“It is a betrayal.”
“Perhaps. But he loves you no less for it. He understands very well that his greatest mistake was taking your memories because it left your heart vulnerable to me. I have no doubt, if he could go back, he’d do things much differently.”
“Did he tell you that?”
“Not in so many words. Olivia, I—.”
“I’m here! Sorry, I’m late.” The front door slammed and Olivia jumped, pulling away from Haden’s touch. A low growl chortled deep in his throat, but she couldn’t know if it was in response to the untimely interruption or the sound of Ashley’s voice—perhaps both.
“Liv? Where are you?”
“Be nice,” she warned Haden as the clamor of paws barreling down the stairs and the ferocious woof preceded a high-pitched squeal and a crash in the foyer. “Ashley?”
Olivia ran out of the living room and came to an abrupt halt at finding Kyro standing over her friend, who was laid out flat on the floor with the dog's mouth fastened over her neck. “Kyro, get off her!”
When he didn’t move, she looked to Haden for a little help, who was anything but that. Amusement danced in his pale green eyes and he didn’t even try to restrain the smile on his face. It was a full-on white-toothed smile, something she’d rarely been gifted to glimpse. Of course, he’d have to pick the most inappropriate time possible to display it, but damn if the flash of those pearly whites didn’t make a woman go weak in the knees.
“What’s wrong with him?” Olivia demanded. “Why won’t he move?” Glancing at her horrified, immobile friend, she tried to assure her. “It’s all right, Ash. Just hang on a second.”
“Perhaps she startled him when she came barreling in here like a tornado—.”
Not helpful—at all.
“Or perhaps he just doesn’t like her,” Haden suggested, crossing his arms over his chest, still smiling. “Kyro’s an excellent judge of character.”
“Call him off!” she hissed, slapping Haden on the shoulder when he made no attempt to intervene.
“Do I have to? I’m rather enjoying the silence.”
“Yes, dammit!” she hit him again and he chuckled, rubbing his arm as if she’d actually hurt him—yeah, right...
“Oh, very well,” he conceded. “Kyro, leave it.”
The hell-hound instantly released his grip on Ashley’s throat and then trotted over to Haden, heeling at his side. Ashley scrambled to her feet in a coughing fit, though Olivia suspected it was a bit of dramatics since she didn’t have so much as a mark on her neck.
“Are you freaking kidding me?” she screeched, her terror swiftly turning to anger now that her life wasn’t flashing before her eyes. “What in the hell is that thing? It looks like a mutant dog.”
“His name is Kyro,” Olivia explained, though she was pretty sure Ashley wasn’t listening. “He’s a hell-hound. Haden gave him to me—.”
She snorted and shot Haden a withering glare. “Figures.”
“He’s keeping me safe,” she defended.
Ashley reached up and wiped her hand across her throat. When she pulled it away, her palm was covered in slime. “Oh, gross! Seriously?”
A bubble of laughter escaped Olivia’s throat, but she quickly held it back by clasping her hand over her mouth. It wasn’t funny, really... Ashley was super upset. Okay, it was actually hilarious, but she knew her best friend would not take the humor at her expense well, and she was going to be stuck shopping with this woman all day, so it was best not to piss her off before they even left the house.
“Can I trouble you for a towel?” she snapped, her face twisting in disgust. “—before this slime runs down my shirt?”
“Sure.” Olivia hurried into the kitchen, grabbed a hand towel, and then buried her face into it as she burst into side-splitting laughter.
“I can hear you in there, ya know!”
Oops… “Sorry,” she called, unable to contain her giggles now that they’d gotten started. She rushed back to the foyer and handed her irate friend the hand towel. “Are you all right?” she asked between fits of laughter. “If it’s any consolation, I don’t think he would have truly harmed you.”
“Well, it’s not,” she snapped, wiping off her hand before she began drying her neck. “You could have warned me, ya know.”
“You could have knocked,” Haden interjected.
“You can leave,” Ashley spat, glaring at him. It was true, there was no love lost between those two, but it wasn’t like Ashley to be so outright rude.
