Simply Complicated, page 12
“Hi,” she said, looking me up and down before focusing on my face. I was dressed in jeans and a plain white tee, but her perusal of me made me want to strip naked, do the same to her, and bend her over the desk she leaned against.
I glanced toward the garage before speaking, making sure no one was around. “We good?”
A quick tip of her head was all the response I needed.
Placing my coffee on the table beside me, I took several steps toward her, near enough to satisfy my need to be closer, but far away enough to be considered inconspicuous in case her dad or brother walked in.
“Are we getting together later?” I asked, eager for her to say yes.
“We can. But I have to pick up my mom from work at seven. I can meet you at my house at eight.”
“That works.” I didn’t move from my spot, and neither did she, and for several moments we stared at each other. Even dressed in her overalls, her hair twisted up and secured on top of her head, no makeup, and a tiny smudge of dirt near her temple, she was still gorgeous.
Parting my lips to ask her if there was anything she wanted to try that we hadn’t so far, I didn’t get a single word out before she spoke.
“Did you come here just to ask me about hooking up tonight?” I thought she looked excited at the prospect, but again, I could be seeing something that wasn’t there—my own hopefulness mirrored falsely back at me.
I had a choice. I could tell her the truth, risking she’d be pissed because I was wasting her dad’s time by looking at my truck unnecessarily, or I could stick to what I’d told Mark and Mr. B. The latter seemed to be the best choice. Worst case, they spent a few minutes giving it a thorough look over and didn’t find anything wrong. Although, that would be best case for me seeing as how the truck was new.
“My truck is making a rattling sound. Your dad is looking at it.” As if on cue, Mr. B pulled into the lot, hopping out and heading straight for Mark, who pointed to the office and right at me. As soon as their dad walked in, he shook his head, the dour look on his face confusing me. I’d made up the issue with my vehicle, so why was he looking at me as if he had bad news?
“I didn’t hear a rattling noise, but there is a recall on the brake caliper bolts.”
“Oh. I had no idea.”
“No big deal. Olivia can put it up on the lift and take a look. I would but I need to replace Ella’s brakes and tires.” He glanced at his daughter. “You’re still able to pick her up later, right?”
“Yes.” She held out her hand and her father placed my keys in her palm. Her eyes were on me when she said, “If you have somewhere to go, you can take my Jeep until I’m done. Or you can wait here. Your choice.”
“I’ll wait.” What I wanted to tell her was that I wanted to watch her work, even if she was only going to be inspecting my truck and not doing any actual repairs to it. Although, I shouldn’t speak too soon. I didn’t even know about the recall.
“Suit yourself,” she said, exiting the office.
I’d waited for a total of three minutes and twenty-two seconds before I made my way into the garage, standing a foot from where Olivia inspected my truck. She briefly made eye contact with me, but otherwise her full attention was on what she needed to do. After another five minutes had passed, and she still hadn’t said a word, I stepped closer, standing directly behind her as she searched for a tool she needed.
“I can’t wait to get you naked later.” The proximity of our bodies wasn’t appropriate, and if her brother or dad looked over here, they would most likely start to think something, but in that moment, I couldn’t find the energy to care.
“Stop it,” she whispered through gritted teeth, slapping my hand away when I palmed her ass cheek.
“Watching you work is turning me on.” I seized her hand when she tried to smack me again and placed it over my arousal. “See. I’m so hard right now.”
She yanked her arm back and continued to search through the mess of metal objects on the rolling cart. Only when she turned to the side was I able to see the faintest smile on her lips.
“You better step back. I wouldn’t want you to get hurt.”
As it turned out, there was nothing wrong with my truck. The bolts she’d inspected were good. I should’ve been happy with the news, but all I kept dwelling on was her comment.
You better step back. I wouldn’t want you to get hurt.
Olivia had no idea how profound her statement was, and I decided on the ride home, after having repeated the words a hundred times to myself, to be like her.
To treat our arrangement as nothing more than what it was.
Purely sexual.
Me helping her out.
Nothing more.
20
Olivia
Strolling through the lobby of Mountain View Medical Center, all I could think about was Luke, even though I tried hard not to. But the man had ingrained himself into my brain, and I couldn’t help but picture his face or remember how much I loved kissing him. Not to mention the amazing sex. And even though I hadn’t been able to orgasm yet, I thoroughly enjoyed myself whenever we got down and dirty. I admired him taking a stance, not coming until I did, but I honestly didn’t know how he ever lasted as long as he did without losing control and just saying fuck it. Every pun intended.
There was an older couple waiting for the elevator when I rounded the corner. I entered with them, pressing the button for the fifth floor.
My mom was an obstetrics nurse, had been since before my brother and I were born. After taking a year off after having each of us, she went back to work. My dad told her she didn’t have to because the garage was lucrative, still was to this day, but she loved her job.
The chime of the car sounded right before the doors parted, and as I walked down the long hallway, taking my first left, I saw my mom up ahead. She was walking toward the nurses’ station desk, chatting away with a doctor in a mid-length white coat. The man was handsome, like he was an actor pretending to be a doctor kind of handsome.
