11. Olivia
CHAPTER 11
Olivia
C utting across Bax’s front yard while carrying a tray of Halloween-themed frosted cupcakes, I wonder what the hell it is I'm doing. In fact, it’s the hundredth time I’ve asked myself that exact question since I got home from work and started getting ready to still show up at his house this evening.
I know he invited me to spend Halloween with him and his family, but that was before what happened this afternoon. Before, I had time to overthink and overanalyze every single encounter he and I have shared since the moment I saw him again. And before I realized what I’m feeling isn’t one-sided and that undercurrent of tension I’ve felt swirling between us whenever we’ve been alone was sexual in nature.
And if he tells me that I’m wrong after I confront him… well, I guess I’ll sign up with NASA to become one of the first humans to inhabit Mars.
The closer I get to his front door, the more nervous I become, and when I step onto his porch and hear Gemma begin to bark, my hands physically shake. Pressing the bell, I wait, forcing my feet to stay put. When the door finally opens after what feels like forever and blue eyes meet mine, I have a half a second of doubt but push past it and into Bax with my tray of cupcakes, leaving him no choice but to let me inside.
“We need to talk.” I leave him there and walk to his kitchen, hearing the door shut before the heavy fall of his boots on the floor follows me. Placing the cupcakes on the counter already covered with premade trays of crackers and cheese, along with fruits and veggies, I wish I had taken a shot of tequila—or maybe even two—before I came over. A little liquid courage would go a long way in this situation.
“We do need to talk, baby, but people are going to start showing up any minute, and the conversation we need to have is going to take longer than that.”
Baby? That’s new
“Is there enough time for you to explain to me what happened this afternoon?” I hold up my hand before he can speak. “And don’t even bother making up some lame excuse to cover the fact that you were jealous that I was having coffee with Lincoln.” I hold his gaze. I don’t know where my bravado is coming from, but I’m thankful for it.
His soft eyes roam over my face for a long time before he starts to shake his head. “Your brother has been my best friend since I was five.”
“I know.”
“This—” He waves a finger between us. “—has the potential to ruin that friendship.”
I open my mouth to tell him he’s wrong but snap it shut because that would be a lie. If Liam found out that Bax and I were seeing each other, his reaction would likely be unpleasant, to say the least. He would be angry—not just with me but with Bax—and that could affect his job since Bax is not only his best friend but is also his boss.
How did I not think about this? How had I not considered all the consequences that he’s so obviously thought about, which is why he probably hasn’t acted on the sexual tension I can feel in the air around us even now?
God, I’m such an idiot.
“You’re right.” I clear my throat, which is tight with disappointment. “I should…” I shake my head. “I should go.” I start to step around him to get to the kitchen doorway, but before I can make it two steps, he captures my wrist in his grasp, and my eyes fly up to his.
“You’re not leaving, Oli.”
“I am. You’re right about Liam. He would be mad, and I would never want to jeopardize my brother’s relationship with you.” And for what? Some gut feeling I have about him and me? Especially when my gut has led me wrong numerous times in the past when it comes to men.
“So what does it say about me that I would, in order to see what this is?”
Oh God, it cannot be healthy for someone's heart to pound as hard and as fast as mine suddenly is.
“What?” The question comes out in a whisper.
“After this afternoon, I realized I can either keep pretending I don’t want you and likely drive myself insane with jealousy because I will have no right to get pissed when you start dating someone else. Or … I can say ‘fuck it’ and deal with your brother and your parents when the time comes.”
“My parents love you,” I defend.
“Yeah, they’ve also been up close and personal with my past, babe, and I’m not sure they’d be very happy about me seeing their baby girl.”
Once more, he’s right. My mom has complained more than once over the years about how many women Liam and Bax have dated because some of them have been daughters of her friends from church or just friends in general. And even though my dad has always been of the mindset that boys will be boys, I don’t know how he would feel if one of those boys was interested in his daughter.
“I can see that you now get where I’m coming from.”
Yeah, I for sure see where he’s coming from, and I don’t know where to go from here.
“So what now?” He doesn’t have the chance to answer that question since Gemma starts barking as she takes off toward the front of the house right before the bell rings, and we both look in that direction. “I should?—”
“Stay,” he cuts me off as he closes the space between us and wraps his big, warm palm around the nape of my neck. A move that has my breath catching and my heart stuttering in response. “Please.”
Please.
Ugh. I wish that one word didn’t have me instantly caving.
“All right,” I agree, and he seems to relax.
“We’ll talk when everyone leaves.”
