“Olivia, it’s me. Breathe.” She doesn’t say anything. “Come on, sweetness. Breathe with me. Five seconds in and out.” I inhale deeply and exhale. It takes a couple of times before she begins to follow along with me. After a few times, I check in with her. “Are you okay?”
“Yes. I think so,” she replies.
“I’m sorry, Olivia. I wasn’t thinking. We haven’t seen each other in a few weeks, so I wanted to surprise you with lunch.,” I explain, hoping it calms her more.
“Did you bring me pretzel balls?” she asks.
I chuckle. “I did, and a turkey club sandwich.”
She hums. “I guess I’ll forgive you then.” There’s a smile in her voice. She might not be one hundred percent better, but she’s on her way there. “I’ll be down in just a few minutes.”
After saying bye, I hang up and turn to face James. He arches an eyebrow at me as I rub the back of my neck. “Olivia doesn’t like surprises.” He nods slowly as I try to figure out a way to tell him to keep an eye on her without telling him why. I decide to just tell him. He understands not all secrets can be shared. “Can you try your best to keep her safe while she’s in this building?”
He doesn’t hesitate. “I will. I’ve always had a soft spot for Liv. The way she runs to her car and how it seems like she’s always looking over her shoulder. I know she’s scared of something or someone. I don’t need to know what that is in order to watch out for her.”
“Thank you, James.” I extend my hand to him and we shake. “If you ever need more details, I’ll make sure you're informed.”
“And any details you give me will stay between us,” he promises. It helps that we’re part of the Outsiders and we’re friends. He looks over my shoulder and I know the elevator is probably opening. “I’ll see you this weekend for the ride?”
“Yes, I’m going to ask Olivia to come with me.”
He smiles. “Good.” He steps behind the security desk.
I turn to greet Olivia. Her pale face and trembling hands make me want to kick my own ass. I quickly walk to her, but force myself to slow down so I don’t spook her. She offers me a small smile, but it doesn’t reach her eyes. We walk over to the corner with the high table, but she doesn’t attempt to get in the chair.
“My sweet Olivia.”
Her eyes widen, and she shakes her head. “Please don’t call me that.” She swallows and looks down at the floor.Are we back to that?“I mean, just call me Olivia,” she clarifies.
I squint at her. “Okay.” I want to ask her why she doesn’t want me calling hermy sweet Olivia,but let it go for now. Allmy questions will be answered eventually. I need to tread lightly with her until she trusts me completely. Lifting the bag, I show her I was telling the truth about bringing her food.
“Thank you.” She takes the food and opens the bag, inhaling. “I forgot to bring my lunch today and Caroline is out the rest of the afternoon for a doctor’s appointment. So, I really appreciate it.”
I step closer to her, testing the waters. She doesn’t step back, which makes me want to pump my fist in victory. “Do you not like to go to lunch by yourself?”
“No. Sometimes I’ll order something and have it delivered, but I don’t like to do that either.” I’m surprised she admits that.
“Why?” I ask softly, hoping she’ll confide in me.
She stares at me. “I think you know why.” She sighs and looks away. I slowly lift my hand and grip her chin gently between my thumb and forefinger, guiding her eyes back to mine.
“Olivia, there’s nothing to be ashamed of. You can trust me.” My voice drops an octave. Not on purpose, but that part of my personality is hard to control with her. I’m going to kill Donovan,slowly. Whatever he did to her to make her fear him so much is cause for him to suffer and I know quite a few men that will enjoy doing it.
“I’m terrified Donovan is going to find me. I wish I wasn’t, but I can’t help it.” Her words come out in a rushed whisper. Wrapping my arms around her, I pull her into a hug. She stiffens for a moment before she relaxes in my arms and wraps her arms around me, the bag of food hitting me as she does. She giggles, but doesn’t pull away. “Sorry.”
“That’s okay, sweetness.” She sighs at the endearment and holds me tighter. “I promise I won’t let Donovan hurt you ever again.”
She pulls back slightly and looks up at me. “How do you know Donovan hurt me?”
I rub the palm of my hand up and down her spine to soothe her. “It was an educated guess. Why else would you be so scared of him?”
She places her forehead on my chest and takes a deep breath. I want to run my hand through her hair to see if it feels as soft as it looks. Instead, I continue to rub my hand up and down her spine, letting the ends of her hair tickle the back of my hand. When she relaxes more, I pull back and offer her an encouraging smile.
“I am so sorry I scared you earlier. Me trying to surprise you backfired, but I won’t do that again.”
“I like surprises as long as you don’t scare me in the process.” Her lips tip up into a small smile.
“Deal. Now, I want you to sit here with me and eat.” My voice has dropped an octave, but I did it on purpose this time.
