Chapter Five Sienna
Oliver pulls me behind him with one arm and puts himself between Blake and I. He eyes Blake like he’s looking at a festering pile of horse manure. “Can't you see we're busy?”
Blake sways back-and-forth like he’s trying to peer around Oliver to where I’m standing. Oliver doesn’t give an inch.
“Sienna.” Blake says my name like he wants to throttle me. “Who is this rude asshole you’re hooking up with?”
I open my mouth to reply.
“I’m her boyfriend,” Oliver says. “Who the fuck are you?”
Blake raises his palm to Oliver’s face. “None of your fucking business.”
“Then stay the fuck away.” Oliver throws his arm around me, and we leave the patio. Once we've cleared the Sandbar & Sips neon sign, I feel myself take a long exhale.
Oliver casts a glance back at the tiki bar.
“Did he follow us?” I ask.
“Doesn’t look like it. Is he a big drinker?”
“Yeah, the whole family is.”
We reach the Kia, and for the first time since we kissed, he lets go of me. I don't like it one bit, and not just because I need his protection.
He turns onto the road leading inland. “You’re a therapist. Do you think Blake is pathological? Does he have a classifiable illness?”
“Aside from substance abuse?”
“Yeah.”
“If anything, it’d be narcissistic personality disorder. That’s typical for stalkers. But I can't say for sure without giving him a screen. And I won’t be screening him for any psychological disorders.”
“Not on my watch,” Oliver says, and if I’m not mistaken, cracks a teasing grin.
A little playful, are we?
While his playfulness might be "little," nothing else about him is. That kissing was big. I felt it in every cell of my body, especially the cells between my legs. I was entranced, mesmerized. I didn’t care that Blake was somewhere on the patio. Oliver made me feel safe and free to have the dirtiest thoughts about how he’d use that powerful mouth on other parts of my body.
Then there was his erection, which went beyond big, well into huge territory.
For me.
Or not. It could've been the physical stimulation of the kissing. Along with, maybe, a little hardness for me?
Is there a chance we could continue what we started? I’m game if he’s game. But something tells me that wouldn't go down with Sunbreak Security. Darcy wouldn’t approve. And I don't think Oliver is the type to violate company policy.
We could do it in secret. He’s staying in the room across from mine. Easy-peasy.
But is he single? “I hope this isn't too forward, but, you know, we were kissing at the most popular place in town. I wouldn't want anyone to see us and think you’re cheating on a girlfriend or anything. Would they? Do you have a girlfriend?”
“Ah, no, I don’t.”
I suck my bottom lip between my teeth.
“How about you?” he asks.
“No boyfriend for me. I haven’t had one of those in years. Six years to be exact. Not since I was an escort. That was the last time I had any free time. Once I started grad school it was studying, then interning, then starting my practice and my sexual wellness channel took off.”
I wave to the security guy at the Mangroves Club gate and he lets us through.
“But you have sex with your clients.”
“No, god no. I don’t have sex with my clients.
I guess not in the strictest sense. There’s no touching.
That’s the number one rule. But I do point out places on their anatomies and mine which they might not be familiar with.
You’d be surprised how clueless people are about their own bodies and the bodies of the people they’ve been having sex with for years. ”
Oliver pulls into the driveway and shuts off the engine.
“I also show them how to use toys and games they can play to get into the mood. We watch dirty movies together.” I meet his eyes and steady myself to shoot my shot. “We can do that if you want.”
“Porn? You want us to watch porn together?”
I shrug. “Sure. But first I was thinking we could pick up where we left off at the tiki bar.”
He lets out a harsh breath. “What happened in the tiki bar was us pretending to be lovey-dovey. That’s my job. I have a job to do. I can’t be watching porn and making out with clients.”
Ouch. After those amazing kisses, he doesn’t want to keep going? That was just his job? Seriously? That wasn’t the message I was getting from his dick. That piece of him was shouting loud and clear for us to continue.
But that could've been nothing more than a reflexive response to physical contact. “Okay, I understand. We won’t do that again.”
“Exactly.” He gets out of the car, walks around to my side, and opens the door for me.
Inside the house, I wait in the foyer while he checks the alarm system and does a room-to-room search.
“Leave your door open while you sleep,” he says, walking across the foyer. "About halfway open should be fine. I’ve good ears even while sleeping. I'll leave mine open, too.”
“Okay, but just because my bedroom door is open doesn't mean I’m interested in porn and making out,” I say with exaggerated sternness, trying to let humor defuse any awkwardness from his earlier rejection.
“I promise I won’t get the wrong idea.” He nods grimly.
“Goodnight, Oliver.” I stay in the foyer while he goes to his room and leaves his door wide open.
I pull my cell off the bedside table. Six-thirty on the dot. Will I ever not wake up at six-thirty on the dot? Already, I’ve got a text from Darcy. Oliver told me about the incident with Blake at Sandbar & Sips. How are you doing?
