PoisonLove Confessions
The next morning Olivia opened her eyes to her birth control, two painkillers, and a warmed cup of coffee. Colin was not in bed with her. She looked over at his pillow and saw he’d written her a note. She picked it up slowly, pushing her hair behind her ear as she sat up.
Any thought she had about waking up with him after last night and discussing his nightmare dissipated in a flurry of disappointment. Was he even going to talk about it with her? Looking down she read the note quietly to herself.
Olivia,
Take your medicine, take a bath, and relax. I’m in the downstairs study handling a couple last-minute work-related things before break.
Colin
Colin had written the note hastily, knowing his words were true. But it was also the truth that Colin needed to call his doctor”s office and get a slightly higher dose of his anxiety medicine. Knowing to get a handle on it so Olivia didn’t have to worry if he was losing his mind or not. If he was in control or not.
Olivia whimpered as she swung her legs over the side of the bed. The heavy, hurt feeling settling deep into her bones and giving her that exhausted feeling she missed when she worked herself to death every month for Allison’s medical expenses.
Olivia arched her head back, taking pleasure in the feeling and reveling in the soreness. She thought about her sudden epiphany last night, however; she was still unsure of her feelings around identifying as a masochist.
Doesn’t that make me just like my clients?she wondered.
A fresh wave of confusion and insecurity broke over her consciousness. She just didn’t feel like she related to the men that she beat. And because she wasn’t disclosing that piece of information about her life to Colin, the one person that could probably help her, couldn’t. She bit her lip, sighing as she sank into a melancholy state.
Sinking into the bath, her hand flew up to her throat gently as she recounted the events from last night. She remembered how helpless she felt as she was strapped to the wall by her neck, and how freeing it felt that she’d been forced to give up control. Thinking about all the other times she and Colin had been together, comparing the ones where he’d taken her relatively regularly, versus when he’d stepped in with his dominant side.
She admitted to herself that the feeling she had after he was particularly vicious with her was definitely more satisfying. And she still couldn’t force herself to pick which she liked best. All were sides of Colin, and she cherished each one. Her brain easily turned that thought over and tucked it away somewhere remote where she stored all the things she didn’t want to inspect too closely.
Taking the loofah, Olivia absentmindedly ran it up her arms.
Her eyes stared off into space as she thought about the rest of the agreement. How was she going to get out of this without a broken heart? He’d given her no real indication that he cared for her beyond a person he signed a contractual agreement with. For not the first time, she’d thought about the house she designed some years ago. Wondering if she’d known then what she knew now, would she have still designed it?
This thing between them was getting complicated, in more ways than one.
Her gaze narrowed, her thoughts now turning to once the agreement was over. He would be living in the house she designed, and where would she be? Alone?
Biting her lip, Olivia dismissed all thoughts, feeling herself getting upset. Once again shutting down her emotions in favor of putting on a front for this man who expected her to hold up her end of the agreement. Stepping carefully out of the bath she blow dried her hair and secured the mass into a thick bun at the top of her head. She lightly did her makeup, smeared a light gloss on her lips, and dressed in all black today. Like her mood.
Padding over to the bed, she grabbed her phone from the nightstand and opened her phone up to her text messages before finding Vanessa.
Hey sis, are you free? -Ollie
She waited a second until she saw the three ellipses show up, indicating that Vanessa was responding. She walked to the lounge and sat down in a chair.
Yes, what’s up O? You ok? -Nessie
Yes. -Ollie
She scrunched her eyebrows before typing back quickly.
That’s a lie. I’m not ok, I don’t think. I’m confused. -Ollie
Ok…what’s up? What’s bothering/confusing you? Is it Colin? -Nessie
No... maybe. Sort of, but not really. Nessie, do you know what a masochist is? -Ollie
Yes. Are you finally figuring out you are one? Lol. I’ve been waiting a long time for this conversaatttiiiooonnnnn! Did the man bring out your wild side finally? OMG bitch, puhLEEASEE tell me the dick is good. That’s all I want to hear! -Nessie
Vanessa sent about twenty demon emojis, five water squirt emojis, and a few eggplant emojis after the text.
Olivia’s jaw hit the ground as she reread her sister’s text exactly four times before she responded.
I’m sorry, what do you mean you’ve been waiting years for this conversation? And I’m finally figuring it out? Like, you knew? -Ollie
Olivia waited forever for her to text back.
