Chapter Seven
Jace
“Jace, I wanna watch the movie,” Kaylee yelled to me from her spot on the couch.
“Be right there,” I said.
Frozen was queued up and ready to go, but I was standing in the kitchen, pretending I needed to send an email on my phone, when really, I was mindlessly scrolling through social media while I waited patiently for the erection in my jeans to deflate.
When I’d noticed the wine on the counter I’d instantly regretted not getting Olivia a glass before she went into the bathroom.
I’d had zero intention of trying to corner her naked when I brought her a glass, but I hadn’t expected her to open the door in a towel.
Her dark hair was draped over her shoulders and hit the top of the towel in a way that made me wonder how it would look against her bare breasts instead.
I’d frozen, watched her wrap her lips around the edge of the glass and take a sip, felt my cock thicken, then bolted before she could see how turned on I was. Friends don’t get erections with friends, Jace, that’s creepy.
After a few more minutes, my problem subsided. I plated another piece of pizza, picked up my glass of wine, and joined Kaylee on the couch. I tossed one arm around her, using Liv’s little couch shelf for my wine, and prepared for my fourteenth viewing—give or take—of Kaylee’s favorite movie.
Olivia must have taken my request to heart because the next time she stepped into the living room—in a pair of satin pajamas that hugged her body in all the right places—the credits were rolling and Kaylee could barely keep her eyes open.
Olivia stopped in front of us and smiled, looking at her daughter curled up against me. My heart soared. This is what we could have if I stop being too scared to tell her that I want to be more than friends. Kaylee spotted her mother and shifted herself off me.
“Is it bedtime?” she asked.
“It is,” Olivia said, sounding much more relaxed.
Good, she deserves it.
“Go get in your pajamas, please. I’ll be in to read you a story in just a minute,” she said.
“Okay,” Kaylee said, standing up. She stopped in front of me and threw her arms around my waist. “Goodnight, Jace.”
“Goodnight, kiddo.” I kissed the top of her head and gave her a tight squeeze.
“Are you going home?” Olivia asked, looking at my empty wine glass.
“I’d rather hang out with you if you want me to stay for another glass of wine like we’d planned.”
What do I even have to go home to? A huge condo with no one in it?
“I’d like that. I’ll be out in fifteen minutes,” she said, turning toward Kaylee’s room which was just to the left of the living room.
“I’ll get us more wine.” I stood and picked up my glass from the table and walked to the kitchen.
Olivia hadn’t brought her glass out of the bedroom, so I grabbed a fresh one from the cupboard.
My phone buzzed in my pocket as I poured the wine and my heart rate picked up, wondering if it was Kayden.
I finished pouring the wine and pulled out my phone to see my cousin’s name on the screen. My chest sank in disappointment. Probably for the best since two hours ago you were hard in your best friend’s kitchen and thinking about her tits.
Leo: Hey. Do you know there are like a thousand things Sophia can’t eat while she’s pregnant?
Me: I do.
I’d spent enough time around Olivia when she was pregnant to know she would’ve murdered me if I’d eaten a sandwich with cold cuts in front of her. She’d missed those the most.
Leo: Should I make the family a list? For the party?
Leo: Of course I should. I don’t want them poisoning my baby before they’re even born.
Me: I’m sure your parents are familiar with the list. You recall they had a baby once? He not only survived but ended up being an exceptional athlete? You might want to cut them some slack.
Leo: Your moms know nothing about babies. What if the rules were different when my mom was pregnant? I think I should just make the list.
Me: You’re going to make it anyway, so let’s pretend I support the idea.
Leo: Thanks, dude.
I laughed as I slipped my phone back in my pocket and took a sip of wine. Leo was going to be a lot during this pregnancy. The way he worshipped Sophia before she was pregnant was something to admire, but now? Forget it.
Olivia came out of Kaylee’s room and gently pulled the door shut behind her.
She walked straight toward me and wrapped her arms around my waist, resting her head on my chest. I stiffened, fighting the natural reaction to let this be more than the friendly hug it was, before quickly relaxing and holding her against me.
However she wanted to be in my arms was something I was happy to accommodate.
“You really are the best thing that’s ever happened to us, Jace,” Olivia said, lifting her head to look at me. I kissed the top of her head and stroked her hair.
Same.
