Between Desire and Denial: Chapter 26

“It’s a bathing suit—like every other person has on here. And if I happen to fall in the water by some ill-fated turn of events, I don’t want my stuff all ruined.”

I’d stared at Olive all night like she was mine. She was sleeping in my bed. She was sharing my food. My home. Our home now. I’d started to see little things of hers everywhere. Her flowers in a bowl on the bathroom counter, her clothing in the drawers, and her notes about her thesis everywhere.

She had invaded my life, and I couldn’t look away, not even for a second. She had started to become mine. Not just my fake girlfriend. My real one.

It’s why I unbuttoned my suit jacket and practically growled as I stared at her. I wanted to jump at whoever looked at her longer than they were supposed to. I held it out. “Put this on.”

“What for?” She looked incredulous. Or confused. I wasn’t sure which. “I don’t even know why you’re wearing it. It’s like seventy degrees and balmy.”

My blood began to boil thinking about her not listening to me, my muscles tensed. “Because every man out here has their eyes on you.”

She glanced around in disbelief. But I know she caught how Jameson waved at her. Motherfucker. I didn’t care how nice he was to his kid and everyone in town. The man barely worked. What type of hours did he have when he was on his porch every damn day, anyway?

“Dimitri, no one is looking. Even if that were the case, who cares?”

Who cares? Did she think it was okay for men to ogle her? “Are you kidding me right now?” I harrumphed. “I do. Me. Your boyfriend. You’re mine, and I’m not here to show off every part of you to anyone else.”

“But, Dimitri, this between us is—”

“Say fake, Honeybee. I dare you.” Something percolated in the air between us, and she knew it. I pulled her close and slid my hand up her body to her collarbone and then held her neck. The view of us to anyone around must have been extremely intimate when she shivered at my touch. She couldn’t deny this. Couldn’t deny us. Couldn’t say everything was fake between us when I squeezed just a little and she gasped.

Her eyes darkened and narrowed, and I wondered if she was going to meet my challenge. “Well, it is fake.” She pushed me with a smirk on her face, and I felt how the blood rushed through my veins. Didn’t she know I lived for this sort of thing?

I brushed a thumb over her lips slowly. I was proud she’d defied me. Then I took the jacket I was still holding behind her and stuffed her right into it.

Challenge met. I was going to make it completely clear to everyone that I didn’t want them staring at her.

Her mouth dropped open. “Seriously? This is absolutely ridiculous, Dimitri. You shouldn’t even care.” She stomped a foot.

“And yet here I am … caring way too fucking much,” I whispered to her. “I actually just decided. I’m done tiptoeing around making you feel comfortable with this. So, you better learn what that means.”

She crossed her arms. “Oh really? You just deciding we’re going to do this for real? This between us is for one purpose only.” She narrowed her eyes and looked around before pulling me away from the crowd and into a dark corner of the backyard near some shrubs where no one was paying attention. “It’s serving me by allowing me to do a new thesis because you have some ridiculous strings you can pull around this country, I guess. And this serves you by allowing you to win over this community. That. Is. It.”

“I don’t think that was really ever what this was for,” I said back, looking her up and down. “I had ulterior motives from the beginning after I heard you scream my name in that hotel room.”

“Well, you shouldn’t,” she clarified, like she had a choice in the matter. She didn’t. She was going to have to start understanding that. I was going to protect her now and call her mine every chance I got. “You should just be worried about the board, okay? Having me in a damn corner all night is not going to help with that.”

“You half naked isn’t going to help it either,” I threw back just to rile her.

She shook her head and whispered, “Actually, it totally would if you’d go along with it. It would even be to our benefit. Maybe if I flirt a bit, I’ll get people to lighten up at the next board meeting, Dimitri.” She wide-eyed me as if trying to refocus me on our original goals. “If I’m being honest, I know we’re both jealous people. Just don’t think about it.” She blew out a breath as her cheeks brightened.

“You don’t want me walking around talking with anyone either, and you know it. I can see how even the thought irritates you.”

“It doesn’t.” She did a terrible job of being convincing. “Just stay focused on the true objective, which I guess is to mingle and dance happily around on that flimsy see-through platform. Let’s show everyone a good time.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Show who a good time, exactly, Olive? Because you’re not flirting with anyone here but me.”

“What do you mean?” Her hands fisted together now as she whisper-yelled at me. “Couples do it all the time. I’ll get in good with the men tonight. You get in good with the ladies. Next board meeting, you might have a leg up.”

“Not fucking happening.”

“And why is that?”

“Because I might be invested in this community, but I’m more invested in you now,” I murmured almost to myself as I pulled the lapels closed around her. Looking directly into those mesmerizing eyes, I intoned, “From now on, you’re mine for real. I’m going to treat you like it, too, whether you like it or not.”

My tone was direct, commanding, and left no room for argument. Every person who knew me well knew I saved it for when I meant business, because normally I was pretty laid-back.