“Yes, you can,” Haden pointed out.
“Stop it, you two.”
“You didn’t tell me she was coming,” he grouched.
“He’s coming?” Ashley screeched.
Ignoring her horrified friend, she muttered under her breath, “Well, I might have told you had I not been stunned speechless by your little stunt this morning.”
“What stunt?” she asked.
“Never mind,” they answered in unison.
Ashley huffed and stomped toward the laundry room.
Olivia turned toward Haden and grabbed his arm, whispering, “Of course she’s coming with me. She’s my best friend. Ashley and I have been planning our weddings since kindergarten. Now please, be nice! You know what? On second thought, maybe it would be better if you…you know, crossed over while we’re out today. That way she won’t be able to see you.”
“Secrets don’t make friends, you guys,” Ashley called, poking her head out from the laundry room. “Where did Haden go? Please tell me he left.”
“Not exactly. He crossed over, so watch what you say, huh? He can still hear you. You just can’t see him.”
“I’m not sure that’s any better,” she grumbled. “How would I know if he followed me into the dressing room or something?”
Haden exhaled a snort of sarcastic laughter. “Tell her not to fear. I value my eyesight far too much for that. Besides, why would she care? It’s nothing a hundred other guys haven’t seen.”
Olivia gasped. “Haden! That’s not true! And I will tell her no such thing! That’s rude!”
“What’s rude? What’d he say?” Ashley demanded, fisting her hands on her hips.
“Nothing. He promises to be quite and behave.” She pinned him with a pointed glare. “Now, let’s go before we’re late.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Olivia couldn’t shake the feeling she was being watched. It was the same prickly sensation she’d felt this morning going over to Haden’s house—then again, perhaps she felt the voyeur’s eyes on her because they were. From the moment they left the house, Haden had been at her side in non-corporeal form. Thankfully, he’d heeded her warning and kept his snide remarks to a minimum, though she was certain it was with great effort that he did so. Being around these two together was about as fun as throwing water on a grease fire.
Every once in a while, she’d hear a chuff or a growl from him in response to something her friend had said. If Olivia didn’t know better, she’d swear Ashley was baiting him, a childish and very stupid move, considering who she was messing with. But her comments were subtle and coy, nothing she could outright call her on, so Olivia chose to ignore them and suggested to Haden he do the same.
It wasn’t until an hour into their cake testing that the niggling of unease had the fine hairs at the back on her neck prickling to attention. She glanced at Ashley to see if she noticed, but her friend was so engrossed in the woman’s cake design presentation, she doubted Ashley would notice if Olivia got up and walked out.
Olivia glanced over her shoulder, looking for the source of her discomfort, but as usual, found nothing out of the ordinary.
“What’s wrong?” Haden leaned closer and asked. He sat in the empty seat beside her, but she dare not look his way or answer for fear the poor woman flipping through the book of cake designs, explaining the pros and cons of certain decorative styles, would think she was crazy.
“Are you as bored as I am? Looking for a way to esc
ape, huh?”
“Shh…” she hissed under her breath, but the woman heard her and stopped talking.
“I’m sorry, did you have a question?”
“No, I was just thinking. I’ve decided what style I want.” Olivia turned a few pages back and picked a tiered cake decorated in calla lilies. “What do you think, Ash?”
“That was one of my top three, too,” she agreed.
“Wonderful!” the woman exclaimed. “Well, that was easy enough. Now comes the hard part, picking the flavor of your cake.”
Haden emitted a tortured groan and Olivia kicked her leg in his direction, passing through his shin.
He chuckled softly in wry amusement. “You missed…”
If Olivia tasted one more piece of cake, she swore she was going to hurl. The woman had ten different samples to try, and Ashley insisted they eat every single one. Thankfully, the unsettling feeling of being watched had passed as swiftly as it had come, and she decided to chalk the plaguing sensations up of nerves. Besides, if someone was watching her, wouldn’t Haden be sensing it? That he seemed no more irritated than usual was a good sign, right?
