When Sparks Fly (Sexy Secrets Book 2) (15 page)

She gives me a hateful look before she turns and runs smack
dab into Isaac.  He backs away from her.  From the way he is looking at her, I
am guessing Claire told him what happened.  

I turn to go back into the house and I can feel him behind
me.  I wasn’t expecting Isaac so early.  I need time to think and process what
just went down and I can’t do that while he is here.  Knowing that I need to
get out of the house for a bit, I grab Chewy’s leash from the hook at the
hallway entrance and cluck my tongue – calling for him.  He comes ambling down
the hall and when he sees the leash, he speeds up.  I bend down and hook the
leash to his collar.  I stand and turn to face Isaac. 

He has a confused look on his face - no doubt trying to
figure out what I am doing. 

“Olivia?”

“Isaac, I am going to go for a walk.  I need to clear my
head.”

A look of hurt briefly crosses his face before he masks it. 
I step forward and grab his hand, lacing our fingers together.  I give his hand
a little shake and he looks down at me.

“I am really angry right now, but I am not angry with you. 
I just need to clear my head of that anger and drama that just happened.  I can’t
stay here and do that because I am afraid that if I do, I may lash out at you
and that is the last thing I want to do.”  My voice breaks at the end.  I take
a few moments to compose myself all the while Isaac is holding onto my hand as
if it his lifeline. 

“I want you to stay and we can talk when Chewy and I get
back.  Will you be here when we get back?”  I ask - suddenly afraid that I may
have made him mad somehow. 

He ducks down until we are eye to eye.  “I will be here.” 
He moves his head forward until our foreheads touch.  “I will always be
wherever you need me,” he whispers before standing back to him full height. 

“Good, because I have a feeling that when I get back, I will
want nothing more than to crawl into your arms.”

He nods at me solemnly.  I can tell he wants to do something
to take away my turmoil – he has told me before that he doesn’t like to see me
upset and that is clearly showing on his face right now. 

“I won’t be gone long – maybe an hour.”

“Do you have your phone?”

I check my back pocket and I don’t feel it there, then I
remember I left it on the kitchen counter. 

I shake my head, “It’s on the kitchen counter.”

I start to move to get it, but he stops me.  “I’ll get it.” 

I nod and watch him head to the kitchen.  Chewy tugs at the
leash, because he is becoming impatient.  Isaac is back, handing me my phone. 
He places a lingering kiss to my forehead – “Be careful and I will see you in
about an hour.”

I nod again as Chewy and I head out the door.

__________________________

Isaac

I close the front door softly, wanting nothing more than to
slam my head against it – repeatedly. 

Fuck, Fuck, Fuck!

Who would have thought my time with Claire would come back
to bite me in the ass?

When the location shoot ended early, I was actually glad. 
My plan was to hang out at Liv’s while she and her friends talked.  I would be
out of sight of course, but available if she needed me.  Seeing Claire leaving
Olivia’s house changed those plans.

Flashback to roughly ten minutes ago

Claire Barnett is the last person I expect to see exiting
Liv’s house as I pull up in front of the house.  My former sex partner leaving
the house of my girlfriend is not a good thing.

By the way she storms down the porch steps, I can tell
she’s pissed.  I immediately park on the street and jump out of my truck to
meet her before she can get in her car and leave.

“What are you doing here?”  I ask, trying to keep the
anger out of my voice.

“That bitch –”

Before I can catch myself, I snatch her up by her arm and
pull her towards me.

“Be careful who you call a bitch,” I say coldly.

She wretches her arm away from me and shoves me in the
chest – hard - looking like she wants to punch me too– I wouldn’t blame her if
she did.  I never should have put my hands on her. 

“No - not Olivia!  I’m talking about Jacqueline.”

“How do you know Olivia?”  I ask because I don’t
understand why Claire is at Liv’s house when Liv is supposed to be having
dinner with Jacqueline and Taylor.

“I don’t…I know Jacqueline and she invited me along to
meet an old friend of hers.  I thought, why not, but I never expected an
ambush.”