Well, not explicitly, no. But come on, I’m your big sister. I’ve always noticed things. You would do weird shit like brush your hair too hard, hitting your head with every pass of the brush. Or you’re always biting the shit out of your finger when you’re stressed. You press your hands into your eyes hard when you’re upset. You would dig your fingernails into your skin. It’s like anytime you needed relief from something, you would find a way to hurt yourself. It was never like, serious enough for us to worry that you needed to go to the doctor or anything but- even grandpa Stephen mentioned some things a few times, and I knew I wasn’t crazy for thinking it. -Nessie
Olivia paused, rereading her message a couple of times. She waited, seeing the three dots indicating Vanessa was typing more.
Soooo can you answer my questions please??? I’ll tell you, Johnathan is just….*sigh* like I would suck the fucking chrome off his dick if he asked me to. The man is beautiful. Fucking amazing. He is blowing my MIND. He did this thing to my ass with his tongue the other day that had me screaming for Jesus and you know I don’t do that. -Nessie
Olivia’s mouth formed an ”Oh” before she felt her face heat up. She pressed the back of a shaky hand to her mouth, trying to hold in a hilarious giggle.
“Oh my GAWD Vanessa!”-Ollie
I giveee…yes Colin is absolutely blowing my mind too. Last night, he tied me to the closet with one of his belts around my neck. Then fucked me for three hours straight. It was amazing. The best was when he made me strangle myself before he picked me up. -Ollie.
Vanessa sent about fifty shocked and then laughing emojis.
Oh my god. You are such a freak. -Nessie.
I really like him, Sis, and it makes me scared. How am I going to get to the end of this in one piece? -Ollie
Well, does there have to be an end? Why can’t this turn into something other than an agreement? Relationship > Agreement. Johnathan said the man is absolutely infatuated with you. -Nessie
Olivia put her phone down and looked up, thinking to herself. Contemplating her sister’s words.
Yeah, well, if that’s the case, why couldn’t he wake up with me this morning and talk to me about his nightmare he had last night instead of running? The man wants to know my secrets but won’t even tell me any of his, she thought, her sad feeling returning. She looked at her phone again.
I don’t know. I have to go Vanessa. Gotta run to the grocery store. Thanks for talking to me. Love ya. -Ollie
Grabbing her purse, she took the elevator downstairs, stretching her aching quads on the way down. The sad feeling magnified as she opened the elevator door, feeling Colin’s presence somewhere in the house.
Walking with purpose, she’d rounded the bend and stepped into his office without knocking. Finding him standing and leaning his hips against his desk, reading some papers. He had his reading glasses on, and the hair on his jaw looked slightly thicker, betraying his lack of grooming that morning. His eyes met hers over the top of the papers. His eyes froze on her lips before flickering back to her.
A tense moment passed between them before she swallowed, clutching her purse to her body tightly.
“I’m going to the grocery store. To get the items we need for Thanksgiving. If you have anything special you need, please text me so I can get it on the way back in,” she said hoarsely, her voice still scratchy from screaming for hours the night before.
Colin stayed silent as he penetrated her with his stare. And her lips parted briefly as he eye fucked her from head to toe. She blinked rapidly, looking away uncomfortably before turning awkwardly. Not waiting for him to say anything. Quickly making her way to the garage, she blinked back stinging tears, betraying rising emotions.
Why? Why do I have to feel like this. What the fuck IS this anyways? And why do I gotta feel it when it’s not going to end up going any fucking where. What the fuck. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid, she lamented in her head.
Upset because she was emotional, she gunned the gas a little too hard and flinched as she came just a hair away from annihilating his favorite bike. Why he kept it so close to her car, she didn’t know. She gritted her teeth hard, correcting her car and pulling out smoothly, punching the button that let the garage door up. Tears streamed down her face as she rounded the house and down the garage.
Her phone pinged with another text from Vanessa.
Biting her lip angrily, she pushed the button to call her, knowing she was doing it because Colin wanted her to. He”d flip if he thought she was texting and driving.
“Hey babe. How’s it going?” her sister chirped cheerfully over the phone. She sucked in a deep breath, hating that she smelled fresh new leather instead of her car’s old musky smell. She hurriedly turned the heat off, preferring to feel the frigid air like she did when she was in her own car that provided her with no heat.
