9. Olivia
OLIVIA
L ucas brushed a piece of hair from my face, tucking it behind my ear. Instead of removing it when he finished, his hand lingered, cupping my check. I fought every urge in my body to keep from leaning into it.
“Are you okay, Angel?”
“Y-yes.”
“No, you’re not. I’m going to kill that bastard.” He looked at the building with a furrowed brow, his body tense and rigid. He was vibrating with rage that whipped against me in waves.
“No! Don’t go. Please.” I didn’t feel like I was going to fall apart, but I definitely didn’t want to be alone.
Michael hadn’t touched me or even really suggested he would, but as soon as he’d blocked me into that alcove I’d felt that unsettling feeling in my gut that only women knew.
After a few attempts to redirect him hadn’t worked, I texted Lucas.
He took a deep breath and when his eyes settled back on mine, he was marginally more relaxed. I wasn't sure how long we stayed like that, my face in his hand, neither of us looking away.
Eventually, Lucas broke the contact, looking to the side and dropping his hand like he was stopping himself from doing something more. When he returned his gaze to me again he said, “Let’s get out of here, yeah?”
I nodded, but stayed frozen in place.
Lucas grabbed my knees and turned me to face forward in the seat. Then he reached across me and pulled the seatbelt over my body, clicking it into place. After closing my door and rounding the front of his truck, he hopped in and turned to me.
“We can skip the site visit. Let me take you home.”
“No, Lucas. We don’t have to do that. I’ll be fine. Just a little shaken up. I was probably more on edge after talking to my mother. Seriously, by the time we get there I’ll be good to go. Just drive.”
He eyed me warily.
“Don’t diminish what he did.”
“I’m not. But it’s definitely not the first time a man has been creepy to me. Just caught me off guard. I wasn’t expecting to be accosted in the stone pallets.”
“Olivia.” Lucas scolded me as his jaw ticked. I could see a vein on the side of his head pulsing. It made me feel like we needed to get going before he went back inside and caused bodily harm. I really didn’t feel like bailing Lucas out of jail today.
“Lucas.” I needed him. To be okay. To help me be okay. I just needed him. I didn’t want to go home and be alone. Lucas studied my eyes and something he saw made him relent and pull away from the supplier to begin our journey to Helen’s in-progress home.
I wanted to reach across the cab and touch him, but I wasn’t sure if it would be more for him or me. I felt like I needed to ground myself. For some reason, I knew Lucas would do that for me, but we were already blurring the lines of an appropriate working relationship so much, so I held back.
I decided distraction was my best opportunity to turn this around for both of us. I definitely couldn’t sit in silence thinking about Michael’s beady eyes staring me down between those pallets. So I leaned on a trick a therapist once taught me and began asking him ice breaker questions.
“If you were a vegetable, what vegetable would you be and why?”
He glanced at me and quirked a brow.
“What?”
“Come on, Lucas. Humor me.”
He sighed, but then his mouth turned up on one side while he pressed his lips together. A hum escaped his subtle smile as he thought of his answer.
“Maybe broccoli.”
“Ooo. Very interesting. Why broccoli?”
He sighed again, clearly not thrilled with my game, but playing along anyway. “It’s utilitarian. Great nutritional value, but it also gets thrown into some of the least healthy foods on earth. It’s a chameleon. Shows up in veggie platters, but also in soup partying with cheese.”
I burst out laughing at the image of Lucas partying with blocks of cheese. His thoughtful answer took me by surprise considering my vegetable question. Considering everything I knew about Lucas, did I agree?
I hadn’t seen the carefree side of him he was describing. A side that would party with cheese, as he put it. At that moment, I realized I desperately wanted to know that side of him. To know every side of him. It obviously wasn’t a part of his personality he let out at work, though.
“You would be a tomato.”
Caught off guard, I laughed again. “A tomato is a fruit, but I’ll bite. Why?”
“Tomatoes are endlessly talented, universally liked. Part of the cuisine of so many cultures because they’re so versatile. They’re simple and pure. Delicious on their own, but also able to be incredibly complex.”
I was pretty sure my mouth was hanging open. This man comparing me to tomatoes may have been the single greatest compliment I’d ever received. I instinctively tried to hide my reaction, which was a combination of a big, dumb grin and watery eyes.
When I thought I could speak without my voice sounding all shaky, I whispered, “Thank you, Lucas.” Then I cleared my throat and asked another question before I really embarrassed myself.
