Page 45 of Beautiful Dangerous

I look at him, and I frown. “For what? Breaking the plates, or fucking me?”

“The plates.”

I smile at him, and he returns it, and for a blissful, peaceful moment I pretend this isn’t complicated. I pretend we’re just two people who’ve finally found each other; who’ve been thrown together by tragedy and a twisted kind of fate because this man here in front of me, he's beautiful and kind and I think I’ve been fighting feelings for him for a long, long time.

“There’s a dustpan and brush underneath the sink. I’ll grab that, you get the trash bags, they’re in the drawer beside the fridge.”

We start to clean up, both of us avoiding making the next move because I’m not sure either of us knows what that actually is. And when we’re done we stand there, observing the newly-cleaned kitchen, neither of us knowing what to do next.

“We should probably get some sleep,” I whisper, breaking the silence. “Alone.” Even though I want him in my bed. I want to sleep in his arms and wake up with him there beside me. And these are feelings that I haven’t experienced since Javier, they’re weird and alien and taking some getting used to, which is why we need to take a step back and think about what we’re doing. I think we need to do that, even if it’s not something I want.

Lucca reaches for my hand, and I let his fingers interlace with mine, a warm shiver rushing up my spine as he squeezes my hand tight. “This wasn’t a mistake, Olivia.”

“I know.”

And then he lets go of me, and walks away, out of the kitchen, he doesn’t look back. I stay where I am, and let the enormity of what’s just happened sink in…

Lucca

This wasn’t a mistake…

And I don’t regret what we did. I don’t. When I told her that, just now, I meant it. I meant it.

I can still feel her, her smooth skin touching mine, her warm breath on my neck, her soft, wet pussy gripping me so tight she almost clenched the cum out of me. The times I’ve dreamt about Olivia Delgado, they’ve been frequent. I used to watch her and Javier together and wonder what she felt like, what she tasted of. But I also knew that if he ever found out how I felt about his wife…

Sitting down on the edge of the bed I drop my head and drag my fingers back through my hair, sighing heavily. If Javier knew how I felt about Olivia, if he knew what we’d just done…Shit!

I should back off from this now, we can’t go there again. For all our sakes, I should never have let that happen, I should’ve been stronger, but I let a weakness that’s been lying dormant for Christ knows how long take over. I let my emotions get in the way, feelings I’ve been trying to suppress for so long – too long. She’s been a constant distraction I refused to ignore, this wild and beautiful woman, and tonight I let my guard down; let that moment of weakness out, and I can’t afford to have those moments, I can’t, and I knew that, and yet, I still went through with it. I still let it happen. Because I love her. I’m in love with Olivia Delgado, and that’s a very dangerous thing to be.

My phone rings out from my back pocket, and I pull it out; look at the screen. And I feel bile rise in my throat, but I swallow it down as I answer the call.

“Do we have a replacement For Jimmy?”

I sigh quietly as I get up and go over to the window, looking down on the guards patrolling the grounds. “It’s all in hand.”

“Good. How is Olivia?”

“She’s fine.” There’s a short pause down the line, and I rest my forehead against the cool glass, and close my eyes. “She’s doing good.”

“Honestly?”

It’s my turn to leave a moment’s silence, my eyes still squeezed tight shut, my heart picking up a heavy rhythm as that moment’s silence continues. Until he breaks it.

“I wish I could speak to her.”

Hearing his voice is a terrifying reminder of the lies and the games and the fact that I’ve just crossed a line I had no business crossing. When I told Olivia it wasn’t a mistake, sleeping together, I lied. It was wrong, so fucking wrong. It was the biggest, most dangerous mistake I have ever made, reckless beyond belief, I had no right touching her. No right to feel what I feel for her, she isn’t mine. She never was. She never will be. Not while Javier Delgado is still alive…

Nine

Olivia

I’ve tried to keep busy, tried to find distractions, but my head is full of him. I close my eyes and he’s there, it’s strange how suddenly he’s all I see. And I’m not sure that it’s healthy, for me to be this consumed by a man at a time when my head should be elsewhere – focused on ending the lives of those who took my husband’s.

Walking through The Garden’s busy dining room, I glance out of the window on my way to the terrace at the back of the restaurant, the larger of the two outdoor areas. And as I look outside I catch sight of the familiar black Jaguar pulling up across the street, and I feel my heart start to race as Lucca steps out of the driver’s side. Maybe he’s just stopped by for a cup of coffee, as he so often does, but I can’t help hoping that he’s come to see me. If he has, though, I’m not going to make it look like I’ve been waiting for him, even if, subconsciously, that’s exactly what I’ve been doing.

Heading out onto the back terrace I find Isla, The Garden’s manager, let her know about a flurry of deliveries that are coming tomorrow, and then I make my way back inside, to my office. And he’s already in there, leaning back against the wall, his hands in his pockets, his handsome face all smiles as I close the door behind me.

“Hey.”

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