“Did Colin call you?” she asked, already knowing the answer.
“Yes, he’s worried about you. Olivia, are you ok?” Vanessa prodded.
“I don’t know. I don’t know what I am anymore,” she said, her voice thickening with tears.
“Well… you have to trust your heart,” Vanessa’s voice crooned over the phone.
Trust, Olivia scrunched up her nose. There’s that fucking-I HATE that word. Dammit. Trust doesn’t mean anything. I trusted my parents were going to raise me. I trusted I was going to make something of myself. Ally…Trust means nothing. Always ends in betrayal.
“No offense, Vanessa. My fucking heart makes no difference. Never has, you know that,” she said harshly, glancing in the rearview mirror she saw her nose and eyes were red. She drove down the streets slowly.
“That man loves you, sis. Why can’t you just relax and let it happen?” her sister’s voice filled her car softly. She wished it were comforting.
“Because every fucking good thing that happens to me gets taken away. You know that. I’m just so tired of being disappointed,” she half yelled. Her breath hitching in her chest.
“Olivia, we can figure this out. There’s still time. You’re about to finish school, the majority of our stress is over! You have options, we’re in a better place than we were-”
“No. No! I’m not doing that, and I don’t want to hear it. We’ve already talked about this, Vanessa. And you’re wrong, time is the one thing I’m solidly running out of,” she said harshly.
Thinking of all the time that’s now racked up in the agreement between her and Colin, Olivia suddenly wished she hadn’t accepted the call. In an extremely rare move, she hung up on her sister. Fighting the urge to throw her head back and close her eyes in agitation, she turned off the highway, merging onto another one a few exits down.
Love, she was falling in love with him. But their time together was on a time limit. So, she couldn’t bring herself to trust him. He had secrets he didn’t want to disclose.
Heading to the diner, she cried silently, needing desperately to feel normal.
***
Belinda was there when she walked in. The woman looked happy and refreshed, and the diner was spruced up rather nicely, with new paint, new floor, and new windows. The outside was updated as well, with fresh paint and some plants. She bristled, knowing it was Colin’s doing.
She couldn’t seem to go anywhere without thinking of him, seeing him.
Olivia pushed the feelings aside and hugged the woman with a big smile. Laughing as Belinda leaned forward to smack a kiss onto her cheek affectionately and motioned for her to sit down in a corner. The woman caught her up on all the going ons at the diner, and who was working there now and their gossip. They chatted over a nasty cup of coffee and a piece of pie. And she was once again reminded of Colin and the day he’d come into the diner and gave her his card for the first time.
Her phone pinged with a text from Colin, as if he’d felt her thinking about him.
Where are you, are you ok baby? You ran out before we had a chance to really connect this morning. -C
You could’ve just tracked my phone. -O
Olivia… I give you your privacy. The tracker is only there for emergencies. -C
I’m fine. Just out, will be out for a while. -O
Are the stores crazy? -C
Olivia debated her answer to that, realizing that she was at the diner and if he really wanted to timestamp locations, she was a sitting duck. So, she decided to answer simply, as she wasn’t in the store. A lie by omission.
No. -O
The three ellipses on his end appeared and disappeared several times before a simple text came through.
Let me know if you need anything, amor. -C
She’d tossed her phone on the table, annoyed.
Olivia finished her visit and said goodbye to Belinda, leaving the largest tip she’d ever left before heading back to her car and sliding in. Her car pinged as it connected to her phone, another reminder of Colin’s presence in her life.
She turned off the highway, heading to her old neighborhood. A bit later, she stood still in front of her old apartment door, seeing a yellow welcome mat. Another tenant had already moved in. Her eyes stung with tears as she stupidly put her hand on the door.
She bent forward and rested her forehead on her hand. Remembering tearing up the hundred-dollar bills that Colin gave her and how she tore them up and left them in front of the door for him to see. She cried genuine tears now, mourning her apartment and her old life. Knowing that somehow, someway, she’d needed to say goodbye to what she once was and find a way to move forward. However, that looked. With or without Colin.
Could they find a way forward together with so many secrets between them?
The future looked bleak to her, despite the glitz, glamor, and ease of her current lifestyle. She”d been witnessing Vanessa becoming closer to Johnathan seemingly by the day, and she owed it to her sister to step back a little and let her explore what that was without her always inserting herself.