“Olivia, honey. You could have just called me. You didn’t have to come all the way up here.”
“My phone died.”
It was like she didn’t even hear me, snatching my hand once I was close enough and pulling me next to her.
“But now that you’re here, I’d like you to meet someone.” Oh Lord, here we go again. The woman would never stop trying to set me up, even after the whole debacle with Doug, who turned out to like her and not me. Though, if anyone asked her, she’d say I was way off base, that I’d imagined the whole thing. “This is Derek Rozelle. He’s a doctor.” The smile on her face couldn’t get any bigger, and while I was embarrassed by another one of her antics, I had to admit I didn’t mind meeting this guy.
“I can tell by the coat, Mom.” I extended my hand and he reciprocated, the warmth of his touch soothing the eruption of nervousness swirling in my belly.
“Ella has told me a lot about you, Olivia.” His voice had a seductive rasp to it, and I wondered how many women fell over themselves merely to hear him talk.
“I’m sorry about that.”
“I’m not,” he responded, a dimple in his right cheek appearing. He looked me up and down, his gaze lingering on my mouth for several seconds before making eye contact again. “I hear you’re a mechanic. That’s a different choice in profession.”
Whatever vibes I’d been feeling from this guy were crushed the second he vomited those last six words.
“What does that mean?” Hiding the irritation in my voice proved futile. I dealt with enough misogyny from the customers at work, I didn’t need to deal with it from someone who probably had a God complex, no matter how good-looking he might be.
“Olivia.” Whenever my mom whisper-shouted my name, I knew she wasn’t pleased with me. But right now, I didn’t care.
Derek shifted from one foot to the other. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean any offense. I only meant there aren’t a lot of female mechanics out there. I would’ve thought you’d go into something more….”
“More what? More suited for women?” Before I realized it, my hands were on my hips and my head tilted to the left. He opened and closed his mouth several times, looking back to my mother. I had enough on my mind with Luke, I didn’t need to stand here and listen to some jerk berate my choice of occupation. Turning my focus to the woman who’d done another stellar job of picking the wrong guy for me, I said, “I’ll be out front.”
I immediately turned and walked away, but I didn’t make it ten steps before there was a hand on my elbow. When I looked, I saw Dr. Asshat was the person connected to said hand.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for what I said to come out the way it did. I was trying to say I would’ve thought you’d be happier doing another job.”
Was he serious?
I yanked my arm back, and his fell to his side. His brows furrowed because he still didn’t get it. He was being rude, and he didn’t even realize it. His looks and the prestige he got as a doctor may excuse his behavior with other people, but I refused to stand here and be insulted to my face.
“Obviously, my mom doesn’t know you at all if she thought this would be a good set up.” Every word I spoke was painted with contempt. “And for your information, I love my job. And I’m damn good at it. Better than anyone else you know.” Was that a wide net I cast? Sure, but I wasn’t taking it back.
“I’m sure you deal with a lot of assholes treating you less than because they’re not used to seeing a female mechanic.” His cheeks puffed up right before he blew out a breath. “That was the point I was trying to get across. I think it’s cool you work in a garage. I can barely change my oil.”
“Let me guess. You have a Benz or a BMW.” My defensiveness slowly waned, his explanation working to erase some of my annoyance.
“BMW. Is it that obvious?”
“Yup.” A shadow of a smile found its way on to my mouth. His stare bounced from my eyes to my lips and back again. More than once.
“This was all a misunderstanding. Let me make it up to you. I have a break. Join me for a cup of coffee while Ella finishes up.”
I looked around him and saw her staring at us, smashing her hands together like she was praying.
“Okay. But if you make another offhanded comment, you’ll be wearing that coffee.”
He put his hand over his heart. “I promise not to sound stupid again.”
He fell into step beside me as we walked toward the other end of the long hallway. He led me to a small breakroom, ushering me inside after he assured me I was allowed.
There were two other women sitting at one of the tables. They were all smiles when he entered, but when their gazes landed on me, their expressions flattened.
Derek was handsome, so their reaction to him wasn’t surprising. And while I had no plans to see him after this encounter, I could appreciate a good-looking man. I didn’t have butterflies in my belly like I did whenever I saw Luke, something I’d never admit to anyone, but this guy was nice to look at.
Over the course of the next half hour, I found out he’d moved here to Vegas from Colorado, that he was in his second year of residency, and that he wanted to specialize in cardiovascular. He had a dog named Bo, two sisters, one older and one younger, and his parents bragged about him every chance they got, most times embarrassing him. He asked me about my life, and compared to his, I didn’t have much to offer other than what I did for a living and that I was close to my family. I left out the part about having sex with a famous soccer player because I didn’t think that would go over too well.
Peeking at my watch, I was surprised how the time had flown by.
“I should be going.” I moved to stand, and Derek did as well.
“I’d love to do this again sometime soon. Maybe dinner?”
In that moment, a wave of guilt washed over me, and it had everything to do with Luke. No, we weren’t dating, and we’d agreed not to sleep with anyone else while we were involved, but the thought of a future meetup with Derek didn’t sit right. But I didn’t want to miss out on the opportunity to get to know the good doctor a little better. There was no harm in having dinner, right? Besides, this thing with Luke and I would never go anywhere past where we were and what we were doing. The internal back and forth was dizzying, and it wasn’t until Derek touched my arm that I made a decision.
