Nobody's Obligation (Swimming Upstream #2)

by Rebecca Barber

  “I-I—no,” Ava admitted as she blushed with embarrassment.

  She was making a fool of herself in front of her boss and she knew it, but she was powerless to stop. She couldn’t concentrate. Every time she raised her gaze to look John in the eye to answer his questions or ask for more information she didn’t see his hazel eyes staring back at her, instead she saw Tyler’s deep brown pools seeing into the very essence of who she was.

  “What’s with you today?” he exclaimed, exasperated.

  Ava had been trapped in his office for twenty minutes and she could tell that as far as John was concerned that was twenty minutes wasted. Ava wasn’t concentrating and it seemed she didn’t even care.

  Quickly Ava managed to mumble through her veil of humiliation, “Nothing. Sorry, I’m just distracted.”

  With a sneaky smirk, John couldn’t restrain himself from taunting Ava. Frankly, she was amazed he had held out as long as he had. “Look, Ava, just because I’m not a six foot something superfish doesn’t mean you can ignore what I’m saying.”

  Ava’s head snapped back so quickly that she almost gave herself whiplash. The smile that covered his face reached his eyes and Ava knew instantly that he was just making fun of her.

  “You heard?”

  “Everyone heard.”

  Ava groaned dramatically.

  “Actually I’m amazed it’s not already on Facebook and the internal gossip vine. Sorry, I mean website,” John continued, his shit-eating grin getting even wider if that was possible.

  “It probably is,” Ava grumbled under her breath.

  “Oh come on, Ava, don’t be like that.”

  “Like what? Humiliated? Ashamed? Confused? Annoyed? Or all of the above?”

  “Don’t you think you might be making too big of a deal about it?”

  “Didn’t you hear what happened?” Ava snapped, exasperated. She pulled her hair clip out in frustration, shaking her hair free in the vain attempt to gain some semblance of control.

  “What?”

  “I made a complete idiot out of myself and fell face first on the floor. Not only did I walk into that room looking like I hadn’t seen a mirror in days, but then to make things worse, instead of stringing a sentence together and saying a simple hello, what do I do? Oh yeah, that’s right! I pass out unconscious.”

  Shaking his head, all trace of amusement had vanished from John’s features, replaced by nothing but heartfelt concern. “I heard,” he admitted, taking a long pull from the glass of water in front of him.

  Ava tried to force her breathing to steady, desperate to regain control of her emotions. “In front of Tyler Andrews, I couldn’t even hold it together. I just…collapsed,” she whispered. And for the first time it felt real. It was almost like if she didn’t say it, Ava could convince herself it was just a nightmare. Her imagination taunted her, but as soon as the words left her mouth and it was out there, it was real. Unavoidably so.

  “Ava.” He sighed softly.

  “Don’t. Just don’t. Don’t be nice to me. I don’t deserve it.” Ava sighed heavily, scrunching handfuls of her unruly hair up in a ball and securing the pile once again. “Can’t we just pretend it didn’t happen and just get back to work?”

  “You sure?”

  “I’m begging you,” Ava pleaded desperately.

  Forty-five minutes, three arguments, two timeouts, six interruptions, and a message bank full of incoming calls later, Ava was beyond frustrated. She knew they had a mountain of work to finalise today and decisions that needed to be made, but they were getting nowhere. When Amanda daringly stuck her head through the door, John snapped.

  A frustrated growl escaped John’s throat, thankfully only loud enough so Ava was the only one to hear it. “Yes, Amanda?” he snapped irritably, rubbing the back of his neck.

  “Sorry to interrupt but there is someone here to see you,” she squeaked timidly.

  Rising to her feet, Ava began scooping up the notebooks, pens, and papers that were scattered between them. “I guess now’s as good a time as any to call it a day. Seems like other people need you.”

  “Sounds like it,” John agreed as his stomach let out a loud rumble, causing both of them to chuckle. “Just in time too, by the sounds of that.”

  “Am I interrupting something?” a smooth, husky voice asked, sending vibrations through Ava.

  Ava spun around quickly, and was instantly captured by Tyler’s piercing gaze. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up and goose pimples covered her entire body. She wasn’t sure what exactly it was about this man, but he had her acting like a bumbling idiot without even blinking. Ava couldn’t move. Instead she was trapped, like a deer caught in the headlights. Moments later she was coughing and spluttering, pushing at her chest as she gasped for breath.