“Great. More talking,” I mutter, the idea suddenly not exactly thrilling. When I left my house, this whole situation seemed so simple. All I had to do was get him to admit he likes me, and everything else would fall into place. Now I see how naive I was.
“It’s not so bad.” He grins, dropping his eyes to my mouth while his thumb smooths along the edge of my jaw.
Okay, when he’s looking at me like he is right now and touching me like he is, it doesn’t seem so bad.
“Hello?” a voice that sounds like Talon’s calls from the front of the house, startling me because he obviously let himself inside. I expect Bax to push me away or at least put distance between us, so I’m shocked when he smiles and brushes his nose across mine before shouting an answer over his shoulder.
“In the kitchen!”
Letting his hand fall away from my neck, he turns as a girl dressed up as a very cute fairy with colorful wings comes around the corner, a little boy dressed as a pirate right behind her, and behind him another boy, this one much younger and dressed as Spider-Man. From the pictures Talon showed my mom and me a couple of days ago, I know the little girl is Eleanor, and the boys are Tobias and Conor.
“Uncle Bax!” The girl rushes to her uncle and gives him a hug as my eyes go to the doorway when Talon and a very beautiful woman step into the room.
“Hey, Olivia.” Talon smiles at me before looking at the woman at his side, who I know must be his wife. “Babe, this is Olivia, who I was telling you about.”
“Hi, I’m Mia.” She smiles, stepping forward to give me a hug. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”
“You too,” I say as she lets me go.
“You got something on your nose,” Eleanor says, grabbing Bax’s face in both her hands, and I look at him, noticing that some of the black liner I used to draw a heart on the tip of my nose to make me look like a cat is now smudged across his.
My eyes fly over to Talon to check his reaction, and he turns to me, dropping his eyes to my nose before looking at Bax.
“Don’t start,” Bax mutters in his brother’s direction while wiping his nose with the back of his hand.
“I wasn’t starting anything.” Talon laughs.
“Um…” I scoot around Talon and Mia. “I’ll be right back.”
“What’s so funny?” Eleanor asks in her sweet little voice as I leave the kitchen and head down the hall to the half bath.
“Nothing, honey,” Mia says, sounding like she’s trying not to laugh.
Flipping on the light for the bathroom, I take in my reflection and adjust my headband that has cat ears attached, then lean close to the mirror. My nose and whiskers are mostly still in place except for a little bit of pink showing through the black on my nose. Unfortunately, I don’t have the waterproof liner I used with me to fix it, so it is what it is.
When movement catches my attention out of the corner of my eye, I look to my right and watch Bax step through the open door of the bathroom.
“How do I get this off?” he asks, rubbing his nose, and I smile.
“Let me help.” I grab a piece of toilet paper and wet it, then add a little soap. Moving around him so we’re standing face-to-face, I lean up on my tiptoes and place my hand on his jaw, ignoring the way my insides tighten when he wraps his hand around my hip to hold me steady.
“You okay?”
I lift my eyes to his. God, it’s hard to look at him up close like this, especially when he’s touching me.
“Yeah.” I wipe away the black liner. “Talon seemed…” I search for the right word. “…unsurprised that it looked like we might have been making out.”
“He’s been on me about making a move.” This information surprises me. “He also knew I was considering how that might affect your brother’s and my relationship.”
There’s that weird feeling of guilt mixed with anxiousness again, and that sucks because I don’t even know what is going to happen between us, yet I’m already a mess over it.
“Oh.” I fall flat to my feet, and he lets me go. Tossing the toilet paper in the trash, I look toward the open door behind him when the bell rings.
“I got it!” one of Talon and Mia’s boys shouts, and a second later, multiple voices fill the house, along with the sound of children laughing.
“I guess we should get back out there,” he says quietly as his gaze searches mine. “If my sisters start asking questions about us, don’t feel obligated to answer them.”
“I wouldn’t know how to answer them anyway,” I mutter, and he laughs. “I’m not being funny.”
“I know, but you still are. Should we come up with a safe word so I’ll know when you need me to step in?”
“Is it going to be that intense?”
“This is my family. I know it’s been a while since you’ve been around them, but I’m sure you remember a little of what it was like.”
It’s been years, but I do remember there was lots of picking on each other and a whole lot of them being in each other's business. “Maybe I should go home.”
“It’s too late.” He smiles. “Everyone is here. It will look weird if you take off now.”
“Great.”
“It’ll be fine. If things get to be too much, just say ‘telemarketer.’”
