When one walks the art exhibits, one typically stops to view and admire the artwork. Olivia admired each painting they passed, curious if Landon painted them, or if they were commissioned art pieces, or maybe bought from dealers.
Olivia’s typical art gallery experience consisted of art supply stores and the occasional cruise. She was green when it came to knowing art, but could recognize a familiar piece by the artist work, like Michael Cheval, Pinot, or Peter Max. The most obvious telltale she could decipher was van Gogh. The art was peculiar, and she loved his work. His story was also tragic, suicide before his work was recognized for its beauty.
She glanced over to Landon and he smiled, catching her gaze.
“I’m looking forward to sharing a part of my life with you, Olivia,” he told her, his accent rounding on the r’s.
She nodded. “I’m looking forward to learning something new. I’m familiar with some art, but honestly, this is new territory for me.”
“I believe all of this is new for you, no?” he asked and cupped her hand on his arm. “I believe I speak for all of us that we are eager to teach you everything you need to know.”
She blushed and grinned. They strolled in rhythm, one no faster than the other. Like a heartbeat in unison. She found herself inching closer to him, wanting to have him close to her without smothering him.
This is odd.
I am not the PDA person, yet, I want him to hold me.
I want them all to touch me.
What has changed?
Hell, what is wrong with me?
Landon chuckled.
She lifted her gaze up at him and frowned. “What’s so funny?”
Shit, can he read thoughts?
“Something shifted in your thoughts. Imagine a pot of water hot from boiling, then suddenly it exhales a cold breath.”
“I didn’t think water could exhale?”
He grinned and winked at her. “Figure of speech. What I mean is, you were hot, then suddenly you felt cold.”
“Oh, I didn’t mean—”
He shook his head and cut her off. Landon turned Olivia to face him in the hallway. “I did not mean cold in the sense of distant. Something changed in your mindset and that is what I picked up on. Something humored you, that is all.”
She gave him a crooked grin and shrugged one shoulder. “I find myself wanting to be held, wanting to be touched. But Landon,” She met his gaze. “I’m not the PDA type.”
“PDA?” he asked.
“Public display of affection.”
“Ahh,” he said and stepped closer. He slipped his hands over her waist and around her lower back. “So, what you’re saying is no one has affected you as much as we have? No one has drawn out your inner sexual demon?”
She raised a brow and rested her palms on his chest. She smirked. “I may be a demon but I’m not a sex demon. If I were, I believe every one of you would be a heap of trouble.”
He chuckled. “Maybe so, but just because you’re a blood demon does not mean you cannot be a sex demon as well.” He leaned in closer, his nose grazing hers. “You will never know until you try.”
Her breath rasped as she exhaled, her mouth slightly agape. If she were to lift her head just enough, her lips would capture his. And she wanted him to kiss her.
Instead, he pressed his lips to her forehead. She'd heard once that if a man kissed you on the forehead, there was something more in that relationship. He did not want to be just friends. He wanted something more. It was a direct reflection of his feelings for you. Men did not generally do this with female friends, and if he does this with you, you mean more to him than everyone else. The endearment warmed her heart.
Olivia leaned into his shoulder as they continued their walk. They eventually turned a corner and toward the end of the corridor was an open room of color among the white walls of the home.
“Is that it down there?” she asked.
He nodded. “Yes, ahead is my studio.”
“What do you prefer to paint?” She once again imagined naked women laid across a couch with a shawl so sheer it did nothing to hide from the imagination. A part of her felt almost jealous.
“You shall see when we enter. I prefer subjects I can fully immerse myself in.”
She wondered if that was a double entendre. Rather than asking, she decided to accept that was exactly what he meant. Olivia knew then she would love to be the subject of one of his paintings. She felt heat creep up her neck to her ears and cheeks.
“What are you thinking, my Olivia,” Landon asked.
She blushed and shifted her gaze up at him. “I like that.”
“What is that?” he asked and interlaced his hand with hers.
“‘My Olivia’,” she quoted.
“Ahh, well then, I shall refer to you as mine, if that is okay?”
She lightly shrugged in a playful manner. “I don’t see where it would hurt?” She let go of his hand and took a few steps away. The fear that once claimed her was no more than a faint ember of a fire put out by the fiercest of storms. She smoked from the sizzle, she felt the heat, but the fear had been extinguished.