Olive didn’t seem to get the memo. She crossed her arms and looked up at me like I was a damn idiot. “I didn’t agree to that.”

“You’re going to now, though.” My hand slid under my jacket and smoothed over her skin slowly before I pulled her close to my side and started walking her back to the dance platform. I felt her body stiffen, her hesitation palpable as we approached the pool.

Someone had ruined her confidence long ago, and I was going to get it back for her now. I rubbed my thumb up and down to the beat as I glanced at her and murmured, “I got you. Take a chance and enjoy the dance with me.”

I waited for her to take the first step, then I synced up with her right away. Slowly and with purpose, we walked out onto the clear platform, and my grip on her waist didn’t waver at all. She needed to understand that I would either catch her or we’d fall all the way through together, but I’d be there to save her nonetheless. More than anyone else had.

Once we were in the middle of the platform swaying to the song, a smile spread across her face so big that I knew nothing was going to stop me from having her. “I think I like conquering fears with you, Dimitri.”

I hummed. “Be prepared to conquer all of them with me,” I said softly before kissing her in the middle of that grill out, for every single person—including Jameson—to see.

Then I dipped her fast and pulled her up to kiss her again. She giggled the whole time. “You know, you’re not thinking straight tonight.’ She still tried to be the voice of reason.

My hand dipped even lower on her back and then I pulled her against me. She gasped as she felt how rock solid I was against her belly. One of my hands threaded through beautiful curls so I could tilt her face up to mine as I bent close to her ear to say softly, “I’m thinking as straight as my cock, Honeybee. I’ve got every single one of your curves pressed against me, and I’m convinced all the men here have been cataloging the slope of your neck and the flare of your hips and the way you can rock that ass back and forth fluidly in those damn heels.”

“Dimitri,” she moaned my name, “this is to better your investment.”

“Right. I’m fully invested in you. So, find another way or don’t. I don’t really care at this point. But let me be clear, you flirt with any man here, I’m going to choke him out for flirting back.”

She pulled away to look at me, to try to find the lie.

There wasn’t a single one.

She sighed and murmured, “You know what? Right now I don’t care. Because we’re dancing over a freaking pool.” And something about the way she finally relaxed in my arms led me to believe we’d turned a corner. She and I were going to be a force together.

So, I fell into step with her. Maybe we should have talked it through more right then, but we weren’t immune to the pull we had on one another. We deserved that moment, and we took it.

We didn’t simply dance. We waltzed and then fox-trotted and then let loose when the beat changed. We both genuinely laughed when I finally wiped sweat from my brow and told her I wasn’t going to keep up with her dancing all night.

I took her around to mingle, always staying at her side, and she talked to every single person she could about how anything HEAT-related was a great addition to Paradise Grove.

I wasn’t trying as hard. Or at all. “Relax,” I said as we walked away from Esme and her dad. “You’ve made an impression on at least fifty families tonight.”

She looked around. “You think?”

“I know. And you approach at the right angle every time.”

“My article will be perfect too. You’ll see.”

“I have no doubt. You’re quite good at just about anything you put your mind to.” She’d been a jack-of-all-trades for Kee, for her mother it seemed, for her family, and for me now.

Laughing, she shrugged. “I told you, my family raised me to know a little bit about everything.” She took two flutes of champagne again and smiled at me when I lifted a brow. “Oh, don’t comment on my alcohol consumption. I’m at what feels like a high school reunion, okay? Plus, I need to go to the bathroom. Which means I guess I have to go into Melly’s house, huh?”

“Want me to go with you?” I’d escort her just about anywhere while she wore that suit. I’d walk into the bathroom with her, help her take it off, and maybe have a few minutes of fun too.

“No. Stay and mingle.” She smacked my arm. “Stop avoiding what we came here to do. You haven’t been trying all night. Just go be nice to someone. Tell them what they want to hear.”

I didn’t care to do that at all anymore. “We’ll see.”

“Dimitri, it’s the only way for us to make this work.” She popped out a hip, and I stared at her with those curls blowing in the wind and that smile on her face like she might be relaxed enough with me to let loose now. Except she was still working angles on this deal we had while I was purely enjoying her instead.

“Make what work, exactly?” My mind was only thinking about making things work with her.

“To get your condo rentals and office spaces approved,” she whispered and wide-eyed me. Then she downed her champagne and set the flute on a standing table. “When this is over later, you’ll thank me. Now, let’s hope I don’t get lost in Melly’s ridiculous house.”

She spun and set off to make her way inside. The woman was on too much of a mission tonight. I didn’t like it. Not when I realized my mission had shifted. I was less and less concerned about this community and more and more concerned about her.

And I didn’t like it. I was feeling like my ego was being knocked down about ten fucking notches as the thoughts raced through my head. I knew she’d messaged Mr. Perfect again on her app tonight too.

I shouldn’t have known that, but my obsession with her was borderline unhinged.

No, completely unhinged.

I wouldn’t apologize for it either. She might have been reminding me that this was only a transaction between us, but I was about to remind her that we were so much more than that.