WindSwept Narrows: #20 Fleur & Liliana

by Diroll-Nichols, Karen

  “I restrained myself,” he squeezed her fingers and was rewarded with a small giggle. He’d missed that, too. “It’s not far from here. And I found it because some of your friends live in the area. Close enough I can take Hailey to daycare before I head to the office and you can carpool with Fleur.”

  “Ah-hah! It was her, wasn’t it? I knew it! That little French traitor,” Lili met the look on his face with a satisfied gleam in her eyes.

  “Are you honestly sorry she told me, Lili? She emailed me photos of Hailey and told me she thought you missed me,” Oliver stopped back at the small enclosed garden spot.

  “I’m not sorry,” she admitted, inhaling raggedly and raising her hands until she pressed them over his lapels. “I missed you. I just…I was afraid. I’ve been talking to a counselor,” she let the words burst out and saw the surprise on his face.

  “About us?” The words came out slow and soft, uncertain.

  “I thought I had a healthy self-esteem. The months around your family and some of your friends…frightened me when I came here alone,” Lili knew they had to find their way back to where they’d been when they met. And it was just as much her responsibility as his. “I was afraid I couldn’t be on my own again. I was afraid of the decisions I was making, and I’d never questioned them so badly before.”

  “Lili…I should have found a way to deal with them, I’m sorry. I’m sorry for the…the damn lies and stress they put you through,” he gathered her against him, relief flooding him when her face tipped back and she smiled at him. “I also know you only let me know a third of the things that were going on.”

  “I didn’t like the idea of posting bail for you,” she murmured with a wrinkled nose. She sighed when he finished laughing. “I also…I didn’t want to be a cry baby. I didn’t want to be seen as always running crying to you because they said or did something I didn’t like or understand.”

  “Lili, their behavior is mean, self-centered and deliberately designed to come between us for their own selfish reasons,” Oliver put his hands on her shoulders, set her back enough to kiss her. “I was fucking stupid. I was blind. I grew up with their snob behaviors and learned to ignore them, shrugging them off. It never occurred to me they wouldn’t welcome you just because I loved you to distraction.”

  “I think that’s what worried them, Oliver,” Lili said quietly. “I think they worried they were losing you and it was my fault and I wasn’t the kind of daughter-in-law they wanted for you.”

  “Lili, this…” He let his head fall forward, their foreheads touching. “Isn’t good after eating discussion.”

  “And definitely not around Hailey discussion,” she teased.

  Oliver sighed but felt the laughter inside him. “I do tend to become a little more relaxed in my language on some topics,” he admitted with a laugh, grabbing her up and kissing her soundly. “I’ve got to go. Some afternoon meetings and I do not want to be responsible for my girl getting fired.” He kissed her again and snatched up the bag he’d brought with him, aiming it at the recycling bin as he headed back to the parking lot, a light whistle echoing in the breeze off the ocean.

  Lili wandered back into the kitchen. She rarely took lunch and went to find Fleur, hugging her soundly before drifting into her kitchen, shrugging on her tunic and working on the list she had hanging on her clipboard.

  “Should I ask?” Fleur came to the arch, her hands wiping in the thick towel she always draped in her pocket.

  “For bringing Oliver back to me,” she smiled over the icing flute she was filling.

  “He would have found his way,” Fleur declared softly. “My way was quicker,” she told her friend with a wink before wandering back to her kitchen.

  Lili spent half an hour going over things they needed done for the weekend shift, leaving her number prominently displayed before dropping her tunic into the laundry and heading into the stairwell.

  She was excited. A weekend with Oliver and Hailey. She was making bets with herself that she could get him to take her to see the house now if she wheedled. And she could be very good at it when she wanted to be.

  Lili signed herself in and smiled at Lacie.

  “Hailey is in the playroom. She didn’t nap long today,” she said with a grin. “I think she’s getting used to daddy coming to play with her.”

  “Oliver isn’t here yet?” Lili struggled to ignore the little twinge of disappointment, grinning at the cluster of three little girls playing with blocks and large beads in the play box.

