Clay (BBW Secret Baby Bear Shifter Romance) (Secret Baby Bears Book 4) (33 page)

The only other frustrating thing was Jackson. She couldn’t stop thinking about him, no matter how hard she tried. It was like he’d wormed his way inside of her head as thoroughly as a weed, or a root deep in the earth. Even though Olivia tried consciously not to think of him, the hunky woodworker kept popping up inside her brain.
 

“Enough already,” Olivia said under her breath one evening as she was preparing dinner for herself and Max. “I can’t spend any more time thinking about you!”
 

“You!” Max chanted. Olivia rolled her eyes. He still wasn’t as vocal as he should have been for his age, and Olivia was loathe to admit it but she’d seen him speak the most frequently around Jackson. Even though Max had only been around the man for less than two days, they were old friends. Max even remembered his name, and Olivia found that her son chanting it out loud made her think of Jackson just as much as ever.
 

“I need to distract myself,” she said aloud to her reflection. The stress of the breakup and Lisa’s move were finally beginning to ebb from her system, and Olivia wanted to do something to make herself feel just a little better. One night, Max was spending the night with his cousins. Olivia dolled herself up and poured a glass of wine. She took a few flirtatious photos with the camera on her phone and uploaded them. Cautiously, she typed in “newchancedate.com” into the bar at the top of her browser.
 

But when the page loaded, she cringed. There were tons of stock photos of happy couples with smiling children. A coworker had told Olivia about this site – apparently her sister had met a husband there – and promised that it was supposed to be a stress-free way for people to ease back into the dating waters.
And stress-free is exactly what I need, too
, Olivia thought as she hesitantly clicked on the link that said “Create a free profile today!”
 

Olivia sighed as she began filling in basic information about herself. Height? 5’4”. Hair color? Brunette. Kids? One. She felt a hint of distaste creep into her mouth as she finished making the profile and began answering the first few questions.
 

“What’s the most impressive thing you’ve ever seen?”
 

Olivia
almost
typed in an answer about all of the woodwork at Jackson’s house, but stopped herself.
Not a good look, Liv
, she thought as she shook her head.
Not a good idea to talk about other dudes when trying to land a date
.
 

Instead, she wrote about Max learning to walk, and how amazed she was to see him grow every day.
 

When Olivia was done, she clicked “save” and then after a moment, refreshed the page. She gasped at the list of men who had already viewed her profile, then began to scrutinize their photographs.
 

“Hm,” Olivia murmured as she clicked on the first guy. “You could be interesting.”
 

She closed the page a moment later. His biography had seemed normal, until the third sentence where he mentioned that he was a widower….three times over.
 

“Not in a rush to become Dead Wife Number Four,” Olivia muttered as she picked up her glass of wine and took a long drink.
Stay positive
, she thought as she continued rooting through all of the profiles.
One of these has to be good
.
 

By the end of the night, she was feeling more discouraged than ever. The only guys who had responded to her messages all sounded suspiciously bratty, like Derek. There was no one who compared to Jackson. Hell, if Olivia was being honest with herself, there was no one who even came close.
 

The next evening, there was a knock on the door. Olivia hefted Max into her arms and cautiously opened the door, expecting it to be Lisa, or even worse, Derek.
 

Instead, it was Jackson. He was holding a brown paper bag full of something that smelled
delicious
and a bottle of wine. “I hope this isn’t too much of an imposition,” Jackson said with a grin. “I was in the neighborhood, I thought I’d stop by.”
 

Olivia could barely contain her excitement as she stepped to the side and allowed Jackson into the house. “I’m glad you stopped by,” she said shyly. “Max was really starting to miss you.”
 

“Just Max?” Jackson gave her a questioning look. “Or maybe you, too?”
 

Olivia gave him a coy smile. “My lips are sealed,” she said softly as she led the way into the kitchen.
 

Max was overjoyed to see his new best friend. He waved his arms and chattered excitedly through the whole meal. Jackson had brought Peruvian chicken with rice and beans, and the three of them enjoyed a wonderful meal together. When Max’s lids started falling down when they were almost finished, Olivia jumped out of her chair.
 

“I’m just going to put him down,” she told Jackson. “I’ll be right back. Is that okay?”
 

“Of course,” Jackson said. He took another giant mouthful of chicken.
 

Olivia grinned. She carried Max into his bedroom. There were butterflies in her stomach, and while she didn’t want to think about why she was feeling so nervous, she knew that it was because of Jackson. “Mommy has an important night tonight,” she said softly to Max as she laid him down in his light blue crib. “So you behave, okay?”
 

Max yawned in Olivia’s face, then snuggled up with his favorite stuffed animal and closed his eyes. Satisfied, Olivia crept out of the room, pulling the door closed behind her as quietly as she could.
 

Jackson had started to clean up the kitchen by the time she was back.
 

“You don’t have to do that,” Olivia chastised. “Really, you’re the one who brought the food! You should relax.”
 

Jackson laughed. “If you’re trying to let me down easy, I get it,” he said softly. He chuckled under his breath. “You’re so cute when you get so flustered.”
 

Olivia’s cheeks pinked and she dipped her head. “Whatever you say,” she said, trying to hide how flattered she felt. “Thank you so much for bringing that over. Everything was delicious. Especially that green sauce!”
 

“I love it,” Jackson said with a smirk. “The guys at that place know me, and sometimes I go in just for the sauce. I put it on everything,” he said. “You should have looked inside my fridge. Then you’d know what a sad bachelor I really am.”
 

Olivia shook her head. “I’m sure you’re exaggerating.” She reached across Jackson for a dish, but her feet slipped on a wet part of the floor and she went skidding right into Jackson’s arms. He caught her easily, bracing her arms just as he had done at the wedding. But unlike the wedding, Olivia couldn’t make herself pull away. Jackson’s musky scent washed over her and she shuddered, suddenly aware that she was soaked between the legs. They stared at each other, the moment growing more heated by the second.
 

