19. Olivia
19
OLIVIA
“Olivia, you idiot,” I hissed as I pressed the heels of my hands into my eyes. I’d been berating myself intermittently for two days now since I stupidly fell back into bed with Alex. How could I have been so weak?
Because you still wanted him, you ninny.
My snarky self-consciousness was right. If I hadn’t been wallowing in regret about the way I lost the only man I’d ever loved, I wouldn’t have slept with him the first chance I got. Releasing a long-winded sigh, I shut my eyes tightly and tried to rid my mind of all things Alex.
I failed because all I could see were images of us in my bed. I could practically feel the heat of his lips as he kissed his way down my stomach to settle his broad shoulders between my thighs. He was still a god in bed… even better than he was in college. Of course, he would be. He’d had years to perfect the incredible skills he already had.
I groaned out loud as I squirmed in my chair because my underwear was getting suspiciously damp. Maybe it was normal to keep reliving every erotic detail of my night with Alex. I mean, I hadn’t had incredible sex, let alone an orgasm, in about a decade and that night I had four . Alex had really made up for the frenzied love-making on the couch. He’d taken his time strumming my body to the point of?—
My phone rang, making me jump. Feeling ridiculous, I picked it up.
“Ms. Brentwood?” My assistant’s voice helped to pull me from the haze of two nights ago because I was reminded that I was at work, and I had important things to focus on.
“Yes, Janice?”
Janice’s hesitation made me frown.
“Mr. Knight is here to see you…”
My heart rolled and then filled with dread. He was the last person I wanted to see, especially since I spent the majority of the morning thinking about how he rocked my world the other night. However, I knew what this impromptu visit was about. It seemed Alex kept his word about helping me, despite apparently hating my guts.
“Show him in and push back my upcoming meeting thirty minutes.”
“Sure,” Janice chirped and hung up.
I got about ten seconds to compose myself. By the time Alex stepped into my office, I was poised and in ice princess mode. Still, my heart galloped at the sight of him. Embarrassment flooded me too because the things we did the other night were just… wow . Plus, I’d foolishly gotten my hopes up thinking that us getting intimate meant that he’d change his mind about ruining me. I’d even entertained thoughts about us possibly finding what we once had. I could just slap myself for being so silly.
“Alex,” I greeted as I stood up .
“Olivia,” he returned icily.
A pang of sadness struck me. It seemed impossible for us to be friends and that was tragic because I still loved him.
“Please, sit,” he said. “This is going to be quick. I just wanted to update you on that situation, and I didn’t want to do it over the phone.”
I stared at him as he tugged at his jacket before he sat on one of the chairs in front of my desk. Was it possible that he was just as uneasy as I was after the other night?
“Of course,” I said, glad that I managed to keep my voice steady.
“I’m making progress on getting you and Liam out of the crosshairs of your… new friends .”
I snorted my annoyance at suddenly having to deal with people I’d never cross paths with if not for my irresponsible brother. “How exactly are you doing that?”
“With the assistance of Boston PD,” he said casually.
My eyebrows elevated. The police were assisting him , not the other way around. I was starting to think that what Elena said was true. Perhaps Alexander Knight did run the city from behind his computer… like an evil genius… but minus the evil part. That was scary for someone like me who was on his most hated list.
“I see,” I said. “Well, that’s great. Thanks again.” I had no idea what else to say regarding his generosity. “Does that mean those cops can stop keeping an eye on my apartment and this office?”
“No.”
“But Alex?—”
“Olivia, it’s better to be safe than sorry.”
I sighed. “I just don’t want anyone getting wind of my extra protection and then dig and find out that I’m involved in some kind of drug scandal.”
“You’re not. Your brother is.”
I shrugged. “You know how it’s always been with my family and the media. One bad thing hits the public about one of us and the entire family is crucified. I always have to be so careful.”
“I know.”
Our eyes locked and I could tell that he was remembering how he always had to find discrete ways to get me to have a good time. He was so good at making me comfortable, enough to let loose, and I always felt safe with him.
His gaze slid away from mine as he spoke in a clipped tone that broke the spell between us. “I have someone watching the facility you got Liam into yesterday.”
My jaw dropped. “How do you know about that?”
“Getting information is my specialty, sweetheart,” he drawled and then grimaced.
I almost rolled my eyes at his reaction to slipping up and calling me “sweetheart.” Goodness, he really didn’t like me, did he?
“Right. How do you know none of these cops won’t talk to anyone about having to guard the Brentwoods?”
He huffed as if his patience wore thin. “Because they’re on my payroll, alright?”
My jaw slackened. “You mean they’re not really cops?”
“Some are retired cops, but some are private security. I didn’t want to tell you because you’d make a big deal about it. There you have it. If they talk, they’re done, and they know that. Everyone will keep their mouths shut. Will you relax now?”