  “Not yet,” but both of them looked up when the noise against the door caught their attention.

  Lili felt her eyes widen, close and open slowly. She raised one finger at the same time she heard the little, “Da?” sound from the floor. She almost laughed.

  “That’s a new look for you,” she said cautiously, eyes sweeping over the thick soled boots, pants and shirt that had once been khaki colored now a cross between very dirty and beyond recognizable. She watched as he opened his mouth and then snapped it quickly closed.

  “That can’t be good,” Lacie remarked.

  “That means there are words in there wanting free that are not meant for little ears,” Lili interpreted delicately, pulling her lip between her teeth at the same time Lacie giggled and turned toward the door, inching past with a little wave of her fingers.

  “I’m going to walk you two home and then go to my room and shower and change,” Oliver told her, his voice level despite the laughter he saw in her wide, expressive eyes.

  “Oliver, we’ve been managing this since December,” she said easily, freeing Hailey from the toys and lifting her out of the pen with a little wave at the young woman playing with the kids. Lili stopped moving when she glimpsed something in his eyes. “How about you carrying this for us…we can go with you to the elevator. I brought some really good sandwiches and salad for dinner,” she chatted as she changed Hailey and moved to his side. “I’ll set up our dinner and wait for you.”

  Oliver nodded, glancing at his hands, the only thing on him clean other than most of his face. “I might be a few minutes, I’m stopping to pick up an ale in the lounge. Unless you have wine?” He saw the little wince and shake of her head. “Didn’t think so.”

  “I suppose it’s something we need to put on the shopping list,” Lili said with a cheeky grin. “Where have you been, Oliver?”

  “Inspecting the site I purchased,” he said with a weary sigh. “Humans are pigs.”

  “Now there’s a revelation,” she said with a laugh, relieved when he finally let out with a low, deep laugh. “That’s the Oliver I know. You can’t lose your sense of humor. I remember you telling me how much you missed starting businesses. I think you only stayed in fancy suits and offices because it’s what others wanted, not what you enjoyed.” She peeked over at him, grinning as he teased Hailey with his keys. “I’m sure our new house will have a very good washing machine.”

  He almost lost his grip on the keys, the grin on his face making him look like a kid when he met the teasing gleam in her eyes. He leaned in and kissed her before taking a couple long strides and disappearing in the elevator.

  “Hmm…I think your daddy is feeling very happy right now,” Lili said with a laugh, hitching the bag on her shoulder and stepping off to the stairs.

  By the time she heard the tap on her door, Hailey was fed, bathed and playing, half chewing on her bottle as it dangled from her new teeth. Lili opened the door, eyes on the large suitcase he wheeled in behind him. Pale blond hair still damp from his shower and a dark brown bottle held out to her, frosty with moisture dripping from it. She carried it to the table while he wheeled the case into the bedroom and returned by the time she had a tall glass next to the bottle and bottle opener.

  Oliver straightened after playing a few minutes with Hailey who wasn’t really focused on much of the world outside the bottle leaning against her blanket. His palms were sweating. He was fascinated and terrified of some of the new emotions and situations he fou
nd himself with Liliana.

  “Do you know why I had to come to the daycare this afternoon? Even looking like a sewer reject?” He met the simple, wide and curious look and sighed. “I didn’t want you to think I’d let you down, Lili.” Oliver looked at the palm she held out to him, letting her guide him to a chair at the dinner table. He could smell the collection of thinly sliced meats and vegetables on the toasted sandwiches she’d made for them.

  “Oliver, do you intend to divorce me?” Lili saw the instant denial and even a little concern in his eyes.

  “No. Absolutely not. What the hell…well, unless…if that’s what you really wanted…” He stopped when she held up one finger.

  “And you want us to live together and be a family,” Lili hoped she knew the answers but it was a relief to hear the words.

  “More than humanly possible, Lili,” he answered fiercely.

