At least that was one thing he wouldn’t have to worry about: this guy thinking he could show up at her house. But if he’d already showed up while she’d been on the job once, what was to stop him from doing it again? And then it hit him.
“How’d he know where you were?”
“I don’t know.”
“You didn’t ask him?”
“No.” She shook her head with a strange expression Lorenzo couldn’t quite make out as she brought her hand to her forehead. “I . . . I didn’t even think to ask. I was more concerned about what was going on with Margie; then we started to argue. Once Ms. Upton walked out of her house, we stopped talking. It was a brief conversation, and then he left.”
Lorenzo forced himself to calm down. “Liv, sweetheart,” he said, kissing her softly in an attempt to show her he wasn’t mad at her. “I’m only asking because I want to know what to expect. Do you think you’re in any danger with—?”
“No!” she said way too quickly then seemed to catch herself and shook her head. “He’s just being stubborn, and he’s always played mind games. I wouldn’t put it past him to think he can still manipulate me into letting him back in my life. Maybe he’ll show up again and continue to try and convince me we’re meant to be, but he’d never hurt me.”
Was she defending the guy? Swallowing back the anger, Lorenzo struggled to remain calm. “Why would he show up again?”
“I’m not saying he will. It just felt like we got off track about whatever he’d come all the way down here to discuss about Margie.”
The pup, which was beginning to whine around her ankles, jumped up against her legs, and she bent down to pick him up, cuddling him lovingly. Thoughts of who gave her the damn pooch had long been drowned out by the galling thoughts of Jay.
“I just think if he came out all this way he probably had more to say, but we were interrupted.”
That sounded too damn much like an excuse, the kind Linda used to make for why she had to talk to her ex so often. But Lorenzo took a deep breath, reminding himself of his vow, the one he’d made that he wouldn’t let this guy or Linda ruin things for him and Liv.
“Have you tried calling Margie?”
“Yes,” she said, looking up with a frown, “a bunch of times. I texted her too. I even tried calling a number from two missed calls I had earlier today. I didn’t recognize the number when I saw I had two missed calls from it but didn’t think any of it until I found out she’s missing. It’s not a Dallas number—it’s local—but still I thought maybe she’s somewhere close by, but it went to a generic voicemail.” She shook her head, still frowning. “It worries me because it’s so not like her to just ignore my calls. I’m sure she’s a mess, and unless she’s told anybody else, I’m the only one she can talk to about this.”
“Is there any chance she’s actually at the retreat she told her parents she’d be at?”
She shook her head adamantly then kissed the puppy's head before looking up again. “She would’ve mentioned it to me. It doesn’t make sense that she’d just disappear.”
Another thought suddenly came to him, and instantly he felt like growling. His deployment. He was scheduled to leave tomorrow morning, and he had no way of knowing if Jay’s visit was a onetime deal or if he’d be sniffing around for a few more days.
“Fuck,” he muttered, bringing his fist to his mouth.
“Lorenzo,” she started to say. “Just because—”
“I leave tomorrow,” he said before she could finish. “I got a deployment call today, and since it’s only for a couple of days, I took it. I would’ve waited to talk to you, but—”
“Deployment?” Liv’s wide eyes were suddenly riddled with an altogether different kind of concern as she searched his eyes. “Where to?”
“Nothing overseas,” he said quickly because she looked ready to freak out. “Or even anything serious. They need someone to come in and sub for a helicopter pilot who got sick during a training exercise. There are only a few days left, so I’d only be gone two maybe three days. This just couldn’t have happened at a worse time.” He pulled his phone from its holster and started tapping on the screen. “Maybe I could get someone else to cover—”
“No.” She reached for his arm. “From what you’ve told me and Rosie’s said it too, your work ethic is impeccable. I know you’re proud of that as you should be. I don’t want you jeopardizing anything because of this. I’ll be fine. It’s just a few days.”
“If he comes back—”
“If he comes back,” Liv said firmly, squeezing his hand, “I’ll put my foot down. I promise. I’m letting my brothers know about this, but there’s only so much I can tell them because, as you know, I’ve never told them the whole truth about my past with him.” Lorenzo began to protest, but she shook her head and went on quickly, staring straight into his eyes. “I will tell them about his being delusional now and insisting we were meant to be and that I want nothing to do with him. I’ll even let them know you’ll be out of town and worried that he might try something while you’re gone. Trust me. They’ll be more than on it. They just don’t need to know the details of everything that went on between Jay and me back then. It was a long time ago and irrelevant now.”
Lorenzo stared at her for a few moments without saying anything. He still didn’t like the idea of not being around while this guy could still be in town and likely be coming back to see her again. But this was exactly what he’d been counting on. He had no doubt just by what he’d seen and knew so far of her brothers. Just as he suspected, especially after Vince mentioned her younger brother’s nickname that first night he’d seen Liv at his brother’s place, they were Romeros through and through. If this fucker tried anything with or without Lorenzo around, they’d be all over it.