“No!” I scoffed. “You had better send me an invoice.”
He shook his head. “You’ve always had trouble letting people help you. You’re even more of a control freak now than you were in college.”
“I am not .”
“Control freak,” he taunted.
As I glowered at him, I realized that we were no longer Ms. Brentwood and Mr. Knight, business rivals, but Alex and Liv, having one of our relationship spats. He seemed to realize it too because a muscle ticked in his jaw and then his expression became stony again.
“You don’t have to reimburse me.”
“I’m going to. For all I know, you’re helping me just so you can have me in your debt to use it against me later.”
He sighed and rubbed his forehead. “Okay, I get why you’d be suspicious, but believe me, this isn’t a ploy. This is serious, dangerous shit, Olivia. I’d help anyone in a situation like this.”
I sat back in my chair as I gazed at him. Even without the sincerity in his eyes, I’d believe him because I’d seen him do things like this to help people even before he was a powerful billionaire. He helped me once in college when my bitter ex-boyfriend harassed me for breaking up with him. I couldn’t deny that Alex was a cyber hero capable of doing serious damage to a crime organization no matter how powerful they were.
“Fine, thank you,” I muttered. Honestly, it was a load off my shoulders to finally have someone else take charge and handle something for me.
“Don’t think this makes you safe from my acquisition of BioTech,” he warned. “After this, my full focus will return to taking what’s mine.”
Gritting my teeth, I gave him my most disdainful look. “Don’t think that me accepting your help with this one thing means I won’t beat you at your sick game.” His expression darkened, and I smiled sweetly. “You’re in my world of business, Alex. I’m better than you over here. You really should stay in your tech lane.”
He studied me through narrowed eyes for so long that I started to squirm a little in my chair. His little grunt sounded a lot more ominous than it should. Plus, why was he looking at me as if he knew something I didn’t? Panic clawed at my insides as I wracked my brain, wondering if I’d slipped up somehow by making my next move on the chessboard known.
Impossible …
Since I knew Alex’s skill to garner information, I’d taken painstaking steps to keep my next move a secret this time. My mother was the only one who knew I was heading to New York next week, and she didn’t even know why. Not even my trusty assistant knew I was going to meet with a potential investor. I left no room for a leak.
“You still think you’re so high and mighty,” he hummed as he shook his head. “We’ll see who’s better than who in the end, won’t we?”
His devious smirk had my suspicion on the rise.
“But let’s put our rivalry aside for now,” he said. “I have something to show you.”
I followed his every movement as he stood up and walked around to my side of the desk. My breath got stuck in my throat when he leaned close to get to my laptop.
“Hey, what are you?—?”
“Relax, I have no interest in what’s on your precious laptop. This is more convenient than using my phone,” he said absently. That was how he usually sounded when he got lost in codes or whatever tech geniuses got lost in. My files disappeared and were replaced by a login screen for KnightGuard.
His fingers rapidly danced across the keyboard, but all I could focus on was his proximity and how amazing he smelled. That of course triggered memories of the other night and I gulped as pesky arousal sent tingles through me. I blinked and returned my attention to the screen where I saw a bunch of things that made no sense to me but obviously made sense to him.
I gasped when a video popped up and then another and another. They were of me, Mom, and Liam in different settings. One video was of me walking to my car in my lab coat and the date on the screen was just last week.
“These were taken by your friend, the one you had dinner with.”
“Stop calling him my friend,” I said. “I was terrified of the guy.”
“I hacked into…” He stopped and side-eyed me. “I mean, I legally got these from?—”
“Alex, I’ve known about your extracurricular activities since college.” Amusement briefly replaced my worry because the sheepish look on his face was priceless. “Your secret has always been safe with me.”
Sometimes, he trod a fine line between legal and illegal but it was usually to save asses that deserved to be saved, so… I say, more power to him.
He blinked and then something like realization flashed in his eyes. I guess it hit him that even after we broke up, the authorities never showed up on his doorstep because I never uttered a word to anyone about his past.
I glanced at his profile when he returned his attention to the computer screen. I hurt him in the past, but I’d never hurt him like that . I wish he knew I’d protect him no matter how much he hated me, no matter how hard he was working to ruin me. If only he knew just how far I had gone to protect him before …
That agonizing sadness seized my heart in a vise-like grip and I had to suck in a breath.
Alex glanced at me with a frown. “Hey, don’t worry about these guys. I won’t let anything happen to you or your family…” His words trailed off as if he regretted admitting that he cared.
However, he misunderstood the cause of my distress. Sure, I was scared about inadvertently getting caught up with criminals, but most of my torment stemmed from knowing I could never win his love again.