Olivia walked in through the sliding glass doors of the airport and instantly spotted Griff waiting as promised, right where he’d left her.
She walked across to him and slipped into his waiting arms, breathing in the warm sunshine on his shirt and savouring the feel of his solid chest under her cheek. It felt like home. She didn’t want to worry about the what, where and how of this relationship—she didn’t want to think about when it would end or how long it would last—all she wanted was to savour what they had right now because she knew that in all the years since they’d broken up, she’d never found this sense of completeness with anyone else. Maybe it was because he was so familiar, or maybe it was because she was remembering how it used to be between them, she didn’t know for sure, but whatever it was, she just wanted to feel it again for a while before reality got in the way once more.
When they finally pulled apart, Griff led her from the tiny airport to the carpark. ‘I missed you,’ he said, kissing her as they stood beside his ute.
‘I missed you too,’ she said when they broke apart. The afternoon shadows were settling in and the trees were alive with the sounds of noisy, squabbling birds.
‘I’ve got a surprise for you,’ he said, opening her door and gesturing for her to get in. ‘And don’t ask what it is,’ he said, cutting off her question before she could ask it.
‘I’m not great with surprises,’ she said nervously, meaning it. She was not a centre-of-attention kind of girl. Surprises were definitely not her thing.
‘You’ll like this one,’ he promised as they drove through the streets of Griffith.
When they didn’t follow the road out of town, she looked across at him curiously, but he didn’t bother explaining. When he drove into the carpark of the flash motel that had just opened, she narrowed her eyes in confusion.
‘I thought we could do with a little alone time,’ Griff said.
‘But Ollie …’
‘… is a big boy and he can look after himself.’
‘But he thinks I’m coming home tonight.’
‘Not any more,’ he said, opening his door and climbing out to grab a small duffle bag from the back of the ute.
‘He knows?’ Olivia gaped at him.
‘He knew days ago.’
‘He’s not blind, Liv. I think he was probably suspicious the day he saw me leaving your house in his clothes.’
‘He saw you?’ she yelped. Why hadn’t she known any of this?
‘Yeah, I passed him, heading home. He wanted to know what I was doin’ in his shirt.’
‘What did you tell him?’ Olivia gaped, stunned.
‘That I’d just molested his sister.’
‘You what?’
His chuckle did nothing to comfort her. ‘I told him I went for a swim and needed some dry clothes. Obviously he read between the lines.’
‘He never said a word to me about it.’
Griff shrugged. ‘In case you hadn’t realised, your brother isn’t a big talker.’
This was true, but still, he’d known his sister and his best friend were sleeping together and he hadn’t even made a joke about it? That was definitely not like Ollie.
Olivia followed along behind him as they walked past the reception desk and he pressed the card against the panel to open the elevator doors. ‘I checked in earlier,’ he said, looking down at her confused face with a touch of amusement.
‘You’re enjoying all these surprises, aren’t you?’ she said as they stepped into the lift.
‘Yep.’ His grin widened. ‘It’s not often I get to outsmart Olivia The Brains Dawson.’
She used to hate it when her brother and Griff teased her about how smart she was. She didn’t think she was particularly clever, she just enjoyed school, which clearly made her a freak to those two, who couldn’t wait to get outside and ride motorbikes or get their hands dirty in the shed. Hadley was just as smart, but they never teased her, mainly because she liked getting dirty as much as they did.
The room was luxurious. Everything was modern and new and the enormous bed by the window drew her gaze with a longing sigh.
‘Surprise,’ he said softly as he wrapped his arms around her waist.
‘This is pretty impressive.’
‘Figured if we were going to stay the night we should lash out on somewhere fancy.’
‘To tell you the truth,’ she said, turning in his arms and smiling up at him, ‘I would have been just as happy in a caravan park. I missed you.’
‘Wish I’d known that before I spent all my money on this place.’ He shook his head mournfully.
‘Whatever,’ she scoffed. ‘You’re a bigger princess than I am when it comes to comfort.’
