Olive: I’ll let you know.
I’m not kidding when I say I need to know she’s safe. I would prefer to make sure she was safe in person, but I’ll settle for a text.
The party is winding down around me, with only a handful of guests remain. I told my sisters and their significant others that I would drive them home so they could drink and enjoy themselves without stressing about getting home. If it wasn’t for that, I probably would’ve left a while ago. Not because I’m not enjoying celebrating my best friend’s happiness, but because I’m tired, and it would be nice to worry about Olive in the privacy of my own home.
Heaving myself out of the chair, I make my rounds, saying goodbye to a few people and herding my sisters andtheir partners to my vehicle. It takes too long, but I eventually get them loaded in, and we’re on our way.
Lori is in the front seat with me. “What day do you fly back out?”
“Monday…why?”
“We’re going to have Pamela, Joseph, and the kids over tomorrow. You should come, too.”
I glance over at my sister. “Yeah, okay. I’ll do that.”
Pamela’s slightly slurred voice booms through the car. “Bring your girl!”
A heavy sigh leaves me. “We aren’t quite at the point where we’re inviting each other to family get-togethers.”
Especially considering she hung up on me and barely answered my texts within the same hour. But as irrational and crazy as it sounds, I would love nothing more than to have her meet everyone. That need is confusing to me, considering I’m usually fiercely protective of my family, both blood and chosen. Even though I never doubted for a minute that it would eventually happen for me, I was always hesitant to bring women I was seeing around. I wanted to make sure it was a sure thing before doing that. And it never was, so my family has met very few women. But Olive…I want her to meet my family.
Lori squeezes my arm and smiles at me. Forever the mediator between me and our oldest sister, she changes the topic and distracts Pamela from badgering me further.
Forty minutes later, I’m climbing back into my vehicle after dropping off Lori and Brian last. It’s blissfully silent after being surrounded by people for hours, and I feel like I can finally take a full breath. I’m backing out of my sister’s driveway when my phone starts ringing through the speakers.
My stomach dips when I see the name and connect the call. “Olive?”
“Not quite, lover boy.”
“Cade. Why are you calling from Olive’s phone?”
“Olive is in the bathroom, so I don’t have a lot of time, but we’re about to head home. Are you familiar with…” He names a popular restaurant.
“I am.”
“Great, can you be here in fifteen? I was going to put Olive in a rideshare to go home, but I think you’re the better option.”
There’s no fucking way I want Olive riding home with some stranger after drinking.
“I’ll be there in ten.”
I lied. It took me eleven to be slowing to a stop outside the restaurant. I spot Cade and Olive standing down the sidewalk a little ways from the door. Rolling forward, I make eye contact with Cade through the windshield. He nods and gives me a small smile before I stop in front of them. My windows are tinted so they can’t see in, but I watch Cade gently usher Olive toward the car. She starts to walk to the backseat, but Cade indicates she should get in the front. Confusion plays across her beautiful face where I’m watching her in the side-view mirror until she relents and waits for him to pull open the door. Cade throws me a wink as he pulls her forward.
Olive lifts her gaze, and our eyes meet when she has one foot on the running board. Her body freezes, eyes narrowing, before she whips her head in her friend’s direction. “Goddamn it, Cade.”
All she gets in response is a shrug and a smirk.
“Get in, Olive. I’m taking you home,” I command.
It’s my turn to get her glare. “Don’t tell me what to do, Nate.”
I want to remind her she didn’t seem to mind it the other night, but I resist the urge since that might be counterproductive.
“Olive, let him take you home,” Cade coaxes.
She hesitates before finally agreeing. “Fine,” she says, her teeth clenched. Once she’s inside, Cade tells her one final goodbye and slams the door.
Her annoyed exhale is deafening in the silent car. I want to kiss the annoyance right out of her, but instead, I say, “Put your seatbelt on.”
