Forgetting her vow to hide her crying, Olivia burst into tears.
“Come on. I’m not that bad, am I?”
“Shut up,” she sobbed. “I love you.”
“Yeah?” He eased her away so he could see her face, though she tried to hide her blubbering. “Really?”
“Really,” she gasped, tucking her face back into his shirt so she could cry freely. She loved him so much that she should be scared, but somehow she wasn’t. Whatever would happen would happen, and she was strong enough to bear heartbreak if she had to. But maybe she wouldn’t have to.
“Thank you for telling me what happened,” she whispered. She couldn’t believe he’d lived with that for so long. No wonder he’d been so lost. “You have to tell your family, Jamie.”
He shook his head. “Maybe someday. Not today. I need time. I need to think.”
She let it go. It was his secret. His truth.
“Are you done crying?” he finally asked.
“Maybe.”
“Should we go see my family?”
“Yes.” She sniffled a few times, trying to stop her tears. “Okay. Just give me a minute.” Olivia snapped down the passenger-side mirror to look at her face. “Oh, no. I look terrible.”
“You’re just a little moist. Here.” He stuffed a Dairy Queen napkin into her hand.
She dabbed carefully at her cheeks and told herself it didn’t matter. So she’d be late and blotchy, and it didn’t matter. She’d be with Jamie, and things were good with him, and getting better every day.
Jamie put the car in gear, but for a long moment his foot stayed pressed to the brake. “Next time,” he said, “maybe we’ll go up the hill.”
When she took his hand, his fingers squeezed hers hard. “I think that’s a great idea.”
J
AMIE GAVE A PERFUNCTORY
knock on the front door before opening it wide. He gestured to Olivia and watched as she stepped inside and glanced around the front rooms.
His chest felt suddenly tight. What did she see? It just looked like home to him. Dark wood floors, a big fireplace, the front window where his mom had always put the Christmas tree. It all looked the same to Jamie, but as he followed Olivia in, he realized he was different now.
He didn’t feel like a kid coming home. And he didn’t feel like someone stealing into a place where he didn’t deserve to be. Instead, he felt…good. Peaceful. Happy to have Olivia here. Thrilled to see her smile and reach for his hand.
“It’s beautiful. You must miss living here.”
“No. This house has too many memories. But I’m glad to be here now. With you.”
She always blushed when he said things like that, and she was still blushing when the sound of Tessa’s quick footsteps echoed down the hall.
“Are you ready?” he whispered.
“No!” Olivia answered, her eyes wide with trepidation. “I’m not ready.”
“Too late.” He took the cake from her hands as Tessa rushed into the entry, a wide grin already spreading across her face. “Hello!”
“Hi.” Olivia stepped back as if she were alarmed by Tessa’s mad rush, but Tessa just opened her arms and caught Olivia in a hug.
“It’s so good to finally meet you!”
“Um.” Olivia tentatively patted his sister’s back. “We already met at the brewery.”
“Yes, but not like this. This is
official.
”
Jamie grinned until Olivia finally smiled at him past his sister’s shoulder. “First girl I’ve ever brought home,” he said with a wink.
Tessa snorted. “First girl whose name we even learned,” she clarified.
Olivia eased out of the hug and laughed. “I feel kind of like I’m your prom date, Jamie.”
“Don’t worry,” Tessa whispered. “I’ll only make you pose for a few pictures.”
“Um. Okay.” Olivia clearly couldn’t tell whether or not Tessa was joking. Actually, Jamie wasn’t sure, either.
“Luke will be here in a few minutes. He had to work—”
Tessa was interrupted when the front door opened on a loud whoosh, but it wasn’t Luke.
“Oh,” Eric said, his eyes flying to Olivia as he stepped inside. “Hello.”
“Olivia, you’ve already met Eric,” Jamie said dryly.
“I have. It’s nice to see you again.”
“Yeah,” Eric said. “Nice to see you, too. And, um… I’m sorry about the last time.” Eric was actually squirming. That was something Jamie had never seen before. He was pretty sure he was enjoying it, so he didn’t bother to step into the awkward silence. Instead, he just smiled. Let Eric be the one left swinging in the wind.
“So,” Eric said, his eyes sliding away.
Tessa jumped into the pause. “You brought a cake!” She snatched it from Jamie’s hands. “It looks delicious. Dinner’s not quite ready yet, so Jamie, why don’t you show Olivia the house. I’ll put this in the kitchen.”
“Thank you!” Olivia called as Tessa hurried away.
