“As a matter of fact, I’m seeing him tonight. We’re going to sleep together.”
“So you decided not to worry about the investigation?” Jill asked.
“Not necessarily. We’re going to be discreet, or as discreet as we can be.”
“Why does this sound like a business arrangement and not a romantic encounter?”
“Because I made a decision. A mature decision. I think you’ll be proud of me.”
Uh-oh. That didn’t sound very good. “What kind of decision?”
“I like this guy, Jill. He’s sexy as hell, arrogant, bull-headed, very direct, and he has this huge protective thing for his sister that shows me he’s got a heart buried somewhere deep inside his sculpted chest. He’s been very open about his vision loss and what that was like for him. And he wants me in a way I’m powerless to refuse.”
“So what’s your mature decision? To sleep with him?”
“Yes and no. Yes, I’m going to sleep with him, but on my terms. I told him if we were going to be together, I was the only one he’d be sleeping with while he’s here.”
“Seems fair.”
“I thought so. Plus, I started thinking about you and Ty this past summer. The way you were so worried about him leaving you behind with a broken heart. If you’d have known the way things would turn out, you would have been able to relax and enjoy your summer instead of being worried all the time.”
“True. I worried myself sick right up until the end.”
“Exactly. So, I laid it all out for him. I told Jack that we’d sleep together, discreetly and monogamously, until he left to go back to Denver. That way, we both know what this is—a mutually satisfying sexual experience with no nagging questions about the future and no expectations.”
“That sounds kind of sterile and very unlike you, Olivia. You’re the biggest romantic I know.”
“I know I am, which is why I needed to do this. I wasn’t lying when I said I can’t resist this guy, Jill. He’s like meth. One taste and I’m hooked.”
“If you’re hooked after one taste, do you really think you’ll be able to walk away unscathed after weeks of sleeping together?”
“I’ll have to. He’s only here to tell his story to Lyle, and then he’ll be gone. There’s absolutely no chance he’ll stay because he has to live in a city that’s more accessible.”
“You’ve always wanted out of the valley, Olivia. Who says you can’t move to Denver?”
“Who says he’s going to want me to? Listen, this guy is used to dating models. He’s settled for me because I’m the best the valley has to offer, and frankly, he can’t see me to know whether or not I measure up to his usual standards.”
Olivia Golden’s greatest asset was her confidence. Jill couldn’t let any guy take away the only thing Olivia had ever felt sure of. “You know darn well you measure up. Don’t start thinking you’re not good enough for him because he’s had a few designer coat racks on his arm.”
“I appreciate your support, I really do, but he hasn’t made me feel anything other than desired. He wants me and I want him, too. So, we’ll scratch an itch and be done when it’s time for him to go. No fuss, no muss.”
“I don’t know, Olivia. Matters of the heart are different. Ty and I had a powerful sexual pull that launched our relationship. Neither one of us knew how it would end. I could have refused to leave and he’d have gone home with a broken heart. Or he could have up and gone like he’d planned and I’d have been left hurting. There were no guarantees. I think even if we’d decided up front to have a no-strings relationship, we would have ended up right where we are now.”
“That was you and Ty. I can’t start thinking that way and getting my hopes up. Would I like to get out of the valley and go to Denver with him when he’s ready to go home? Probably, unless this sexual haze disappears once we get it out of our system. But we’ll never know unless we get it out.”
“You can try to guard your heart, but in the end, there’s really no guarantee you won’t get hurt.”
“Exactly. There’s no guarantee, so I’m going to take advantage of this opportunity while it’s here. I’ve never felt this way, Jill. Don’t squash my enthusiasm before we even get started.”
“I’m sorry. I’m not trying to squash anything. I just don’t want to see you get hurt.”
“All I heard about last summer was the fabulous sex you were having. So, now I’m going to have some fabulous sex of my own. It’s only fair.”
It may be fair, but Jill wondered if the risk was worth the heartache. “You’re right. Go, have fabulous sex while you can. But don’t ask me not to worry because I will.”
“I know you will. That’s because you love me.”
“I do love you, Olivia. Be careful.”
***
Olivia was pleased to find Erica waiting at the table with a pencil and paper. “I’ve been tracing some of the letters like you asked me to. I’ve got most of them down,” Erica said.
She showed Olivia the paper. Olivia scanned the sheet, paying special attention to the letters most commonly marked backward for dyslexics. Erica had gotten them all right, but she’d had the letter directly above to copy from.
“This is awesome work, Erica.” Olivia sat down and pulled some papers from her bag. “I want to show you something.” She lined up the papers she’d printed from the Internet. “This is called the phonic alphabet code chart.”
“What’s it for?”
“You know there are twenty-six letters in the alphabet, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, those twenty-six letters make up the forty-four sounds in the English language. This chart shows the letter combinations for all forty-four sounds.”
“So what do I do with it?” Erica asked as she studied the picture and letter combinations.
“This is going to be your bible. We’re going to go over and over this chart until you recognize all forty-four sounds and understand the letter combinations that make those sounds.”
“That’s a lot of sounds and a whole lot of letter combinations.”
“I know this looks overwhelming, but we’ll start slow by identifying the sounds using the letter combinations on the left. Those are the most common letters and combinations of letters that make a particular sound. As we move across the chart to the right, the combinations become less common.” Olivia pointed at the first letter on the chart. “What’s this letter?”
Erica twitched her lips. “S.”
“Yes. Do you know what sound ‘s’ makes?”
Erica looked at the picture at the top of the chart. “Ssssss, like in snake.”
“Good. I’m not sure if you knew that off the top of your head or if you looked at the picture, but either way is fine. If you’re unsure about what sound the letter makes, use the picture until you know the sound.”
“Okay, I think I get it.”
