Page 30 of Twisted Secrets
“That boy has seen some things.” Benji hand washed a few glasses, his gaze on the room. “A year ago, I’d tell you to steer clear of Cillian O’Malley—not that you’d need the advice. That boy was trouble personified, and he had no little liking for the ladies. That’s all changed now, but you should still steer clear of him because of what family he was born into. He might mean well, but meaning well doesn’t count for shit.”
That’s what she was afraid of.
“Benji, you’re an awful friend. The first rule of being a wingman is that you don’t warn the beautiful woman away from me.”
Olivia turned, half-sure she’d misheard, but there he was. Cillian sat on the other side of the bar, every hair in place and almost masking the still-healing gash on the side of his head, a casual grin on his face, looking like he hadn’t been beaten all to hell just a week before.
Like he hadn’t completely blown her off since.
She pasted a neutral expression on her face, but from his expression, it wasn’t all that neutral. “Can I getyou something?”
“Your number.”
Good lord. “Thanks, but I like to reserve my time for people who actually make time forme.”
“I’m sorry, sweetheart. It took me longer to bounce back than I expected.” He even looked sorry, like he regretted the absence as much as she had.
Her anger wavered, but she held on to it with both hands.Being with him would always be like this—always me on a need-to-know basis and worrying my idiot self over him.“It’s fine.”
“I may not be a genius, but even I know when a woman saysthatit means anything but.” He looked at Benji. “How pissed is she right now?”
“Sheis standing right here.”
Benji raised his hands. “I’m staying out of it. Olivia, holler if you need something.” Then the coward fled.
She crossed her arms over her chest. “You’re batting a thousand tonight, just like normal.” Except for that single night last week when he’d been downright human. More than that, he’d been a person she actually understood on some level and wanted to know more about. Now he had his pretty boy facade firmly back in place, and his charm grated on her like sandpaper beneath her skin. It was a slap in the face after how worried she’d been about him. “Apple juice?”
“Please.” He watched her grab a glass and pour the drink. “If it helps, I’m sorry I was gone so long. Things on the home front got away from me, and I had to take care of them before I could get back in here.”
He was probably telling the truth, but that didn’t really change anything. The fact of the matter was that she’d been right before—no matter how connectedshe’d felt to him during that night, he wasn’t all that different from Sergei—or every other man in her life up to this point. He would always put his family obligations before her.
She couldn’t go through that again. Sherefusedto.
And to drag Hadley along with her? Unthinkable.
She passed the apple juice over. “Chalk my accepting your offer up to temporary insanity. I’m not going out with you.”
“Olivia—”
“That’ll be three-fifty.”
He sighed. “I thought we’d gotten past this.”
Hell, she’d thought so, too. But that night was a mistake, and a mistake she didn’t plan on repeating. No matter how delicious he looked tonight in that three-piece suit. Who the hell wore a three-piece suit to a pub?
You’re being petty and you damn well know it.
So what? I’m entitled to being petty.
She really needed to stop having conversations with herself. At this point, she was a few short steps from buying ten cats and holing up in her crappy apartment with Hadley while they waited for the end of the world.
“I’d like to talk.”
She shook herself out of her insanity spiral. “There’s really nothing to talk about.” She hesitated. “I am glad you’re doing better, though.”
“There you go again, making me think you might actually like me.” His smile was wan. “A drink, sweetheart. That’s all I’m asking for.”
It wasn’t, though. Because it wouldn’t stop with a drink. She’d get drawn in by the chemistry that wasstillsparking between them and, next thing she knew, she’d be crawling into his lap and getting into all sorts of trouble.Olivia knew herself well enough to know that. There was something about Cillian that was like catnip. Common sense didn’t have a hold there.
