I step around him, my shoulder brushing his as I pass.He doesn’t move, doesn’t try to stop me.Just stands there in the falling snow, frozen.Good.
My phone buzzes in my pocket as I walk.I pull it out, expecting a text from Olivia.It’s not exactly her.
Sophie: ‘we ran into Amber and her friends at lunch.there was an argument.olivia got tipsy.we’re ten minutes from the house’
My jaw tightens.I type back immediately.
Me:‘I’m on my way home.’
I pocket my phone and turn, heading back toward the Hartley house.My strides are long, purposeful.The books under my arm feel suddenly heavy, but I don’t slow down.
What the hell happened?
I jog home briskly despite my attire and reach the driveway just as Carol’s car pulls up, tires crunching on the fresh snow.Carol gets out first, her expression frazzled in a way I haven’t seen before.Her usually neat hair is slightly disheveled, and she’s wringing her hands.
“Alexander, thank goodness.”She moves around to the passenger side.“Can you look after Olivia?She’s had a few drinks.Nothing terrible, but she’s a bit buzzed.I have a customer emergency at the shop, and I need to take Sophie with me?—”
“I’ve got her,” I say, already moving toward the car.Carol opens the passenger door, and Olivia steps out.Mostly steady on her feet, but there’s a brightness to her eyes and a flush to her cheeks that tells me Sophie wasn’t exaggerating.
She looks up at me and winks.“Hey, handsome.”
Despite everything, despite my anger at whatever happened with Amber, despite the worry coiling in my gut, I can’t help but smile.“Oh, you’re very drunk.”
She holds up her thumb and forefinger, pinching them close together.“Just a teensy weensy bit.”
From the backseat, Sophie rolls her eyes.“She had two cocktails and broke Amber’s phone.It was epic.”
Carol gives me an apologetic look.“I’m so sorry?—”
“Don’t be.”I slide my arm around Olivia’s waist, steadying her.“Take care of your emergency.I’ll take care of her.”
Relief floods Carol’s features.“Thank you.We’ll be back in a few hours.”
Sophie slides into the front seat, and Carol hurries back around to the driver’s side.They pull away, leaving me standing in the driveway with Olivia leaning comfortably against my side.
“Come on, my little drunk,” I murmur, guiding her toward the house.“Let’s get you inside.”
She hums, her hand slipping into my coat pocket.“You’re warm.”
“You’re cold.”
“Not anymore.”
I bite back a smile as I maneuver us through the front door and up the stairs.She’s perfectly capable of walking, but she stays pressed against me like she doesn’t want any distance between us.
In her bedroom, I ease her down onto the bed.She sits, looking up at me with those bright hazel eyes, her inhibitions clearly lowered but her gaze sharp and focused.
I kneel in front of her, reaching for the zipper of her coat.“Let’s get you comfortable.”She watches me work the zipper down, her gaze fixed on my face with an intensity that makes my mouth dry.Once the coat is off, I toss it over the chair in the corner and reach for her boots.
“I broke Amber’s phone,” she announces, a note of satisfaction in her voice.
My hands still on her boot’s laces.“Really?Why?”
Her expression shifts, anger flashing across her features.Her lower lip trembles slightly, and I recognize it’s not from alcohol but from genuine hurt.I look up at her, gentling my voice.“Why did you break her phone, Olivia?”
“When I came home last year...”Her voice is steady but tight.“Before I found out about the cheating, Chase and I spent the night at his place.”My entire body goes rigid.The thought of her with him, of them together like that, sends a hot spike of jealousy through me.
She continues, her words clear and precise despite the alcohol loosening her usual control.“Amber played an audio message.From Chase.The next morning after I left.”Her eyes burn, tears threatening to spill.“He was mocking me.My skills in bed.Mimicking me.”The rage that floods through me is white-hot and immediate.I force myself to breathe.To keep my hands steady on her boots.
