Until Darkness Comes (10 page)

***

Liam couldn’t tear his eyes off her perfect lips, just begging to be kissed. His thumb brushed against the full, pouty flesh. When he’d dreamed of touching her, imagining what she would feel like, what she would smell like, never once had he imagined such bliss. He ached to run his hand along the delicate curve of her throat.

The scent of sweet vanilla-jasmine filled his senses. She stirred an awakening within him he’d never experienced before, unexplainable sensations and desires running so deep they threatened to overtake him. The pounding of his heart echoed in his ears. He longed to tell her how much he loved her—that he’d always loved her.

Olivia’s soft voice pulled him back to reality. “I…I don’t know what I think anymore,” she whispered.
He could feel her uncertainty—see the confusion in her eyes as she stared back at him, trying to understand what was happening to her.
The loud rattle of Max’s Harley flew past them, shattering the moment like tempered glass. Olivia turned away from his touch to look out the window. She frowned, her eyes following the taillight of the motorcycle as it disappeared into the darkness.
“Speak of the devil,” Liam growled.
“I think he’s going to be really mad. He thought I was blowing him off tonight to see you. And here we are, together. It looks really bad.”
“That’s what your fight was about?”
“No, I caught him with another woman. He insisted she was just a friend, but I doubt it. I didn’t want to talk to him, especially when he was drunk.”
He was encouraged to hear Max’s true colors were shining through. Hopefully, the son of a bitch hung himself. Liam didn’t want to manipulate Olivia’s free will. It wasn’t fair to her. He wanted her to choose him because she wanted him, not because she’d been coerced into it.
“Are you worried he’ll come back tonight? Do you want me to stay with you?”
“No, that’s okay, my mom and dad are home.”
“If he comes back, or if you change your mind, you can always call me, you know. You still have my number, right?”
Olivia laughed. “What are you, my guardian angel or something?”
“Something like that,” he chuckled, reaching over to take her hand. He interlaced his fingers with hers. They looked so small and delicate compared to his hands—hands of a warrior that have seen centuries of violence and bloodshed. Hands that were unworthy to even touch this perfect creation sitting beside him.
“Do you have any idea how badly I want to kiss you right now?” His raw voice cracked with emotion. The temptation to taste the forbidden fruit of her lips was almost too much to bear.
Liam felt several emotions run through her at his confession—excitement, desire, guilt. “You probably shouldn’t,” she whispered softly. “I’m not sure what
this
is between us, and honestly, it scares me a little. Technically, Max and I are still together. I owe it to him, and to you, to get that straightened out first.”
Liam gave her hand a gentle squeeze before releasing it. “I understand.” He respected her honesty and integrity. With a little time, he knew he could win her heart.
Liam got out of the car, walked over to Olivia’s door, and opened it for her. He held out his hand and she took it. Her touch was soft and her fingers so fragile inside his strong grasp.
“Thanks for the ride home.”
“Anytime. I still want a rain check on that sunset.”
“Sure.” Olivia slowly pulled her hand out of his as she turned and walked up to the house. “I’ll see you around,” she called, pausing to look back over her shoulder before going inside.
“Good night, Olivia.” Liam watched her walk up to the house. He didn’t leave until she was safely inside.

