Right Man, Right Time (The Vancouver Agitators, #3)(119)

“Trust is hard,” Holmes says. “Trusting anything, even life.” Quietly he adds, “Not wanting to lose what’s close to you again. It’s tough.”

I know he’s referencing losing his brother, and it’s one of the first times I’ve heard him say anything like that. He normally keeps quiet, especially regarding his brother, which makes me wonder why he’s offering a slight glimpse into that part of his life.

“It is,” I say. “But Ollie is helping me with that trust. She’s patient and understanding. She knows all about Sarah, and she’s reassured me that she would never treat me the way Sarah did. I don’t know, with Ollie, I just feel lighter, more put together, like the worst is over, and now I’m starting to head out of the other end of the dark tunnel.”

“She seems legit,” Posey says. “When she defended you in the bar in front of Sarah, I almost kissed her on the lips I was so pleased.”

“Dude, no,” I say. “Don’t even think about kissing her.”

“I’d never do it.” Posey rolls his eyes. “I was just full of glee that I thought of kissing her.”

“Full of glee?” Pacey asks.

“Yeah, you should know that emotion. You were a gleeful fuck when you first met Winnie. Remember how he slunk around the cabin, chasing after her?” Posey says.

“I did not chase after her.”

We all scoff at that because Pacey was immediately infatuated. None of us were even allowed to consider looking at Winnie.

“I might have followed her, but I didn’t chase,” Pacey clarifies.

“That sounds better,” I say.

“I’m glad she’s everything you’re looking for,” Holmes says to me. “Ollie seems pretty cool.”

“She is,” I say, a smile coming to my face as I think about her.

The last few weeks have felt like a whirlwind, and in some way, we’ve been able to build a foundation together. A foundation of appreciation and friendship. And from there, it’s grown. It’s grown into something I never thought I’d feel again—love for a woman. But even at that, I think the love I have for Ollie is greater and more meaningful than anything I ever had with Sarah. Experiencing both relationships, I can easily say that.

I think Sarah always had one foot out the door, whereas Ollie truly cherishes me. She appreciates me. And she wants me for me, not for the wealth and assets. Sarah, especially later in our relationship, rarely . . . loved on me. It’s completely different with Ollie. And I can’t see her changing because she’s truthful to her core. Sarah isn’t, and I know that now. I can see more clearly how selfish she actually was. Everything is different with Ollie.

The feeling I have when she looks at me.

The emotions I experience when we’re intimate.

And the way I respond to her—when I talk to her, text her—it’s so different from the sense of obligation I had with Sarah. Perhaps that’s from the newness of our relationship, but I feel like an active, willing participant rather than someone waiting for the shoe to drop.

Ollie has awoken me, and I’ll never take that for granted.

I glance up at my friends and say, “Thanks for being there for me. I really appreciate it.”

“No need to thank us,” Posey says, mouth full of bread. “That’s what we’re here for.”





Silas: You awake?

Ollie: Mmmm, yes. You going to call?

I sit up in bed, the morning light shining in my hotel room, and I go to FaceTime. Last night when I got back to my hotel, it was pretty late so I just called Ollie for a bit, but now that I’m awake, I want to talk to her more. We have time before I need to be at the arena, so I might as well spend some time with my girl.

The phone rings a few times, and then her beautiful face comes into view.

“Good morning,” she says all sleepy-like as she twists in her sheets.

“Morning,” I reply and then notice her bare shoulder. “Babe, are you naked?”

“I am. What about you?”

“I have my briefs on.”

“Take them off,” she says as she slides the sheets down, and I get a front-row seat view of her perfect breasts.

I prop the phone up on the nightstand next to me and shimmy out of my briefs only to drop them on the floor.

“You’re already hard,” she says.

“Woke up with a hard-on. Had a sex dream about you last night.”

“Mmm, tell me what I did,” she says as she moves her hands over her breasts.

My mouth waters from the sight of her. “We were at my place, making dinner together.”

“You don’t know how to cook.” She smirks.

“Didn’t stop me from trying in my dream. You were wearing one of my button-up shirts with nothing else.”

“Sounds about right.” She pinches her nipples, and I grip the base of my erection and squeeze.

“I propped you up on the counter, laid you down, and explored every inch of your body with my tongue.”

“Did you undo my shirt and let it fall open?”

I nod. “Yeah, and I sucked on your tits for what seemed like forever.”

“I love when you do that,” she says as I start to move my hand up and down. “Were you hard in your dream?”