Come Alive
Cityscape Affair, Book Two
Determined to move on with her life, Olivia Germaine has vowed to forget the enigmatic and irresistible David Dylan. Struggling to keep her head above water, she focuses on her new promotion and refuses to drown in the memory of their night together.
But when Olivia realizes what life without David means, she must decide if she’s willing to risk everything for him…and if she’s ready to reopen the wounds of her past.
Olivia knows she should forget her feelings for David and move forward with her marriage. If only David would stay away like he promised…
1
Iblinked my eyes open and quickly squeezed them shut again. Knowing I’d been caught, I fluttered my lids as though I hadn’t been about to feign sleep. My husband stood over me, watching, but I focused on the nightstand to avoid his stare.
“It’s nine,” Bill said gently. “Better get a move on.”
I rolled over and faced the wall with a small sigh, unable to handle his soft expression. “I’m not going.”
“Liv,” he started.
“I have to work today.”
“Work?” he asked.
“Things are crazy at the office.”
“It’s the weekend, and I told you about this birthday party last week. Can’t it wait till Monday?”
I shook my head. “I’m under deadline.”
“I’m sure you could spare a Saturday afternoon for family,” he said wryly.
“Call Serena if you don’t believe me.”
“Of course I believe you,” he said, taken aback. “But you’re working too much. You need to take some time off, babe. It’s been over three months of this.”
I gulped. Had it only been three months?
Bill continued tentatively, his tone hedging. “I know it’s been hard, but this isn’t what Davena would’ve wanted. She’d want you to move on.”
I almost laughed out loud, but I didn’t. I never did. I didn’t deserve to move on. For one, I’d used my grief over the death of Davena, a family friend who’d always been there for me, as an excuse to seize the night and fuck another man. But Davena was only a fraction of my problem. Mostly, I couldn’t stop thinking about that other man.
The mattress dipped when Bill sat. Hesitant fingertips touched my shoulder, and my skin pebbled. I couldn’t remember when he’d last touched me. When he’d stopped even trying. His caress was strange—unexpected but not unwanted. It triggered a wave of guilt that left my heart pounding. Because of what I knew. Because of what I’d done. Because, after three months, I still burned with desire. But it wasn’t for him.
I braced myself as David’s face flashed across my mind. I wished I wouldn’t think of him every morning and dream of him at night. I wished his memory would disappear, the way he had from my life.Three months. Three months since I’d stormed from his apartment, sincethat night. My insides flurried as I remembered, the details still fresh in my mind despite the time that had passed. Despite the fact that every time they surfaced, I dashed them away immediately.
“Well,Ihave to go to the party.” Bill’s voice cut into my thoughts. “You know how my sister can hold a grudge.”
“Of course you do, sweetie.” The endearment was forced, unnatural, but Bill wouldn’t notice. “I wrapped Jimmy’s video game last night—it’s on the kitchen counter.”
“Thanks. I’ll bring you back a piece of birthday cake.” When I didn’t respond, he stood and left the room. Soon after, I heard the front door shut and exhaled a long breath.
Hours were slow, stretched and elongated like a rubber band that never snapped. On my better days, I woke up numb.
Today is not one of those days, I thought as I dragged myself from the bed.
Dressed in an outfit much too crisp and binding for the weekend, I meticulously applied my makeup. Every strand of my golden brown hair was combed into obedience. Inside, I had cracks, but I wouldn’t let them break the surface.
I was on the train within the hour. I found comfort in the way everything blurred together through the windows. A child’s squeal had me blinking from my trance. Across from me, a young man wrangled two toddlers as his wife cradled a baby on her lap. It was chaotic and messy, but she watched her husband with obvious love. The woman grinned as he dodged apple juice spray. I looked away, fiddling with the clasp of my purse.
