Love In Moments (Love Distilled #2) - Scarlett Cole Page 0,32

I don’t know where I’m headed at the end of the season, so it didn’t make any sense to settle here permanently.”

Silence fell between them.

“We talked about being exclusive, Liv.” Anders’s fingers ran over the thin rope handles of the gift bag. “Why did you jump to the conclusion there was someone here?”

Olivia shrugged. “Yeah. I’m sorry. You just didn’t seem particularly happy to see me. And you were . . . ” She gestured up and down his body with her hand.

Anders raised an eyebrow.

“Grr. You know what I mean. You were practically naked and sweating and made no move to be friendly, or say hello, or invite me in.”

She watched as Anders dipped his hand into the bag and pulled out the Cloetta Kexchoklad. “You bought me Swedish chocolate wafers?”

“You said you were missing home.”

Anders grinned and dipped his hand in again. This time he pulled out a packet and immediately ripped it open. The salty black licorice sounded positively awful when she’d ordered it, but he popped two candies in his mouth. “Want one?” he asked.

She shook her head. “No, thanks. I’m good.”

He grinned at the bottle of julmust. When he’d finished admiring the rest of his haul, he walked toward her. “Thank you, Liv. It’s really sweet of you.” He reached for her beanie, pulling it off and running his fingers through her hair.

“I’m glad you like them.”

He placed a finger beneath her chin and lifted her face toward his. “I like you, Liv. And I said we were exclusive. You don’t need to worry about that.”

Her shoulders sagged in relief. “If I’d thought instead of reacted, I might have remembered that myself.”

Anders kissed her temple gently. “And I might have handled it differently by reacting instead of thinking.”

“What do you mean?”

“Remember what I said about being ridiculously focused? I find it hard to change gears. I was focused on setting up the gym, on working out, on packing for the road trip tomorrow to Chicago. And then you arrive, and I get paralyzed trying to break out of the thing I was focused on to change gears. And it was only possible because I was so glad to see you. It’s not just you, Liv. Sometimes, you’re just going to need to give me a minute.”

Relief flooded her. They were so different. They were going to need to figure out how to communicate more effectively. But beneath the differences was the same need for each other. And she had just barged in on his day, assuming he’d be free to see her, even though he had said she could swing by. She ran her fingertips down his bicep, the skin still damp beneath her fingers.

“I’ll leave you to finish setting up your gym. Enjoy your treats.” Olivia turned to leave, but Anders grabbed her wrist gently, tugging her back to him.

“I don’t think so.” His grin revealed a perfectly cute set of dimples. “I think you should stay and help me assemble it, and then I’ll make us lunch. It can be our first date.”

Olivia laughed. “Our first date? It’s not the most romantic first date, but it’s definitely original.”

Anders linked his fingers with hers. “I think it’s perfect. First, we’ll be able to tell how well we work together. Second, it’ll just be you and me in the basement with nobody bothering us. Third, you’ll probably have to bend over at least once and I’ll get to check out your ass in those leggings. Fourth, it’ll speed up the process of dating so we can get through the five more quickly. Fifth—”

“Okay. Okay. I get it, oh logical one.” Olivia grinned at the highly methodical way his brain worked. “Fine. I’ll help you set it up.”

They took the stairs to the basement, which was bigger than her entire apartment. Suddenly, the idea of him staying over in her small bedroom started to feel like inviting a bull into a china shop and she laughed.

“Something funny, kämpe?”

She rolled her eyes at the nickname.

“You have all this space, and my bedroom is tiny. I can hardly imagine you fitting in there, let alone my shower.”

Anders turned and put his arms around her, pulling her close, and she pushed him away. “You’re sweaty and gross.”

He laughed and tugged her even closer. “If we were in your bedroom or shower, together, you really wouldn’t be worrying about me being sweaty and gross. And we both know how well I fit.” His lips brushed her neck and behind her