Chapter Six
Garrett set down his bag and looked around Olivia’s
house. She told them she lived in what she described as a guest house on the
ranch grounds. He expected something small.
Well, he supposed it was small compared to the ranch house,
which was a two-story mansion.
But Olivia’s house was bigger than anything he’d ever lived
in. The foreman’s house on the O’Malley Ranch was nice but small, with none of
the softness he found in Olivia’s house. There were books on the shelves and a
big comfy chair where she obviously sat and read. There were tea sets and
bookshelves and paintings. It was feminine and lovely and warm.
He and Keane had been in the cold for so long.
“How long have you lived here?” Garrett asked. There was a
tension since they’d been dropped off. The minute they were alone, Olivia got
tense. They needed some small talk. Without a Chihuahua around.
“Just the last couple of months. Until then Josh and Grim
lived here and I had a suite in the main house. But my parents bought the ranch
next to ours as a wedding gift for them and Nicole. There was some irony in
that purchase since it was owned by Grim’s biological family. They kicked him
out. Now he owns it all.”
And that was satisfying for her. He liked how fiercely she
seemed to love. “So your dad doesn’t merely cube cars. He likes to make sure
karma hits hard.”
Her lips curled up in a smile. “Yes, he does. My dad is big
on long-term revenge. He’s patient. Papa likes to throw punches. At least
that’s the way Momma tells it. From what I understand my papa was different
when he was younger.”
“I would bet he was just less mature.” Garrett looked over
at Keane and then back to Olivia. “Your papa is a genuinely good man. I like
Sam a lot. I’ve only met him a couple of times, but I enjoy his company. Your
dad, on the other hand, can be intimidating.”
“Dad is a good man, too, but he’s got a lot of
responsibility. You know my mom and papa are his subs, right?” Olivia asked as
though waiting for judgment.
Garrett snapped his fingers. “Damn it. I owe Keane.”
Keane seemed to relax slightly. “Sorry. You can’t scare us
away like that. I clocked Sam as a sub right off. Garrett thought he might be a
switch.”
Olivia snorted. “No. My papa can be assertive in the outside
world, but he relies on my dad everywhere else.”
Keane nodded as though he already knew. “I’ve only met your
dad briefly, but I think he’s probably a good Master. He would be indulgent,
and he’ll take his responsibility seriously. I would bet he’s overly protective
as well.”
Olivia frowned. “You have no idea. Did I mention the cubes?”
“You did indeed.” Garrett moved closer. “We’ve been in the
lifestyle for years now. We’re not going to judge you or your family.”
She stiffened, losing any relaxed state she had. “Well, I’m
not worried about your judgment. I’ve lived with it all my life. It doesn’t
affect me anymore.”
Oh, but it did.
He glanced over, and Keane’s energy matched hers.
It was hard to be the reasonable one.
Olivia moved around the couch, arm sweeping out toward the
other side of the house. “The kitchen’s back there. Let me know what you like
to keep on hand and I’ll get it. If you follow that hallway there are two
bedrooms, though I use one as a home office.”
And his best friend was on the edge.
He knew that look in Keane’s eyes. It was the look that
usually sent Garrett to his phone so he could make a reservation at Subversion.
Keane felt out of control, and he needed it so desperately.
“My bedroom is on the other side of the house.” Olivia
seemed flustered, too. Like she had them here and now she wasn’t sure what to
do with them.
He could tell her what she should do with them. It looked
like the time for small talk was over. “We should discuss the arrangement.”
Keane looked up from his brooding. Or maybe he missed
Muffin. Huh, maybe his friend needed a canine companion. “Arrangement? Are you
talking about the rooms? I can still stay in the bunkhouse. I’ll tell the hands
not to gossip.”
It was Garrett’s turn to shine. If there was anything he was
truly good at it, it was making a case. “I think that’s a bad idea, and it
won’t work. How many hands does this ranch employ?”
“We have eight full-time hands who live in the bunkhouse,
and another four who live in town and commute in,” Olivia explained. “Garrett’s
right. I know most of them are men, but they live for gossip or know someone
who does. Their mommas use gossip like military intelligence. If you’re in the
bunkhouse, everyone will know it.”
“So let’s talk about this in a reasonable fashion.” Garrett
was perfectly satisfied with the way she’d put them neatly in a box. He didn’t
want a way out. “Well, the way I look at it, Olivia started a new scene at the
airfield. I would like to negotiate the parameters of this new scene we find
ourselves in.”
“A scene?” Olivia asked, biting that thick bottom lip of
hers.
