face that I want to erase.

Quickly regaining my composure, I stand up straight, and he takes another swing at me. This time, I’m ready for it. I catch his punch in my hand and swing his arm around, pinning it behind his back. He yelps from the pain as I grab his other arm and forcefully put them both together behind his back. Marc lands a solid punch to his gut in payback for my earlier hit.

“Oops! You really shouldn’t walk into someone’s fist like that, dude,” Marc taunts.

The man cries in pain.

“A word of advice, asshole. When a lady doesn’t want to dance with you, she doesn’t fucking want to dance,” I bite out as I lift his arms higher behind his back. Then I lean in to his ear and snarl, “You’re one sorry piece of shit for trying to force yourself on a woman. You’re fucking lucky I don’t ask that beautiful woman, who happens to be
my girlfriend
, to rip your balls off and stuff them down your fuckin’ throat.” I pull his arms higher again and walk him off the dance floor toward the exit.

Marc stays with the girls and wraps his massive arms around them as he guides them back to our table. By the time I return to my friends, everyone is rehashing the scuffle. Marcus gives me fist bump and we commend each other on our teamwork. I relay the message to the group that the rest of the night is being comped by the club for our ‘inconvenience’ and encourage everyone to forget the brawl and enjoy the rest of the evening.