  “Shit, Ava, you okay?” John asked, stepping towards her, slapping her on the back.

  Gulping, Ava tried to steady her breathing to regain control. “Yeah.”

  “What happened?” John asked, sincerely worried.

  “Nothing.”

  “Ava?”

  “Nothing, okay. I just—I just forgot to breathe,” she snapped, still spluttering.

  Silently, John stepped around Ava, unable to hide his complete amusement at her obvious discomfort in Tyler’s presence. “Hi, I’m John Murphy.” John grinned knowingly, extending his hand. “I’m Ava’s boss,” he added.

  “Ah! Tyler Andrews.” Tyler grinned, his eyes never leaving Ava, causing her to shiver involuntarily. “So, I guess you’re the guy I need to talk to about letting me steal Ava for the afternoon,” Tyler pronounced confidently as he winked at Ava.

  Unable to contain her shock, Ava stepped back, tripping over her own feet, causing the pile of papers in her hands to flutter to the ground. No one moved. All three just stood there dumbfounded and watched as they hit the ground before John and Tyler both broke out in a deep, hearty chuckle. Ava wanted to disappear indefinitely. Quickly she stepped behind John as she tried to use him as a shield, a barrier from her complete humiliation, a support beam, and protection—mainly from herself. Ava dropped to her knees and scooped up the papers and pens, which seem to have scattered in every direction. As she reached out a shaky finger to grab the blue highlighter that rested against John’s impeccably shined shoes, he turned to look at her on her hands and knees as she tried to pull it all together, including her dignity. “You know what, Tyler? Ava is all yours for the rest of the day!”

  “What?” Tyler and Ava both managed to blurt out in unison.

  “Yep! I can’t seem to hold her attention today anyway, so you might as well take a shot.” John smirked, looking at Ava, who flushed an even deeper shade of red, if that was possible.

  “Sounds good to me.” Tyler smirked, raising his eyebrows at Ava, which caused her stomach to dance.

  It took a moment before Ava managed to find her voice. “Do I even get a say?” She grimaced as John helped her up from the floor and removed the bundle of papers from her trembling fingers.

  “Nope.” John and Tyler laughed together.

  Ava pouted as she folded her arms across her chest and chewed on her bottom lip.

  Tyler smirked his infamous panty-dropping smirk. “I’ll meet you out front, Ava.”

  “Good to meet you, Tyler,” John agreed, shaking his hand before watching as Tyler stalked out of his office. John’s gaze danced around the office. Glass walls had its advantages. Every one of his twelve female employees’ eyes were all locked on the empty doorway Tyler had exited. Some mouths were agape, while others wore a confused expression. Shaking his head in amusement, John turned his attention back to Ava, who was silent and frozen where she stood. “Tell me this isn’t your dream come true, Ava, and I’ll make it go away.”

  “It’s not,” Ava stated, not missing a beat, her eyes still stuck on the empty doorway.

  “Liar,” John called her bluff.

  “I-I can’t,” Ava protested meekly. Her voice was small and shaky.

/>   “Ava, look at me,” he demanded, putting his fingers under her chin and raising her eyes to meet his. “You can and you will. Ava Jacobs, get out of your own head. I know what you’re thinking.”

  “Bullshit!”

  “You’re thinking that you can’t do this and that you’re not good enough for him,” John said bluntly, his blistering gaze never wavering.

  “I wasn’t.”

  “I know you.”

  “Bastard.”

  Chapter 11

  Tyler

  Tyler stood back in the reception area fidgeting with anything he could get his hands on. He flipped through the local paper and a couple of magazines, not really paying attention. He couldn’t remember a time when he had ever been this nervous and exhilarated in the same moment. Every time he saw Ava something spread through him and he became someone he didn’t recognise. It was like when he was with her—even the few minutes he had already spent with her—made him feel like it was okay to be himself. And that was something that excited and terrified him.

  “Enjoying yourself?” Amanda probed, noticing the mischief dancing in his eyes.

  Embarrassed he’d been caught daydreaming, Tyler had never been one to back down from a challenge. “Absolutely. You?”

