CARTER
Idon’t know if what I’m doing is the right thing but I have to do something to shift the state of our relationship. Not that Livi would call what we have a relationship.
The doorman at Livi’s apartment building looks me up and down while buzzing her apartment and it takes everything I have not to fidget. I was smart enough to bring a box with me; it meant when I said I have a delivery for Olivia Wexworth that required a signature, the doorman had no choice but to check if Livi is in.
It also means I don’t have to give my name and she won’t have warning I’m coming.
The surprise on the man’s face when the call is answered and he’s told to let the delivery up almost makes me laugh out loud. I have to avert my gaze and bite the inside of my cheek to stop it from bursting out.
Hanging up, the doorman comes around from behind his counter and eyes me like I’m a nasty pile of dog shit on his pristine foyer floor. “This way,” he says with a curl of his lip.
I nod and follow the older man to a bank of elevators that have no buttons, only discreet panels. He swipes a card over the closest one.
“You don’t need to press any buttons. It’ll take you straight to the top.”
Straight to the top?
Livi lives in the penthouse?
I should have known.
The doors slide open and I mutter, “Thanks,” as I step inside.
Taking in the steel and glass finish of the elevator, I figure Livi’s apartment is probably worth more than my business. I whistle softly as the car rises to distract myself from the obvious differences in our lives. If I don’t, I’ll second guess my decision to pursue something deeper with Livi and leave.
Unlike a normal elevator, there is no little display window indicating the number of floors in the building and I didn’t take any notice when I was in the foyer, my mind too consumed with my need to get to Livi. I don’t have long to ponder today’s decisions—good or bad—because in less than a minute the elevator reaches the top and with a quiet whoosh, the doors slide open onto a small entry.
To the left is a set of double doors—the only set—and as I step forward to knock, the one on the right swings open.
“You have—” Livi’s mouth drops open. “Carter?”
I smile when she lets go of the door and it opens wider. I take her in; I might have seen her mere hours ago but that doesn’t stop me from breathing easier when I lay eyes on her again. She’s dressed in one of her suits, this one is a purple color that I’m sure has another name like plum or grape or mauve in her world.
When my gaze meets hers, I grin. “Morning, Princess.”
“What are you doing here?”
I notice she doesn’t step back and invite me in, but I’m not going to let that stop me. “I come bearing gifts.” I hold out the box in my arms.
“What’s is it?” She still hasn’t stepped back and indicated I can enter, but I’ve come here on a mission to help reduce some of her stress and I plan to carry through with it in spite of her resistance.
Especially now I’ve seen the dark circles under her eyes she hasn’t bothered to hide with makeup and the slouch of her shoulders.
“Dessert for your fancy dinner.” I move forward, forcing her to step back or crush the box between us.
“Oh, but I was going to cook?—”
I laugh, her words completely expected. “I’m sure you were, and you’d probably be fantastic at it, but I know you have a lot going on so I thought I’d give you a hand seeing how I’ve been taking up a lot of your time lately.”
I maneuver through the doorway and around Livi before she can say another word. Taking in the sterile white living room that opens out in front of me, I wonder how the woman I know can stand to live in such a stark place. Even with the light streaming in from the wall of windows across the room, Livi’s home feels cold.
Stopping at the end of the foyer where it opens out into the living room, I stare at the view of Sydney Harbour. It would be breathtaking if the woman who has closed the front door and moved beside me hadn’t already stolen my breath.
“Nice place.”
It’s Livi’s turn to laugh. “I think that’s the blandest compliment the apartment has ever received. I assume that needs refrigerating. The kitchen is this way.”
I smile. “Princess, nothing can compare to you naked so that million-dollar view doesn’t do a thing for me.”
