I threw my arm across my desk and watched all the shit scatter to the floor. Not that any of the stuff on there was organized anyway. But it was still fun to do. I turned and grabbed Olivia, pulling her close again. My hands to her face, staring for a second before kissing her. My heart was heavy, maybe a little angry, questions I needed answers to, but I wanted this before the truth came forward. Just in case.

I kissed her and I made damn sure it was a kiss she would never forget.

I pinned her against the desk, pressing my body hard to hers. She clawed at my shirt, wanting it off. I let her strip me of the shirt. Her nails scratched at my body, from my chest to my jeans. Putting a little distance between us, I looked down as she did, watching as her hands opened my jeans and slid both hands down. She pushed my jeans down, allowing my cock to pop free. Her right hand clawed at my leg while her left hand moved in and touched my growing thickness.

“Fuck,” I growled.

“Fuck,” she purred back at me.

We looked at each other and went right back at it.

There was a sense of urgency between us. Like she had something bad to tell me yet maybe I already knew what that bad shit was. So we wanted one last good fuck before it all went to pieces.

Whatever.

I grabbed her by the waist and squeezed. My hands moved around to her ass and down. I took handfuls of her nice skirt, my greasy ass, dirty, poor hands ripping at this expensive piece of clothing.

We kissed harder, faster, her hand sliding up to the tip of my cock. She squeezed and twisted her hand, then groaned into my mouth. I growled from deep within my throat.

I got her skirt up over her curvy hips and then grabbed her panties. I thrust forward and pushed her against the desk again. This time though I didn’t stop. I pressed even harder, forcing her to get up on the desk and sit there. Her hand left my cock as she put both hands to the desk, leaning back a little.

My hands pulled her panties down with ease. Over her shoes. I then tossed them to the desk, next to her. My hands grabbed her waist again and pulled her to the edge of the desk. I couldn’t waste another second of my life not being inside her. I grabbed myself and pressed against her warm body. I pushed at her skirt even more, driving it up, showing me more of her perfect body. She grabbed at my left arm, holding tight, biting her bottom lip as she waited for me to have her.

I eased my left hand around to the small of her back and pulled as I thrust forward.

I entered her as she moaned, her head falling back. I moved forward and put my mouth to her neck and kissed her, tasting the sweet bitterness of the perfume on her skin.

I thrust forward harder, taking myself to the hilt. I held there as Olivia grabbed at my back, scratching all the way down, grabbing at my ass.

I kissed up to her mouth and had her again.

I started to pull and thrust, pumping my body against hers, feeling all of her. My hands holding her where I wanted her, loving every second I had with her.

She hooked both legs around me as I drove forward with more force.

Soon, the old desk couldn’t match what I was doing to Olivia. The metal creaked and the desk itself started to move. Scratching against the floor, hitting the chair.

I gritted my teeth and pulled back. I took Olivia with me though, not leaving her body and not letting her body an inch from mine. I lifted and held her, carrying her as I walked to the door to the garage. We kept kissing, devouring each other as I walked her to the garage. I figured a rich woman hadn’t done anything like what was about to happen.

I put her against the hood of the first car in the garage and broke the kiss. It was just our foreheads touching as I started to love her again. Slow, gently, easing my way in and out of her, feeling every inch of my body explore every inch of hers. She put her hands to my chest and I felt her shaking.

“How’s this, darling? Is this rugged enough? Dirty enough?”

“Yes,” she said in a breathless voice. “Fuck. Yes.”

She tilted her head back and I kissed her again. I towered over her like a beast and that’s exactly what I felt like right then. I made fists and put them to the hood of the car. Her hands climbed, crawled, and clawed against my skin as I fucked her as hard and as fast as I could. Her skirt hiked up high against her body. Still wearing her top. Her perfectly done business style hair getting bouncy and messy. The groans and cries of pleasure as she came echoed through the garage louder than any damn tool I had in the place.

And me… I just kept growling in my throat, holding myself back until it was simply impossible to do so.

By then, Olivia had her hands at my face. The way she dug at my jaw and pulled at my hair, I couldn’t contain myself.

We kissed and then stopped, our lips touching as I started to come. And I held there for what felt like days. Slowly grinding my body against her. My hands refusing to let her go and step into whatever the hell was next between us.