  “I understand that business things are going to occupy your time. I don’t want to be a business widow, or…or a shelf wife and I hope that I’m strong enough to demand your time and your attention,” Lili lowered her gaze to the fingers she had fidgeting on the table. “I also hope you want to be with me enough that I won’t have to make demands. I trust you, Oliver. I never stopped trusting you.”

  “It’s been a long time since I was involved this deeply with a project,” he began quietly, following her example and taking a bite of his sandwich. “When I’m not involved in the plans or the specs for the foundation to adhere to the quake regulations, I look up from my desk and see the photos I have of you and Hailey. Even in the field, doing a walk through on the property, a lull in the discussion and I hear your voice or see her little smile. It’s not something I want to ever lose, Lili.”

  “You…” there was a cross between embarrassed and thrilled in her eyes. “Have photos of us? In your office?”

  “Yeah…campy, huh?” He laughed at the color tinting her cheeks. “And a few more since I’ve been out here and snapping them when you haven’t been aware of me.”

  “Oh…then text me and just let me know you’ll be late. We’re tough girls,” she said with a wink, watching him pop the cap from the bottle and tip it into the glass she had provided. She watched the very brown liquid froth into the tall glass, her head shaking when he offered her a taste. She’d tried the ales he drank before when they’d been out together. “Did you fall into a puddle of mud out there today?”

  By the end of an hour their sandwiches were gone and she’d spent most of it trying hard not to laugh at his descriptive explanation for the day.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you happier, Oliver Kensington,” she informed him with a nod after returning from sliding Hailey into her crib. She dropped onto the sofa next to him, her fingers trailing around his ear. “You looked angry, even a little pissed, but I think you had fun out there today.”

  “You do, huh,” Oliver closed his eyes, the sensual feeling of her fingers trailing around his ear and onto his throat sending a shiver through him. “I think you might be right. I’ve spent weeks in meetings with the principles of the projects and just became more and more impressed with each meeting. Are you trying to distract me, Liliana?”

  Chapter Seventeen

  “Evidently I’m not doing a very good job of it,” she whispered against his throat, her tongue trailing along the ridge of his ear. He hadn’t moved, his palms resting on his thighs while he talked. She scooted closer, her knees bent beneath her and feet now bare. Her knee rested against his thigh, sliding casually toward the apex of his jeans at the same time her fingers pulled the collar of his tee shirt to the side so her teeth could nip at the tender hollow of his throat.

  “Oh, believe me, you’re doing a very good job,” he laughed softly when her hand tugged the shirt from his jeans and slipped beneath the fabric, dragging her nails over his stomach and along his side.

  “You’ve developed amazing self-control,” laughter bubbling out when he gripped her waist and pulled her to sit astride him.

  “You think so, huh? I’ll need a dentist if I grit my teeth much more,” he told her, his hands beginning to slide along her ribs when they froze.

  “Stop,” Lili heard the slightly loud word and closed her eyes. “Give me your hands, please,” she said firmly, opening her palms between them and licking her lips before she met the puzzled look on his face.

  “Lili?” Oliver wasn’t sure what to feel, what to expect. He knew the dark hint of passion in her eyes, he’d seen it often and delighted in it more than he realized until it had been taken away from him.

  “I have something important to say. Something…I had all these scenarios in my head about how I would handle it if…if I ever…we ever…met again…and I need you to not speak until I’m finished.”

  “Why are you holding my hands, Lili?”

  Oliver watched her sigh heavily, dark eyes narrowed.

  “You don’t follow instructions well.”

  “Too used to being a boss,” he admitted with a slight wince.

  “I’m holding your hands because if you touch me, I can’t think clearly,” she said firmly.

  “Lili, at least tell me you still like me a little…give me something, damn it,” he said abruptly. Until Lili, he never realized how much of himself he was willing to lay bare for another person.

  “Like…really, Oliver,” she glared at him now, straightened on his thighs and indignant. “After what…last night…you honestly believe I would…I could want to…really, Oliver. I never stopped loving you. That isn’t the issue.” She was staring at their hands, his so much larger than hers and so damn talented when it came to her body.

