in the end. “Never mind.” Smiling, she slides her hands around the back of my neck, tugging my lips down to hers.
I know exactly what she saw on my face.
The fact that it doesn’t scare me, not one bit, tells me everything I already know about the girl next door.
She’s the one.
I park the car at the curb, outside of my house, my gaze immediately fixing on my buddy Victor from the garage. He shoots me a look, clearly thinking I’m insane for what I’ve just done.
“If it was your girl, you’d do the same,” I tell him, as I climb out of his car.
He raises his hands in defense, crossing my lawn. “I didn’t say a damn thing. Maybe next time you go out to beat the shit out of someone, rethink your choice in vehicles, if you want to be sneaky.”
I roll my eyes. He’s not wrong. I knew if I took the bike or the Chevelle, Olivia would spring awake and immediately know what I was up to. Instead, I asked Vic if I could borrow his car. It’s a sensible vehicle that doesn’t make a lot of noise. It’s something I need right now.
After Olivia fell asleep last night, I texted Victor and asked him if he’d lend his car to me for a few hours, while I took care of something—that something being Travis. Victor came over early this morning and has been waiting out on the porch, holding down the fort for me, while I take care of Travis.
I didn’t expect to find Travis at the clinic, but with no other leads on where he lives or where he could be, I figured starting there was my best option. It turns out, it was. As I was pulling into the lot, I spotted the bastard yelling outside of the clinic doors. For whatever reason, he wasn’t allowed inside, and I got a thrill of satisfaction from that.
Travis got into his car, and I did what any sane person would do. I followed the bastard who put his hands on my woman. It didn’t take long to get to his place. It also didn’t take long for me to get out of the car and ram my fist in his face. The first hit was for being a dick to Olivia. The second hit was for breaking into her house. And the rest of those hits? That was for pushing himself on her and marking her.
Victor glances down at my swollen hands and whistles. “Good luck in there, man.”
A grimace pulls across my face, and I respond in a dry tone, “thanks.”
When I slip inside the house, I pause in the living room, half-expecting Olivia to be there with her arms crossed over her perfect chest, glaring daggers at me. I expel a relieved breath when I realize she’s still asleep, just like Ryder.
Heading into the kitchen, I glance at the time above the stove and begin pulling out ingredients to make pancakes. I wash my hands in the sink, only wincing slightly at the sting of soap on the scrape along my knuckles. Travis put up a good fight, I’ll give him that—too bad it wasn’t good enough.
I’m sliding the first pancake onto the plate, when I hear Olivia’s sleepy voice.
“Hey, what are you doing up so early?” She yawns, as she walks into the kitchen. Her light brown hair is in disarray, as it frames her face. Rays from the sun catch in the strands, bringing out the honey hue. My gaze rakes up and down her delectable little body. She’s wearing one of my T-shirts and her sleep shorts, and though it may not be much, she’s never looked better. She’s fucking beautiful.
“Making you breakfast,” I finally answer, once I’m done eye-fucking her. A soft smile lights her features, and she pads into the kitchen. Her hands slide around my waist from behind, and she peeks at the stove.
“Smells good,” she comments, her grip tightening around me. “You didn’t have to do this, Rome.”
I shrug, pouring some more mix into the pan, for the next pancake. As I do so, I feel Olivia stiffen behind me. Once I set the bowl down, she grabs me by the arm, urging me to face her. When I do, her eyes fly to my hands. I don’t even try to hide them. She would’ve found out eventually, and hell, even though she won’t like it, it won’t change what I’ve done. I told her I