by M. Malone
Growing up with her gave him an advantage. He already knew all her defensive maneuvers.
“Go away, King. I really don’t want to talk to you.”
“When has that ever worked with me?”
Georgie rolled her eyes and then stepped aside. She closed the door behind him and then walked back to the couch in the middle of the sitting room. A cup of coffee and a magazine were on the table before her. He could hear the blare of the television coming from the direction of her bedroom.
“Are you okay?”
She sat back down and took a leisurely sip of her coffee.
“Oh no, I’m not okay. Just the idea of sex was too much for my feeble brain to handle. Surely I need a fainting couch to recover from the shock!”
King ignored her caustic tone. “This is serious, Georgie. What if someone had seen you? That isn’t the kind of place for someone like you, kid. People are doing things that–”
“People are doing things that are completely consensual and having a great time while doing it. Maybe I wanted to find out what that was about before I get married. Or maybe I was scouting locations for my bachelorette party. It doesn’t really matter why I was there, King. Because either way it’s no one’s damned business!”
King sat on the couch next to her and regarded his sister with new eyes. Completely uncowed by the situation, she seemed more upset about the invasion of her privacy than by anything she’d seen at Club Prestige.
“I’m not sure what to say. You’re right. Maybe it’s time I realize my baby sister isn’t a baby anymore. But that doesn’t mean I like the way this went down. And I really don’t like James seeing you like that.”
“You’re not the only one. God that guy needs to remove the stick from his ass. Or maybe that’s why he was at Club Prestige. Maybe he likes having something in his ass. I’m not judging.”
King choked back a laugh, completely taken off guard by this side of his sister. “Christ, Georgie.”
She shrugged. “What? He dragged me out of there like he had some right. He isn’t my daddy or my boyfriend so who the hell does he think he is?”
“Well, whatever the case I’m glad he did. I still can’t believe Olivia took you there without telling me.”
Georgie slowly lowered her cup. “Oh no. Tell me you didn’t screw things up with Olivia.”
“Screw things up? She brought you to a sex club, Georgie! That is so far out of bounds I don’t even know where the lines are anymore. Girls have tried to buddy up to you before to get on my good side. You know I hate that. It’s so manipulative.”
Georgie smacked her forehead with her hand.
“I can’t even believe you sometimes, King. Olivia didn’t buddy up to me. I went to her. I asked her to help me with a very sensitive thing and she did it, even though she really didn’t want to.”
“What are you talking about?”
She suddenly couldn’t look at him and her cheeks turned bright red. “Something personal.”
“This is going to make me want to throw up, isn’t it?”
“Real mature. Look, you don’t need to know the details but I wanted to go to Club Prestige and if Olivia hadn’t helped me, I would have just gone somewhere else. I think she wanted me where she could make sure I was safe.”
He stood, his mind awash with the memories of his last moments with Olivia. She had looked so hurt, and suddenly he felt her pain as if it was his own. The things he’d said… How the hell could he ever make up for the things he’d said? After hearing her story and observing how hard she’d worked to stand on her own two feet he’d blasted her as being “just a stripper” and called her club “trashy”.
She’d never said a word in her own defense even though she could have easily thrown Georgie under the bus. Instead she’d kept his sister’s secret, even when it would have been to her benefit to tell him the whole story.
In short, she’d been the same big-hearted, loving Olivia and he’d been the same arrogant, bad-tempered King.
“How do I fix this?” he asked without preamble.
Georgie didn’t look too hopeful. “You might not be able to fix this. Women are like glass. Strong on the surface but easily shattered.”
“That doesn’t make me feel better.”
“It wasn’t meant to. If you want her, then you’d better be prepared to do the work. She’s worth it, King. She could have easily tattled on me to get on your good side but she didn’t. Olivia is the real deal.” She stood and kissed him on the cheek. “Good luck, big brother. You’re a jerk sometimes but your heart is in the right place.”
“Thanks, I think.”
“Oh and by the way. Tell James that I owe him a nut punch.”
King was laughing by the time he left but his mind was already formulating a plan. He’d hurt Olivia and he could only hope that she would give him a chance to show her how sorry he was.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Olivia watched as her best friend stammered through a greeting with the head of the Mentor Science program. As promised, she’d been by his side all night and helped to carry conversations when Bennett got awkward. Surprisingly, it hadn’t happened as often as she’d expected.
Her best friend was a changed man.
She observed him with new eyes. He was handsome in a perfectly fitted taupe suit that brought out the green in his hazel eyes. Bennett came from a multi-racial family just like she did and tanned heavily in the summers. His pale skin was burnished a darker golden tone than she was used to and his usually unruly curly hair was tamed with… was that gel? Bennett was using hair product now?
Her best friend was pretty hot.
It was so weird to see him like this and under different circumstances it would have made Olivia happy. For years she’d thought that she and Bennett would make a good match except for their lack of sexual chemistry so it should have been a pleasant shock that her bestie had a different side in him. There was just one problem.
She was miserable.