I put another pillow behind me. Propped up, I listen for sounds coming from Oliver’s room.
I spent a good hour before drifting off to sleep listening for sounds from Oliver’s room.
Then I fell asleep very horny because I wasn’t comfortable masturbating with a stoic and hearing-sensitive bodyguard an open-door away.
So much for sexual wellness.
I press the microphone button to text back. I’m fine. Oliver handled Blake. It was an entirely verbal confrontation.
That’s what Oliver said. But he thinks Blake is capable of more hostility. I’m glad you’ve got Oliver with you.
Me, too. Is he always so serious?
The most serious guy I know. Be patient. He’s like a shy puppy. He’ll come around if you bring treats. You should make him superfood smoothies. He’s always drinking something that looks totally disgusting but apparently is really good for you (shrug emoji).
I look up superfood smoothie on my phone and open my shopping cart.
Oliver glances out the kitchen window to where I’m sitting on the outdoor patio next to the firepit I’ve never used. I curl my legs under me on the well-cushioned swivel rocker and press the call button on my phone.
He pours the rest of his breakfast smoothie into a glass and sips.
This morning I made him a purple concoction after we got back from our run.
I used blackberries, hemp seeds, chia seeds, a ton of spinach, and something called spirulina, which smelled like a swamp.
Then I added Greek yogurt and a touch of honey.
Oliver took the concoction with a simple thank you, the way he's taken all my smoothies the last few mornings. Then he did like always does and sat at the kitchen island, sipping his smoothie while he watched me make my breakfast of eggs and toast.
Once I got my plate prepared, I sat with him and presented him with another conversation-starter. This morning the topic was cars. He told me about every car he’s driven since he was sixteen. Then he asked me about my car ownership history while he did the dishes.
After the dishes, he drank the rest of his smoothie and cleaned the glass. He’s the perfect houseguest.
Except he’s making me out-of-my-mind horny.
I can’t stop thinking about our tiki bar make-out session. Was it the best make-out session of my life? I can’t remember anything better, especially on the first go. Somehow, the uptight, nevertheless sexy, bodyguard knew exactly how I liked to be kissed.
Because it’s how he likes to be kissed, too.
Were we made for each other? I’ve never felt the seductive, hot weight of a man when I was standing upright with his hands at the back of my neck and his leg bent like it was shielding me from the world.
I’ve never been so taken aback by a rush of sensations that I forgot there was a madman in the room who seems to simultaneously wants to fuck me, own me, and kill me.
My brother’s phone goes to voicemail. I could call Mom or Dad, but talking with them spikes my blood pressure and my blood pressure, along with the entirety of my nervous system, is under control these days thanks to the presence of my very kissable hot bodyguard.
Motion from the house catches my eye. Darcy has arrived.
I wave for her to come out to the patio.
The morning is sultry warm and the scent of plumeria hangs in the air.
Oliver follows her across the backyard. They walk alike.
It’s confident, rapid, and authoritative, and so elegant you wouldn't think they mean business.
“Hello, my dear.” She leans down and gives me a brief hug. She and Oliver take chairs around the firepit. I’m charmed by how they sit the same way because of the gun holsters at their waists.
“Any news?” I ask.
Darcy shakes her head. The coffee incident didn't yield any evidence against Blake.
I wish he'd left fingerprints, but was relieved he didn't try to poison me.
“Nothing new. But we’ve got a proposition for you.
I think we've gotten to a point where we need to take some deliberate action. You want to go back to Houston. None of us wants him stalking you here or there. How do you feel about drawing him out?”
A surge of panic has me tightening every muscle in my body. “What do you mean? Do you want to use me for a bait?”
“I wouldn't go that far. We want to draw him out.
He hasn't shown his face around Mangroves Club as far as we know since coffee incident. The bartender at Sandbar & Sips told us Blake has continued his daily ritual of drinks at noon followed by happy hour and a boozy dinner at Bluefin Marina. After that he goes back to Sandbar & Sips for his bedtime rounds.”
She nods at Oliver, who’s facing the fairway. “We were thinking that you and Oliver could put on another lovey-dovey performance for him at Bluefin tonight. You can have dinner, courtesy of Sunbreak Security, and let him see you with another man.”
She places her hand on my forearm. “I think it's time we saw if Blake is capable of giving up and walking away. Can he leave you alone to be with your new boyfriend? If so, that’s important information.”
“So, Oliver and I have dinner at Bluefin like we’re a couple and see if he loses interest and leaves town.”
“Exactly.”
Oliver keeps his gaze on the golf course. It's hard to imagine us being lovey-dovey at dinner tonight. But I thought the same thing before the tiki bar. Then he jumped right into the role.
“Alright, I'll do it.”