They worked through the first two pages of the chart before taking a break. Olivia said, “You’re doing really well. You should be very proud of yourself.”
“It’s still kind of confusing.”
“I know it is. It will be for a while, but it’ll start clicking. The most important thing is for you to review this every day, several times a day. The more you practice and learn the sounds and letter combinations, the easier it’ll be to read more complicated material.”
Erica sighed. “Jack told me this would be hard work. I guess he was right.”
Olivia nodded. “Don’t you hate it when he’s right?”
“Oh, yeah.”
“Speaking of Jack…” Olivia looked over her shoulder. In the hour she’d been there, she hadn’t seen or heard a peep out of him. She wondered if he’d stood her up for their date. “Is he here?”
“He’s in his office. I asked him to leave us alone while we work. The last thing I want is him looking over my shoulder and making comments about how hard I’m trying.”
Erica stood and went to the refrigerator. She pulled a pitcher from the crowded space and retrieved two glasses from the cupboard. “I made some lemonade. Would you like a glass?”
“Yes, thank you.” Olivia took a sip. “Wow, that’s tart.”
“That’s how Jack likes it.”
Olivia took another sip and tried to settle her nerves. The conversation wouldn’t be easy. “Did Jack say anything to you about our plans for later?”
“No. Why? Is something wrong?”
“No, no, nothing’s wrong. After our lesson tonight, Jack is…he and I are…he’s coming over to my place.” Olivia looked up into Erica’s face expecting to find fury or disappointment. She felt a deep sense of relief when the woman appeared nonplussed.
“Okay. Whatever.”
“He’s spending the night.”
“Oh.” Erica shrugged. “Okay. Why are you telling me this? I’m a big girl. I can spend the night alone.”
“I didn’t want you to think we were sneaking around behind your back. I like you, and you love your brother. I wanted to be up front with you about our plans.”
“Your plans are none of my business.”
“I know, but I don’t want this to be weird between us. Your brother and I are attracted to each other.”
“No kidding,” Erica deadpanned.
“We’ve decided to spend some time with each other while he’s in town.”
“Again, so what?”
“So, it’s not what you think. I’m not a slut. I don’t sleep with every guy I’m attracted to. I’m really attracted to Jack, and he’s agreed to a monogamous relationship with me while he’s here. We plan to be discreet because of my situation with school, but I wanted you to know.”
“What you do with my brother is your business. What you do with anyone else is your business.”
“Erica, when I’m here teaching you, I’m here because I want to help you. It has nothing to do with whatever’s going on with me and Jack.”
“Fine. I get it, but I think you need to understand something. Jack doesn’t do relationships. Ever. So if you’re thinking this is going to go somewhere or lead to something, that won’t happen.”
“I know. He’s been very open with me about his past. I know what I’m getting into and I’m prepared for him to walk away when he’s done with the book.”
“You say that now…”
“I mean it. He’s here for a short time. He’s got to get back to Denver where he can get around and continue his life. I’ve got to get through this investigation and get my student teaching done, and I don’t have a clue where I’m going to end up. We’ll enjoy each other while we’re both here and nothing more.” Olivia saw the skepticism on Erica’s face that she’d expected from the beginning. She was glad, no matter how awkward the conversation, that she’d been honest. “I’ve never done anything like this before, but I’ve never met anyone like Jack before. I may end up getting hurt, but I know that going in. If it happens, I’ll have no one to blame but myself. I may shed a few tears in private, but I’ll step aside gracefully and move on with my life.”
Erica drummed her fingers on the table and stared at Olivia with a deep furrow between her brows. “Why would you take that risk when you know you’re going to get hurt?”
Olivia shrugged. “I guess I think he’s worth it. And to be totally honest, I can’t resist the man. No matter how much I’d like to stay away because he’s got heartbreak written all over him, I just can’t. It’s like a magnetic pull.”
“It is, isn’t it?”
Wait, Olivia thought. What was she talking about? “Are you having those same kinds of feelings about Lyle?”
“No.” Erica’s face turned a decided shade of pink. “No. Don’t be ridiculous.”
“Erica.” Olivia put her hand on Erica’s arm. “I saw you two kiss last night. It was a little hard to miss.”
“That was…” Erica took a large gulp of lemonade and gripped the glass in a white-knuckle grasp. “A mistake.”
“Was it?” Olivia asked. “It didn’t look like one.”
“It was. He just...he’s so…urgh!” She slammed her forehead on the table. “He’s got me all muddled up inside.”
“Lyle’s a good guy, Erica. I don’t think you have anything to worry about with him. He’s harmless.”
“Tell that to my insides when he gets that look in his eye. What is it with him, anyway? He asks too many questions, and even if I don’t answer, he seems to know what I’m thinking anyway. I’m mean to him, downright mean, and all he does is come back for more instead of leaving me alone. He calls me beautiful when I know for a fact I’m not. He wants me to sing for him and cook for him and it’s all just too much.”
“Why are you afraid? He likes you. It’s pretty obvious.”
“I can’t read! He’s a writer and he went to college. His brother’s a pilot; his mom’s an author. I’m not good enough for him.”
“That’s the stupidest thing I’ve heard you say. Do you really think Lyle wouldn’t like you anymore if he knew you have trouble reading? You can read, Erica, just not very well. Do you have any idea how hard it is for a dyslexic to learn? And as an adult? It’s only been one day and I see progress already. He’d be so proud of you if he knew.”
“He’s not going to know. You can’t tell him. You promised.”
“I won’t tell him, but I think you should. Whatever’s going on between the two of you, and no matter what you say, something is going on, you need to be honest. Lyle’s not the kind of guy to chase after a bunch of women. If he likes you, and we both know he does, he won’t stop pursuing you.”
Chapter 34