As they stepped into the studio, portraits hung on the wall, a few on easels, small-sized to full-sized statues were stood in each corner and throughout the room. She noted one piece had a few obscure pieces that appeared to be boxes painted over circles. She tilted her head, then moved to the next piece. It was a woman who held a pumpkin with a small pup at her feet. The sun held in the sky and Landon managed to capture light in his art.
“I like this one. It is sweet.”
“Then it is yours,” he whispered behind her.
“Thank you,” she said and turned to face him. “I’d like to leave it down here so I may look up on it when I come see you?”
“Of course,” he told her and took her hand, then pressed his lips upon it. He turned it over and brushed his lips over her palm, then the inside of her wrist.
Their gazes met when he looked up at her. The darkness of his eyes was surrounded by a faint gold, as if encircled by it. She glanced across the room, and gasped. “Oh, Landon,” she said and let go of his hand. She crossed the room and gazed upon a portrait of the beach with a woman and child. The woman held the babe in her arms, the child sleeping on his mother’s shoulder. The mother held her son close, her eyes closed. Olivia could almost feel the humidity of the beach and the salt from the sea. “This is absolutely beautiful.”
Landon placed his hands on her waist and she felt him step up behind her. “I recalled a memory of my mother as she walked on the beach in Italy. She carried my brother like this. It was so long ago, it worried me I would forget who they were.”
She turned in his arms and wiped a tear from her eyes. “Art has never affected me, not like this. I always thought art was something nice. But this,” She turned back to the portrait. “This makes me weak. It makes me want to sink to my knees and cry for your mother.”
“Why?” he asked and turned her back to face him. “What draws you in so?”
She shook her head. “I never had a close relationship with my mother. Her dying words to me were, ‘forgive me.’ Not knowing my father, I have nothing to compare this love to.” She glanced back to the portrait and felt her heart break. “It hurts,” she whispered.
Landon turned her once more to face him. He cupped her face in his palm and offered an endearing smile. “Mio amore, art should have this kind of impact on a person. You never know how something will affect you until you find the one that wins you over. I am grateful to have had that moment for you.”
She leaned into his embrace, resting her head on his chest. She loved his endearment of ‘my love’, in Italian. He hugged her to his body and she slipped her arms around his waist.
Landon felt comfortable, familiar, and passionate. Where Jake loved to experiment with food, and Ethan his legal work, Landon loved experimenting with emotions of art. She closed her eyes and felt safe.
Then she furrowed her brows. She was always curious about a heartbeat in vampires but heard nothing. She pulled away just enough to look into his eyes.
“Landon, I have a weird question to ask.”
“Hmm, maybe I’ll have a weird answer,” he teased.
She smirked. “No heartbeat?”
Landon focused on her for a moment, then shook his head. “Oh, si, no. Vampires do not have hearts.” His r’s rolled and it was sexy as hell.
“No hearts? There is nothing there?”
“Oh no, love, no thump-thump.” He patted on his chest.
Olivia grinned. Some were fighters, but not Landon. What she picked up from him was all lover. She imagined he took his time with his conquest. He would woo her, seduce her, touch and taste every inch of her body before he considered penetration of fangs or cock.
Her knees weakened, and a soft groan bubbled up from her throat.
He raised his brows. “Are you alright, mio amore?”
She blushed and her eyes widened. Had she just moaned in front of him? She quickly turned away and closed her eyes.
Holy hell, how do I recover from this?
She covered her face with her hands and erupted in a giggle fit.
Hands rested upon her shoulders and Landon feathered his mouth over the side of her neck. “You are most adorable, mio amore.”
She shook her head. “I was lost in my own thoughts and apparently became carried away.”
Landon turned her to face him. He brushed a few loose strands from her face then leaned in and pecked her cheek. “Dimmi il mio amore cosa desideri?” he whispered.
She did not need a translator to understand what Landon had asked. She inhaled a long breath and held it for a moment, then slowly exhaled. “What do I desire?”
He nodded. “Si.”
She lowered her gaze.
He clicked his tongue and shook his head no. He pointed to his eyes and winked.
She smirked.
“Okay, I want all of this. I want all of you. How can one person be drawn toward more than one person? It makes no sense to me. How can this be possible? How can I love more than one person? How can I want more than one person?”