I cross my arms across my chest.  “Explain.”

“Basically, Jacqueline just told your girl that you are a
player who only uses women for sex and that it is only a matter of time before
you dump her.  Apparently, she brought me along as ‘Exhibit A’.”

I must give her a confused look, because she lets out an
exasperated sigh and continues.

“Somehow Jacqueline figured out that you and I use to
hook up.  She and I have had girl talks where we discussed past relationships,
but I never said names.”

“How much did you tell Jacqueline about us?”  I feel
nauseated all of a sudden.

“I never said your name,” Claire reiterates.

I let out a humorless chuckle.  “That is not what I asked
you.”

She doesn’t say anything.  She just looks at me.  Her
look lets me know that she told Jacqueline everything. 

 I close my eyes and shake my head.

Fuck!

“And she told Olivia?”  I ask, already knowing the
answer.

She nods. 

“Look, Isaac – I am really sorry this happened.  I had no
idea that Jacqueline was going to do this.  You know I don’t do drama.  Please
tell Olivia that I am sorry this happened.”

“I’m sorry too – for grabbing your arm the way I did.”

She just nods at me again and walks to her car while I
turn to walk to the house.

End Flashback

I have no idea what is going to happen when Liv gets back. 
I know she said she isn’t mad at me, but she can’t be too happy with me right
now about one of my ex-sex partners showing up at her house.  I don’t know how
long I lean against the front door when I shake myself from my mental fog and
wander into the kitchen.  I see the evidence of Liv’s careful planning of this
evening.  Her small kitchen table is set for three, with dishes, silverware and
wine glasses.  The smell of my mom’s chicken spaghetti recipe permeates the
air.  I feel my mouth lift in a faint smile, thinking how Liv was going to put
a plate in the oven for me.

Just for something to do, I put away the table settings,
storing the items back in their proper place.  I remove the chicken spaghetti
from the still warm oven and cover the glass pan in foil before storing it in
the refrigerator.  I also wash the few dishes she has in the sink and tidy up
the kitchen.  When done, I glance at the clock on the microwave and notice that
forty minutes have passed.  Liv said she would be back in about an hour – I am
hoping she is back sooner than that.  I go back into the den and sit in the big
gray chair, picking up the TV remote and clicking the TV on.  Not five seconds
later, the front door opens and Liv enters, sweaty and out of breath.  Chewy is
tugging at his leash as if trying to get away.

“We did some power-walking,” Liv states slightly out of
breath.  “I think Chewy might be a little upset with me because he had to run
to keep up.”  She bends down, unhooks him from the leash and he immediately
runs towards me.  I scoop him up, depositing him on my lap as I scratch behind
his ears.

She gives me a sheepish look before speaking. 

“I’m gonna go take a shower.  I won’t be long.” 

I watch her disappear down the hall and I wonder again for
the second time today what the fuck is going on.  She is acting as if the last
few hours didn’t happen.  I rise and take Chewy with me, intent on getting him
some water and food.  Once he is taken care of, I head back to Liv’s bedroom
and sit on the bed waiting for her as she showers.

When the shower is still running after five minutes, I enter
the bathroom.  Through the glass shower door, I see Liv leaning against the
shower wall as the water beats down on her back.  Without thinking, I strip out
of my clothes and join her in the shower.  She turns around when I close the
shower door behind me.

She gives me a small smile and pulls me under the shower
spray with her.  I try to gauge her mood as she pours some body wash in her
hands and then starts to soap my body. 

“How was your walk?”  I ask softly as she runs her soapy
hands over my chest and shoulders.

“Good - I got a chance to clear my head and get rid of all
that anger.”

She runs her still soapy hands down my right arm and starts
soaping up my forearm, hand and fingers before continuing.

“I know you think I’m mad at you, but I’m not.”  She finally
looks up at me.  “I am assuming that Claire told you what happened?”

I nod, not knowing if I should elaborate or not.