Left with no other choice but to accept that once again Liv was doing and saying all the right things, Lorenzo couldn’t possibly be mad at her about this. He’d just have to hope this guy didn’t get stupid and had gone home. He smiled, kissing Liv’s forehead. “Maybe this little guy can take a long nap because I need to get my fill of you tonight if I’m going to be gone for days.”
Looking especially relieved, Liv let her tense shoulders fall, and she wrapped her free arm his neck. “I’m beginning to think you just might be perfect.”
“Far from it,” Lorenzo said, kissing her softly and trying not to think about how close he’d come to losing her tonight. “But I still won’t be pointing out any of my imperfections; that’s for sure. You’ll see them soon enough. For now, let’s go get our fill of what always feels so damn perfect.”
Sixteen
Olivia
Getting their fill of each other went on for a lot longer than Olivia imagined. With this being Lorenzo’s last night here, she ended up spending the night at his place as she’d been doing more and more often lately. Olivia even offered to drop him off at the airport. She said she’d only be a little late for her first appointment, but Lorenzo insisted he didn’t want her being late on account of him. He’d driven himself to the airport plenty of times.
They stood outside his place now as both their cars warmed in the cold morning, spending their last few minutes together before they’d be separated for days for the first time since they’d begun seeing each other. Olivia hated being so melodramatic, but she was already feeling a little choked up. She hadn’t even been choked up when she’d said goodbye to Jay before she left Dallas and she’d known that was forever.
Afraid to say it for fear it was too soon, she’d held back before, but she knew now without a doubt she’d fallen hard for this man. So she went for it. After an especially long and very sweet kiss, he pulled away to look at her.
“I love you.”
They’d both said it at the exact same time and each had the same reaction. They were staring at each other wide-eyed and speechless.
“What are the odds?” she finally whispered, still feeling a bit stunned and completely choked up now.
Lorenzo
shook his head slowly then glanced down at her wrist. She hadn’t taken off the bracelet since the day he’d given it to her.
“I knew it,” he said, bringing his hands around her face and leaning his forehead against hers. “I don’t know how I knew. But from the moment I met you, somehow I knew just by looking in your eyes that you’d have the power to bring me to my knees.” Pulling his forehead away from her, he smirked suddenly. “It’s why I ran out of there the way I did. It was my weak attempt to not get sucked in like I knew I would if I stuck around. I’m just so glad fate intervened or my dumb ass might’ve missed out on this.” He kissed her softly then pulled away again and looked at her so tenderly it melted Olivia’s heart. “I love you, baby. The crazy thing is I wasn’t even planning on telling you like this—”
“Neither was I,” she said quickly. “I decided to a few seconds before I did. “
“Me too.” He smiled big. “It just felt like the perfect moment.”
“It did,” she agreed quickly with a smile despite still feeling choked up then she pouted. “And now we have to say goodbye.”
His smile fell too, but he kissed her nose and tilted his head. “For now. It’s just a few days. When I get back, we can talk about something else I’ve been holding off on.”
“What?” she asked curiously.
A mischievous smile replaced the near frown he’d worn just moments earlier. “You’re already staying here a few nights a week. Maybe we can extend that a few more days? Or . . .”
Her heart thumped with a sudden nervous excitement, and her eyes must’ve been as big as they felt because he lifted a hand. “It’s just a thought. Don’t freak out or—”
“I’m not freaking out.” Olivia laughed a bit nervously. “It just surprises me because it feels so soon.”
Lorenzo shrugged as his brows furrowed. “It isn’t really if you think about it. It’s been a few months now since we first met. Besides, I didn’t know there were rules. If it feels right, why not? And telling you I love you doesn’t just feel right. It feels perfect.”
“It felt perfect for me too,” she said, biting her lower lip. “I’ll be looking forward to you getting back even more now.” She saw the surprise in his eyes and she nodded. “Yes. We’ll definitely talk about me staying here more often.”
~~~
Saying goodbye this time felt way different then when she usually left his place or he dropped her off, not just because they’d officially declared their love for one another and it’d happened in such an unexpected way. Nor was it because he’d practically asked her to move in, yet another completely unexpected twist in her morning. It felt different because she knew she wouldn’t be seeing him again for days, and already she missed him terribly. It was a little alarming actually. Things between them had moved so quickly, and their relationship fell so seamlessly into place as if they’d been a couple forever. She already had no idea what she’d do with herself tonight when she got home from work. They’d spent every evening together since day one. Even if she didn’t always spend the night, seeing Lorenzo was part of her evening ritual now.
Olivia was still trying to think of things she could do—errands she could run—then she remembered what she had to do. Frowning as she pulled her van all the way to the back of her house, she saw Nathan’s car still in the garage. Nathan was likely getting ready to leave for work any minute now, so she wouldn’t have time to now, but suddenly she knew what she’d be doing tonight—telling him about Jay—all the more reason to not anticipate her first night away from Lorenzo.
As expected, Nathan rushed out of his room when she got inside. He spied her strangely as she walked out of the kitchen and removed her watch.
“Hey, Livi.” He stopped short when he saw King in her arms. “Whose dog is that?”
“Mine.” She smiled big. “He’s my new baby.”