***

Olivia closed the front door and leaned the back of her head against it.
What just happened?
She could hear the car door shut, followed by the low growl of the idling engine. She bit her bottom lip, tempted to go back outside and stop him before he pulled out of her driveway. She should have let him kiss her. What would it have been like? Every time he touched her, an explosion of desire coiled in the pit of her stomach. She’d never experienced anything like it before, and a daring part of her hungered to explore Liam’s touch.
“What are you doing?” she hissed to herself. “He’s a stranger. You know nothing about him.” Then why did he feel so familiar—so right?
The soft rumble of the Camaro’s engine faded away. Her opportunity gone—just as well, if she’d kissed him then she’d be no better than Max. Just the thought of that slimy bastard twisted her stomach into a knot. The bitter pain of betrayal stabbed into her heart like a hot knife. She’d seen a different side of Max tonight. A side she didn’t want to admit that she’d always knew existed, but she’d been too caught up in the delusion of him to face reality. She gently rubbed the tender spot on her arm and lifted her sleeve to reveal three dark purple fingertip-sized bruises. Maybe Liam was right, Max was dangerous.
“Is that you, honey?”
“Yeah…” Olivia peeked into the living room. Her parents were curled up together on the couch, watching a movie. She smiled to herself. It was nice to see that some people did get their happily-ever-after. “I’m really tired. I’m going to head up to bed,” she told her parents, starting up the stairs.
“Is something wrong, Liv?”
Olivia stopped halfway up. “Why do you ask?”
“Max stopped by here tonight. He seemed pretty upset and asked us if we knew where you were. I figured if you two weren’t together, then maybe there was a reason. Did something happen that you want to talk about?”
“Not tonight. I just want to go to bed.”
The scent of sandalwood and cloves greeted Olivia as she walked into her bedroom, and a smile touched her lips. She changed into her nightshirt and walked over to Liam’s towel lying on her bed. She picked it up, held the soft terry cloth up to her face, and breathed in deeply, testing to see if the same calming strength she felt with him would wash over her again—it did. Olivia hugged the towel against her chest and climbed into bed. She quickly fell asleep, wrapped in a blanket of Liam’s scent.

“Goddamn it!” Max yelled, burying his fist into his kitchen wall. Sheet rock crumbled to the floor as he yanked his hand free from the large hole. He paced restlessly from kitchen to dining room to living room. He fucked up tonight—big time. The next twenty-four hours were critical if he had any hope of saving his relationship with Olivia. She was already slipping from him—he could feel it.

He tried calling her several times tonight, not that she bothered to answer, not even once. She was really pissed at him. So here lies the million dollar question—just how forgiving was little Olivia going to be?

Five minutes—if he’d only left five minutes earlier, Cindy would be in his bed right now, and Olivia would be none the wiser. “Well, what the hell does she expect? It’s not like she’s putting out,” he growled. Of course, that wasn’t going to be the defense he used to get back into her good graces.

Now, how to go about making this up to her. If she tried to leave him, he’d have to kill her—sooner than he’d wanted to. Earth had grown on him, and he wasn’t ready to leave yet. He’d definitely have to put forth the effort to make up with the girl.
Olivia better hope, for her sake, that she takes me back, because she’ll like the alternative even less.

He wondered what the warrior said to get her to leave with him tonight. Was he already starting to bend her will? Where were they going before they turned around so abruptly? The unanswered questions haunted him. He was going to have to step things up if he planned to stay in this game. Liam was proving to be a worthy adversary after all.

Max looked up at the clock hanging on the kitchen wall. It was already seven a.m. Olivia would be up by now, getting ready for school. He needed to talk to her, to do some damage control before things got further out of hand.

The empty driveway boded well as he pulled up to Olivia’s house. Her parents were already gone—so far so good. He held a single rose in his hand and walked up the front steps. He took the key from the hidden hook under the step and unlocked the front door.

Max slipped inside, silently latching it behind him. He could hear the shower’s hiss as he crept up the stairs. An image of Olivia, naked and wet, standing beneath the water’s spray flashed through his mind. They were all alone…no one would hear her scream. He stood in the hallway, hesitating. If he turned left, he’d be joining her in the shower. If he turned right, he’d be in her room. Decisions, decisions…His jeans suddenly fit a little tighter. He reached down and grabbed the denim, trying to make an adjustment that didn’t help one little bit.

This was a game altering move. As he contemplated his next step, the water turned off. Max muttered a curse and ducked into Olivia’s room. He walked over to her bed and sat down on the edge to wait for her.

His stomach suddenly heaved and bile rose up his throat as the scent of Sandalwood hit him like a sucker punch in the gut. He instinctively inhaled, trying to locate the source of the smell. Rage flooded his veins like molten lava. The warrior…was the warrior here, with her? Max spun around and saw the towel lying on her bed. Where did she get that and why was that warrior’s scent all over it?

A shrill scream tore through the room, releasing a rush of adrenaline that flooded his veins. Olivia’s fear slammed into Max like a brick wall, releasing the predator inside him. Max’s vision sharpened and his mouth began to water. He could taste Olivia’s fear, and it was delicious.

It took every ounce of strength he had to keep his feet planted on the ground. His muscles quivered with barely restrained tension, fighting the urge to strike. In less than a second, he could have her on the floor and beneath his hard body. Make up plan be damned…

He inhaled deeply, savoring the scent of her terror, but his high was crushed when he was assaulted with the warrior’s scent which clung pungently in the air.