  “Look, I don’t know what you’re doing and I don’t particularly care, but one thing you should know is that Ava looks and acts tough, but it’s all bullshit. She’s a mess. It’s all fake. And if you take advantage of that, I don’t care who you are, I’ll kick your arse!” Amanda declared confidently before reaching down and picking up the ringing phone.

  Tyler listened with fascination as the girl who had just put him firmly in his place oozed charm and professionalism down the phone while her steely glare was still firmly fixed on him. Not quite knowing what to say to placate her, Tyler simply nodded his understanding and collapsed into the visitors’ chair behind him, silently praying for Ava to hurry.

  Moments dragged past agonisingly slowly and Tyler could have sworn that Amanda’s eyes never left him, but each time he risked a glance in her direction, she was engrossed elsewhere. “Shit!” he muttered to himself.

  “Sorry?” Ava’s angelic voice pulled him out of his funk instantly.

  “Ready?” Tyler asked, jumping to his feet.

  “As I’ll ever be.” Ava grimaced, hoisting her handbag up onto her shoulder.

  Shaking his head, Tyler fell in step with Ava as they walked down the corridor towards the elevator. “Ava, it’s okay. I’m not going to kill you.” Tyler grinned mischievously.

  “Promise?”

  “Promise. Smile for me? Please?” he begged as they stepped into the elevator side by side. Summoning her best smile, Ava flashed him a toothy grin. “That was terrible.” He laughed. “But it’s a start. Now let’s get lunch.” Stepping from the elevator, Tyler wrapped his gigantic hand around Ava’s without thinking. A bolt of electricity raced through Tyler’s already nervous body. Without exchanging a word, as quickly as it had happened, Tyler dropped her hand and instead dug his hands into his pockets.

  Without a word, Ava fell into step beside him and breezed through the heavy glass doors to the driveway. Tyler pointed towards a car and moments later Ava dropped into the leather seat.

  “Not what I was expecting,” Ava confessed, taking stock of her surroundings.

  “Which part?” Tyler taunted.

  “Honestly? Any of it,” Ava mumbled, folding her arms across her chest, silently cursing herself for leaving her jacket at home.

  “Don’t tell me that when you got up this morning you didn’t expect me to stroll into your office like I owned the place, make a fool out of myself in front of your bosses, and then drag you away for lunch.” He smirked his adorable I-know-I-can-get-away-with-anything smirk.

  Now more annoyed than anything, Ava snarled, “More or less.”

  “Come on, Ava. Lighten up! I’ll admit I came to see you mainly to make your life hell but hey, shit happens. I changed my mind. And I apologised. So stop sulking and let’s just go and enjoy lunch.”

  “Fine! One condition,” Ava added slyly.

  “I’m listening,”

  “I get to pick the music. Yours is shit,” Ava giggled, reaching towards the stereo.

  “No way!” Tyler chuckled wholeheartedly “My car, my music,” he instructed as he reached out to knock her hand out of the way. As soon as their fingers connected Ava quickly withdrew her hand. He could have sworn she’d seen tiny blue sparks ignite between their fingertips, but he knew that was ridiculous. With one final glance at Ava, who sat beside him staring out the window while absentmindedly picking at her fingers, Tyler revved the car and merged into traffic.

  Fifteen minutes later Tyler swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat. Noticing Ava had turned an odd shade of grey, Tyler let out a laugh. “What’s up?” he asked nonchalantly.

  “Ummmm,” Ava murmured, unsure.

  “Ava, I don’t bite,” Tyler reassured her, his steely gaze locked on her.

  Gulping, Ava summoned all the strength she had and blurted out, “You said you weren’t going to kill me.”

  As soon as the words left her mouth, Ava turned beetroot red. Out of all the things she could have said, he hadn’t been expecting that. And when she clasped her hand over her mouth in a gesture that screamed she wanted to take the words back, Ava started struggling for air. Tyler couldn’t contain his amusement at Ava’s obvious discomfort. When she broke out in a coughing fit, Tyler’s laughter died instantly. It wasn’t funny anymore. Without hesitation he slipped his hand from the gear stick and started patting Ava’s back softly.

