Reflection (11 page)

Chapter 27

Sophie comes to let us know it’s time to get on the stage before the curtain goes up, I leave Pete to get his seat ready and plug in his guitar, from the corner of the stage I can see the main room through a gap in the curtains, I spot Charlie and Joe they are chatting away to someone sat with them, I carry on scanning the room and there he is, sat right at a front table, I recognise some of the people sat with him, they are his work colleagues. He looks amazing, I can only see his top half as he is sitting down but he is wearing a tux and oh my, his hair looks straighter and he has trimmed his beard, I quickly check my mouth to make sure I’m not dribbling, he looks like someone out of a movie, I take a deep breath and think come on Olivia you need to do this. I walk back over to Pete checking he’s ready he gives me the thumbs up, I quickly check my hair and that my dress is where it should be.

Sophie walks passed us “Two minutes guys” we both nod and watch has she walks through the curtain, the noise from the main room quietens down

“Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen and welcome to the Annual Computer Science Awards, tonight we have eleven awards to hand people out to people who are at the top of their categories, the first award will be given about in ten minutes but first some live music by a local lady Olivia Carrington, please help me give her a warm welcome”

I hear the clapping and the curtains start to pull apart, I see Sophie she is stood with one arm out introducing us, as soon as the curtains are completely open, she walks off the side of the stage. I hear Pete say 1,2,3,4 and starts the introduction to the song, I take a deep breath and try to think that I am just singing in front of Mrs Baker, I find a spot towards the back of the room and sing the first verse to that but when I start the chorus I look directly at Adam, I meet his eyes, they are wide, making it look like he is surprised to see me, when I start the second verse I look towards Charlie who is almost jumping out of her seat and Joe who is sat back in his chair watching me, I get to the chorus and sing it from my heart to Adam, I watch as his lips turn into a sexy smile, I hope he is listening to the words that I am signing.

I get to the end of the song and most people are stood up clapping I give a little bow and walk off the stage with Pete, we are met by David

“Olivia that was excellent, I really enjoyed it, thank you so, so much for playing tonight”

“Thank you David, I enjoyed it and thank you for letting us play”

I shake his hand and walk back to the room and pour myself a large glass of wine, I just take a sip as the door burst open. I hold my breath, hoping it is Adam

“Fucking Hell Boo you were amazing” she grabs me and hugs me, Joe follows behind her 

“Amazing Olivia, you looked beautiful up there” he also gives me a hug

We are just talking about the song when there is a knock at the door, my head shoots to the door then back to Charlie, she smiles then nudges me

“Come in” I call out, the three of us turn towards the door as the handles goes down and the door slowly opens, all three of us sigh when we see Pete stood there

“Just come to say goodbye, Mrs Baker has my number if you need me again”

“Thankyou Pete, you did a great job”

“I just hope it all works out for you Olivia”

“Thank you” I say and watch him close the door, we all sit back down and start to laugh, when suddenly the door flies open crashing into the wall behind, I jump then turn around to find Adam stood in the doorway, I give him the once over bottom to top as I gently stand from my chair, I reach his eyes and watch as he does the same, when his eyes return to my face he smiles “Liv” is all he says “Adam” I reply, I sense Charlie and Joe stand and walk towards him, Charlie nods at him and walks on past followed by Joe, once they have gone he takes a step inside, grabs the door handle and slams the door shut.

We just stand looking at each other, when he eventually says “Why are you here?”

That was not what I was expecting “I…I” is all I can manage, I feel the tears coming

“Was that song a message for me? Liv are you here for me?”

“Yes and Yes”

I watch as he takes a deep breath and then he’s in front of me, his hand comes up to my face “Fuck I’ve missed you Liv”

“I’ve missed you too” I lean my face into his touch as his thumb strokes across my cheek “Adam I was wrong…”

“I know that”

“But I’ve texted you and you never replied?”

“I wanted to see if I could live without you…”

“Oh” I feel the tears coming again

“You look beautiful, Liv”

“Thank you but can you live without me?”