Olivia playfully bit my bottom lip and groaned. She put her hands to my lower stomach and I felt her reluctantly push at me.

I backed away from her and got her to her feet. I watched as she fixed her skirt. I pulled up my damn jeans and got myself back together too.

I grinned as I looked at the hood of the car. “I guess I’m going to have to give them a discount, huh?”

Olivia shrugged her shoulders. “I was perfectly fine on the desk.”

I grabbed her by the waist and pulled her close again. “Yeah, but has The Princess ever been taken care of on the hood of a car?”

“Does that mean you’re assuming I’ve done that on a desk before?”

“You haven’t?”

“I don’t kiss and tell,” she whispered.

“Oh, darling, we did a whole lot more than just kiss.”

Her cheeks became flushed.

My heart ripped like a piece of paper.

I kissed her one more time and then backed away for good. I needed distance to get the truth.

“Meet me at the house,” I said. “I need to get out of here.”

“Of course,” Olivia said. “Is everything okay?”

I stared at Olivia instead of answering. I had let something happen I promised I would never let happen to me.

I let a woman take control of what ‘okay’ really meant.

 

* * *

 

Jesse.

He popped his head up off the couch when he saw me. He didn’t even get off the couch. He stared at me, then slowly lowered his head.

“Yeah, nice to see you too,” I said. “Brought you a present.”

Olivia then appeared in the archway to the living room.

Jesse damn near jumped up and off the couch like a rabbit on the run. His hip smashed against the coffee table, moving it a few inches. He hurried right to Olivia’s side, tail wagging, mouth open. Really excited to see her.

“Jesse,” Olivia said. “My buddy.”

“Drink?” I offered.

“Please.”

“Something strong? Water? Coffee?”

“Whatever you’re drinking,” she said.

I went to the kitchen and grabbed two beers. I twisted the caps off and put one on the dining room table. Olivia walked to the table, Jesse by her side. The dog sat next to her. He put his head against her skirt.

“Jesse,” I said and snapped my fingers. “Go lay back down. Leave her alone.”

Jesse groaned and slowly trotted away.

“Sorry about your clothes,” I said.

“Seriously? A little dog drool bothers you? Compared to you almost ripping my skirt off me?”

“Hey, I got something out of that.” I took a drink. “Let’s get down to business.  I really hope…”

“Gavin,” Olivia cut in. “My father showed up at my office today. With men he hired to draw up what he wants to do to the town here.”

I raised an eyebrow.

So she’s going to just jump into this? Tell me everything?

“Oh?” I asked.

“Yeah. It was a really messed up day for me. His plan is to finalize a deal with you really soon. Meaning… he needs me to deliver you.”

“Right,” I said. “Because that’s why you’re here. Right?”

“Yes and no,” she said. “I would never do anything to hurt you, Gavin.”

“But you had that meeting today.”

“I had no choice.”

“You didn’t tell your father about us, did you?”

“No,” she said. “If I did…”

“So he thinks you’re in town working me over.”

“I guess.”

“And what am I supposed to think?”

“Gavin, I haven’t lied to you. I never would. I wanted to talk to you and come up with a plan.”

“How does Whitney fit into the plan?”

“What?”

“She showed up again. Today. To the garage. She wanted to warn me about you, Olivia. Just like she did the last couple times I saw her. Today though, she seemed much more interested in me though.”

“Gavin, you can’t listen to her…”

“She told me you were in a meeting with your father. She told me what was happening. She told me that you know nothing but what your father says. That your version of right and wrong isn’t your fault.”

“And you believe her?”

“I didn’t say that,” I said. “I’m just…”

“Confused. And by being confused means you don’t trust me.”

Olivia put her drink down and turned her head.

“What?” I asked. “Say it.”

“I have been forced into a life I didn’t want,” she said. “And everyone thinks that just because I have money it’s okay. But it’s not. I have done things that later I realized weren’t very good. But I always have tried to do right. Did I go to a children’s hospital on behalf of my father and give a speech to help him with his company? Yes. But what nobody else saw or knew was that I visited all the kids beforehand. That I would visit as much as possible. The bond I had with Abigail was private until she passed. And the only reason it became public was because I wanted to preserve her memory and bring attention to her life and to all those who were sick in that hospital. If you think for a second what we have here Gavin is fake, designed, whatever, it’s not. I did not come here with anything in mind. Whitney did. She knew what was happening. Her father and my father are competing.”