For the most part, she was able to relax and enjoy herself. After another deliberating hour and a stomach full of sugar, she finally had it narrowed down to three—white with raspberry filling, carrot with cream cheese frosting, and dark chocolate with chocolate ganache center.
“Uhh…” Olivia groaned, leaning back in her chair as she laid her hand against her stomach. “If I eat another bite, I’m going to be sick.”
“Me too,” Ashley complained. “I don’t think I’ve ever eaten this much cake before.”
“You pick for me, Ash. I can’t decide.”
The woman behind the counter laughed. “It’s a hard choice, I know. I’ll give you some time to think about it. Just ring this bell when you’re ready.” The woman set a white porcelain bell with silver etching on the table and stepped into the back.
“I’m going to the bathroom,” Ashley announced, sounding as miserable as Olivia felt. Serves her right, she though a bit cattily. She told her they shouldn’t eat every one. Once alone, Haden crossed back over, taking corporeal form again. Olivia looked over at him and noticed his misaligned buttons were fixed. His arms were crossed over his broad chest as he watched her with an amused smirk.
“What are you smiling at,” she groaned. “I’m miserable…”
“Why do you let her do that to you?”
“Do what?”
“Talk you into doing something you know you’re going to regret.”
“I don’t know… It’s just the way we’ve always been. It’s too easy to slip into old habits, I guess. You should have seen the trouble we used to get into when we were younger,” she laughed, feeling the sugar high kicking her into giddy mode.
“I can imagine.”
“I can’t decide what cake I want.” She forked up a bite of carrot and held it out for Haden to bite. “Taste this and tell me what you think.”
“No.”
It surprised her when he flat out refused, but, unfortunately, for him, she was too hopped-up on confections to care. “Come on, Haden, taste the cake.” She shoved the fork closer to his mouth—he turned his head away.
“I said no, Olivia. I don’t want your cake.”
He should have said it with a straight face and she might have believed him, but the corner of his mouth turned up in a stifled grin and that only egged her on more. “Oh, come on, taste it.” When she shoved it closer to his mouth, the chunk of carrot cake toppled off her fork and splattered on the floor, frosting side down, and she burst into laughter. “See what you made me do? That’s your fault right there.”
When a genuine smile of amusement lit his face, it was on. She was determined he was going to taste a bite of this cake. Abandoning the fork, she grabbed a chunk of the white-raspberry and shoved it toward Haden’s mouth. “Eat it or wear it. Your choice...” she teased.
“Cut it out, Olivia,” he chuckled, grabbing her wrist before she could push it into his face. His grip was firm but gentle.
“Eat it,” she said between fits of laughter, wrestling with him to shove it in his mouth as he craned his head to the side, avoiding her reach. He laughed now, too—a full-belly one, filled with genuine amusement. “Come on, Haden, pleeease… Taste this cake. It’s delicious.”
He stopped fighting her off and exhaled a sigh of defeat. “Okay, fine,” he growled with mock severity. Turning his head back toward her, amusement danced in his pale green eyes as he pulled her hand closer and took a bite of cake into his mouth—and her fingers along with it.
It took her a whole two seconds to realize what a mistake that was. By the time, Haden’s tongue stripped her finger of frosting, the playful light in his eyes lost all spark of merriment as it darkened into something much more sensual. She felt a flash of heat his mouth ignited in places he had no business affecting. Lust sparked his gaze, igniting into an insidious fire she wasn’t entirely certain he’d fight to control. He swallowed the cake and the action sucked against her finger, his grip on her wrist holding her hand firmly in place as his tongue grazed the sensitive pad of her forefinger.
A spark of panic knotted in her gut, and along with it dawned the painful realization that Haden was right. As much as she wanted them to be friends, it just wasn’t ever going to happen. He would never stop crossing boundaries, and she would forever be drawing new lines in the sand for him to tromp over.
When the bathroom door opened, Olivia tugged her hand back and Haden reluctantly let her go. Before Ashley could reach earshot, he whispered huskily, “I’d definitely go with the white-raspberry.”
That settled it, then. She was ordering the chocolate.