Stepping a little closer to pet him, he peered at her curiously. “Seriously?”
“Yep,” she nodded. “He’s a Komondor.”
His eyes opened wide. “Those big ass dogs with the dreads?”
She nodded again even giddier but was glad when he seemed to remember he was in a hurry so she didn’t have to tell him just yet who’d given King to her. That conversation could also wait until later tonight.
“That’s cool,” he said, walking away toward the kitchen counter. “You off today?”
“No,” she said, shaking her head. “I just need to take a quick shower, and then I’m out of here. I have a full schedule today actually.”
Nathan kissed her forehead as he rushed past her again. “Alright then, I’ll see you tonight.”
Her phone pinged, and she walked over to where she’d put her phone down, wondering if it could possibly be Margie. She actually felt a little guilty about how easily she’d forgotten about her best friend’s ongoing dilemma when she’d been so caught up with Lorenzo. Yet she didn’t feel guilty enough to smile hugely when she saw the text was from him. She clicked on it, feeling like a twelve-year-old again and read it.
Just wanted to text you one last time before I board my plane and turn this thing off. I miss you so much already. I’ll call you as soon as I get there and as often as I can. Love you, baby. I’ll be thinking about you the whole time I’m gone. I can hardly wait to get back to you.
Glad no one was home, she actually squealed as she began texting back at lightning speed. She even danced a little in place as she texted, feeling completely silly, but she didn’t care. She knew he wasn’t going on some dangerous mission or anything, but still, just the thought of something happening to him made her cringe, so she tacked on a naggy girlfriend request but kept it short. She wanted to make sure he read it before he turned his phone off. When she was done, she reread it.
I miss you already too. Please, PLEASE, come home safely to me. I love you SO much. I’ll be waiting anxiously to hear from you!
Adding a couple of hearts and smiley faces, she sent it off, feeling all warm and fuzzy. Unfortunately the warm and fuzzy sensation was short-lived. It wasn’t until after she’d stared at his text to her a little more that she noticed the missed call from that same number she hadn’t recognized before. Immediately she felt anxious. What if this was Margie trying to get a hold of her?
Without giving it another thought, she hit send and called the number back. It rang three times, and she’d almost given up when a man answered, and she was silent.
“Hello?” he said for the second time.
Not recognizing the voice at first, she nearly hung up. Maybe it was just a wrong number. Then he spoke again.
“Ollie, is this you?”
Olivia froze. The fact that she didn’t recognize the local number was why it hadn’t even crossed her mind that it might be Jay. But now that he said her name in that unmistakable way only he said it, almost in a murmur, she knew it was him.
“What do you want?”
“We need to talk,” he said then added quickly, “here in my hotel room, or I can meet you somewhere.”
“No,” she shook her head, unwavering, as if he could see her. “No way. I already told you what you came here to find out. I have no idea where Margie is. There’s nothing else you and I have to talk about, especially not in person and certainly not in your hotel room.”
“But there’s more I didn’t get a chance to tell you last night.”
“About Margie?” she asked, refusing to get sucked into his crap ever again. “Because if it’s about anything else, it’s nothing I need to hear.”
Jay was quiet for a moment. Olivia was sure she’d nailed it. He’d come all this way to play his stupid mind games again. Then he spoke again. “You and I have a lot more to talk about, and we will, but first things first. I have something to tell you about Margie. I just think I should talk to you in person. There’s a lot—”
“No,” she said firmly. “I have no desire to be around you or even talk to you again. You disgust me now, Jay. I told my boyfriend about you showing up l
ast night, and he wasn’t happy about it. The only reason I haven’t hung up on you yet is because of Margie. Whatever it is you have to tell me you can do it on the phone. I will not be meeting you anywhere.”
“Fair enough. I’ll tell you first, but I’m pretty sure you’ll want to meet with me afterward.”
Olivia continued to shake her head defiantly. She couldn’t think of a single thing that would make her give into meeting with him and risk upsetting Lorenzo. Not one. She’d seen the fire in Lorenzo’s eyes last night. He’d been this close to telling her to go to hell. As sweet and perfect as she thought him and despite his telling her he was in love with her now, she believed without a doubt he’d send her packing in a heartbeat if she gave into Jay’s bullshit.
“I don’t know if she told you or not, but she’d started experimenting with drugs.”
Jay didn’t go on, as if he were waiting for a reaction to that, but Olivia had none. She was flabbergasted and therefore at a loss for words. Just like Olivia, Margie barely drank. Since they’d begun talking again, Margie did mention she’d done a little drinking with him, but she hadn’t mentioned drugs.
“What kind of drugs?”
“First, it was just weed; then she tried meth,” he said as Olivia’s jaw dropped. No way. “She said she liked how calm it made her feel,” he went on, “like she didn’t have a worry in the world when in fact she’d been real worried and down about losing your friendship.”
Olivia squeezed her eyes shut as he paused on that last statement. This didn’t sound like anything Margie would do. This was Jay playing mind games again. He was turning this around on her, trying to make this her fault, and she wasn’t going to let him. Before she could retort that she wasn’t buying any of his crap anymore, he went on.