You don’t owe him anything. She repeated it over and over inside her head, hoping it would eventually sink in. It felt like she was betraying King. Her heart hadn’t accepted that he wasn’t hers anymore and truthfully, never had been.
Clearly she’d been fooling herself the entire time.
“Are you okay, Boo?”
Olivia glanced at Bennett who watched her with perceptive eyes. Even though she’d been smiling and laughing all night, he’d picked up on her subdued mood. She shook her head. This was their night. They hadn’t had as much time to visit each other over the past year and she’d missed him. She wasn’t going to let thoughts of King ruin her chance to catch up with the one man who’d never let her down.
“I’m going to be fine. Tell me about what’s new with your family. I haven’t seen everyone since Nick’s wedding.”
Over the next hour, he showed her pictures of his adorable nephews and his newest niece, who Olivia still hadn’t met. She even managed to get Bennett on the dance floor. His oldest brother was a well-known music producer so he’d shown her the new dances that he’d learned from watching one of Jackson’s music videos. Olivia had never laughed so hard in her life watching her brainy best friend attempt to do something he called “The Dot”.
She was quite sure he’d gotten the name wrong but it didn’t even matter. He was willing to humiliate himself to make her smile and by the time she caught her breath, she made a decision. There was never going to be another man who loved her more than Bennett Alexander.
It was time to stop thinking about the man who’d hurt her and focus on the man who’d done nothing but love her.
“Let’s take a walk. It’s nice outside this evening.”
Bennett looked confused but accepted the hand she held out. “Sure. The Director mentioned that the gardens in this hotel are exceptional. I’d love to see what kind of plants they used.”
They crossed the ballroom and emerged through a set of double doors onto a stone walkway. Olivia gasp
ed. The gardens had been styled into a maze, the hedges trimmed to form short walls. Lights sparkled in the bushes giving it a magical feeling.
“This is beautiful.”
Bennett walked up to the bush and peered at the leaves. “Interesting. I was expecting Boxwoods but it appears they’ve gone with American Arborvitae.”
Olivia grasped his hand. If she didn’t rein him in he might end up on the ground to see what the soil felt like or something.
“Bennett. I wanted to say thank you for bringing me with you tonight. This has been a lot of fun. I’ve missed just hanging out with you.”
“I’ve missed hanging out with you, too.” He pushed his glasses up absently. That had always been one of his nervous tells.
He was such a sweetheart, that he’d be nervous around her after everything they’d been through. He’d seen her at her very worst, after all. But that was Bennett.
At that moment, she decided to just go for it. She’d never know for sure if they could have worked out unless she made a move. He wasn’t going to do it. It wasn’t Bennett’s style to be aggressive. So just like when they were young, she would do it for him.
She grabbed him by the lapels and kissed him.
Olivia closed her eyes and stood on her toes since he was so much taller. His lips were soft and his shoulders were broader than she’d thought as she stretched her arms around his neck. But even though he was tall and handsome and loved her, it wasn’t enough. He wasn’t the one she imagined when she closed her eyes.
He wasn’t King.
Finally Olivia realized that Bennett was as rigid as a statue. Not only was he not kissing her back but he might not have even been breathing.
“Bennett? Take a breath.”
He gasped audibly and his arms come up to hold hers.
She bit her lip. “You didn’t feel anything either, did you?”
He suddenly looked relieved. Olivia would have laughed if he hadn’t looked so genuinely distressed.
“No, I didn’t. I’m sorry. I would never want to hurt your feelings, Boo.”
“You didn’t. I’m in love with someone else. But I wanted it to be you. Stupid, huh?”
“No, it’s not stupid. You’re one of the smartest people I know.”
“There’s no way that’s true. You’re surrounded by literal geniuses all the time.”
“Understanding science isn’t the only way to be intelligent. For years, you’ve been the one person I could count on to accept me as I am. You’re that person for a lot of people, Livvy. Somehow you know how to be a great friend to everyone in your life. Which seems pretty smart to me.”
Suddenly she was overcome with affection for him. Over the years, through thick and thin, he’d been there. Despite having issues with her father, Olivia had never thought all men were bad. How could she when she had one of the best men out there in her corner?
“God, I love you so much, you know that?”
“I love you, too. I always will.” Bennett squeezed her arms again and then kissed her on the forehead. They stayed just like that for a little while and Olivia tried not to cry when she understood what he was really saying. Suddenly his relief made total sense. Bennett was in love with someone else, too. No matter how much he loved her, someone else was his top priority now. Which was as it should be.
“Go. I can take a cab home.”
She could see that he was reluctant to leave her but just because she’d had the bad taste to fall for the wrong guy, didn’t mean she wanted Bennett to ruin a good thing. If he’d found someone who understood him, she wanted that for him. He deserved love.
“I’ll be fine. And someday soon, I want to meet her.”
He blushed. “I just hope she hasn’t changed her mind about me.”
She watched him leave and then took a seat on one of the benches, watching the lights twinkle on the hedges.