“I can”

That’s when the tear rolls down my cheek, I pull away from his touch and grab my bag, I almost run to the door and open it, once in the corridor I do run, I almost reach the door at the end when he grabs me around my waist and lifts me, my back is against his front, I can feel his hard body against mine

“Liv baby, you didn’t let me finish” his nose is in my hair and he’s whispering in my ear “I can live without you but it’s not a life, it’s not a life I want to live. You put colour into my days, you make life sweet… you’re beautiful and I love you”

I relax back into him and turn my head to rest on his shoulder, when someone shouts “Adam”

“WHAT?”

“They need you now to present the award”

“Fuck, wait for me Liv?”

“Of course, I will get a drink from the bar”

I watch as he walks off down the corridor towards the man that was after him, I smile when I hear him say “Is that her? is that your Olivia?” Adam nods and then turns to look at me again; he smiles and walks off with the man. I take a quick trip to the bathroom to sort my eyes out and make my way to the bar, I order a wine and take a seat at the bar, I wave to Charlie as Adam steps out on the stage, his eyes immediately find mine, I can’t believe how good he looks and I melt a bit more inside.

I sit watching as he reads out the nominees and then the winner, I look around to find out who has won, I watch as a lady rises from her seat, shit she is pretty, I watch as she makes her way to the stage and goes straight for Adam, her arms touch his waist and she leans in for a kiss, I watch as he holds her arms and dodges the kiss so it lands on his cheek, his eyes quickly move to me, I give him a smile. I listen as she makes her boring speech, then they are leaving the stage to a round of applause. I turn back to the bar and pick up my glass of wine and take a sip just as I feel a hand slide around my waist, I turn and see Adam.

“Where are you staying tonight?”

“At Charlie’s”

“I have a lot of questions; I need to stay for an hour after that can I take you back to mine?”

I nod, he leans down and kisses my forehead “I didn’t know you could sing, you looked amazing up there”

“Thank you, so did you” I say smiling

I watch as he walks off and catch Charlie out the corner of my eye racing over to me

“Well what happened?”

“He says he has missed me and wants to take me back to his in a while, is that ok?”

“Fuck of course it is, anyway I’m hoping Joe will stay”

“You two getting on well?”

“We are, I just to need to work him up so he won’t be able to resist me”

“Tart…”

“I know but I’m not sure I can wait any longer”

We laugh and she sits with me while they give out the next award and then she walks as sexy as she can back to Joe. I order another wine it’s the last one I’m having tonight. I listen as they give out the next award, I sit a bit taller when they say Adam’s name as a nominee. I watch as the chap opens the envelope and reads out Adam’s name, my eyes shoot to Adam, I watch as he stands and the whole table gives him a hug or a slap on the back, he walks with purpose to the stage and accepts the award from the man, he stands in front of the microphone waiting for the cheers to stop

“Thank you, I am honoured to receive this award and would like to thank everyone who has worked with me over the last year, it’s been a tough year in business and in my personal life but I’m glad to say everything is looking good now, thank you again”

I smile as he looks at me and then takes his seat again. I carry on watching and slowly drinking my wine as they give out another ten awards, then David comes onto the stage and announces that this is the last award of the evening and it’s for Software Developer of the Year, the room has gone quiet as everyone listens, David is handing this award out so he starts reading the nominees after about five names he says Adams, I can’t believe he’s up for this award, like he says it’s been a tough year. After another five names David is opening the envelope and announcing Adam’s name, I jump from my stool and stand clapping just like everyone else, the same thing happens again he gets hugs and slaps and then makes his way to the stage. He thanks everyone at his firm then looks directly at me “Liv, baby this one is for you”

He leaves the stage, picks up his other award from the table and says something to them and then he’s walking towards me, I watch him as he nears and I can’t stop the smile or the goosebumps, he stands in front of me smiles and then says “Ready?” I nod and get up from my stool, I send a wave Charlie’s way and Adam takes my hand, he doesn’t say anything and we walk outside and he flags down a taxi, he helps me in then joins me, we sit in silence the whole drive back to his apartment. He pays the taxi and helps me out, takes my hand and we walk into his building, he unlocks his door and stands back so I can go in first, he follows shutting the door behind him “Adam are you ok?” I ask

“I am so fucking angry but happy at the same time”

Shit “Why?”