“Yeah, ’cause that won't be weird at all.” I roll my eyes, and his fingers grasp my hip, digging in.
“You know, it’s really hard not to kiss you when you’re being funny.”
My toes curl at the mention of him kissing me, and my hands come up between us, landing against his shirt.
“We need to go out there to your family.” I drop my eyes to his mouth that is so close but so darn far.
“Yeah,” he agrees, and I rub my lips together as I put more pressure on his chest.
I honestly don’t know how I never recognized the sexual tension between us before. I must have been blind or in denial ’cause if it were a tangible thing, I’d be choking on it right now; it’s that thick.
“Fuck,” he mutters, dropping his eyes from mine and his hand from where he was grasping me when one of the kids shouts his name. “Let’s get this part of the night over with.” Turning, he flips off the light, leaving me no choice but to follow him.
When we get down the hall to the living room, I find the large space filled with adults and kids who are all excited to see each other and Bax. I remember Sage, Willow, and Harmony—Bax and Talon’s brother and sisters—but the woman standing with Sage and the two large men taking up space are new to me.
Standing close, with his hand resting on my lower back, Bax introduces me to Sage’s wife, Kim, Harmony’s husband, Harlan, and Willow’s husband, Clay, along with all their kids. Well, Sage and Harmony’s kids, since Willow is very much pregnant and due in the next couple of months with their first child. The only person missing is their sister, Nalia, and I’m surprised she’s not here when everyone else is.
As the kids begin to all play together and run around the house, the doorbell rings, and when Sage opens it, Nico and Sophie step inside. I don’t know why I didn’t remember that Bax’s mom and dad were coming over, but if I had, I would’ve been more insistent on leaving. Being around Bax’s siblings is one thing, but his parents are a whole other can of worms.
Thankfully, his parents are instantly swarmed by their grandkids, who are all excited to see them and show off their costumes, so I’m able to fade into the background. As I watch them interact, I can now understand why my mom has been on Liam and me about settling down. I don’t think it’s about her wanting us settled, or at least not completely. It’s that she wants to experience this kind of moment for herself. And now that I’m seeing it firsthand, I can admit that I’d love for her to have this… and have it myself.
As the children slowly lose interest in their grandparents, Sophie and Nico take off their coats and greet their kids while I stand with Bax, who hasn’t left my side. When Sophie’s eyes find her son’s, the smile she gives him warms me from the inside. It might be similar to the ones she gave her other kids, but it’s still all for him.
She walks across the room to give him a hug, and that’s when she notices me standing next to him. And as she tips her head to the side, it’s like she recognizes me but also doesn’t.
“Mom, you remember Oli, Liam’s sister,” Bax says, and she blinks before focusing on me.
“Olivia?” She gawks.
“Yeah.” I nod, and then I laugh as she swoops in and hugs me.
“The last time I spoke to your mom, she told me you lived in Chicago.”
“I was. I just moved back a few weeks ago,” I tell her, and she looks at her son, then me, before glancing around the room.
“Where’s Liam?”
“He’s not here,” Bax tells her, and she focuses back on him.
“Let me guess. He’s out on a date.” She rolls her eyes.
“Probably,” I mutter, and she laughs.
“Well, I’m glad you’re here, even if he’s not,” she says before she looks over her shoulder. When her eyes land on her husband, she calls his name, and he walks over to join us, wrapping his arm around her waist. For an older man, Nico Mayson is very good-looking, and it’s like getting a glimpse of what Bax might look like in the future since the two of them look so similar.
“You remember Liam’s baby sister, Olivia, don’t you?” Sophie asks, and Nico’s eyes lock on mine for a long moment before his gaze moves to his son, who is standing close.
Very close.
“Yes, I do.” Nico smiles. “Nice seeing you again, Olivia.”
“You too.” I shift on my feet. Something about the way he keeps looking between his son and me makes me wonder if he can feel the tension between us, which I can feel even now, like a constant itch under my skin.
When the doorbell rings, taking their attention off me, I relax—or I start to, until Bax walks away, leaving me on my own so he can pay the pizza delivery guy who Talon opened the door for. While he’s grabbing the pizzas, a few kids who started trick-or-treating early step up onto the porch, and Bax finds my gaze from across the room.
“Babe, you wanna grab the candy off the table in the kitchen?” he asks, and my cheeks flush as I feel everyone’s attention come to me.