Though she loved Allison more than anything, she had a mother who deserved to find her own slice of happiness.
Olivia wrapped her arms around her torso, her body lowering into a crouch as she pressed her wrists to her eyes hard. She got it together, giving a small lingering glance at her old door. She put her fingers to her lips, kissing them briefly before gently pressing them to the door. Letting her old life go.
She turned to go back up the stairs and inhaled in surprise. Her heart crawled into her throat when she saw Colin standing there at the top of the landing. Leaning against the brick wall and staring down at her with that penetrating gaze of his. Not speaking.
She shivered as he began to descend the steps, his big body quickly filling the small space. She tilted her head back slightly to look at him. His brown eyes stared warmly at her.
“How did you know I was here?” she swallowed thickly, fighting back a wave of tears. The look on his face as he was fucking into her body the night before suddenly entered her mind and she blushed, looking down quickly. He placed his finger under her chin, raising her head back up.
“I will always find you when you need me,” Colin said, his gentle eyes boring into hers.
His hand wrapped around her waist, preventing her from stepping backwards away from him. “And I mean always, Olivia,” he warned, leaning further into her, his lips so close.
Her breasts rose and fell as she grappled with emotion. He didn’t close the distance, letting her make the decision. His eyes flickered between hers.
“Touch me dammit,”Colin whispered, his lips a hair”s breadth away from hers, his smell assaulting her senses and making her dizzy. She let out a desperate gasp, her hands coming up slowly to his chest, feeling the hard muscles bunching underneath.
Without even knowing she did it, she slowly raised her head and pressed her lips against him softly.
Rubbing her plump lips against his firm ones, Olivia moaned, uninvited tears falling as he licked his tongue across her sensitive skin, searching. She pressed deeper into his body, parting her lips with a small moan and accepting him into her mouth, tilting her head back to give him further access to her. His hand came up to the side of her head and he cupped her gently, letting her know that he could be both hard and soft. His hand trailed down her arm and clasped her hand.
“We’re going home,” Colin said, brushing his thumb against her lips. She nodded in agreement, following him up the stairs, and he followed her home, driving in silence. He pulled in next to her spot and led her to the basement and the hot tub, stripping her slowly and then himself. He grabbed his phone and put a song on repeat that expressed what he felt for her.
Olivia”s heart thudded painfully as she heard the singer begin the song in her deep, haunting voice.
Colin placed her into the hot water and followed her down, covering her body gently with his. He licked away her tears as his heart broke in half at what he’d seen her go through standing in front of her old apartment. His chest ached as she wrapped her arms around his neck in a desperate hug. He wasn’t even sure she knew why she was clinging to him the way she was. There was so much unsaid between them.
I love her. I want to be her home, Colin thought to himself. But she wouldn’t let him in. He didn’t have the key to her heart.
Tracing her curves with his hands, he pulled back and held her gaze as he took her leg and hooked it over his hip. The singer crooned as his heart thumped hard.
Colin groaned as he lowered Olivia ever so slowly onto him, hearing her broken cries. He held her still against him. Looking into her eyes, seeing how lost she was staring at her old apartment door. Images of them in the diner, the night of the storm when they’d first met. The very first time he saw her red hair in the diner window while he was on his bike, and he pulled over just before he got ready to take a steep curve too fast in the storm.
He’d stopped to watch momentarily when she’d lifted her head and he saw a helpless, tortured expression in her eyes before she lowered her head into her hands again. Her hair reminding him of the family that he’d killed on that cold night many years ago.
A family of all redheads.
Would Olivia be his redemption? Help heal him?
I breathe you in my dreams baby, Colin shuddered, pressing his hand to the side of her face, staring deep into her eyes as she moaned, trying to close her eyes against his stare. His other hand went to her breastbone to feel her heart beating.
“Please look at me, baby. I need your eyes,” Colin whispered, his skin pebbling as he pushed her wet hair behind her ear and caressed her lip with his thumb. He loved this woman; it was going to be her or no one else. He knew she saw pain when she looked into his eyes. He sifted through more memories, placing his hands around her neck with his thumbs, stroking her throat.
Olivia in her apartment in her pretty green dress, her nervously rifling through her kitchen trying to hide just how destitute she’d become. The two of them standing side by side looking at her blueprints and drinking one-hundred-and-fifty-dollar wine out of fifty cent mugs. He and her at the Italian restaurant as he was translating the menu in English to her.
