Complications (8 page)

“Oh, okay,” she said, sounding surprised. He figured it was rather odd, since he was only 30 and had no family. But the house fit his modern tastes perfectly and he had never liked apartment style living.

“Do you have something to write down my address with or do you want me to text it to you?”

“Wow, I’m shocked you didn’t take a stab at my aversion to texting,” she teased.

He grinned, “I’m always a gentleman.”

“You thought about a wisecrack though, just admit it,” she responded.

“I may have,” he said nonchalantly, enjoying her playfulness. “It would have gone something like ‘I’d rather you write down the address since you’d probably accidentally delete it.’”

“Just for that, I want you to text it me,” she said. “I’ll even text you back when I receive it.”

“Deal,” Alex murmured. Her sassiness was seriously turning him on right now.

Commotion sounded on the other end. He heard a female voice say, “Jeeze, I’m sorry, Livy. Boss from hell was being a bitchy tyrant today after we got in a shipment.”

“Alex, I have to go. My friend’s here. I’ll see you tomorrow night though,” she said.

“I’ll text you my address now. See you soon.”

They said their goodbyes and Alex hung up the phone smiling. He opened up his text messages and wrote out a text to Olivia with his address.

He was slipping on a jacket about to head out his front door when his phone beeped. It was from Olivia.

See? I’m a perfect texter. I deserve a medal.

Alex grinned and pushed reply.
I stand corrected. I’ll reward you tomorrow night with something better than a medal
.
;)

A few minutes later as Alex folded himself behind the wheel of his car, Olivia replied.

Looking forward to it. I’d do the winky face too but I can’t figure out how.

Yes, Alex was definitely in trouble when it came to her.

Chapter Eight

Olivia blew out a nervous breath as she pulled into the curve of Alex’s semi-circular driveway. She parked behind a sleek, black Audi and figured it was his car. Olivia stared at it and then at the house just beyond it. Just two more reasons why Alex was so out of her league.

Yet, here she was.

With a final deep breath, she climbed out of her trusty Honda. She grabbed her large tote bag from the backseat, which held a fresh change of clothes, her toothbrush, and some makeup. Her weekend manager would be running the shop for the next couple days, giving Olivia a much needed break, but she still wanted to look decent for Alex tomorrow morning.

She noticed the air was a bit crisper than normal. She had gone home to shower quickly and change after work, but her dark wash jeans and light lavender cardigan suddenly seemed more suited for warmer weather. Not that it mattered. Alex would surely tempt her soon enough with his dark eyes and her carefully chosen outfit would turn into a wrinkled pile on the floor.

As Olivia walked up the stone pathway, she took in Alex’s home. It was in one of the nicer neighborhoods and was manicured neatly. There were no bushes or flowers, but rather sharp cut grass with a giant tree in the middle of it all. Dark bark lined the stone walkway and she tugged at the sleeves of her cardigan nervously when she climbed up some steps to reach his front door. She rang the doorbell and waited with bated breath.

A few moments later, the door swung wide open and there he was, framed perfectly by the mahogany as though he were a painting. If Olivia had thought he was hot in his business clothes, he was downright sexy in jeans and a dark green fitted sweater that brought out his hazel eyes and broad shoulders. His dark hair was tousled and he had a little hint of five o’clock shadow around his chin and jaw line.
Oh my God.
Her clothes would end up on the floor sooner than she anticipated.

He did that slow smile she loved so much as he pulled her inside, wrapping an arm around her waist. She tilted her head up as he brushed his lips over hers, closing the door behind them with his foot. Her stomach fluttered as she breathed in his familiar scent, that clean soap smell with a hint of musk. God, she could smell him all day long.

“Mmmm, I’m glad you’re here,” he said against her lips. His voice had gone all gravelly and it made her shiver.

“Then that makes two of us,” she replied shyly, a small smile appearing on her lips. His warm body against hers felt heavenly, sending pleasurably zaps down to her belly where she already felt the hard length of him.

“Dinner,” he whispered, as though reminding himself. He pulled away, “Dinner first.” His eyes held sinful promise and Olivia almost shook with anticipation. But he seemed to want to make her wait. Gesturing to a small table by the entryway, where his car keys currently sat, he said, “You can set your bag there for now and I’ll get it later. The oven is preheating, so do you want a tour while we wait?”

“Sure,” she said, slipping her bag off her shoulder and setting it down, overly excited to see his home. She was incredibly curious about this man and although she wanted nothing more than to jump his bones at the moment, she had to admit that nosing around his home came in close second.

The one-story home looked small on the outside, but she now realized it was because of the length. It was massive now that she was on the other side of the door. There was an immediate door to the right of the entry way and she realized it was his office as she peeked in. A very well used home office by the looks of it. It was sparsely furnished. The only item in the room was a huge dark wood desk with paperwork and a large desktop computer situated on it.

“You don’t like to read?” she asked curiously when she noticed no sign of a bookcase…or any book for that matter. Didn’t people usually keep bookcases in their offices?

“Don’t know how,” he teased, tucking a stray hair behind her ear. She rolled her eyes but smiled. “All the books I do have are in my bedroom. I don’t read much though.” His eyes twinkled. “Not as much as you at least. Don’t think I didn’t notice that monstrous bookcase at your place.”

She smiled and poked him in the shoulder, “Don’t diss my bookshelf. I love that thing.”

“I can tell,” he murmured, shaking his head as if she were a goner already.