“I really like you, Olivia,” Jackson said in a husky voice. She stared into his golden-brown eyes, feeling a heady, intoxicating blend of lust and attraction.
 

“I know,” she said softly. Finally, Jackson leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. At first, the kiss was awkward, as all new kisses are. Then, after a moment, it began to heat up. Olivia was increasingly aware of Jackson’s lips pressing against her own. A thrill of pleasure shot through her body and she wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her torso against his muscular body. Jackson felt so good to kiss – his lips were warm, dry, and soft, and when he slipped his tongue between her lips, Olivia thought she was going to die of arousal.
 

“Jackson,” Olivia moaned softly as she broke the kiss. Jackson’s hands slid down her back and she trembled as his warm, rough fingertips tugged up the hem of her shirt and touched her bare skin. Eagerly, she pulled him close and kissed him passionately, sliding her tongue alongside his. Jackson growled with desire and that set Olivia off: the private area between her legs was thumping with lust. Jackson squeezed Olivia tightly to his body and tugged off her shirt, tossing it on the floor. Olivia crossed her arms over her chest and blushed shyly as Jackson stared at her body.
 

“You’re so beautiful,” Jackson murmured in a husky growl. He stepped forward and scooped Olivia up in his arms, swiftly carrying her into the bedroom and closing the door.
 

Once they were in her bedroom, Olivia felt an amazing rush of adrenaline come over her body. She tugged frantically at Jackson’s clothes, desperate to see him naked. When his shirt was off, she gasped and marveled at the shape of his chest. He was muscular and hairy, and she ran a hand through his chest hair and shivered.
 

“You’re so manly,” Olivia giggled. “It’s really hot.”
 

Jackson winked at her and kicked his jeans to the ground. “So pleased the lady finds me attractive,” he teased. The moment turned serious again when he grabbed Olivia and tugged her jeans off, leaving her clad only in panties. Growling, he pushed Olivia back down on the bed and nosed his way down her body. She shivered at the feel of Jackson’s rough, hot tongue on her belly. When he began tugging her panties off with his teeth, she thought she was going to scream with anticipation.
 

Frantically, Olivia tugged at Jackson’s boxers until he was naked. His cock bobbed and stood straight up in the air, thick and beautiful like the rest of his body. She gasped when Jackson crawled on top of her and nudged her legs apart.
 

“Touch me, please,” Olivia moaned into Jackson’s neck. As his fingers stroked the soft inside of her thighs, she shivered and spread her legs as far as she could. Jackson softly stroked her labia and finally slipped a finger inside, making Olivia gasp and cry out with pleasure. Jackson seemed to know
exactly
how to touch her, and she could feel herself getting wetter by the second.
 

“God, Olivia,” Jackson groaned in a husky growl. “I need you.” He pulled his hand away, grabbing both of Olivia’s wrists in one hand and pinning them over her head. She arched her back and moaned as he leaned against her, pushing his hips against her own until she could feel the head of his erection straining at her secret entrance. When Jackson bucked his hips and slid inside, Olivia let out a loud, strangled cry of lust. It felt so good that she didn’t even think she could move, but soon she was moving along with Jackson. Their hips bucked in the same rhythm, their mouths tarried and lingered on each other’s faces. Olivia closed her eyes and moaned steadily as she felt something hot gripping her lower belly. The lust and pleasure spread through her body until she felt every cell, every nerve tingling as if lit on the most delicious fire.
 

Jackson’s body bucked and strained against Olivia and she could feel his muscles clenching and tightening. When he let out a loud growl and slammed her body hard into the mattress, she felt a powerful orgasm rip through her body. It strained her own muscles until she felt happy tears come to her eyes.
 

Afterwards, they lay tangled together in Olivia’s bed. Olivia was sweating and hot, and finally she pulled herself away and went to turn on the fan.
 

“You’re incredible,” Jackson murmured when Olivia came back to bed and rested her face on his shoulder. “You’re so amazing.”
 

Olivia bit her lip and closed her eyes, sighing happily. “You are,” she said softly. “And I certainly hope you’ll be spending the night.”
 

Chapter Four

Olivia slept better than ever before with Jackson beside her. She didn’t even have any weird dreams about what was going to happen in the morning, or Derek, or Lisa. It was the best night of sleep that she’d gotten in years.
 

In the morning, there was a loud knock on the door. It was insistent, sharp. Olivia was awakened by the cries of Max. She leapt out of bed and pulled a robe on. When she opened the bedroom door, Jackson finally stirred.
 

Jackson yawned. “Do you want me to go take him?”
 

Olivia bit her lip. “Do you mind?” She frowned, then winced as the knocking started again, louder than ever. “I don’t know who’s here,” she added.
 

Swallowing hard, Olivia ran a hand through her brown hair and pulled the door open. There stood Derek, looking brutish and angry.
 

“Who’s car is that?” He pointed towards Jackson’s car in the driveway. “I don’t remember you having new friends,” he added with a sneer.
 

“Derek, what do you want?” Olivia shifted her weight and stared right at her ex. It was funny, how little she felt inside with him standing right in front of her. “Can I help you?”
 

“Liv, I need to talk to you,” Derek said. His tone changed from nasty to almost kind, and Olivia sighed. “It’s important.”
 

She swallowed hard. “Why? I think the time for talking is over, Derek. And if it wasn’t then, it definitely is now.”
 

Derek shook his head. “Look, I get it, you’re still angry with me. I know. But hear me out, okay? Max
deserves
a father, Liv. And I slept with Lisa to make you jealous!”