And she still tried to order something cheap, thinking she wasn’t worthy. She was more than worthy.
Colin moaned as she ground her hips against him as she was whimpering. He fisted his hand in her hair as his heart went into overdrive. More memories flashing. The singer’s voice was torturing them both. He pressed his hips up into hers, grinding with her.
Them in the car when she’d set a grueling schedule designed to break her body and her spirit in the span of five minutes. Her, when she’d seen their agreement for the first time. The look on her face when she introduced Allison to him. The first time he entered her sweet body after he’d spent most of the day in a panic thinking he’d lost her. Her, the night before when she pulled him out of his fucked-up nightmare, thinking nothing could save him from his torment.
It was her. This sad, beautiful, secretive woman who was so haunted.
It all came to the forefront of his mind as she sat perched on his lap, trusting him after he’d so viciously unleashed himself on her last night.
He moved gently, sitting back, and encouraging her to set the pace. Watching her swaying breasts as she gently rocked them to the beat of her heart. They were so entwined in that moment, neither of them orgasmed. Just wanting to be close. His hands held her tightly to him while he walked them out of the hot tub and back upstairs to their bedroom, where he held her for hours, giving her the care that he should have given her that morning. Not bothering to even figure out if she’d gotten her grocery order.
He”d already called the caterer, anyway.
***
A bit later, they ventured downstairs, where they settled into the lounge and ate cheap fried bologna sandwiches and chips and watched Hamilton. Colin got a kick out of watching her giggle at the king’s song, not even minding when she rewound it several times. She sat on the floor between his legs and leaned her head back on his thigh. He stroked her hair contentedly, feeling rather raw and exposed after their lovemaking session in the hot tub.
“He spits when he sings! Haha, look at him Colin,” she laughed, rewinding the scene again.
He chuckled with her, much preferring the joyful look on her face than the haunted, tortured one from earlier.
They fell asleep in the lounge, being woken up by Mary the next morning. Then, to Colin’s delight and dismay, Olivia took him on the craziest grocery store shopping excursion he’d ever experienced in his whole life. He was so decidedly frightened by their fourth store run that he excused himself to the men’s restroom to text Vanessa and Mary in secret. Unashamedly creating a group chat to ask them if this shit was normal.
Later that night, after they unloaded an insane number of groceries, Colin texted Mary again, to let her know that in case he didn’t make it through the holiday that he loved her, and where the life insurance policy and living will was kept. He instructed her to bury his body, preferably alongside Olivia’s, as she would be dead too, theoretically. She wrote back with a bunch of laughing emojis, telling him he got it bad.
He didn’t need that reminder. He knew.
The evening before Thanksgiving, they all reconvened to hang out and be together. Johnathan’s family lived across the world in the Middle East and didn’t celebrate, and the two of them usually went on vacation to some obscure island and had general billionaire man fun.
But this year was different. Johnathan joked around with him, saying that he just wanted to see if Colin could do it-be a normal family man. And ironically, Olivia wanted to test a batch of mac and cheese, just to “see if she could do it.”
They stood around the island, listening to Allison’s show playing in the background. They all stared at each other crowded around the mac and cheese pan that Olivia worked so hard on. Attempted to wait each other out, the three of them holding a spoon and a small saucer plate. Each one waiting for the other to take the first plunge. Colin looked at Olivia, who was smiling so proudly.
Vanessa was currently absolved, blinking back tears, Johnathan was sweating, having been filled in thoroughly by Vanessa, and then he in turn filled Colin in. Which made him so anxious earlier that day that he had to have a rare time out in the study to dissociate for a minute.
Olivia moved first, completely oblivious to the inner war that each person was fighting in their head over a relatively innocent looking pan of mac and cheese. It actually looked good, which made Colin feel a little better. Colin grinned, before frowning.
He sobered quickly, knowing not to judge a book by its cover.
Scooping out a spoonful of mac and cheese onto each of their plates. “Dig in!” Olivia sang happily as she beamed up at Colin. And he realized one of her rare joys was also the holidays. Catching Vanessa’s eye he put a spoonful in his mouth, and then quickly corrected himself before he physically recoiled.
Oh. My. Mother fuckingGod, he thought, as every taste bud he didn’t even know he had was activated at once.