Max reigned himself back in and gave Olivia his best attempt at a genuine smile. “Hey, Liv, I’m sorry I frightened you.” He held up the rose as a peace offering.

“What are you doing here, Max? How did you even get in?”
Olivia didn’t look very pleased to see him. She clutched her towel against her breasts in a white knuckled grip. Water spattered the floor, dripping from the ends of her long black hair as she stood there in wide-eyed shock. Cleavage poured from the top of her pale yellow towel, the split hanging open mid-thigh, bearing a generous glimpse of creamy skin and bare hip.
Max raked his eyes over the luscious beauty. His fingers tingled with anticipation and raw, unadulterated lust. Damn, this female would make one amazing feast.
“I came by to see if I could bring you to school. I knocked, but no one answered. The door was open. I worried that maybe something was wrong. I came up here to make sure you were all right.”
Olivia’s scowl softened a touch, and her shoulders relaxed a little. She may be mad at him, but she believed he meant her no harm.
Stupid girl.
“Are you sure you’re all right, Liv?” He took a cautious step toward her. She tensed ever so slightly but didn’t step away. She reminded him of a skittish colt. “I had hoped we could talk about last night. I think there’s been a misunderstanding.”
“I need a minute to get dressed. Will you please wait for me downstairs?” Her tone was cool—reserved. Maybe this was going to be more difficult than he thought.
Max nodded and took a step closer to Olivia. Her light vanilla-jasmine scent teased his senses. If he didn’t get away from her soon, there would be nothing he could do to stop himself from taking her.
He reached up and gently drew the soft petals of the rose down the side of her cheek. Olivia stood stiffly as he bent his head and pressed his lips against hers in a slow, lingering kiss. She didn’t resist him when he pulled her bottom lip into his mouth and grazed her tongue with his. This was a good sign. Maybe there was hope for him after all.
“I’ll see you downstairs,” he whispered, smiling to himself as he walked out of her bedroom.

***

Olivia’s heart pounded so fast, she was sure it’d beat right out of her chest. How had Max gotten in here? She knew he was lying. There was no way her parents would have left the front door open. She ran over and locked her bedroom door. Somehow that didn’t seem to make her feel any safer. Her hands shook as she scrambled to get dressed.

“Okay, calm down,” she commanded herself. “He’s obviously here to patch things up. He’s not going to hurt you.” She glanced down at her arm. Five purple fingerprints begged to differ. “Oh shit…” she muttered, running her hands through her damp hair, trying to gather her scattered thoughts. He’d scared the shit out of her.

“Olivia!”

His commanding voice made her cringe with dread. If she wasn’t on the second floor, she would have bolted out the window. It was still a tempting thought, though. She glanced over at her only escape and contemplated the chances of pulling a Houdini without breaking a limb.

“Olivia!”

She marched over to the door, swung it open, and stuck her head into the hall. “Just a minute!” Geeze, what an impatient ass. Olivia knew if she didn’t get downstairs soon, he’d be coming up to get her, and she definitely didn’t want to be stuck up here with him again. She gathered her hair into a twist and fastened it with a rubber binder as she walked down the stairs. “I do have to get ready for school, you know.” Grouching at him probably wasn’t the smartest move, but damn, she was sick of his bullshit.

Unable to delay the inevitable any longer, Olivia sat on the other end of the couch, a good three feet away from him. “What is there left to talk about, Max? There was no misunderstanding. I think seeing you with that woman last night was pretty clear enough.”

Max scooted closer and took her hands in his. All she could think about was how many other woman those hands had touched in the last two months. The thought made her nauseous. She tried to jerk them back, but his grip tightened, refusing to let her go.

“You’re right, Liv. The only misunderstanding was on my part, for not realizing how truly wonderful and amazing you are. I’m the luckiest guy in the world to have you and I just don’t want to lose you over a stupid mistake. Nothing happened between me and that girl. I promise. I was drunk, I admit it. But Liv, I swear to you, nothing like that will ever happen again. I love you so much!” He pulled her toward him and wrapped his arms around her in a smothering embrace. “I don’t know what I’d ever do without you. Since I lost my parents, you’re all I’ve got in this world.”