  She didn’t see the absolute relief, joy and buoyancy flood into him with such speed he was positive he was floating.

  “What is the issue, Liliana?” Oliver spoke only when he was sure the words would form and only when he was sure he could talk without choking on his emotions.

  “When you didn’t respond to any of my letters, I thought you didn’t want to…” the words stopped when his hands left hers and gripped her shoulders, forcing her gaze to his. “Oliver, I asked you to please…what’s wrong?”

  “You sent me a letter?” He spoke quietly, unable to halt the sudden resurgence of anger inside him.

  “Two…I sent them to the apartment,” she said watching his face. “And two to your office. When you didn’t answer, I…it hurt…and I didn’t blame you for not wanting to speak to me, Oliver, I truly didn’t. I should never have left, I should never have taken Hailey away from you. I was wrong. I should have…Oliver?” Lili brought her palm up, gently stroking over his face. “What is it?”

  “I never received letters, Lili.”

  She sighed thickly. “I was afraid of that but I didn’t want to believe they would want you to be unhappy.”

  “I suspect I know who.”

  “You’re angry. I suppose a little part of me hoped…well, I mean, not that you hadn’t received my letters, Oliver, but that at least then there would be a chance that maybe you did want to talk to me but someone else had stopped it from happening,” she ended the sentence with a sigh, her forehead dropping against his. “I’m sorry.”

  “Lili, this is not your fault,” his hands left her shoulders and framed her face firmly. “Listen to me and look in my eyes. This…none of this…”

  “You can’t say that. I should have fought harder to make you listen to me. To make you believe me,” she interrupted sharply.

  “You shouldn’t have had to, Lili, that’s the whole point! I knew you…I know you! I know you’d never…” His head shook as he fought for control. “I know you’d never cheat on me, cheat on the vows we made to each other. It isn’t who you are inside.”

  “Someone at your office and at home took my letters, Oliver. I…put my return address on them,” she said with a little grin. “Just in case you wanted to come storming back into my life. I thought…if you answered…then maybe we could start talking again and work things out.
I put my cell number in there, too. I know what they said to me, things they told me…but I didn’t believe them. I didn’t believe that you wanted free.”

  “The night you bounced off my chest in that coat room…” He looked deeply into her eyes, watching the glimmer of moisture along with the memory. “I felt alive for the first time in a very long time. If I could have frozen that minute, that space for us…I would have. That couple minutes with you, I felt free, but you were with me.”

  “That’s why you didn’t quit,” she whispered, easily understanding the feeling he was describing. “That’s why I had to hope…I made a mistake by leaving, and I don’t want to offer an excuse but I couldn’t think clearly anymore. There were too many of them and only one of me,” she sighed thickly. “Me, Misty and Marcus and Patty. They’re all that kept me…they tried to protect me. They saw things you didn’t.”

  “Marcus told me how careful they were and how you made him promise, which I am only more than slightly pissed about,” he said flatly.

  “Only more than slightly?” She repeated with a little wince.

  He offered a small laugh, his head shaking. “And I look in your eyes and it fades like smoke, Lili.”

  “I needed you to know, Oliver. You…this…it’s all I need. I missed you so much,” she felt her voice shaking, felt the hot burning behind her closed eyes. “I missed you…us…you’re my best friend and I lost that and I want it back. I never wanted to lose it and I’m sorry I did. I’m so sorry…”

  Oliver did all he knew how and that was hold her, his whispered words echoing the ones she’d managed to set free from inside them both. Somehow his mouth found hers, tasting softly of the salted tears and promises that had gotten mistreated because of others.

  Warm, pliable and full, her mouth met his and never denied the feelings inside her. She was his equal and he couldn’t imagine a better sensation than she was offering him at this very minute. Hungry, hot and demanding, Lili wrapped her arms around his neck and returned every kiss, every stroke of an exploring tongue and each nip of the teasing, arousing teeth. She wanted him, all of him, the good and the bad.