“I’m glad you think so, because I’m very attached to that kid of yours. Almost as attached as I am to you,” I said, a little too sincerely. I stepped back before I gave her the impression that I was trying to make more of this moment than she’d probably intended.
I picked up both wine glasses and led the way back to the living room. “Feeling better?” I asked, as we settled onto the couch. I turned my upper body toward her, and she sat cross-legged, facing me. She took her wine glass from my hand and took a long sip.
“So much better,” she said. “I had no idea how much I needed that.”
“Well, I’m glad it helped because now I’m going to be singing ‘Do You Want to Build a Snowman’ for at least a week.”
She laughed. “That is definitely the catchiest one. I’m so sorry.”
I shook my head. “It’s worth it. Listening to her sing along is adorable. But next time you’re suffering with me.”
“Deal,” she said, holding out her hand for a quick shake. She pursed her lips and seemed to be thinking something over before finally opening her mouth again. “I have a bit of a situation and I kind of need your help. But I feel like it’s a big ask.”
I set my hand on her knee. “Liv, there is nothing you could ask of me that I would think is too big.”
“I feel like I ask for your help way more often than you ask for mine.”
I shook my head. Olivia was extremely independent and rarely asked for help at all. Most of the time when I helped her it was because I’d offered and she accepted it, but I could see how she would feel like she was on the receiving end more than I was.
“That says more about me than it does you. You don’t need my help.
You’re a capable woman who can do anything you set your mind to.
” I pointed to the floor-to-ceiling bookcase she’d built when Kaylee was a year old and the surround sound system she’d hooked up herself.
“You don’t need me. But I’m here and I want to be.
Besides, I had a shitty day too and being with you and Kaylee has already made it a lot better. ”
“Oh no, what happened with your day?” Olivia asked.
“Fucking Martin,” I said, shaking my head and already feeling my blood pressure rise at the mention of my boss.
Martin was the CEO of Acker Real Estate, which meant I reported to him, but since Sutton had given me the reigns to run the Sustainable Housing and Equitably division as I saw fit, I really only reported to Martin as a formality.
When Sutton inherited the company, she’d taken the for-profit real estate empire and established an entirely new philanthropic division with me at the helm.
Her father, Zachariah, had run the company as the CEO and President, but Sutton hadn’t wanted to manage any of the day-to-day work since she still worked full-time as a lawyer for my mom.
As the majority shareholder, she’d assumed the role of president only.
Martin, who’d worked with Zachariah, was appointed to the role of CEO, and had been less than thrilled about the creation of a third division in the company which he had no control over.
In a few more years, Sutton planned to step down entirely, sell her shares to me, and have me take over as the controlling owner and president of the company, which meant Martin would answer directly to me, whether or not I maintained my role as VP.
We had a board who voted in an advisory capacity, but ultimately the decision-making power resided with Sutton.
Martin was tolerant of her role out of respect for her father, but he had no respect for me and despite knowing this succession plan for the last four years, he hadn’t gotten any more amenable to it.
“Am I supposed to know anything about Martin other than that he’s your super-annoying boss who sounds like kind of a dick?” she asked.
I laughed. “Not for another three weeks. Then you’ll also need to know that I prefer to avoid him, refuse to take his calls after four o’clock because he never shuts up, and that he basically hates me and wants me to fail miserably on the rehab facility.”
“Why does he want that?” she asked, rubbing at her foot with one hand.
“Are your feet still sore?” I asked.
She nodded. “I’m fine. Tell me about this new dick I work for.”
I set down my wine glass and pulled on her calves. She gave in and stretched her legs into my lap, and I shifted backward to allow space to rub her feet. I dug the heel of my hand into the arch of her left foot, and she signed contentedly.
“You don’t work for that dick. You work for me. And if he tries to tell you otherwise, he can go fuck a duck.”
Liv snorted. “Okay, so is this a male-ego problem between the two of you that I should be prepared for?”
“Yeah, his,” I spat, pressing harder into her arch.
She let out a little moan and my dick twitched at the sound.
“He’s just pissed because the board is more invested in my division than he thought they would be and he’s not getting the attention he likes.
He expected Sutton and me to have our little passion project and not detract from their interest in his for-profit work.
But since the work I’m doing is starting to build a lot of positive PR he’s bitter about the interest in my division. ”