“Goodbye my friend,” she whispered.
King had officially hit stalker status.
It had taken him a few days to get up his nerve to talk to Olivia and once he’d finally decided on the appropriate level of groveling, he’d parked outside of her place only to see her come outside and greet that guy.
He scowled as he glanced across the room to where Olivia was dancing with him. He was a nerdy-looking guy who danced like he had no concept of rhythm. It hadn’t even been a week and she’d already replaced him? Not that he could really blame her. Of course after dealing with him she’d probably wanted a guy who was actually nice. But seriously, did she think a guy who looked like the human equivalent of skim milk could satisfy her?
Unaware of his torment, Olivia threw her head back and laughed, completely at ease with his glasses-wearing rival.
Skim milk could make her laugh, apparently. Damn it.
When they walked through the doors leading outside, King followed at a discreet distance. He couldn’t just barge out there. After the way he’d spoken to Olivia he wouldn’t be surprised if she never wanted to talk to him again. He needed to approach her carefully.
Then someone else opened the doors and his heart dropped. Olivia had her arms around the guy’s neck and was kissing him passionately.
He closed his eyes. It looked like she was fully committed to moving on from him. He walked to the bar and ordered a drink. His plan was going to require some adjustments. As crazy as it made him to see Olivia wrapped around some other guy, he wasn’t giving up. He’d never been as lost as he’d been this past week. They hadn’t been together long but he didn’t need more time to see the obvious. She made his life better. She made him better.
He was an asshole and he’d messed up. But he was hoping that she’d felt something for him, too. If there was any chance she was willing to forgive him, he had to try.
He paused with his drink in his hand when he saw nerd boy come in.
Alone.
Where the hell was Olivia?
He watched as the guy left the ballroom. Maybe he was pulling up the car. This might be his only chance to talk to Olivia alone.
He stuffed a twenty in the tip jar for the bartender and rose. From the signs in the entryway, this was some kind of award ceremony but he couldn’t figure out what industry it was for. Most of the attendees seemed like the serious type so he wondered if it was some sort of academic function.
When he stepped outside, Olivia looked up. She was sitting on a bench right in front of the doors.
She laughed bitterly. “Of course you’re here. What do you want? Another chance to slum it with a dirty stripper?”
Although her tone was angry, King didn’t miss the genuine hurt in her voice. “I don’t know what you heard…”
“Yes, you do. You know exactly what I heard.”
Caught, King told himself that it was time to lay it all out there. Because she was right. If he was going to apologize, it couldn’t be a half-hearted effort. He had to own all his shit and put the blame where it belonged. Squarely on his shoulders.
“You’re right. I know exactly what you heard. Me and my equally idiotic best friend talking about you like another business deal.”
She crossed her arms. “Well, at least you admit it.”
“I do. That’s exactly how I’ve always thought of relationships. Something that I had to accomplish to make my parents happy. Or to piss them off. Or to keep control of the family empire. That’s what happened that night at Club Prestige. My father had forced me into a corner and I thought, you know what, I’ll really stick it to the old man. I’ll bring home someone that’ll shame and embarrass them. I’ll make them sorry they ever tried to marry me off. But then something insane happened.”
He sat on the bench next to her. She scooted over so their legs wouldn’t touch.
“The girl I brought home to embarrass them, charmed them. The girl I was stupid enough to think was beneath me, taught me what it meant to be happy.”
She swiped at her face but still wouldn’t look at him. He realized in that moment just how deeply he’
d hurt her.
“Everything I thought I was so sure about turned out to be completely false. And in the midst of all of that, I fell in love with you.”
Olivia scoffed.
“You don’t get to say that to me. This is not love. You don’t talk about someone you love like that. I told you things I’ve never told anyone. And you were judging me the whole time.”
A curl had escaped from her low bun and his fingers itched to push it back behind her ear. It felt like it had been years since he’d touched her. He wished he could go back and do so many things differently but he’d especially cherish those last moments before he’d shattered the trust between them. You never think your last moments with someone will the last ones you have.
“You’re right. This is not how you treat someone you love. You don’t treat her badly and then think that just an I’m sorry is enough. Then you don’t follow her like a stalker and watch while she’s kissing another man.”
Olivia didn’t even smile.
“I want you to go, King. If you care about me like you say you do, then you’ll give me some time. I’m not sure I can forget the things you said so easily.”
He stood, wishing there was something else he could say. But in the end, all he could do was respect her wishes. His biggest mistake before had been reacting out of anger and not trusting her.
If they were ever going to have a chance, he had to be willing to do what Georgie had said. Put in the work.
“I’m going to leave because it’s what you want. But that doesn’t mean I’m giving up.”
As he walked away, he thought he heard her whisper, “I hope you don’t.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
For the next week, Olivia took the vacation days that she’d been saving up. It had been over a year since she’d taken off more than a few days at a time. It was strange not to go to the club everyday and not as relaxing as she’d thought it would be. Without work to distract her, it gave her nothing but time to reflect on just how empty her life was.