‘A bigger princess …’ he growled and Olivia gave a squeak of protest as he heaved her up over his shoulder and carried her into the luxurious bathroom with the enormous shower. ‘I’ll show you who’s a princess,’ he said, nuzzling her neck.
‘That doesn’t even make sense, Callahan,’ she chuckled as he began stripping off clothing.
‘It doesn’t have to make sense. Now stop talking and help me get these clothes off,’ he ordered.
It was probably the best welcome home she’d ever had and she decided that maybe surprises could be her thing, if this was what they entailed.
As the hot water hit her tired body, she began to relax. A low groan escaped her lips as Griff’s strong hands massaged her tight shoulders and neck muscles, his thumbs kneading in deep, slow circles as they targeted knots beneath her skin.
‘Good God, where did you learn how to do this?’ she asked, feeling slightly drunk with pleasure.
‘Years of football and sore muscles.’
‘I’m not even going to ask.’
‘We had a sports massage guy who used to help out the team. I watched him do it so many times, I guess I’m just a quick study.’
‘You’re awesome,’ she sighed as his kneading moved from deep and therapeutic to something completely different.
‘I haven’t even started yet,’ he promised as she turned in his arms and slid her hands up his chest.
The steam from the hot water cocooned them, and it was Griffin who gave a sharp intake of breath as she explored her way down his wide, strong chest and lower. With each shudder and small groan he gave she felt a powerful surge begin to swell inside her. He opened his eyes and their gazes held. She felt his hands low on her hips holding her still against him, and she could feel the powerful effect she had on him. His hands slid lower, cupping her backside, and in one swift movement he lifted her and she wrapped her legs around him tightly. Olivia gasped as her back came into contact with the cool tiles behind her, but it was swallowed as he leaned forward and took her lips in a deep, bone-melting kiss.
This was so much more potent than their inexperienced teenage attempts at sex. It didn’t even compare. Back then it had been tender and sweet, and she’d thought it had been the most amazing experience of her young life. But Griffin Callahan had clearly had some experience since then. Beneath her hands his muscles squeezed and rippled as he moved. His strong arms held her as she leaned back to reposition herself and felt him still, then heard the low guttural groan as he slid deep inside her.
Oh, he’d definitely had some instruction, she thought as she gave a small whimper, then heard him give a soft, almost reverent curse before regathering himself.
They moved together in perfect unison, the water drumming against their skin, the steam clinging to them like a protective bubble, encasing them in their own private world of desire.
The following night, Olivia sat propped up in her bed at Moorbrook, computer on her lap, her hand hovering over the send button. She’d been scanning employment websites on and off for the last three days, and tonight she’d decided to apply for a couple of jobs to test the waters. She didn’t actually think she’d get anywhere. She wasn’t even really sure why she was doing it—she had a job. A very good job. Only she wasn’t happy.
She tipped her head back against the headboard and closed her eyes briefly. It doesn’t mean you have to accept anything if you get a reply. The jobs were consultancy-based and she could do them from pretty much anywhere. It didn’t tie her to a decision to move from the city—she could stay there and work from her apartment if she wanted to. Or from here, a little voice added. She opened her eyes and sat up, pressing send on her application and closing the computer. She wasn’t going to think about it any more tonight. It was done and she’d wait and see what came of it. It was ridiculous to think that after a brief reunion with Griffin she’d drop her entire life and relocate back here on the off chance they’d end up living happily ever after. It was crazy. She had no idea if this was even going to become anything serious. Sure, they had history and they’d known each other practically their entire lives, but did it only feel right because it was so familiar? If she hadn’t known Griff growing up or been his high school sweetheart, if this was some guy she’d only known for a couple of weeks, would the possibility even be crossing her mind right now?
She turned off the bedside lamp and scrunched down under the blankets, staring up at the ceiling, moonlight casting its silver-bluish glow through the open window.
The truth was, she did love Griffin. She’d known it last Christmas. She wasn’t happy in her current job and that was starting to show in her work performance. It was time for a change. But was this the right change?