“Because you finished things with me, I was truly heartbroken Liv. It took everything I had to get out of bed in the mornings and now I’m so beyond words happy to see you. So… do you want me just for the night? Will you be gone in the morning?”

“Adam, no… well I will be gone in the morning but I want you, I need you, I need this and I love you, Adam.”

“So how do you think this will work? With me in the city and you two hours away”

“I don’t know but I need it to work, my life without you in it, is” I struggle to find the word “Empty” I watch as he pulls his bow tie out and slips his jacket off and throws it on the chair then walks to me

“I have missed you so much” he says as his mouth covers mine, the kiss starts off gentle but soon works us both up, his hands are all over me and I make a start on removing his shirt, as I open the buttons I can see he has lost some weight, his chest is rock hard so he must have been spending a lot of time in the gym, I reach the last button and slip it over his shoulders, I run my hands over his chest and down over his abs, I feel his muscles tense as my fingers touch him, I reach for his trouser button and flick it open, they fall to the floor, my eyes trace over his body I need him badly, with one quick movement my dress is on the floor, he reaches down and picks me up, kicking his shoes and trousers off he carries me to his bedroom, he slides me down his body until my feet touch the floor, he makes quick work of my bra and knickers, once I’m naked he stands back and looks me up and down “Fuck Liv you are so fucking beautiful” I watch as he pushes his boxers down then steps out of them “You’re not so bad yourself” he steps forward grabs me and throws me on the bed, I let out a squeal then I take a deep breath as he gets to work on my body.

Chapter 28

I lie on my side, propped up on the pillows staring at him, he looks even more amazing now, he is slightly sweaty, his hair is damp but he looks content. “I saw you yesterday” I say he turns to look at me “When?”

“I was having a coffee in the courtyard when you walked past, I followed you, you stood holding the rails looking out over the city, I took a photo of you but had to leave, it looked like you needed some space”

“I have done that very thing for the last five weeks, I taught myself only to think about you in that half an hour during the working day, so I could get on with my work when I got back, they laugh at me when I leave, they call it my Reflection Walk”

“God Adam I’m so sorry but I think I needed the time to get myself right”

“Yeah so did I, I got your texts but I was waiting for the paternity test results to come back from Lara’s baby, she was still insisting it was mine, I couldn’t move forward until I knew”

“And?”

“I’m not his Dad, thank God”

I lean forward and place a kiss on his nose “I’m glad too” he grabs me and makes love to me again.

I wake up and leave Adam fast asleep, I shower and quickly grab his shirt, when I remember I haven’t texted my Mum, I find my bag in the hallway and retrieve my phone, I have seven missed calls and five texts messages, four of the missed calls are from my mum, I return her call and sit on the sofa

“Olivia, are you ok?” I can hear the panic in my Mum’s voice

“Hi Mum, I’m fine everything ok with you?”

“Yes, well come on tell me did it work?”

“I’m at Adam’s now, so yes it did”

“I’m so glad baby, are you happy?”

“I am very, is Dill ok?” I say and look up as Adam walks into the room wearing just his boxers, he places a coffee on the table and leans in and kisses my cheek, I smile at him and watch him walk off, “Hmm”

“What darling?”

“Sorry, nothing”

“Did you stay the night with him”?

“I did, Mum I’m really happy”

“That’s good darling, what happens now?”

“I’ve no idea, we haven’t spoken about that yet, perhaps this afternoon, I will be back later, are you ok to keep Dill? I will come round and pick him up in the morning”

“Of course, he’s been a little angel; I think he misses you though”

“I miss him too, ok see you tomorrow, I love you”

“Love you too have a great time” she says laughing, I end the call and pick up the coffee and take a sip, I sit and worry about the conversation we need to have about this relationship working.

“Hey you ok sat there staring into space?”

I jump slightly and realise I was doing just that “Oh sorry, I’m fine, you ok?”

“I feel happy, it’s the first time in a long while, come get dressed I will take you out for lunch”

“I don’t have anything to wear” shit I have to do the walk of shame in my outfit from last night

“You still have some clothes in my wardrobe” I jump up and go in search of anything other than my dress, I find jeans and a jumper but no shoes but that’s ok my heels from last night will dress my jeans up, I pull my hair into a pony tail and apply a bit of make-up that I carry in my bag. I present myself to Adam twenty minutes later

“Perfect, now let me take you out and show you off”

I smile knowing full well all the looks we get will be for him, we walk to a little café just down the street from his apartment, they must know him well because all the staff wave at him as I follow him to a table at the back

“So do you come here often?”