“Uh… yeah.” Scooting out of the room, I go to the kitchen and grab a large plastic cauldron off the counter that is filled with full-size candy bars, bags of Skittles, and packs of Starburst. Extra boxes are stacked up next to where it was for when what’s in the bucket runs out. Taking it to the door, I pass out candy to the kids on the porch while Bax carries all the pizza into the kitchen, calling his nieces and nephews to follow so they can eat, then hit the street and gather their own candy.
Of course, when the first group of kids leaves, more trick-or-treaters arrive, and before long, Bax joins me outside to help. I’ve never experienced anything like it in my life, and the flow of children seems to have no stopping point. Back in Chicago, I had maybe one or two littles stop by my apartment—nothing like this.
“I thought you were exaggerating when you said the neighborhood gets bombarded with trick-or-treaters,” I tell him, looking at the long line of kids waiting on the sidewalk for their turn.
“I never exaggerate.” He laughs when a little girl and boy, both dressed as hippies, run off the porch, cheering after they each get a pack of Skittles.
“About anything?” I look up at him, raising a brow.
“About anything.” He grins, then the two of us look down and start laughing when a little boy—who’s probably about two years old and dressed as a lion—roars instead of asking, “trick or treat?”
“You’re adorable,” I tell him, glancing up to look for his mom, and my eyes land on Eva, who co-owns the med spa with Julie.
“Hey, Olivia.” She smiles, holding out her hand to her son after he chooses a pack of Starburst from the bucket. “I didn’t know you lived over here.”
“I just moved in next door not long ago.” I motion in the direction of Kourtney’s house.
“Really? My husband and I live a block over.” She glances at Bax and smiles at him, which makes me wonder if she knows who he is. If she does know he dated her friend, she doesn’t make it obvious. “We’ll have to all get together for dinner sometime.”
“I’d love that.”
“We’ll talk about it at work.” She looks down at her son, who is trying to drag her off. “I guess we better go before all the candy is gone everywhere else.”
“Have fun.” I wave goodbye to her, then look over at Bax. “She co-owns the spa where I work… with Julie.”
“Got it.” He nods, and once again, there is no real reaction to the mention of Julie.
“Hey, guys?” Bax and I turn to look at his mom when she steps outside, with Nico right behind her. “The kids are almost done eating and want to go out. Do you want us to take over passing out candy so you two can eat and go with them?”
“Yeah. Thanks, Mom.” Bax passes his dad the cauldron, then kisses his mom’s cheek before ushering me into the house, where it’s pure chaos as parents attempt to get the kids back into their full costumes. Kim is painting flowers on Eleanor, Ava, and Lillian’s faces in the living room. The three of them are all dressed like different-colored fairies.
When Sage’s son, Nash, runs up with his samurai sword and attempts to chop Bax with it, his uncle lifts him off the ground and starts to tickle him. It’s sweet seeing him with his nieces and nephews… and a little inkling of how he might be as a father himself. Of course, the rest of the boys join in, so Bax ends up being attacked by Tobias, Conor, Alistair, and Nash, all while I stand back and watch with a grin on my face that’s so wide it starts to hurt.
“Do you want kids?” Harmony asks, walking up to stand next to where I’m watching all the boys wrestle with their uncle.
“One day.”
“For years, Bax said he wanted to have six kids.”
“Six?” My eyes widen, and she laughs.
“Maybe he’s changed his mind since then.” She tips her head to the side like her mom did earlier. “How does Liam feel about you and my brother?” My heart sinks, and she must read it in my expression. “Oh my God,” she whispers. “He doesn't know.”
“Who doesn’t know what?” Willow asks as she walks up to join us.
“Liam doesn’t know about Olivia and Bax,” Harmony explains, and I look over at their brother in question, who is not paying us any mind, and wonder how crazy I’d look if I started shouting, “Telemarketer!”
“There is nothing for him to know,” I defend, and they both give me identical doubt-filled looks. “I’m serious. We haven’t even kissed ye—” I cut myself off.
“Too late. You were going to say ‘yet.’” Harmony grabs hold of my blunder in an instant.
“Oh goodness, it’s going to be like when everyone found out about Ashlyn and Dillon getting married in Vegas without anyone knowing… but worse,” Willow says. I have no idea what she’s talking about, but that does sound bad.
“Don’t scare her,” Harmony tells her sister before meeting my gaze. “It will be fine. Liam’s mostly rational.”
“Mostly,” Willow agrees, sounding like she doesn’t agree at all. Biting the inside of my cheek, I look over at Bax, feeling like I’m standing at the edge of a fire, and one wrong move could send me into the flames. The thing I need to figure out is if I’d happily burn for the chance to see what might happen between the two of us.