Page 57 of Under Control
Kelsey’s voice echoing through the apartment confused her for a few seconds, until she realized she must have gone back to sleep and Derek’s five more minutes had become a lot more minutes.
“I’ll be right out,” she called, wishing they’d closed the bedroom door even though they’d had no reason to.
“You’re usually in the—” Kelsey appeared in the doorway and then froze. “Oh. Sorry.”
Since she’d sat up, Olivia scrambled to make sure she was covered. And Derek was awake, too, and he just lifted a hand in greeting. She took a calming breath because this might not be how McGovern Consulting usually opened for business on Monday mornings, but she had nothing to be embarrassed about, either.
“If you want to go in the office and get started, I’ll be there in a few minutes,” she said, making sure her voice was level and professional.
“No bacon?”
She looked at Derek, who was smiling innocently up at her from the pillow. “No bacon.”
“There’s yogurt in the fridge if you want one,” Kelsey called as she walked away.
“So I assume that’s Kelsey?” he said, once they heard the office door close. They usually left it open, but she probably wanted to give them some semblance of privacy.
“Yes. I’m usually ready for work by the time she gets here, so I’m already behind.”
“I’m sorry. I fell asleep.”
She ran her hand over his chest, unable to help herself. “So did I. And you’re worth being a little late to work for.”
That made him smile, and he lifted her hand from his chest to kiss the back of her knuckles. “I’m glad. I’m also glad I got to meet Kelsey, since I’ve heard so much about her. You’ve met my kids and the guys I work with. It’s about time I get to meet somebody in your life.”
“Other than my parents, she’d be the most important person for you to meet,” she admitted. “She’s become a good friend as well as being the best assistant ever. But I should warn you, she’s young and maybe a little enthusiastic about me dating you. I think the wholetrapped in an elevatorthing really sparked her imagination.”
“Oh, there were definitely sparks,” he said, giving her a look that had her scrambling to slide off her side of the bed before she forgot the workday had technically started and they weren’t alone.
Because of what he’d said, Olivia made sure to properly introduce him to Kelsey before he left. Despite her warnings, her assistant was on her best behavior and hit the perfect balance of friendly and professional.
Until Derek had kissed Olivia goodbye with a promise to call her later and they were alone.
“Holy crap, Olivia. He’s hot.”
“You’re the one who creeped on his Facebook pictures.”
“I didn’t creep. And pictures don’t do him justice. I hope you’re planning to keep him.”
Olivia laughed, though it sounded a little shaky. “It’s a little soon to make that decision.”
Judging by her expression, Kelsey didn’t buy that for a second. “The fact you were still in bed when I got here tells me everything I need to know. There’s only one thing that could throw you off your game plan like that.”
She tried to tell herself Kelsey was talking about great sex, but Olivia knew she meant love. The thing she and Derek apparently weren’t ready to talk about yet.
But just as she’d known it was time for her to meet Julia and Isaac if they were going to move forward, she knew it was going to be time to talk about the future. Not making concrete plans, of course. They hadn’t been together long enough for that kind of commitment, but it didn’t change one basic fact.
She did, in fact, want to keep him.
* * *
Dinner at the station on Tuesday was strangely quiet, which Derek knew shouldn’t be a surprise after the day they’d been having. A stubborn electrical fire in the walls of a commercial building had been chaotic and did a lot of damage. And they’d followed that up with an MVA with a fatality.
He was almost done with his beef stew, mopping up the broth with a biscuit, when he put his finger on why the quiet seemed more oppressive than usual. Gavin and Grant were both talkers, seemingly incapable of not filling a silence. And once the thought was in his mind, he could see it. Gavin just looked quiet, but Grant looked...off. His face was set in hard lines and it was as though he’d put up a wall to keep everybody out.
Maybe because he was wrapped up in his own thoughts of theI love youhe’d wanted so badly to say to Olivia, but hadn’t been able to get out when the time should have been right, he hadn’t given a lot of thought to it. But now that he’d noticed it, he realized Grant hadn’t been himself all day.
It wasn’t until the kitchen cleanup was almost done that the wall started to crack.
