Chapter Twenty-Three

Olive

Cormac’s hair had been ruffled by the sea breeze, and the collar of his polo shirt was up too. He was wearing a light-brown jacket, which accentuated the width of his broad shoulders. I knew exactly what he looked like underneath all those clothes, and as much as I tried to focus on what he was saying, I couldn’t stop picturing him naked.

Goddammit! I was trying to have a real adult relationship, instead of just drooling over his naked body.

“So, what’s going on with Pierce? Have you forgiven him yet?” Cormac and I were walking hand in hand along the marina.

It had been ten days since that fateful morning when I was all ready to leave and return to Venice. Since then we’d gone on four dates, and each one had been more special than the previous one. Cormac and I had talked about taking things slow; that was how I wanted it.

So, it had been ten days of getting to know each other, figuring out the little details about ourselves. It was also ten days of no sex, and I knew that he was getting as desperate for it as I was. I was fantasizing about him every night. I was touching myself in the shower to remind me of what it would feel like to have Cormac’s fingers there.

Tonight was the night—I’d made up my mind. I was going to go back to his place, or else it would drive us both mad. We’d had enough of getting to know each other.

“We’re working out our differences. It’s going to take time, I think. I just don’t know whether to trust him anymore or not,” I said. Cormac pulled me to himself and wrapped an arm around me.

There was a chill in the air, and my hair ruffled in the breeze.

“I think it’s time you forgave him, Olive. The guy’s suffered long enough,” he said. I arched my brows at him.

“It’s been ten days! Let him suffer some more!” I said with a laugh, and Cormac squeezed my arm as we walked.

“Believe me, nobody would like to teach Pierce a lesson more than I would, but cutting ourselves off from him isn’t the solution,” Cormac said, and suddenly, he sounded a lot wiser and older. He reminded me of the fact that he was my brother’s best friend, that he was older than me—even if only by three years.

I pressed myself to him and sighed.

“Maybe. Are you talking to him again?” I asked. Cormac shrugged.

“Kind of. I’m trying to keep things civil. He’s being overeager to mend our friendship, and I’m okay with that. I suppose I miss having him around. We used to do everything together. Besides, we have our Tokyo trip coming up in a few days,” Cormac continued, and we arrived at that spot on the docks where we’d almost had sex before.

We stood hand in hand, staring out at the waters, and I sighed.

“Okay, I guess it’s time to cut him some slack. Should we invite him to dinner with us?” I asked, and when I looked at Cormac, he had a childish excited glow in his eyes. He was happy at the prospect of being allowed to be friends with Pierce again. It warmed my heart to see Cormac’s ability to forgive his friend so easily. Pierce was wrong about Cormac from the very beginning.

He wasn’t a coldhearted, wealthy, and arrogant man like my brother had painted him to be.

“Tomorrow? At my place? We can cook a meal together?” he suggested, and I smiled and nodded.

“Mac and cheese?” I said, and we laughed.

Cormac leaned over and kissed my forehead affectionately.

“I didn’t want to bring this up before, Olive, but I guess I have to ask now. You’re not planning to go back to Venice, are you?” he asked, and we looked at each other, Cormac searching my eyes for an answer. We hadn’t spoken about this since we started dating. It hung over us like a cloud this whole time, because I didn’t want to come to a decision too quickly.

I took in a deep breath and looked away from him, out at the waters.

“I think I’m happy here. I have a few more gigs lined up at Balthazar’s,” I said, and I could see that Cormac was trying to stop his smile from spreading too wide on his face.

“And you like Brunswick? You like being here with me?” he asked, reaching for my hand.

How was I supposed to explain to him that I wouldn’t have rather been anywhere but with him? I felt a connection with Cormac that I didn’t feel with anyone else. I nodded in response, and that pleased him. He kissed me and I kissed him back softly.

“Good, because I was hoping that I didn’t have to move to LA,” Cormac said when we parted, and I laughed and widened my eyes at him.

“Would you really have moved to LA if I said that I was going back?” I asked him, and Cormac shrugged.

“Of course I was. I wasn’t just about to let you walk out of my life when I’ve just found you,” he said with passion. I laughed and reached up and covered his face with kisses.

“I want to stay here, spend time with you,” I admitted, and Cormac was nodding.

“And I have a pretty good idea how we’ll be spending most of our time together,” he said, knocking his forehead against mine. We looked into each other’s eyes, and I could see that he was thinking exactly what I was.

We were going to rip each other’s clothes off any moment now. This spot on the docks needed to be christened. We had to finish what we started.