Laughing at the dazed expression on Olivia’s face, Jamie took her hand and led her on the grand tour. He started upstairs, pointing out the window in his old room that he’d used as a frequent escape route as a teenager. Then the banister where he’d broken his arm trying to slide down it as if he was grinding on a skateboard. In the hallway, there were pictures of his family. He’d always wondered how Tessa could stand to live with the pictures of Mom and Dad on constant display, but now he was glad they were here.
“You really do look like him.” Olivia touched a finger to his dad’s cheek. “He looks happy like you.”
“He was.”
“And what’s this?” she asked, pointing at the senior picture Tessa had forced him to sit for.
He shook his head, but Olivia didn’t drop it. “Look at that smile. Was every girl in your school in love with you?”
“No.”
“Liar. It doesn’t matter. You’re mine now.”
“I am.” He glanced toward the kitchen, and when he didn’t see his sister, he pulled Olivia into his arms. “You know my favorite thing about you? All my family can see is my new responsible girlfriend. They have no idea what you’re really like underneath that cardigan.”
“Jamie,” she warned, her eyes widening as she glanced around. But he noticed the way her neck arched when he kissed it, giving him better access to that spot just beneath her ear…. She sighed when his mouth closed over it.
By the time he drew back, her eyes had gone soft and dreamy. God, he loved her like crazy. “All right, I won’t molest you in the hallway. But I’m giving you a heads-up. Your final exam is after dinner.”
“What?”
“We never finished your training.”
“What training?” she asked.
“In fun and adventure. On our way home, we’re going to stop at a store.”
She shook her head in confusion.
“I’ve got a crisp hundred in my pocket. We’re going to stop at The White Orchid, and you have to spend every penny.”
“The White Orchid!” Olivia yelped.
Tessa stuck her head around the corner. “Oh, my God, have you guys been there lately?”
Jamie laughed, but Olivia looked like she might be stroking out as she slapped a hand over her mouth. She shook her head in frantic denial. Jamie tugged her into the kitchen, although she seemed to be trying to dig her heels into the wood.
“I’m sure you’ve never been there,” Jamie said to his little sister. “Right?”
“Ha! I’m on a first-name basis with the manager.”
He hadn’t noticed Eric leaning against the wall, but Jamie damn sure noticed when his brother started choking. Eric’s face turned beet-red, and he banged a fist against his own chest as he coughed.
“Jesus, man. Are you okay?”
Eric shook his head, but the coughing subsided.
Tessa rolled her eyes. “Oh, come on, Eric. It’s not a seedy sex shop. It’s really pretty inside. Not one X-rated video booth to be found.” She turned her smile on Jamie. “Are you guys going in for a class?”
“A class?” he scoffed. “Hardly.”
Eric cleared his throat. “What do you mean? What class?”
“The last time I was there, the manager was giving a class on…” She glanced at each of them in turn, then waggled her eyebrows. “
Fellatio.
I almost died. There were cucumbers on the table. I think maybe she gave demonstrations.”
Eric’s face went from red to ghost-white in the space of one breath.
“Jeez,” Tessa said. “Calm down. I didn’t sit in on it. I just overheard it as I was leaving.”
Eric’s lips were pressed so tightly together that Jamie had to roll his eyes. Sure, he was horrified that Tessa was so familiar with The White Orchid, but Eric was taking the uptight act to a new level. “Maybe you should stop in and ask if they offer any classes on loosening up, Eric. I don’t think you’ve had fun since 1997. Maybe that woman could teach you something.”
Eric’s eyes went wide.
“What?”
“I’m just saying—” But before Jamie could finish his sentence, Eric spun on his heel and stalked out of the kitchen. The sound of the back door slamming echoed through the whole house.
“Wow,” Jamie muttered. “What’s wrong with him?”
Tessa shrugged. “He probably just thinks he hasn’t raised us right if we’re hanging out at The White Orchid. Speaking of which…” She pointed a spatula at Olivia. “Check out the pretty lingerie from France. It’s amazing.”
When Tessa disappeared into the pantry, Olivia poked Jamie hard in the ribs. “I hate you,” she whispered.
“Uh-uh,” he said, turning so he could put his arms around her. “Too late for that, darlin’. You already confessed your love. You’re stuck with me now.”
“But now your family thinks I’m…”
“Sexy? Hot? Perfect? You are.”
“Jamie…” Her frown melted as she shook her head. “God, why is it so hard to stay mad at you?”
He leaned in and pressed one soft kiss to her mouth. “Because I’m a really good, decent guy?”
Her lips turned up in a smile. “You say that like you mean it.”
“Yeah.” Something warm and sweet filled the last of that hollow space inside his chest. “I’m pretty sure I do.”
ISBN: 978-1-4592-1387-6
BAD BOYS DO
Copyright © 2011 by Victoria Dahl
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