“A couple times at the gym. Darren nearly broke my face for looking too long.”
He grinned and blew a puff of steam off his mug. “Can’t blame you for looking. I took her out last night and couldn’t take my eyes off of her. Would be a lot easier to get her under me if her brothers stayed out of the way, though. Either way, she’s an adult. She sure as hell has her own mind.”
Guilt swirled in my gut. I loved women, and I’d taken my fair share to bed. Will and I were cut from the same cloth that way. My friend’s baby sister getting mixed up with either one of us definitely wasn’t good news, especially if Darren got wind of it.
“So what’s the plan?” If she’d already shot him down, maybe there wasn’t one.
“Just waiting on her to make the next move. I’ll let you know if it goes anywhere.”
He winked, and more guilt took root.
I was between apartments and had accepted a room at Will’s place a few months ago in return for some side work that he needed for his renovation. In that time, we’d gotten to know each other well. An easy friendship had formed, and women were a regular part of our interactions. We pursued them, enjoyed them, and sometimes we even shared them.
Putting Olivia anywhere near that category challenged my already taxed nerves. Darren was one of my best friends. I’d saved his life, and I knew he’d do the same for me in a heartbeat. His sister was a ten, but fuck.
I tried to focus on the television, which was now broadcasting a political story that made me want to throw the remote. Same shit, different day.
I stood and tossed the remote to Will. “I’m going to clean up and get some sleep. I’ll catch you later.”
“All right. Hey, I need you to help me pick out some of the materials for the condos above the Bridge site. You want to swing by there later? You owe me rent, and my bathrooms need tile.”
I laughed. “Yeah, sure. I’ll come by before my shift tonight.”
Once in my room, I hastily undressed and fell into bed. Behind my eyelids, a vision of Olivia formed. Those icy blue eyes that I couldn’t forget. Every time we met, I had to fight every primal instinct not to make a move on her. I could hardly fault Will.
Not voicing some reservation felt like a betrayal to Darren, but I couldn’t keep Will from pursuing a beautiful woman.
But if he managed to get her into bed…
I groaned and rubbed my eyes. Damn. We weren’t going to share her. No matter how much I might want to.
WILL
The scent of wood and dust tinged the air. I stood still with my arms crossed. The sounds of progress filled my ears, but my thoughts were far away from the work that was being done before me.
Three days had passed. I’d had Tom rip out the studs of the entryway wall and add reinforcements to support Olivia’s dream glass wall. Wishful thinking, perhaps. I hadn’t texted or called, and I hadn’t heard a word from her either. The gauntlet had been thrown, and I’d be damned if I was going to beg.
Cameron had come by to discuss progress. Neither of us had mentioned Olivia, but I sensed an undercurrent of tension between us that hadn’t existed before. Perhaps he’d learned of my dinner with her, but for the sake of our working relationship for the remainder of this project, I sincerely hoped that Olivia had omitted the finer details of our conversation.
A vision of her pressed against my car flashed across my mind. Her brown hair blowing in wisps. Her soft pink lips, parted and full. Her body communicating in a thousand subtle ways that she wanted me to kiss her. I should have, and then she would have given me an answer right then.
Instead, I’d let her go.
I hadn’t wanted to give her time to think. But the less impulsive part of me knew her surrender would be all the sweeter if she could talk herself into it and save me the guilt. No room for regret. Still, I wasn’t quite sure how to handle seeing her again if the answer was no. I wasn’t used to getting shot down.
Only time would tell. But how much time?
I cursed quietly as the rest of my crew went to work nailing up drywall, the next phase of turning the first floor into a fully outfitted fitness center in a few short weeks. On an average day, I’d be preoccupied with the transformation. Today I was preoccupied with something else entirely, and it was driving me fucking crazy.
Fuck it.
Kevin, my drywall guy, was carrying sheets in a few at a time. I went to help him and spent the next four hours making a total mess of myself. The work was labor intensive, but I relished it. My back hurt, I was covered in drywall dust, and I’d almost forgotten all about Olivia Bridge.
Until she walked in the front door.