Olivia Graham was twenty-two when she started a whirlwind romance with charismatic Jakob overseas.
By age twenty-five, Liv was back home and checking off the widowed box on paperwork. With zero plans, Olivia and beloved dog Snuggles find themselves...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Olivia angrily deserts us, and Joanie glares at me as Liv peels off, nearly snarling while insisting we avoid telling Will. He will literally beat me, and she doesn't want this to be worse for Liv.
I'm so stupid to keep gravitating toward her, torn between wanting to devote my life to making her happy and staying away like I promised. The Graham's literally saved my life, and I feel this undying devotion to protecting their wishes.
Casey kindly smiles as I amble back, her eyes squinted. "Are you like, into Olivia?"
Raw and emotional, I nod, burying my face in my hands and inhaling a deep breath. Such a freaking moron.
"Then what in the world are you doing with me?" Casey's voice lilting as she teases. "Chris, I like you. But not like that. You're a nice guy, but you can't commit to anything."
"I'm sorry, Case, you're terrific. But, yeah, I care about Olivia. I've been trying to push her away and deny my feelings."
"Are you serious?" Will asks from behind me.
I turn in surprise.
"You still like...my sister?"
I sigh, my hand going through my hair. "Yeah, of course, I do."
He shakes his head. "I asked you about this shit."
"You asked if I was trying to fuck her."
"Yeah, and I was right," he says, shrugging his shoulders, his arms folded.
"Liv means way more to me than that!"
Will rolls his eyes. "Yeah, I'm sure." Joanie faces him, touching his chest in an attempt to get him to relax.
"Casey, I'm sorry, can I talk to Will privately?" I ask her softly. She nods, saying she starts work early tomorrow anyway. I escort her to the car and walk back to the waiting Graham's.
Unintentionally pissing Will off is a skill I've honed over the years. I need to have a frank discussion with him. "Liv is important to me," I insist, holding up my hand in an attempt to placate him. "Look, I know why you're upset."
Will's mouth is set in a grim line, his eyes wild as he stares. Waiting.
"Why are you being such a hardass about this?" Joanie asks Will.
He glares at me before looking at his wife. "Because he slept with Olivia when she was seventeen."
Joanie gasps in surprise and turns to me. Wait, that's a secret?
"You're lucky I didn't beat the shit out of you when I found out. You know my dad wanted me to."
"Yeah, your mom made that clear. I'm a different person than when I was nineteen."
"Are you?" Asks Joanie. "Because the last twenty minutes suggest otherwise!"
Joanie has never been anything but kindhearted, but her eyes blaze with her need to protect Olivia. I grimace at the glimpse of what the boss' wife has been trained up for.