“So I’m like some fucking prize between two rich women?”

“In some way, yeah,” Olivia said. “I don’t want you to give up what you have.”

“How do you know what I want?” I asked.

“You want to sell?” she asked. “If you do, tell me. I can help you, Gavin. I can help you get more money than you ever thought possible.”

“Maybe I want to tell your father to go fuck himself,” I said.

Olivia took out her cellphone and tossed it to the table. “There. Do it. It’s under Sterling. I haven’t called him Dad or Father since I was a kid.”

I stared at Olivia. Goddammit, I believed her. I loved her.

“Gavin, the only thing that matters is what you want,” she said. “I didn’t come here to end up like this. I had a really fucked up day and the only thing that got me through was thinking about you. That never happens for me. Okay? I would have my fucked up days and then jump into this fake world to just hide myself. But I don’t have to hide with you, Gavin. I’d give up everything for you.”

I gritted my teeth. “Liv…”

She stepped toward me. She touched my arms. “This is your chance to figure out what you want.”

“It doesn’t work that way.”

“Yes it does,” she said. “What do you think Luke would think of you right now?”

“Don’t you fucking bring my brother into this.”

“Get mad at me,” she said. She was challenging me. I sort of liked it. “Go ahead. Get mad. But you do so much for everyone. Do something for you. You want your garage and your house? And your town? Then keep it. I’ll help you. You want some money… money that you can live off of for the rest of your life? I‘ll help you.”

I swallowed hard. “It’s not that easy.”

“Yes it is.”

Before we could say another word, my front door opened.

“Uncle Gavin!” a little voice cried out.

I smiled. “It’s not that easy, Liv.”

I broke away from her and when Ava saw me she jumped into my arms. Nikki then came storming through the living room. She was ready to unleash hell but when she saw Olivia she froze.

“Oh…”

“You don’t call anymore, huh?” I asked Nikki.

“I’m so sorry,” she said. “Stacey tried to come over.”

“What?”

“Yeah. She wanted to talk. I left.”

“Uncle Gavin, can I sleep here?” Ava asked me.

I held her in my arms. “Of course you can. Let’s go get you settled.”

“Right now?” Ava asked.

“It’s getting a little late,” I said.

“She’s had her bath,” Nikki said. “She’s ready to crash.”

I took Ava upstairs and got her tucked in. I had a sense of dread going through me that I didn’t like at all. My first job was to protect Ava.

“I have a little surprise for you,” I whispered.

I left the room and went into my bedroom. I grabbed the TV off the one dresser and carried it into Ava’s room. Now, I didn’t like the idea of it, but it was better than Ava worrying about her mother or whatever was going to happen downstairs. Nikki meant well, but sometimes she got so lost in herself she forgot that she had a daughter.

“This is a one time thing,” I said.

I hooked up the TV and hooked up a DVD player. I was lucky enough to find a couple movies in the room. I figured the DVD’s themselves would be missing but they weren’t.

When the movie started to play I went to the bed and kissed Ava’s forehead. “Hey, are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Ava said. “Mommy got nervous.”

“Yeah?”

“Someone called her and scared her.”

“Were you in bed?”

“Almost.”

“Then you left?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, you’re here now, Ava. And you know that my house is super safe. I’ll be here all night. I promise. Nothing will happen here.”

“I know that,” Ava said. “I wish I could live here. Mommy too.”

I smiled. “I know. But you can stay here tonight. So enjoy your movie.”

I kissed Ava’s forehead and then left the bedroom.

The last thing I expected to find was Olivia in the hallway.

“Hey,” I whispered.

She grabbed my hands. “I love you, Gavin. I’m just… I’ve never felt like this before. And I don’t care about anything. I don’t care about your garage or money or house or family issues. I care about you. I don’t even care about my issues. I want to drop and run right now. For you.”

“I’m not used to this,” I admitted. “You see what my life is. It’s easy to watch from the outside but when you’re in the storm you’ll eventually get sick of it. But thank you for being here.”

We kissed.

“Hey,” she said. “I don’t want to add to your night…”

“What now?”

Olivia bit her lip. “Stacey is here too.”

 

* * *

 

I stopped in the middle of the living room and couldn’t believe what I was seeing.

