Tessa made her regular protests, asking him to stay, complaining that he always left too soon. But he left anyway. When she needed something, she turned to Eric, the dependable one. And now she turned to Luke. Jamie was just the brother who caused trouble, and he was sick and tired of being the whipping boy.
He couldn’t carry the heavy regret of his teenage years around anymore.
He was ready to grow up. To settle down and make something of himself. Settle down, he thought. Hell, maybe Olivia could help him with more than just his plans for the brewery….
CHAPTER NINE
SHE’D ONLY TALKED TO HIM ONCE since Sunday, and it had been a frightening conversation. Frightening because of the warm wave that had crashed over her at the sound of his voice. Frightening because it had been so easy to lie in bed and laugh with him, the phone pressed so tight to her ear that her head had hurt afterward.
Now as she walked down the hallway toward the classroom, her nerves jumped with adrenaline. This would be her first time seeing him since…since then. He wouldn’t be a fantastic memory anymore, he’d be right there watching her as she moved, his eyes everywhere his hands had been on Sunday.
“Olivia,” his voice said, and she nearly jumped out of her skin as she spun toward that low sound.
And there he was. His dark bronze hair a little messy as if he had run his hand through it every few minutes. His green eyes smiling at her, sharing their secret. And those narrow hips that she’d wrapped her legs around…
If she thought she’d been beset by adrenaline before, Olivia had been mistaken. It surged so hard through her now that it was almost fear. “Hey,” she managed to squeak.
“I’m sorry.” He glanced around. “I meant, Hello, Ms. Bishop. Can I help you with that?”
She glanced stupidly down to her laptop case and books. Get it together, she ordered herself. Please. Olivia finally managed a smile. “No, I think I can handle it.”
“Yeah?” He ducked his head, but she could still see the smile on his face. God, she wanted to touch him.
“Did you bring everything?” Olivia asked. “For after class?”
“I did. Should we—?” He gestured toward the door, but Olivia’s gaze caught the movement behind him and focused there. Another student walked past, nodding a greeting at Olivia. But that wasn’t the sight that made her mouth fall open. “Oh, crap,” she breathed.
“Are you avoiding me?” Gwen called from forty feet away.
“No!” Olivia said, though not to Gwen. She was calling no to Jamie, who was swinging around to look behind him. “Don’t!”
But it was too late. Gwen’s eyes turned into perfect circles. Her mouth opened wide enough for a dental exam. She stumbled to a halt.
“Hey, Gwen,” Jamie said. “How are you doing?”
“Ohmigod,” Gwen gasped. Her gaze jerked to Jamie’s laptop, then his face, then back to Olivia. “Ohmigod.”
Jamie straightened, the awkwardness of the situation finally overcoming his natural friendliness. “Um…I’m going to go find my seat. I’m just taking a little refresher course….”
Gwen had finally managed to close her teeth, and now she just stood there grinning like the Cheshire cat, eyes still wide and crazed.
“Goodbye, Gwen. Ms. Bishop.”
The door closed silently behind him, leaving Olivia alone with Gwen.
“Ohmigod.”
“Gwen—”
“Please tell me he calls you Ms. Bishop while he licks you like a damn lollipop.”
“Gwen!” Olivia rushed over to grab her arm and tug her to the side of the hall. “Hush!”
“Holy shit, Olivia. He’s in your class? I can’t take this. I swear to God, it’s too perfect.”
Olivia was trying to maintain her stern expression. A tiny part of her did feel stern, after all. Unfortunately, the other parts felt like putting on a dance number in the hallway, complete with high kicks and glitter confetti. “You can’t tell anybody,” she said, her voice halfway between an order and a squeal.
Gwen actually hopped up and down, her hands clasped together. “I should’ve known something was up when you didn’t return my call yesterday. You did it, didn’t you? You did Jamie Donovan. Oh, my God, I can see it all over you.”