He took a few small steps toward her. Without realizing it, Landon had moved them toward his studio wall. The chill of the wall was a welcome relief to the heat rising in her body. “You were meant to love and be adored by all of us.” He ran his fingertips down the length of her arms, to her hands, then back up along her sides. “I wish to kiss and taste every bit of your body.” He leaned in and peppered kisses along her jaw line, then her earlobe. “I speak for all of us, we all wish to taste you.”
Her breathing rasped, her chest rose and fell in a rapid pulse. She pushed her fingers through the soft curls of his hair, pulling him closer to her. Her head rested back against the wall and she exposed her neck to him. She wanted him to bite her, to taste her, to claim her. No, she wanted all of them to claim her.
“Landon,” she breathed. “We need to stop. I need you to stop. I don’t know if I can.”
He chuckled softly against her neck, pressed his mouth over the spot where her vein pulsed in her neck, then pulled away. “I would not push you further than this without my brothers here. How unfair would it be to taste you first?”
She wrapped her arms around her waist. She felt exposed, naked. She also wanted him back, them naked, with her legs wrapped around his waist. She wanted to feel him thrusting inside her as he bit her neck.
Olivia walked past him with a long, heavy sigh. “I think I need to go for a swim in the pool.” She turned back to Landon. “There is a pool?”
“Si,” he said. “I’ll walk you there.”
She shook her head no. “I’ll find my way. I need a moment alone to gather my thoughts. So much has happened, and changed, in the last few days. I need a moment to process it all.”
He nodded and took a few steps toward her. “Understood. It is indoor, southeast part of the mansion. Or facing the back of the house, on your right.”
She nodded. “Thank you.” Olivia turned away from her Italian stallion. She giggled to herself as she thought of the Italian actor in the boxer movies.
My stable of men.
My oh my, I have my hands full.
Olivia found her way back to her room. She opened the drawers in her dresser and found a few different swimsuits. She opted for a black two-piece. She changed into the suit, put on black sandals, and found a sheer cover-up.
Following the directions Landon provided, she tugged the cover-up around her body. She found it almost pointless. The garment was see-through. Who was she kidding? She walked toward the east part of the home and followed the corridors to the indoor pool.
The Olympic-sized pool was empty and ready for her arrival. She kicked off her shoes, removed her cover-up, then walked to the edge. She imagined briefly she swam for the US swim team, and dove in. She swam for a moment, then turned onto her back and floated. She closed her eyes and sighed in relaxation. Silence enveloped her and it was almost deafening.
She missed her cat and hoped, soon, Sherlock would be here. He would be the familiar part of herself she left behind as a concubine.
Olivia recalled the pairing ceremony. Two of the men here smelled her and knew they wanted her. She almost met Victor. The evil in his glare haunted her, even now. But he was not here, only her stable of men. She imagined the five of them in the pool with her. Her clit tingled and she wanted to touch herself, to release the orgasm that begged to be set free.
She moved to bring her hand down her body, over her breast to her belly, when she heard someone clear their throat.
Olivia gasped and found Aidan and Jared staring down at her. Aidan smirked whereas Jared simply stared. She swam toward the ladder and grabbed hold of it to climb out.
“No, please, don’t stop on account of us,” Aidan told her.
She blushed and wanted to hide under the water.
Why can’t I be a mermaid and swim away?
“Leave her be,” Jared told him and walked toward the ladder. He squatted down and touched her hand. “I hear you’ve been talking to my brothers.”
She nodded. “Is that okay?”
He nodded. “Yes, that is what I was hoping for. Please, though, leave some time for me.” He winked and stood.
She had half a mind to reach for him and yank him into the pool. “Where can I find you later?”
He grinned. “My office. Come find me and we’ll talk.”
She nodded and remained in the pool.
Jared clapped Aidan on the shoulder. “I prefer you remove your clothes before jumping in my pool, but I can already tell you may tell me to fuck off with that.”
“You say you can’t read minds,” Aidan teased. “But you heard me loud and clear. Fuck off, my brother.”
Jared chuckled and left the pool area, leaving Olivia alone with her sensual, chocolate skinned man. His golden eyes stared into hers.
He smirked. “May I join you?”