“Crunchy peanut butter or smooth?”
We went on like that until we reached the job site and by the time we exited Lucas’s truck, he was calm and I was feeling put together.
Together we strolled toward the construction, taking in the progress. Lucas had been here recently, but this was my first time seeing our plans start to come to life .
Since the foundation had been dug and poured, the crew was beginning framing everything out. After scanning the entire property, we stopped about thirty feet from the front of the house. Lucas was in the midst of pointing out some items we’d worked through together when Leo approached.
“Hey Luc.” He nodded at me. “Olivia.”
I offered him a bright smile and a hello.
“How’s everything going?” Lucas crossed his gorgeous arms over his chest and jutted his chin toward the work in progress.
I tried not to stare at his arms. How did he look so good in a t-shirt? Did he know? Was this a blatant attempt at torture?
“So far, so good. The guys had a question about the east exterior wall. I was going to call you, but since you’re here, might as well talk to them yourself.”
Lucas looked at me with hesitation. “I’d offer to take you inside, but our insurance wouldn’t cover you...”
“Oh, that’s fine!” I assured him. “I can look from here. I’ll walk through when it’s further along and less of a hazard.”
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
Lucas wasn’t talking about the house. His face was lined with concern and his eyes sent a subtle plea. For what, I wasn’t sure. To ask him to stay? To go with him? To be okay?
“Really, I’m good.”
He lingered for a moment longer before telling his brother to stay with me, taking the hard hat Leo offered him, and walking off .
Leo and I stood together quietly for a few minutes while I took some video of the site with my phone to use on social media later. Eventually, he broke the silence.
“So, how would you rate the Alessi Construction experience so far?”
A smile pulled at my face. I thought of Lucas and the complicated mix of emotions he made me feel.
“It's been wonderful. You guys are great partners.”
Leo hummed. “We try to be. Especially Lucas. He puts a lot of time, effort, and heart into trying to be a good, responsible partner. He’s the one that picks up the pieces. Cleans up the messes. Gets everyone on the same page.”
I had a feeling we weren’t just talking about Alessi Construction or Helen’s project anymore. Leo kept his eyes on the workers moving around the house, never turning his attention to me.
“Sometimes… when things go wrong, the person in charge can fall apart. Lucas is always there to take care of everyone.”
It was obvious to me Leo was talking about their family, specifically their father. I knew the boys’ father had struggled after his wife’s passing, and it sounded like Lucas had stepped in more than I realized.
It tore at my heart, hearing the sadness in Leo’s voice. These men had clearly loved their mother fiercely. Her death truly affected their family profoundly.
Leo continued, “He’s careful. About what projects we take on. How the business operates. He takes everything and everyone into consideration.”
“Of course. I’ve seen that in the time I’ve worked with your family. It’s very admirable. He really seems to shoulder the brunt of…” I tried to think of a good analogy for the ruse Leo had going, “…issues with projects.”
“Yes, but that’s actually not his job. So many times his job gets overshadowed by the pieces of everyone else’s jobs he steps in to help with.”
“I understand.”
And I did. After what Lucas told me about the timing and structure of their company, his determined drive to make it successful made complete sense.
Their father certainly seemed like a capable, easy-going man. But Lucas had clearly filled some vacancy as the head of the family. I suspected he’d felt obligated to after their mother’s death while their father mourned the love of his life.
Finally, Leo turned his meaningful stare my way. “Do you Olivia? Understand? Because I just want to make sure Lucas only works with the best. Colleagues that have his best interests at heart.”
I nodded slowly, not sure how to put Leo’s mind at ease. I mean, of course, I wanted the best for Lucas. But in the way any friendly colleague would, right? Nothing else was on the table. We were coworkers.
Anything else would be inappropriate. Lucas, of all people, wouldn’t allow it. Aside from that, I was on the cusp of one of the greatest professional opportunities of my life. I couldn’t afford to get distracted.
So the logical response to this speech of Leo’s, clearly meant to protect his big brother’s heart, would be, “There's nothing going on that you need to be concerned about.”
Instead, I softly but firmly stated, “I do understand. I’m always careful with my projects. And I don’t leave them incomplete.”
He nodded.
“Alright then. Let me walk you around.”
Leo might have seemed placated, but I was more nervous than ever. My attraction to Lucas was obviously plain as day if Leo felt the need for this conversation.
That was bad.
I had no idea how to navigate this growing pull to a man I shouldn’t want and couldn’t have.