Page 13 of Inked Nights

Things had changed this last time, and as he kissed her again now, rocking his hips into hers, he knew that things had changed yet again. He just didn’t know what they were going to do about it. That was why they needed to talk. Why he needed to pull his mouth and hands away from her and actually listen.

He needed to stop being such a selfish dick.

So he pulled away, breathing heavily along with her as he rested his forehead on hers. “That…that is something we’ve always been good at.”

She seemed to shrink in on herself at his words, and he leaned back, worried that he’d hurt her. “Olivia? Did I fuck up? What’s wrong?”

She shook her head. “No, you didn’t. I need to talk to you, though. I really, really do before you kiss me again and before I let you kiss me.”

Worry crept up his spine, and he was about to say that they should head to the living room and sit down so she could tell him what could possibly put that look in her eyes, but his phone buzzed a familiar pattern, and he let out a curse.

“Shit, I’m sorry, it’s my mom. I can’t let it go to voicemail.” He had reasons for that, but they were far too complicated to tell Olivia just then.

She seemed to pale even more but gave him a tight nod as he answered.

“Mom?”

“I need you to come to the house.” Her voice was a shallow rasp, and he knew he didn’t have much time to get to her. He never did.

“I’ll be there as soon as I can. Just lay down. Okay?”

She didn’t answer, but she never did. Not since…well, not since their world had changed, and Derek had lost what he’d thought was his future. He hung up and put his phone back into his pocket.

“I’ve got to go. My mom needs me.” He shook his head at Olivia’s look. “I’ll explain one day.” He hoped. Maybe.

“I understand.” And for some reason, he thought maybe she did, but he didn’t know how she could. “Just…there’s something I need to tell you.”

He kissed her hard one more time. “Okay.” She let out a relieved breath. “Next month.” When she stiffened again, he hoped he’d done the right thing.

But as he walked out of her house and back into the reality fate had given him one sunny day that had changed everything, he knew that he’d have to think about exactly what he wanted from Olivia—and for himself.

Because she was different, that much he knew. Putting her at arm’s length for so long hadn’t been wise for either of them, but maybe it had been what they needed. But now, maybe they needed more.

He didn’t know, but he promised himself that by the next time he saw her, he’d know exactly what he wanted and he’d make sure that he never hurt her. He’d seen enough hurt in his lifetime, and he never wanted to be the cause of it for another.

Never again.

Chapter Five

Olivia knew she’d made a mistake, but she’d gotten used to making them. After all, she couldn’t quite help herself when it came to Derek, and that was something she knew would have to change.

Was she going to meet him in a week? She didn’t know, but part of her understood she wouldn’t have a choice. Even if she didn’t touch him, even if she didn’t let herself break for him, she’d still have to tell him the truth. She should have done it already when he came by her house the week before, but she hadn’t been thinking clearly. She’d been in shock at just seeing him again, at knowing that they had yet another connection she didn’t know about, so much so that she’d lost the words she needed to say to him.

And that made her a horrible person.

She’d even been avoiding Austin and Sierra of late, telling herself that she needed to work and had hidden herself inside, ordering groceries and other things for the house so she didn’t chance seeing them and somehow telling them everything she’d done. The connections were too clear now, the ties that bound them together fraying at the edges now that she knew that the Montgomerys were part of Derek’s world.

Derek was going to hate her even more now, but there was nothing to be done about it. She’d made her bed, slept in it with Derek, and now she would have to lie in it until the end of her days, knowing what she’d done.

And because she knew she’d burst if she didn’t let at least something out of her soon, she picked up her phone and called Alice. Her friend and author was the one who usually called, with Olivia rarely making the calls herself, but desperate times called for desperate measures—and phone calls. As it was, whenever Alice called, Olivia was able to get whatever she needed to off her chest anyway. Alice knew her so well that the calls always came when they needed to. Today, however, she couldn’t wait for her friend.

“What’s wrong?” Alice didn’t pull any punches and, apparently, the other woman knew something had to be up for Olivia to be the one to initiate the call.

“Nothing.” Olivia let out a breath. “Okay, that was a total lie. I need to talk to someone about everything going on, but it’s a long story, and I feel like I’m making something huge out of nothing or I’m not taking it seriously enough. I need help, Alice.”

“Talk to me.”

Alice lived across the country so it wasn’t as if she could come over in a pinch and have a drink with Olivia like she might have wanted to if she had a core group of friends in town. Her business meant that she was constantly online and made friends that were true friends and closer to her than some of her friends in real life, though. But it also meant that having meet-ups that had nothing to do with work trips didn’t really happen. Calling Alice from across the country was one of the only ways Olivia would be able to have a friend in her life for advice. That fact kind of saddened her, but that was the country they were living in now, and she would cope.