They’d talked about a lot of things back in high school when she’d been his tutor, but never anything like this.
Levon glanced up at her, blinked, then frowned down at his hands again. “When I was nine. At rocket-science camp.”
At first, Olive thought she must have misheard him. He’d said the last part so quietly, she would have missed it entirely if she hadn’t been paying attention. “I’m sorry? You went to rocket-science camp?”
He winced slightly, putting down the small screwdriver he’d been using and picking up what looked like a fancy pair of tweezers. “Yes. For about a day. Then I accidentally almost blew the place up, so they sent me home.”
“Oh.” Now it was her turn to blink at him. The memories must have been painful for him, because even now he looked like someone had just kicked his puppy. She bit her lip, thinking through how to proceed. Whenever she talked with one of her students who was having a problem, the best way she’d found to help them was to let them talk it out, without judgment or interference. So she kept silent. Eventually, Levon continued.
“I should’ve known the first day I showed up there that it was a mistake, but when we’d gotten the brochure at my house, I thought it was just shooting stuff up into the air all day and how cool would that be, right?” He gave a sad little chuckle. “Then the teacher who was in charge stood there going over his list, turning his nose up at me, asking me if I was in the right place or not. Asshole.”
That was pretty much Olive’s take on it too, but she didn’t say it. She’d never make one of her students feel unwanted like that. Horrible.
“But the minute I was sitting in that classroom listening to the guy drone on and on about chemical reactions and equations and stuff, I knew he was right. Then when I saw all those bottles of chemicals and the labels kept moving around on me when I looked at them…” He cringed and shuddered, and Olive wanted nothing more than to take him in her arms and comfort every part of him, from the misunderstood boy he’d been to the wonderful man he’d turned out to be despite his setbacks. She sat on her hands to keep from reaching for him. He needed to get this out and she needed to listen. “Anyway,” he said, picking up the tiny screwdriver again to affix the final part of their object in place. “After all the endless lectures, the teacher took us out to the football field to launch our experiments. I thought I was doing it right, but some of the stuff in my bottle spilled and the grass started sizzling. Before I knew it, the teacher came running over and took my experiment away and told me to leave. Said I could’ve killed everyone at the camp because of my mistake.” He shrugged and looked away from her, but not before she’d glimpsed the sadness in his eyes. “I left, but I was too embarrassed to go home, so I took a walk. On my way, I passed a hobby store and went inside to look around. I still had the lunch money my mom had given me in my pocket. Despit
e what that teacher said, I’d always loved puzzles and putting things together, so I bought a small motor kit and instead of going home, I went to the park and put it together.” Levon’s smile finally returned, like the sun breaking through the clouds, and Olive was dazzled. “From then on, I was hooked. I’d spend nights and weekends putting together new kits, everything from lamps to model cars. It’s become my guilty pleasure.”
“That’s wonderful,” Olive said, grinning along with him. “Thank you for sharing that with me.”
“Thanks for listening,” he said. “And for not laughing at me.”
“I’d never laugh at you,” she whispered, the moment drawing out between them, sparkling with possibilities. “I…”
She’d almost said she loved him, but that was silly. She didn’t love Levon Asher.
Do I?
He broke eye contact first, frowning down at the model in his hands and giving it a few more tweaks before screwing a small light bulb into place at its center. “There. Done!”
Olive looked down at the completed night light in his hands, then back at Levon. Honestly, she hadn’t helped him at all with the project, but she felt much closer to him just the same. “Can we try plugging it in?”
“Follow me.” Levon led the way into the bedroom, and plugged it in while Olive switched off the lights. The room was instantly bathed in a soft blue glow. Olive gasped and turned, admiring the cosmic shapes thrown across the walls. She was gazing upon an imaginary star system, but she also couldn’t shake the sensation that she was underwater—deep, deep underwater, swimming in a secret grotto that no one before her had ever laid eyes on.
“It’s beautiful.” Her breath hitched, and tears threatened once more. This time she scrubbed them away with the sleeve of her robe. It was just a nightlight. That was all...
“For you and the baby,” Levon’s low voice rumbled near her ear. Olive hadn’t realized he’d moved in behind her until his arms encircled her waist. He held her that way, her back to his front, and she felt helpless to do anything but fall back against him and surrender into his embrace. His hands fell to her stomach and the baby inside her twirled and tumbled, seemingly as thrilled as Olive was at the presence of its father.
I don’t want to fall in love with you. The words sprang into Olive’s mind again, and she clung to them even as Levon turned her around and tipped her mouth to his. She clutched the cotton material of his t-shirt, and felt the heat of him radiating through her robe to her chilled skin beneath.
God, she didn’t want to love Levon. Not when he’d be leaving again after his mission was through—not when he could never possibly love her back. No. She didn’t want to fall in love.
But she was really worried that it might already be too late.
He dragged his lips over hers, once, twice, before deepening the kiss. She slipped her arms around his neck and rose on tiptoes, needing more, needing to stoke his hunger, needing to know it matched her own. Without it, she would go crazy. The tingling thrills his soft moans sent hurtling through her made it impossible to think. It was like she was adrift in this room’s tiny galaxy and made entirely of shooting stars.
His palm slid down her spine to the small of her back, pressing her more firmly against him so she could feel the full extent of his arousal. Now it was Olive’s turn to groan. His sudden acceptance of it all—his protective hands, his clear feeling of wonder and joint ownership—lit a fire in her. When she parted her lips beneath his, he took full advantage.
There was no thinking straight when Levon was kissing her. Everything disappeared except for his touch, his taste, his scent. Then his fingers moved around to unknot the belt of her robe and the plush terry cloth fell away as Levon wrapped her in his arms and carried her over to the bed.
She couldn’t get enough of him, craved skin on skin. She worked her hands beneath the hem of his t-shirt and tugged it over his head. Next came the fly of his jeans. Her blood rushed loudly in her ears as she unbuttoned and unzipped them, then he was gone, shucking the rest of his clothes before joining her again on the bed. At last they were both naked, warm and aroused and wrapped in each other’s embrace. She wanted to kiss him all over, wanted to lick every inch of him, wanted to burrow inside him and never come out again…
“Olive.” Her name sounded like a blessing and curse on his lips as she reached down and took his cock in her hand. So hot, so hard, so hers. Olive shivered with the force of possessiveness coursing through her like wildfire. He gently moved her hand away, pinning it to the mattress beside her head as he stretched out beside her so he didn’t squash the baby. “Not yet, sweetheart,” he said against her temple. “If you touch me like that now, it’ll all be over, and I want to take my time tonight.”
“Okay,” she squeaked out, snuggling against him. Long and slow sounded divine to her too. “We take our time.”
“Good.” He kissed her cheek, her forehead, the corner of her mouth, all the while stroking his hands over her almost reverently. “Now stop thinking.”
For once, she was all too eager to listen to that particular piece of advice. He grasped her hips and turned her around, pulling her up onto her hands and knees and positioning himself behind her in the bed. Her inability to see what was going on behind her drove her wild with anticipation. All she could do in that moment was feel him: his hands skimming up her shoulders, and then down again; his hot breath gusting across the hypersensitive skin of her neck...