  Startled at his touch, Ava sucked a deep breath in and forced her eyes open. Instantly her gaze caught Tyler’s and the small smile that tugged at his lips. He was fighting desperately to contain his own laugh. With another deep breath, Ava exhaled. “Thanks. Not sure what happened. I guess I forgot to breathe.”

  Allowing himself a soft chuckle, Tyler sighed, “Ava, it’s okay. I’m not going to hurt you and I don’t want you to be someone you’re not. Seriously. Be you. Be real.”

  Sighing dramatically, Ava’s shoulders drooped instantly as her head fell back against the seat and her eyes drifted closed. “Okay,” she whispered.

  “Sorry?” Tyler asked, slowing the car down.

  As her eyes fluttered open, Ava found herself grinning earnestly. “I said, okay.”

  Tyler was stunned. Not only did she agree to let things be, but as soon as the words left her mouth Tyler’s own stomach fluttered. Caught deep in his own thoughts, Tyler didn’t see the pot hole on the dirt road that he had turned onto as the car clunked in and back out of the hole. “Fuck!” he swore, not sure if he was swearing at himself or at the possible damage to his pride and joy.

  “Sure you don’t want me to drive?” Ava taunted.

  “Nice try.” Tyler smirked as he spun the car into a parking lot, sending a cloud of dust up in its wake.

  Stepping out of the car as smoothly as she possibly could, Ava glanced around at her surroundings and realised she had absolutely no idea where she was. From the looks of it she was in someone’s immaculately maintained backyard. The grass was clipped to perfection and the garden beds filled with an array of colours and scents. It was stunning, but it seemed personal in some strange, almost haunting way. Ava just hoped she wasn’t trespassing.

  Tyler joined her and reached for her hand. With only a slight hesitation, Ava let him take her hand and lead the way. As they turned the corner, Ava came face to face with a menacing looking dog that was taller than her knees. He was massive, his yellow teeth were showing, and he didn’t look happy. Tyler walked towards him as though he was harmless, knowing Ava had hidden behind him. As they approached, a low growl emanated from the beast.

  “Tyler,” Ava begged, tugging his arm.

  Wrapping his fingers even tighter around Ava’s, he pulled her towards him until her chest collided with his back, causing them both to stumble off balance.
“Are you scared of him?” Tyler asked, his eyes alight with mischief.

  “No!” Ava snapped harshly.

  “You’re a really shitty liar, Ava,” He grinned as he bent down and rubbed his hand behind the dog’s ears. Within moments the dog had dropped to the ground between them and rolled onto his back, waiting expectantly for his belly rub. “Don’t be afraid of Buddy. He’s harmless.” Tyler laughed, stepping over the dog and pulling Ava along the wide veranda.

  A moment later Tyler led her inside wide open French doors, and Ava’s mouth gaped open. The room was absolutely perfect. And not just perfect in a pretty way, but perfect in a ‘this is Heaven on Earth’ way. And then the penny dropped. They were standing in a winery.

  The back wall was lined with large oak barrels. There was a long, worn, wooden bar stretching across the far wall with a beautiful blonde wearing a crisp white shirt and black tie standing silently behind it shining the largest wine goblets. Other than the blonde, the place was completely deserted. And it was silent. Magnificently so.

  “Wow!” Ava exclaimed under her breath. Ava glanced down at her shirt and remembered the stained mess she was. With everything looking so clean and clinical, she felt like a complete fraud. Between the chocolate, coffee, and wet patch, Ava knew she didn’t fit in. Wrapping her arms around her chest, she tried to hide, but Tyler wouldn’t have it.

  Turing around to face her, he grabbed at her arms and pulled them away. “Impressed?” Tyler enquired, raising a quizzical eyebrow.

  “Absolutely,” Ava confessed, looking up into his chocolate eyes and getting lost.

  “Good!” Tyler smirked. “And don’t even try and hide. Forget about this morning and let’s just enjoy some lunch. You hungry? Let’s eat,” he suggested as he once again reached down and took Ava’s hand before leading her straight through the winery’s main entry hall and into the restaurant.

  It was just as perfect as the rest. Everything was clean and straight but not sterile. They had managed to walk the tight line between overdone and clinical, and instead they had achieved elegant. Ava was caught staring out the window at the gardens when Tyler stopped walking, causing her to walk straight into him. Again.