âAs do you,â she declared decisively, it was crucial her words reached him for he never should be doubting his worth. Lila had cared about the man even before the fatal attractiontook over, he was her oldest colleague. Together theyâd been througha lotâmaybe not dangerous or extreme situations but enough pushy customers andlong shifts for her to know he was trying his best. And, generally speaking, he wasdoing fineâhe had been clean for months, had an apartment and a steady job he liked.However, in Lilaâs humble opinion, he was missing human contact, perhaps even withoutrealizing it. In reality, Oliver Prince deserved to be held and kissed.And by someone who knew how to do it properly. It was then when Lila became aware of how her fingers had dug into his clothing, clinging. Clearing her throat, sheloosened her grip a bit. âBut regretted it the second she noticed the change inhis expressionâit went from soft to tense in no time. The woman watched himcarefully, afraid he might punch a hole through the wall. However, he did no such thing.
They were in sync. His head moved, hers did too; out of hisway, neck stretching and giving him access to her skin. God, she could easilyget used to this. Precisely because it was so slow and gentle, it didnât feelforced. It felt natural and therefore didnât frighten her. It was natural for her to caress the back of his neck andtrail fingertips up along his spine. Lila even imagined his lips healing her as they traveled across the sensitive skin. It would be so mucheasier if they erased all painful memories and made her forget too. Yet, itcouldnât be done over night. Maybe the first step to recovery was counting her blessings instead ofcontemplating the incident. Maybe. His whispered suggestion left her speechlessâitâd been a while since she didnât spend the night in her own bedâbutshe managed a quick nod for him. âYouâll, um, have to borrow me your clothes. And I need to take a shower.â She murmured. It took all the strength she had to pull back from him, but shedid, her both hands taking his one hand as she stepped further into the living room. Atiny smile even appeared on her lips. âWhat have you been up to?âÂ
Ollie was using every technique his therapist had suggested. In tense moments, he had a tendency to overreact. He did first and thought later. But now was not a moment to fly off the handle. Not when Lila had just been through something so traumatic. His lips continued to work over her skin, only spurred on by the way her fingers stroked and massaged his skin. He felt at peace in a situation where he normally would have destroyed his entire apartment. âIâm glad youâre okay, Lila. Iâm proud of you for protecting Ezra and the diner. The most important thing is that youâre here and breathing.â Each word was punctuated with a soft kiss to another inch of her skin. He focused on the way his feet held on the ground, the weight of his shirt against his skin, then the way her hair tickled his face. Next he focused on Archie chewing on the remote, the muffled sounds of Chopped on the TV, and his own quickened breathing.Â
The grounding technique worked as she nodded for him. He felt the blush rush up the back of his neck and redden his cheeks. The words hadnât fallen on deaf ears. She was agreeing to staying with him and he felt okay. He knew she would remain safe, her and Archie could stay as long as they needed. Maybe Lila had been right, even if he didnât love his apartment, it was still his home. Important things still would happen within its walls. âI can do both. I have some old t-shirts and shorts. Nothing fancy. I can set your shower up for you.â His mind was already racing on what to pick for her.Â
It disarmed him when she took a step away from him, but still grasped his hand. He was happy to see her smile and mimicked her with his own. Lila was infectious. âNothing quite as exciting. Just watching The Food Network.â He took a few steps and dragged her into his bedroom. His sheets were a mess -- somewhere he had read leaving it unmade caused any mites to die quicker. He lived by that article. At least his dirty clothes were neatly piled into his hamper -- laundry left for another day. Raising her hands, he kissed each other before dropping them. He dug around in his drawers until he came up with a t-shirt and shorts. He laid them on the bed before pulling open his linen closet and grabbing her a fresh towel.Â
Laying everything on the counter, he glanced around the bathroom. He was hyper aware of her eyes on him, but he didnât stop moving. It was clean, as he usually kept things. He turned on the water to make sure she didnât burn her skin off. Clearing his throat, he turned back to look at her. âShowerâs warming up, everythingâs there. Sorry I donât have any womanly fragrances or anything.â He gave her a weak smile before rucking his thumb over his shoulder.Â