Even flustered she was the sexiest woman he’d ever seen.
Keane’s lips turned up slightly. “That’s how we’re playing
it?”
Oh, he of little faith. He wasn’t playing at all. In a
sexual sense, yes, there would be play. But he wasn’t going to use that word
when it came to the opportunity that massive asshole had handed them. “What
else would you describe it as? We’re playing a role that isn’t reality. We’re
pretending to be Olivia’s boyfriends so her ex will leave her alone. Or at
least he’ll understand she’s not unprotected. It’s a scene.”
“I don’t know that I would call it that, but I understand
what you mean.” Olivia’s face was a pretty pink. “I’m sorry I brought you into
this.”
“I’m not,” Garrett admitted. He had found honesty could be
useful in certain situations. “I understand why you did it.”
Keane nodded grimly. “So do I.”
Her expression turned curious. “Why do you think I did it?”
It was time to let Keane say a few things. “You want to tell
her?”
“I’ve met men like that before. Many of them. He’s
attractive and charming and thinks that’s the only thing that matters. I don’t
know if he grew up wealthy, but he believes money is due to him for being male
and attractive and charming. He doesn’t understand how to hear the word no. If
you don’t put a wall between the two of you, he won’t leave you alone. He’ll
only believe another man, so it’s me and Garrett or your dads, and you don’t
want to wreck your parents time together.”
“That sounds about right,” she replied. “He didn’t grow up
with money, but it’s always his end goal. In some ways he reminds me of Grim.
They both came from terrible households. Grim’s was abusive in every way, but
Scott’s was, too. Not physically, but they played their kids off each other.
He’s incredibly competitive, and I put you in the line of his fire.”
“We can handle it,” Garrett assured her. “I agree with
Keane’s assessment. I think if you don’t have a wall to hide behind, he’s going
to make your life difficult. He wants you back for some reason, and it will
take a lot to get him off his goal. You have another choice. If you like I can
document everything and get him fired. Trust me, that asshole will push you to
the limit if you let him.”
Her arms crossed under her breasts in a protective gesture.
“I know he will. Look, I panicked. It’s been a lot the last few days. Between
the wedding and… It’s a lot.”
He knew what she wasn’t saying. She was talking about them.
He actually took it as a compliment. If she didn’t feel something for them, it
wouldn’t bother her they were here. He was starting to know this woman. There
was her business side, and a softer side she probably didn’t let anyone but
family and close friends see. There was the hurt girl who grew up being judged
for something she had no say in. She needed a release, but she couldn’t ask for
it. “Olivia, I think this could be a good scene for all of us. We left a few
things undone. I don’t mind telling you that last night meant something to me.
I know we agreed to not catch feelings, but they’re kind of all over me, and it
might be good for us to spend this time getting some closure.”
Olivia seemed to think for a moment. “It was a fantasy.”
Now they were getting somewhere. They needed to talk about
this. Even if they tiptoed around the heart of the matter. “Yes, but it was
also something real. It happened.”
“We had boundaries,” she argued, but there was no heat to
her words.
“And boundaries change when the situation shifts,” Garrett
replied. “I worry if we don’t get some closure, I’ll think about you for the
rest of my damn life. Maybe this is all happening for a reason. Maybe you don’t
need closure, but I think Keane and I do. We haven’t had a submissive like you
in a long time.”
“Ever.” Keane was serious again, sliding into his dark and
broody top role like it was a second skin. Which it kind of was. When he was
emotional, top space was a hideout for him. Or perhaps it was a place where he
could be honest without being vulnerable. “We’ve never had a sub like you.
We’ve played, but it never felt like last night did.”
She flushed, her eyes meeting Keane’s. “It was special for
me, too, but I worry it was special because it was finite.”
He had her. He didn’t have to tell her that closure for him
was getting her in between him and Keane for a very long time. Maybe forever.
What he honestly wanted was a shot.
He wanted to take this time to figure out if it could work.
“So why don’t we view this time together as one long scene?
If you want to use us as a wall against your ex, then we should play the part.”
Olivia stared at him as though trying to figure out exactly
how to work him. “This feels like a negotiation. Like you want to get something
out of it, too. Are you offering to provide a service in exchange for my
submission in bed?”
“Yes,” Keane said flatly.
Garrett looked his friend’s way with a frown. “I was going
to pretty it up a bit.”
Keane shrugged. “Look, I’ll take care of the guy if that’s
what you want, but Garrett’s right. I’d like to get to know you so you’re not a
fantasy woman anymore. So I won’t spend the rest of my life comparing everyone