“I figured.  The stuff that Jacqueline said about you is all
in your past, so I have no reason to be mad at you.  I’m mad that Jacqueline
felt the need to throw it in my face.  I have known for a while that she is not
really a friend to me and tonight just confirmed it.  I don’t know what I have
done to her that makes her feel like it’s okay to always hurt and humiliate
me.”  She whispers that last part as her voice breaks. 

I pull her into my arms and run my hands up and down her wet
back as she cries.  A while later and after the water is no longer hot; I
quickly rinse us both off.  I step out of the shower first, snagging a towel
from the rack and securing it around my hips.  I grab another towel and have it
ready when Liv steps out.  I wrap her in the big, fluffy towel.

“Thank you,” she says looking up at me.  Her nose is red and
her eyes are a little bit puffy from crying. 

Back in the bedroom, we both dress for bed.  I pull on a
pair of sleep pants and I sit on the bed as I watch her apply lotion to her
body before she puts on one of my t-shirts and a pair of short-shorts.

She comes over and sits beside me on the bed.  I pull her
close, tucking her under my arm.

“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry that all this happened,” I
say softly.  She is playing with my fingers and I feel an overwhelming need to
show her how much I love her, because I feel that right now, words just won’t
do.  However, her stomach growling – loudly – interrupts that.

I pull back some and look down into her face, which is
flushed with embarrassment.

“You hungry?”  I ask, giving her a smile.

She just nods and gives me a small smile back.  We make our
way to the kitchen.  Instead of going for the dish she made earlier for dinner,
I go about making grilled cheese sandwiches for both of us.  As we eat, I tell
her about the abbreviated location shoot. 

By the time we head back to the bedroom, it is just a little
after 9pm, but neither of us seems to care that we are going to bed early. 
After brushing our teeth, we both slide into bed and settle on our sides facing
each other. 

“Baby Girl,” I say, cupping her chin and running my thumb
over her plump bottom lips.  “I love you.  You know that, right?”

“I know,” is all she says.

It’s not exactly what I want to hear, but I will take it.

She leans in and gives me a slow kiss.  When I go to deepen
it, she pulls away and snuggles into my chest.  I mentally sigh as I wrap my
arms tight around her.  I can tell when she finally drifts off to sleep because
her body relaxes fully in my arms.

__________________________

Isaac

Something wakes me, but I am not sure what.  Without opening
my eyes, I reach for Liv.  I slowly open my eyes when I encounter just the
sheets.  They are still warm so she hasn’t been gone long.  I deduce that she
is in the bathroom since I can see the motion sensor night light on in the
bathroom.  I allow myself to drift off to sleep knowing that she will be back
in bed soon. 

Something wakes me again.  Liv is still not back.  I am not
sure how much time has passed, but she should be back by now.  The motion
sensor light is no longer on in the bathroom.  I climb out of bed and head
towards the bathroom. 

“Liv,” I call out softly as I enter and it’s empty.  I look
back into the bedroom, the bedside clock letting me know it 2:37am.  I make my
way down the hallway.  When I pass the spare bedroom, I don’t see Chewy in his
bed.  I feel a sense of unease wondering if she took Chewy for a walk.

Surely –not.

My unease lifts almost immediately when I hear noise coming
from the kitchen.  I make my way into the kitchen and see Liv at the table
adding ingredients to a bowl before stirring.  Chewy is fast asleep in his dog
bed under the window.

“Liv?”  I say as I stand in the doorway.

She looks up and gives me a tired smile. 

“Hey, I hope my banging around in here didn’t wake you.”

“No – not at all.  I woke up and you were gone.  What’s
going on?” 

She shrugs her shoulders not looking at me. 

“Nothing.  I couldn’t sleep and I decided to do some
baking.”

I leave the doorway and come fully into the kitchen,
standing beside the table.  I wait, because I know something is on her mind.  I
don’t have to wait long before she speaks.

 “Have you had a threesome before?” she asks me quietly.

I silently curse Claire for telling Jacqueline her business
and Jacqueline for telling Liv, because they are responsible for this question
coming from Liv.  This is definitely a can of worms. 

“I’m just curious.  I won’t get mad.  I know you are very
experienced and had a very colorful sex life before me.”