He stoically stood there and chewed, his eyes watering. He groaned harshly on a swallow, hiding it with a moan that he hoped sounded like he enjoyed it. As he was currently struggling to clear his throat, fighting for his life, he noticed he wasn’t the only one.
Johnathan’s face turned a color he’d never seen before, and Colin silently laughed to himself as he saw the big guy scootch his plate till it was completely against his body and hunkered down over it. Hiding his face from all of them as he shoveled it down. Finishing on an incredibly alarming cough, he stood up quickly and grabbed a cup, filling it with water before sucking that down and then filling up and drinking another one.
He tossed Colin a single bottle of water before bringing one over to Vanessa. His color was almost back to normal.
“Well! What do you think?” Olivia asked breathlessly, tucking a thick lock of hair behind her ear and smiling so prettily.
“Oh my gosh, you did it this year sis. You do it every year, in fact!” Vanessa quipped, saying a lot, without actually saying anything at all. Colin noted that as a unique talent of hers. He briefly wondered how she”d be in politics.
Olivia beamed, blinding Colin with its loveliness.
“Yes Olivia, that was definitely mac and cheese! You do this every year girl? That’s uunnnbelievable,” Johnathan answered quickly, following Vanessa’s lead.
Olivia nodded proudly, completely oblivious. Colin refused to lie to her so he relied on how well he was with words to circumvent.
“And,” Colin stated quickly behind, draping the foil over the pan and hurriedly putting it in the refrigerator. “Because you’re so damn smart, you saved yourself time tomorrow from having to fix another one, so it’ll be one less thing for you to have to do the day of. I knew I loved you for a reason,” he let slip, the endearment coming out before he could even think.
He froze, hearing complete silence behind him.
Shit. Hmmm,Colin growled in his head, squeezing his eyes shut hard.
Colin silently cursed to himself as he closed the refrigerator slowly. Pausing, he took a deep breath before turning to face her. He stared at her as her face reddened, her eyes wide, the mac and cheese fiasco effectively forgotten.
“Aww,” Johnathan chuckled, breaking the silence. Pulling Vanessa closer, who suddenly stopped secretly trying to scrape her tongue on the side of her teeth. She was looking at Olivia with interest.
“You don’t have to say anything,” Colin whispered sheepishly. “I’m sorry, it just slipped out,” he admitted, turning without looking at the others, grabbing their plates and taking them to the sink. Mentally slapping himself.
In the window’s reflection he saw Vanessa turn and glance at Allison, before slowly dragging her gaze back around and staring at Olivia with an expression in her eyes he couldn’t place.
The interaction niggled at his brain, making him off center.
Olivia came up to him and hugged him from behind. Pressing her cheek to his back, not saying anything. She rubbed her hands down his chest and stomach, stroking him unashamedly. Johnathan had thankfully changed the subject, boasting about how their vehicles and software had been picked up for distribution in Asia, and how some hot shot CEO there had wanted to buy the rights to the software if Colin was interested. Johnathan knew Colin wasn’t interested, but also knew that talking about work took his mind off things.
Colin did the dishes by hand, not ready to turn around yet and face them.
Eventually the tension naturally dissipated, and they went back to normal as the doorbell rang, signaling the delivery of the Chinese food he ordered for their dinner tonight.
They ate, putting Allison to bed before settling into the lounge with drinks, watching a movie. He noticed Olivia was drinking slightly more tonight, and when she tried to get her fourth drink, he slowly ran his hand down the length of her arm, quietly taking it from her and placing it firmly away where she couldn’t get it.
Olivia got on top after they’d all gone to bed. Colin drank up her breathless moans as she ground herself on him, falling forward and taking his mouth rather desperately as she worked over him to find her release. His hands were everywhere, in her hair, grabbing her breasts, her hips, helping her move.
Not having her on top often, he took time to appreciate how fluidly she moved. She didn’t bother to jerk herself around on top of him like most women do when they’re on top. She gyrated, really giving him a show, running her fingers through her hair, and down her body, caressing herself so he could see, making it so good for him.
And when he was ready for the curtain to close, he flipped her and gave her his best standing ovation, his lips devouring her cries as he circled nice and deep.
He went to sleep with that niggling feeling in his brain. He knew Vanessa knew something that was crucial, and those sly looks meant something. Instinct told him that maybe whatever she could tell him could unlock Olivia’s heart. Vanessa had the key.