Stacey on my left. Nikki on my right, in the dining room. Nikki was hugging herself, pacing. Stacey just stood there, hurt spread across her face. I always knew there would be some kind of showdown between these two. I just didn’t expect it tonight or in my living room.

I looked back at Olivia. I opened my mouth to tell her to just go.

She read my mind and shook her head.

She mouthed to me. No. I’m staying here.

“So what is this?” I asked.

“I just wanted to talk,” Stacey said. “Long overdue.”

“I don’t want to talk to you,” Nikki said.

“Why not?” Stacey asked.

“You sent him off to die!” Nikki yelled.

I lowered my head.

This was officially happening.

Stacey stormed through the living room. “I did? You had him fucking confused, Nikki. And we were all teenagers. I never wanted to hurt you. Or him. I never tried to. I was just there. Okay? I kept things as calm as I could. For you.”

“You were with him, Stacey,” Nikki said.

“Yeah, I was. At one point. But you know what? He never looked at me the way he looked at you. He forever loved you. He didn’t love me.”

“That’s right,” Nikki said. “You were just a piece of ass for him. But that wasn’t good enough. So you wanted him dead!”

“Nikki,” I growled. “Stop saying that.”

“No,” Stacey said. “Get it off your chest. I want to hear it.”

I looked over at Olivia. Her eyes were wide.

“Because the last time I checked, I wasn’t overseas,” Stacey said. She closed in on Nikki. “I didn’t put him in danger. If anything, it was you, Nikki. You wanted this perfect fucking life out of this fucking town. Right? You wanted him to give you more. Not me. I would have taken whatever he could provide. But that wasn’t good enough for you.”

Nikki then swung.

I didn’t see it coming but I should have.

I heard the smack and charged forward.

But I wasn’t close enough.

Stacey grabbed Nikki and turned, throwing her against the dining room table.

“Hey!” I managed to yell.

The few seconds it took me to get to them, they each had handfuls of hair and were throwing punches like they were a boxer going for the final knockout. This wasn’t some cat fight with cheap slaps.

I opened my arms and had no idea what to do. I didn’t want to hurt them but I couldn’t let them kill each other.

They were growling with deep seeded anger and hurt, accusing each other of everything that happened to Luke.

I chose Nikki first and grabbed her, hugging her. I broke between her and Stacey. I took a few punches to the shoulder and head as my reward. I picked her up and walked her around the table.

“Christ, stop this,” I yelled. “Right now.”

“I hate her,” Nikki said. “I hate her. She stole him. She killed him.”

“Fuck you,” Stacey said. “You crazy bitch. You couldn’t keep…”

I looked back just in time to see Olivia slap Stacey across the face.

There was a sudden wave of shock that went through the house. And complete silence.

“Both of you shut the fuck up,” Olivia growled. “I’m tired of this.”

Stacey touched her cheek, in shock.

I let Nikki go and backed away, showing my hands.

“You two are grown women,” Olivia said. “And, Nikki, you have a daughter. With Luke. She’s upstairs trying to sleep. And you’re down here fighting? Literally fighting someone?” Olivia looked at Stacey. “And what do you want to prove? Huh?”

“I just wanted to talk,” Stacey said. Her eyes filled with tears. “I miss him too, Nikki. And you think I drove him into his decision to join the military? I didn’t. I didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Nobody did anything wrong,” Olivia said.

“But he’s gone,” Nikki said.

“We know that,” I finally said. “Christ, we know that. I can’t keep holding everyone’s grief. And anger. And fucking guilt. Luke was a grown man when he made his decision. He wanted to make something of himself and he did. He fucking did. His legacy is upstairs right now watching a cartoon movie.”

Nikki started to cry.

Stacey started to cry.

“That’s it,” Olivia said. “I have an idea.”

I looked at Olivia and raised an eyebrow.

“Gavin, you’re staying here,” Olivia said. “You’re playing babysitter.”

“Excuse me?” I asked.

“You two,” Olivia said, pointing to both Stacey and Nikki. “Come with me.”

Olivia then walked toward me. She had taken full charge of the situation and my house.

She took a handful of my shirt and moved to her toes. She planted a kiss to my lips.

Now I was in complete shock.

“What the hell are you doing, darling?” I asked.

“I’m fixing this,” Olivia said. “We’re going to have a girls night out… see you in the morning.”