20
Spur’s heartbeat crashed against his ribs, but he kept his smile in place. The two men facing him and Olli looked like they’d stepped off the pages of a fashion magazine, and Spur had the distinct feeling that he’d walked into a nest of snakes.
Olli had let him kiss her, so that was one reason for his accelerated pulse. He knew it wasn’t the only reason though.
“What did I miss?” he asked, glancing at Olli and back to the two men. He had no idea which one was the CEO and which one the assistant.
“You missed the part where Olivia said she didn’t have a boyfriend.”
Spur sucked in a breath and turned to Olli. “You told them?”
“We broke up,” she hissed, her eyes flashing without the fire. Had she forgiven him? Did she regret her decision?
“It was just a discussion,” Spur said, not caring about the other two men in the room. “I was concerned for your safety, Olli. You’re the one who said that site was dangerous, and I wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“I know that.” Olli looked down, a sigh escaping her mouth. Her hands fiddled with his tie, and Spur sure did like that. “I made sure everyone knew it was for a testers panel this morning.”
“Good move,” Spur said. He flicked a look at one of the men. “I know you don’t need a boyfriend to get this grant, but I also know that I still want to be that boyfriend. I’ve told you before, Olli, but I don’t want to be your friend or your neighbor. I want to be your boyfriend. Heck, I want more than that. I want to spend my life with you.”
“Spur,” she said, her eyes widening as she looked up into his.
“You don’t have to tell me how you feel right now,” he said quickly. He leaned forward, a small smile playing with his mouth. “I would like to hear it eventually, though. A man starts to wonder how a woman feels about him if it’s not said.” He kept his voice soft and his mouth right against Olli’s ear.
Her hand slid up his chest to his neck, and Spur shivered. “I love you, Olli. Please don’t push me away over this.” He straightened and looked at her, his eyes searching hers. She nodded, tears gathering in her eyes.
She faced the two men as well, and said, “Gentlemen, this is Spur Chappell. He owns the ranch next door, and we’ve been seeing each other.” She indicated the man on her right. “This is Benjamin Radcliff.”
“Nice to meet you, sir,” Spur said, stepping slightly away from Olli to shake the man’s hand.
“And Frank Renlund.”
Spur shook his hand too, cataloguing the look the two men exchanged. They looked almost identical, though Benjamin’s hair was a shade lighter than Frank’s. He also carried more weight and looked healthier overall. They could be a decade older than Spur or only five years. He wasn’t sure. What he was sure about was his decision to get dressed up and get over to the perfumery.
“Can we just take a break?” Olli asked. “I need five minutes alone with Spur.” She stepped through the men and opened the perfumery door. “If you could just wait out here.”
“They don’t need—“ Spur started, cutting off when Frank said, “Take your time,” and walked out. Benjamin followed him, and Olli laughed lightly.
“Thank you, gentlemen. It really will just be a minute.” She closed the door and faced it, her shoulders rising as she took a long breath in.
“I’m sorry,” Spur said before she turned around. Maybe he’d misread her signals, but his neck still tingled from where she’d touched it. “I didn’t know you’d already told them you didn’t have a boyfriend.”
She faced him then, her emotions flying across her face. “You love me?”
“Desperately,” he said. “I know it’s only been two weeks, and that it’s fast.” Boy, did he know that. “I know that. I just don’t want to deny how I feel about you. If you’re not ready for that, I get it. We can date as long as you want. I just don’t want you to break up for me because of a principle. Because you’re trying to prove to those guys that you don’t need me to run Fluency. We already know that, and if they don’t know it, that’s their problem.”
He took a breath, because he thought he’d said quite enough. Spur had done what he could do, and she held the ball now. What she did with it was her choice, and he’d figure out a way to live if she dropped the ball and shattered his heart.
He really hoped she wouldn’t do that, though.
“I do need you, Spur,” she said, her voice pitching up. “I need you desperately.” A tear splashed her cheek, and she quickly wiped it away. “I may not be all the way in love with you yet, but I think it’ll take just one more night at Six Stars, and you’ll have my heart completely.”
Spur couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “One more night, huh?”
A laugh exploded out of her mouth, and Spur wanted to wrap her up tightly in his arms and keep her there for a long time. “You’ve won my heart already, Olli. I think I fell for you the moment I smelled that perfume, before we even went to Six Stars for the first time.”
“Even though you take all your first dates there?” She took a playful step toward him, her head down.
“A man likes to have a plan,” he said. “In a comfortable place.”