Make Time For Me

Chapter 7

“Take a walk with me.”

She smiled and nodded, and this time, she wasn’t surprised when he took her hand and walked beside her, as if they’d done that for a lifetime. She wasn’t surprised when he slipped an arm around her and tucked her hand into his pocket, either.

It felt right. Maybe they had done this together, a lifetime ago.

When they finally got back to the car, he pulled her close and smiled at her.

“Come home with me. I don’t want the evening to be over.”

“It’s a miracle neither of us has been paged, even if we are off.”

“I know.”

“Ellie is at the hospital. You could drop me home.”

“I know. But come home with me, Olivia.”

Olivia smiled, and nodded, because she wanted to. And she knew that she wasn’t going home with him to spend the night being chastely held in his arms. She was going home with him because she wanted him. She wanted to know where it would go, how much more she could feel when he kissed her, and didn’t have to stop.

He held her hand when he drove. It wasn’t the easiest thing to do when he was driving a stick shift, but he managed.

“Is this where you live? It’s nice. Nicer than our places.”

“Not as nice as your cottage, but yes, living in a condo does have its advantages.”

He smiled at her, making her heart beat a little harder again, and gave her a wicked little grin when they got the elevator to themselves.

“Kiss me.”

Olivia looked at him in surprise.

“It’s your turn, don’t you think?”

It was his cocky little smile that did it. She launched herself at him, trusting that he would catch her, wrapped her legs around him, and kissed him.

She still held on to him, wondering if she would ever feel such intimacy again. Such perfect harmony with another person ever again.

Even if she never did, it would’ve been worth it. Once was more than most people got, wasn’t it?

“I’m not done with you. Not by a long shot. I’m just a little shaken.”

His candid admission made her heart tremble just a little bit more, alarming her again. No, she couldn’t let that happen. That was not part of the deal.

Smiling, she found those shields, and she put them up carefully, and she sat up, pulling away from him.

“I don’t mean to ruin the moment, but I really need some water, Jason.”

He smiled easily and nodded.

“I’ll get you water.”

She waited till he was out of the room before she wrapped her arms around herself as if trying to keep her heart still, and closed her eyes tightly.

She had to get a grip. She’d slept with Jason on their first real date, and that was not something she’d thought she would ever do. But the way she felt – it was just a reaction. She was going to be fine.

She opened her eyes, and it was sheer coincidence that her gaze happened to fall on framed photo on his table.

It looked familiar.

She got to her feet, found Jason’s shirt and pulled it on, realized she’d ripped off most of the buttons and shrugged. She’d sew them on or get him a new shirt.

She walked to the table and looked at the photo. It was of a man and a woman getting an award from the president – obviously a big deal. Why was that on his table?

She looked at the caption – representatives of the South worth Charitable Foundation, it said.

South worth.

South worth, as in Jason South worth.

She read the rest of the caption. The two people were Loren and Mary South worth, of Spade Absolute Technologies.

That was when she did a double take. She noticed the similarities, finally. The man’s eyes. The woman’s determined chin. The woman’s hair. The man’s build.

Jason’s parents. That was the only explanation.

Jason South worth. Spade Absolute Technologies.

She heard Jason come into the room.

“Here, I…”

“Are you Jason South worth as in, billionaire and heir to Spade Absolute Technologies?”

Jason wrinkled his nose in distaste.

“Must you put it that way? I’m Dr. Jason South worth, isn’t that good enough?”

“Yes, that’s plenty good enough, but holy sh*t, Jason. You never told me. You never told anybody. Seriously? A billionaire? You’re a f*king billionaire?!”

Jason sighed, pulled her away from the framed photo, sat her down on the bed, and gave her the glass of water.

“I don’t suppose I could distract you by making love to you and you can forget all about having seen that photo?”

“No, you don’t suppose. Holy sh*t, Jason, you lied to me. You pretended that…”

Olivia trailed off.

That was, actually, not quite fair. He hadn’t lied to her. He had just omitted certain parts of the truth.

“I… Maybe, by omission, but look, I don’t know who your parents are, do I? So what does it matter if I didn’t tell you who my parents are?”

“But it’s not just… I mean, you’re rich!”

“Well, yes. I am rich. So what?”

Olivia did see the point. It was none of her business. It was none of anybody else’s business, really, just how rich he was. Nobody was required to tell anybody else about their parents’ financial status. She hadn’t told everybody that her parents were both doctors, for one thing, and it wasn’t because she wanted to hide it. It just changed how people looked at you if they knew you were following in your parents’ footsteps. As if your own achievements weren’t worth enough.