The entry hallway led on a little bit further before revealing a large living room with a straight view to the kitchen. Alex then led her to the left side of the house, where he pointed out a guest room and a bathroom. And then for the grand finale, they stopped in his master suite.

Alex smirked at her as she tried not to blush. She spotted the enormous king size bed in the middle of the room, trying not to think about the activities they would share there later. It was difficult since the whole room smelled like Alex. Absolutely delicious. She focused instead on the décor. She saw another door off the right and figured it was his bathroom. Everything was done up in dark tones, deep navy blues and blacks. It gave the whole space a seductive quality.

As she took everything in, she realized that there was nothing particularly personal of his. In all of the house actually, now that she thought about it. Everything was clean and there was plenty of furniture to make the home feel like a home. But there was no clutter, no artwork, and no knick knacks. Not even a photograph of his family, at least none she had noticed. The only thing relatively unorganized had been his desk, but only because of the sheer amount of paperwork.

It’s all very modern
, she thought. And expensively furnished. Dark hardwood floors throughout the entire house with a few rugs here and there. Stainless steel appliances and granite countertops in the kitchen. A huge flatscreen TV in the living room. But nothing that would reveal anything about this confusing, wonderful man.

So she was delighted when she finally spotted his bookcase in the corner of the room, situated next to a comfy looking recliner. It was, however, the smallest bookcase she had ever seen but she smiled at Alex over her shoulder nevertheless.

She hurried over to the shelf, wondering what he read. Adventure? Science Fiction? But she stopped when she ran her fingertips over the spines. Textbooks.
Damn
. Not only textbooks, but business and management textbooks.

She was aghast when she spun around to face him and declared, “You are the most boring reader I’ve ever met.”

He burst into laughter, which helped soften her shock towards him, but not by much. He grinned, unashamed. “I told you I was never much of a reader.”

He started to walk towards her but she hardly noticed, glancing back at his shelf. “If you can even call this reading,” she mumbled, still incredibly confused.

He tugged her to him by the pockets of her jeans and she glanced up, startled. Uh oh. Heated gaze. She immediately felt her body respond as he captured her lips. “You’re making me want to skip dinner entirely and just lock ourselves in here until morning,” he whispered.
That sounds nice
, Olivia thought automatically, warmth pulsing through her, making her dizzy. But Alex pulled away and took a deep breath. “Come on, I want to show you the backyard.”

“Okay,” she whispered, dazed.

He laced their fingers together and he pulled them outside the room, while Olivia tried to remember how to walk. Her legs were wobbly, but she eventually found her footing before Alex led them back to the kitchen and out the sliding glass door.

“It’s beautiful,” Olivia breathed in awe as she looked around his yard appreciatively. His backyard truly
was
beautiful. They were currently standing on a porch, but she spied a set of stairs off the right that led down to the expansive stretch of grass in front of them. On a small stone patio sat a bonfire pit situated in the middle of an outdoor furniture set. Fully matured trees were everywhere, creating a beautiful canopy above the dark green grass. It was Autumn now, but luckily the leaves hadn’t started to fall. “I can’t even imagine all the work that needs to be done to rake up everything,” she commented.

“It was the first year I was here, but it’s easier now that I’ve gotten used to it,” he replied, his thumb tracing over her palm.

Olivia turned to him, surprised. “You do all the work?”

He looked amused. “Yeah. Why? Think I would hire someone?”

Olivia frowned, a little embarrassed, “Well, yeah, I suppose. It seems like quite a lot.”

He smiled kindly and squeezed her hand, looking back out over his yard in obvious pride. “I like doing it. Heaven knows I need the fresh air after working inside an office all week.” Olivia smiled, genuinely in awe of this man. She imagined him mowing the lawn, all sweaty and delicious looking. She decided she would have to watch him one day.

Olivia bit her lip at the thought, knowing she was developing strong feelings for Alex even though she shouldn’t be. This arrangement between them should have just been about sex and exploring their mutual attraction to one another. But now it was turning into so much more and Olivia was suddenly afraid that it may just be one-sided.

Just then the oven beeped from inside the kitchen. Alex glanced down at her, “Ready to eat?”

“Always,” she answered. He grinned and led her back through the door.

She spotted a stray white bowl sitting innocently outside the sliding glass and she curiously asked Alex, “Do you have a pet?”

“Oh no, not really,” he said when he saw the bowl. He shut the door, letting the warm air of his kitchen engulf them.

“How do you not really have a pet?” she asked, amused.

“It’s, uh, just for this cat that comes around,” he mumbled.

Olivia felt affection pulling at her chest. “What, is a cat not manly enough for you?” she teased, noticing his hesitance.

He grinned down at her, tugging her to one of the barstools situated around his island countertop. She hopped up on the high stool, finally eye level with him. “It started showing up a little while after I moved in. I just feed it since I think it’s a stray.”

“Ah, how adorable,” she whispered as he moved between her legs.

He nibbled on her bottom lip. “Does that get me brownie points for later then?” he asked suggestively, his voice dropping.

“Maybe,” she responded breathlessly. “It is rather cute.”

“No, it’s ruggedly masculine,” he countered.

“Super masculine,” she agreed immediately, feeling as though Alex was putting her under a spell. Her head felt foggy as he continued to kiss her. But just then the oven rang again and the spell was broken. Alex groaned low in his throat as he forced himself to move away from her.

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.