“Oh. Ok.” I watched him continue to devour everything on his plate.

“I don’t know how long it will take to get here, though. They don’t exactly have express service at the hardware store.”

I laughed. “No. Definitely not.”

He stood from the table. “Thanks for dinner.” He took the plates to the counter and started his nightly ritual of loading the dishwasher.

“You’re welcome.” I sat while he rinsed the plates and scrubbed the pans.

“I think it was my favorite dish so far.” He smiled, closing the dishwasher with his foot. “I’m going to call it a night.”

“Ok. Good night, Jake.”

“Good night.”

And then he was gone. The house felt colder. The kitchen quieter. I finished the last few sips of wine. Damn. Once the bathroom was finished, that would be it. There would be nothing left keeping him here. I had to do something to change that.

12

Jake

I ran my fingers through my hair. I was losing it. Four weeks was a lot to ask. But I was trained in self-control. I was trained in patience. I was trained to wait for the target. I had to fucking wait. This was not the time to get complicated with Olivia.

One month with her had almost made me forget the mission in Kiawai wasn’t over. I still had to go back.

The bathroom was the last project. I had tried to find more things to do at the house, but I had tackled everything on the list Olivia had given me.

I paced in the apartment. There was no way I could sleep. I jogged down the steps to the workshop below. I was finished with my project, but it could use another sanding. I wanted it to be perfect.

I flipped on the light over the workbench, reaching for sandpaper.

I peeled back the sheet and started working, smoothing out the grooves and rough spots.

I looked at my phone. It was after midnight. My hair was full of sawdust. It was caked under my fingernails, and stuck to the stubble on my chin. Olivia would be asleep by now. I walked to the house and slipped into the bathroom. I washed the sawdust down the drain before heading back to the barn.

I looked over his finished project. I smiled and turned to cut off the light when I heard something behind him.

My neck stiffened and my chest tightened.

“Hey.” Her voice was soft and light.

I turned. Olivia was standing in the barn door. Her hair was down on her shoulders. She was wearing a T-shirt barely covering her ass. I swallowed hard.

“You ok?” I was afraid to take my hand off the workbench. It was the one thing keeping me from dragging her up to my bed.

She shook her head. “Not really.” She walked in the barn, closing the door behind her.

“What happened?” I had just been in the house and everything seemed fine.

She leaned against the wall. That’s when my hand let go of the one thing anchoring me in place. I walked toward her, faster than I meant to.

I stopped close enough I could smell the wine on her breath, the shampoo on her hair, the rain on her skin. The T-shirt clung to her chest where the rain had pelted her. I could see the outline of her nipples through the thin fabric.

My breath hitched. “What’s wrong, Liv?”

I couldn’t stop. Mu hand reached for her neck. Her skin was warm in my palm.

She raised her eyes, holding my gaze in place. Her teeth raked over her lip.

Tags: Violet Paige Special Forces Elite Romance
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