They were almost late for their appointment at the bridal shop. Since the incident at the bakery, Haden had yet to cross back over and Olivia was doing her damnedest to ignore him. He kept eerily quiet—broody was probably a better adjective.
Even now, he sat in an overstuffed chair on the outskirts of the dressing room, arms crossed over his chest in a defiant huff that reminded her of a pouting toddler. She wasn’t entirely sure why the image came to mind, there was nothing childish about the hard set of his stubble-ridden jaw, or the subtle flare of his nostrils. Tension exuded from his masculine body. His non-verbals all but shouted he wished to be anywhere but here right now.
Casting him another quick glance over the marked pages in her bridal magazine, she pointed out to the seamstress the different styles of dresses she liked. “How soon before a dress like this would be ready?” Olivia pointed to the strapless mermaid design. The fitted bodice was covered in pearlescent sequins and beaded tooling. The body-hugging gown flared mid-thigh into reams of white taffeta and lace, creating a long flowing train.
“Well, I have three dresses similar to this design in the shop right now. It would depend on how well the dress fits you to start with. If it needs a lot of alterations, maybe three weeks? When are you getting married?”
“Two.”
Olivia felt Haden’s gaze light on her. She hadn’t realized he’d been listening. He hadn’t asked her about a date, and she hadn’t offered the information. In truth, she wanted to be married before she began to show, and was waiting until after the wedding to tell anyone about the baby. And as much as she tried to fight it, she just couldn’t shake this nagging feeling of foreboding. The unease fueled her sense of urgency to marry Liam before something terrible happened to prevent it.
“Two weeks? Wow, that’s not a lot of time to plan a wedding. Okay, let’s have you try on these dresses and we’ll see how much alteration they need. I’ll have a better idea of time after that.”
The woman gave Olivia five gowns to try on and that didn’t include shoe shopping or looking for Ashley’s bridesmaid dress. Poor Haden…by the end of this day, he’d probably believe she meant to torture him.
An hour later, she was into her fifth dress and twirling in front of the mirror as Ashley
gushed over how beautiful the dress was when that odd chill returned, creeping up her spine. Olivia stilled the small hairs on the back of her neck prickling as she searched the mirror’s reflection behind her. The two other bridal suites were empty and a quick look around confirmed they were alone.
Ashley snapped a couple of pictures, and then walked around the other side to get a back view of the gown. “I swear, Liv, this dress is my favorite.”
Tamping down her nerves, she pushed aside her anxiety and turned to Ashley, forcing a smile. “You say that about every dress, Ash. How will I ever pick when you tell me each is your favorite? I need another opinion.”
Turning away from her reflection, she strode over to Haden. He may be pretending to ignore her, but she’d felt his gaze straying to her each time she’d stepped out of the dressing room. “Which of the dresses do you like the best?”
He arched a brow at her question. In truth, he couldn’t look more disinterested. “Why are you asking me? If I had an opinion, which I do not, you would not pick it, anyway.”
Good point. She probably wouldn’t. The last thing she wanted to do was wear a wedding dress Haden had picked out for her. Much like with the cake, it’d been a mistake to even ask.
He stood and stretched lazily, showing off a masculine display of muscle and a glimpse of chiseled abdomen, revealing just how low those jeans actually sat on his trim waist. She tried not to look, but her eyes rebelliously dropped before she could catch herself. When she met his eyes again, she longed to slap that arrogant smirk off his face.
He scrubbed his face with his hands as if trying to rub off the boredom, and took a deep yawning breath. “One is just as good as the other. Just pick a dress already before my beard grows a beard. I’m going out for some fresh air. Holler when you’re ready.”
Holler? She’d do no such thing. Before she could tell him so, he turned and strolled out the door.
“Well, he’s a big help,” Ashley grumbled, coming up behind her. “Here, let’s look at the pics I took and you can eliminate some dresses that way. If we can narrow it down to two, then you can try them on again and see which one fits the best.” She pulled out her phone and stood next to her, flipping through the pictures. “Your boobs look great in this one...”
The Redemption Series Page 124