“Nearly every night after work for the last five weeks, I couldn’t bear being in my apartment alone for too long”

“Sorry…”

We stop talking as the waitress takes our order; we both decide on coffee and burger with fries, I watch as she walks off.

“Liv it was as much my fault as yours”

“And how do you work that out?”

“Well if I had told you everything at the start none of this would have happened”

I take a minute to make sure everything is still filed in the boxes in my head I don’t want anything escaping today. I need to change the subject “So how is this going to work, you and me?”

“Don’t worry we will sort something out, hey how’s Plum Tree coming along?”

I quickly forget the previous topic and I talk for a good ten minutes about the cottage and the plans that Joe has drawn up, I tell him I have ordered fencing for the top corner of the paddock so I can get some chickens then I tell him about Dill” I eventually stop talking and look at his face

“You love it there?”

“I do, the only thing missing is you” He leans over the table and places a kiss on my lips, I hum into his kiss before remembering where we are, when Adam smiles at me and sits back down that’s when I see the waitress stood with our coffee. I lean back as she places the cups down on the table and smiles nicely at Adam “You have an admirer” I say nodding my head towards the retreating waitress

“I haven’t noticed”

I laugh and tell him about my party where I practiced the song, he seemed amazed that I hadn’t sang in such a long time and also surprised that I could sing having never heard me before, I tell him about my friend Cody, and he nods like he understands why I didn’t sing for years, he reaches across and takes my hand

“Liv, I need to take you home and make love to you”

I nod my head and smile “Yes please” I watch as he grabs a wad of cash from his wallet, drops it on the table and stands, he helps me up and more or less drags me from the café. As he pulls me up the street I’m trying to keep up “Adam what’s the rush?”

“I need you Liv”

“You had me about two hours ago”

“SO??”

I laugh and follow him back to his apartment, once inside the door he gently pushes me to the wall, his hand comes up to my face and his thumb gently strokes my cheek “Liv, don’t ever leave me again”

“I have to go home later”

“That’s not what I mean and you know it”

“Sorry, I won’t”

He leans in and kisses me, two seconds later I’ve almost forgotten my name as he strips me of all my clothes and carries me to the bedroom.

A hour later as Adam dozes again, and of course after I’ve looked at him for a while, my thoughts turn to Charlie and I wonder how she got on with Joe, I gently leave the bed without waking him, pull on his shirt again and track down my phone, I flick the kettle down and ring Charlie, she eventually answers

“Boo, you good?”

“Hey, I’m fantastic and you, did Joe give in?”

“You know I don’t kiss and tell”

“Since when?”

“I know funny right, anyway yes he did and I know I say this quite often but this time I think it might be true”

“Don’t tell me you’re falling in love?”

“I am, oh my God he was amazing, the things he did to my body, oh it makes me shiver just thinking about it now”

“Ok enough, has he gone home?”

“Yeah just but I’m coming down this weekend to stay with him”

“I’m really happy for you Charlie”

“So am I, what about you? Although the way you left last night I already know the answer”

“Yeah it was amazing, anyway I will give you a call tomorrow”

“Ok speak then, enjoy the rest of your time there”

She cuts the call and I make two coffees, I turn when I hear footsteps and stand almost stock still while I take in Adams beauty, I check him out from head to toe, I don’t think I will ever get used to seeing him naked.

“Liv, come back to bed?”

“I made coffee”

“Bring it with you; I just want to hold you”

I laugh “Of course you do but I should leave soon, it’s a couple of hours drive back”

“I know just for a bit”

I nod and hand him is coffee and gently run my hand down over his pecs and abs, he almost growls, I watch as he turns and walks back to the bedroom, I follow watching his back and ass move as he walks. I put my cup down and get back onto the bed; I reach for my cup “Adam we need to talk”

“About?”

“Us”

“What about us Liv?”

“What happens now?”

“I will speak to you every day and I will be there Saturday morning, is that enough for you?”

I smile and nod “Thank you”