Once Upon a Dare (Risky Business)(49)

Olivia turned on her heel and fled.

…

Cole was contemplating a stack of carryout menus his realtor had left when there was a sharp knock at the door. He tossed the menus in the drawer and glanced at the clock. He wasn’t expecting anyone. Maybe this was one of those old-fashioned buildings where people actually believed in being neighborly. As he made his way to the door, he was surprised to discover he didn’t hate the idea. After all, this was home now.

The last thing he expected to find when he opened the door was Olivia standing there, wearing that little blue jacket that brought out her baby blue eyes.

The baby blue eyes that were currently sparkling with what appeared to be either intense arousal or rage. He really hoped it was the former.

“This is a surprise,” he began, draping his arm over the door jamb. “I thought we were going ou—”

Olivia held up a hand. “Shut. Up.”

Cole bristled. What was going on? Had she not heard about the Vixen deal yet?

Olivia tapped her foot. Her cheeks were flushed bright pink. Yeah, this was definitely looking more like rage. “Are you going to let me in? We need to talk.”

He hesitated, wondering what could have possibly brought her to his door uninvited and unannounced. The silence between them as he studied her was deafening, the only sound was the soft jazz floating down the hall from his living room.

Only one way to find out. He stepped back and swung the door open for her. Without another word, he led her down the narrow hall, his bare feet moving silently over the rich mahogany floor. She was his first guest, and he wondered what she would think of the place as they emerged in the open concept loft space. On his first tour, he’d been shocked by the modern layout. The building itself was ancient and had beautiful turn of the century character, but inside it was a completely different story. It was chic, modern, and surprisingly cozy.

Or had been, until Olivia had shown up royally pissed off about something.

He stopped at the couch and motioned for her to take a seat. “Make yourself comfortable.”

Olivia sat, looking anything but comfortable.

“So how’d you find me, anyway? I just bought this place.”

“I have my ways.” Her voice was deadly quiet. He’d never seen her quite like this before. When Olivia was angry, she was usually all spitfire and brimstone. God, it turned him on just thinking about the fiery encounters they’d had at work. This, however, looked very different.

Cole sat down at the opposite end of the couch. “Do you want to tell me what’s going on? I thought we were going out later to celebrate the Vixen deal.”

Olivia’s entire body stiffened. “I don’t think I have a lot to celebrate right now,” she said, her words hardened like her body. “Would you mind explaining to me why Jonathan Pritchard offered me a partnership today?”

Cole relaxed a little. He’d thought she’d had some bad news, but this was just a little matter of misunderstanding. He gave a little shrug and smiled at her. “I talked to him about it.”

She stared at him, the wild fire in her eyes like nothing he’d ever seen there before. And wild as she looked in that moment, he suspected she was just getting warmed up. Surely she couldn’t actually be angry about this? She’d reminded him that the partnership should have been hers often enough for him to know she’d wanted it.

A heavy silence hung in the air before she spoke, enunciating the words too calmly for his comfort. “You told Jonathan Pritchard to give me a partnership. After I told you I don’t want people interfering in my career. After I have told you how many f*cking times that I need to earn my own way?”

Cole dropped his gaze, unable to look her in the eye. How could he explain it? She was angry and maybe she had a right to be. Hell, she probably did. He tried to imagine how he’d feel if their positions were reversed.

Olivia shook her head. Her hands were pressed firmly in her lap, her knuckles white. “Why? Why did you it, Cole?”

Cole couldn’t think of anything to say, so he sat and said nothing.

“Was it so you could keep screwing me?” she spat, glaring daggers at him “It was, wasn’t it? Make me partner so you get to have sex with me, let me see, what were your words? Whenever I want, without giving a damn?”

“No!” he argued. She didn’t really believe that, did she? After all the time they’d spent together, didn’t she know him better than that? “I mean, I thought about that, too, but it wasn’t the only reason, Olivia. I swear it wasn’t.”

“Was it because of Alex? You were such an * to him at the fundraiser, I knew you’d try and pull some sort of power play. I don’t get you, Cole, I just don’t.” She slouched down into the couch cushions, her face now pale instead of flushed. “You don’t want me to be with anyone else and you don’t want to be with me, either. What do you want?”

What did he want? Cole didn’t even know himself. How could he tell her something he hadn’t figured out even in his own f*cked-up head? He knew better than to commit to expressing his feelings before he understood the whole situation. That had only led to serious damage in the past.

“I don’t know,” he said. “I don’t know.”

Olivia shook her head. “How selfish can you be?” she asked, tears suddenly breaking free and streaking black streams of mascara down her cheeks with them. “Did you even think about what was best for me? Or was it all about what was best for you?”