“Dinner would be nice.” Short and simple, leaving room for future possibilities.
“My schedule is a little crazy, but can I call you once I know I’ll have a night free?”
After exchanging numbers, he leaned in and kissed my cheek. When he stepped back, I saw my mom hovering in the doorway, smiling like she’d won the lottery. And I supposed setting her daughter up with a doctor would qualify.
When I pulled into my driveway, Luke was waiting for me. I was late in meeting him. Again. This wasn’t like me. If anything, I was usually early, but my coffee date with Derek had not only been unplanned but had gone on longer than I’d anticipated once we sat down.
“Sorry.” I rushed past him to open the front door. “My mom had some things to finish up at work.” What I’d divulged hadn’t been a complete fabrication.
He didn’t say a word as he followed me inside, heading straight for the stairs. His shirt was off before he reached the top, and his shoes were kicked off in the middle of the hallway.
Someone’s eager to get started.
When I finally entered my bedroom, he was in the process of taking off the rest of his clothes. Once he was fully nude, he stalked toward me. Not a “hello,” or a “how are you” left his lips before he backed me against the nearest wall. His mouth covered mine, his kiss aggressive, demanding, not at all gentle. Which normally I wouldn’t mind, especially during the foreplay portion of our trysts, but there was something off with him. I couldn’t pinpoint what it was, and he never allowed me any time to try and figure it out before he was tearing at my clothes.
My shirt was on the ground seconds later, the button to my jeans being popped open right before he yanked down my zipper. He sucked at my neck, dragging the material down my legs. When he stopped to look at the panties I had on, he frowned. Did he expect me to wear the stuff he bought me to work?
He tore my panties apart before I realized he even had a hold of the blue cotton material. I teetered between liking the aggressiveness, and being pissed he’d ruined a pair of my underwear.
Gripping the underneath of my backside, he raised me up his body. I locked my legs around his waist without instruction and returned his hungry kiss, our tongues dancing wildly together.
Typically, by this point, Luke would have said ten different dirty things to me, all of which would’ve turned me on even more, but so far, he hadn’t uttered a single word. He growled, made several noises, which I assumed were some variations of enjoyment, but not a single syllable was spoken.
Granted, I hadn’t said anything other than voicing my apology at being late and the half-truth as to why.
When he unhooked my ankles and tossed me onto the bed, looming near the edge, he gripped himself and stroked from base to tip. His stare was filled with desire, but his expression confused me. I’d come to enjoy the quick arch of his brow and the sexy smirk that usually appeared right before he licked his lips. But standing before me, he appeared to be indifferent. When he showed up at the garage earlier today, he’d asked me if we were good. I said yes, but his current actions were indicative of him not sharing the sentiment.
Was he getting bored with our arrangement? Frustrated I hadn’t been able to orgasm yet? Did he want to end things with me but didn’t know how to? Or did he want to keep having sex just for the sake of it?
So many questions.
Luke grabbed my ankles, and he was either going to flip me onto my stomach or pull me toward the edge of the bed. I moved my legs, or at least I tried to.
“What’s wrong with you?” I finally blurted, having had enough of his version of the silent treatment. His hold on me intensified, and from the bulge of his biceps, he was still set to do whatever he had planned before I asked my question. “Luke.” His name came out as both a warning and a question.
“Nothing’s wrong.” His chest expanded on a quick inhale. Instead of making another move like I thought he would, he stood there and stared at me, and I didn’t like the way his scrutiny made me feel. Like he was judging me. But for what I couldn’t figure out.
This time when I tried to dislodge his hands from around my ankles, he released me. “Something’s wrong. You haven’t said two words to me.”
“Nothing’s wrong is two words.” There was a glimmer of the Luke I knew, but he disappeared when he hardened his expression. “Are we going to do this or not?” The tone he used pissed me off, like I was nothing more than a warm body for him to stick his dick in.
“Seriously, what’s the matter with you? Why are you acting all cold?” I wanted to cover up, but didn’t want to appear self-conscious. Not when we were possibly going to be arguing.
“You said you wanted to keep this strictly sexual. Tight boundaries. That’s what I’m doing.”
I should’ve known what I’d said to him would come back to bite me, and after talking to Brooke about it, I understood Luke had probably been offended. Hell, I didn’t need my best friend to point out that fact, I’d seen it written all over his face before he stormed out. Stormed out was a bit of a reach, but he didn’t linger behind either.
“But you seem like you’re mad at me.” The thought he could be didn’t sit well, and despite wanting to keep an emotional distance from him, I didn’t want him to be detached. And if I thought he wasn’t going to give his best effort, we should stop right now.
“I’m not.” In a surprising move, he laid down beside me.
“I think you’re lying.”
“Maybe a little.”
Rolling onto my side, I rested my hand on his chest, loving the feel of him beneath my fingers. Tracing a circle around his nipple, he flinched, his faint smiling mirroring my own.
