Finding Olivia (Trace + Olivia #1) (10 page)

I threw a pillow at her. “I know sinners do.”

She caught the pillow and hugged it to her chest. “Then there’s a special place in Hell with my name on it,” she winked, “and a majority of the population of the world. Everyone is a sinner when it comes to something.”

“So,” I drawled, “I assume you’re going to give me a shirt to wear. I don’t think they’ll let me eat in just my bra.”

“Oh, right,” Avery shook her head and grabbed a
lightweight sweater off of her bed. “Here,” she handed it to me.

It was oatmeal colored and the bottom of it hung in different lengths. I was surprised by how soft it felt, like a blanket you’d give a baby.

I pulled it over my head and adjusted it so that it hung right.

“Seriously, Olivia, you’re so pretty,” Avery looked me up and down. “It’s not fair.”

Avery was calling me pretty? What planet was this?

Avery was drop dead gorgeous with red hair that hung halfway down her back, pouty lips, and insane curves. She had the kind of body girls desired and guys drooled over. She wasn’t big but she wasn’t small either. I t
hought she was the perfect healthy size.

She grabbed a leopard print scarf off her closet door and fixed it around my neck.

“These will look great too,” she handed me a pair of brown leather boots that looked like the kind you’d wear to go horseback riding.

I sat down and pulled them on. T
hey almost came as high as my knees.

“Almost perf
ect,” Avery appraised her handy-work.

In a matter of seconds
, she had my hair hanging down one side in a fishtail braid.

“Now, you’re perfect,” she grinned.

I laughed, shaking my head at my best friend.

Avery had changed into a gray dress, with black tights, heels, and a red jacket.
She looked gorgeous. No matter what we were doing, Avery always looked like a knockout. I don’t think I had ever seen her look rumpled or frazzled.

“Let’s get outta here,” she grabbed her gigantic purse and slung it over her shoulder. Sometimes I wondered what she smuggled in there. No one needed a purse that big.

“Right behind you,” I replied, taking a deep breath.

★★★

Avery parked her red Volkswagen Beetle in front of Buffalo Wild Wings.

Her phone chimed and she read the text.

“That’s Luca, he says that they’re already inside,” she tucked her phone in her purse.

I followed her inside, not saying a word.

I was extremely nervous and I didn’t know why. I had been spending a lot of time with Trace, but this felt different. Maybe, it was because we were meeting up to do something that wasn’t on my list. Or
maybe,
it was because I knew he didn’t know I was coming and I was scared of his reaction. Yeah, I was pretty sure it was that.

Avery spotted Luca instantly, and what do you know? He was wearing a vest again, with a fedora perched atop his head. I was really beginning to wonder what he had against shirts, or maybe he just wanted to show off his impressive muscular physique. More than one woman was eyeing him appreciatively.

My eyes moved away from Luca and locked on Trace’s intense green stare.

He wasn’t check
ing me out like most guys would. Instead, he was looking into my eyes, as a smile graced his face. And not just a little smile either; it was a big happy one that showed me all of his perfect white teeth.

My heart leapt.

Trace was happy to see me.

Avery and I
took the chairs across from the guys.

“Hey,” I smiled lightly at Trace, hoping the dim lighting of the restaurant
hid my blushing cheeks.

“Hey,” he leaned towards me, his eyes
glowing.

Trac
e’s eyes were always expressive. I was beginning to read his moods just by the variance in shade. The sparkle in his eyes told me he was feeling playful. I liked playful Trace…well, when he wasn’t making me blush.

“I didn’t know you were coming,” he tilted his head to study me, grin widening, “but I’m really glad you’re here.”

A gust of air fled my lungs.

“I’m glad to be here,” I spoke softly.

“Don’t go getting shy on me now, Olivia,” he smirked.

Avery
, clearing her throat loudly, had me turning to face her. I blushed an even darker shade of red when I saw that a waitress was standing there, waiting for our drink orders.

I stammered that I wanted sweet tea and Trace
ordered a beer.

I picked up the menu, using it to block my reddened face from Trace’s powerful gaze.

I settled on an order of eight boneless wings with sweet BBQ sauce. That seemed safe enough since I wasn’t a fan of spicy food.

When the waitress came with our drinks
, I ordered my food quickly.

Trace kept watching me
, and the feel of his eyes skating along my body, was igniting a fire inside me.

For something to distract myself
, I grabbed another packet of sugar, and added it to my already sweet tea. It wasn’t like you could ever make anything too sweet.

I was taking a sip of my tea when Avery leaned over
, and whispered in my ear, “Trace is undressing you with his eyes. He wants to do you, right here, right now.”

I
choked, spewing sweet tea across the table, and coughing so hard my sides began to hurt.

Avery giggled, beating my back.

“Are you okay?” Trace asked, wiping up the mess I had made. Thank God none had gotten on him or I would’ve melted into a puddle of embarrassed goo.

“Fine,” I croaked, my voice hoarse from all the coughing.

I glared at Avery and she hid a smile behind her hand.

Luca seemed oblivious
, but I wondered if he was really as aloof as he acted. He was a weird guy. I guess that’s why he was perfect for Avery.

“You sure you’re okay?” Trace questioned,
dropping the soiled napkin where the waitress could grab it.

“Yeah,” I took a breath and it burned my raw throat. If Avery
was sitting across from me, I would kick her so hard in the knees, she wouldn’t be able to walk for days.

Trace took a sip of his beer, eyeing me. He really needed to stop with the whole staring thing. It was turning me into a nervous wreck.

“Get any homework done?” He asked, deciding that was a safe topic.

“No,” I rolled my eyes. Pointing at Avery, I added, “This one dragged me away before I could accomplish anything.”

“What can I say?” Avery flipped her hair over her shoulder. “That’s what best friends are for.”

“Failing grades?” I turned to look at her with a raised brow.

She rolled her eyes, and turned her attention to Luca, who only seemed to grunt in reply to anything she said.

Trace shook his head and chuckled. “You two are complete opposites.”

“I know,” I laughed, “but I love her.” I poked Avery’s side, and she glared at me, before resuming her conversation.

“I know what you mean,” Trace chuckled. “Sometimes I wonder why I’m friends with this weirdo,” he slapped Luca on the back.

Luca chuckled, “It’s ‘cause I make things interesting.”

Oh my God, he spoke more than two words!

“That’s for sure,” Trace laughed. “Your stories about California are the best.”

Luca took a drink of his beer, gazing out into the restaurant. I guessed he had used up his word quota
for the day.

“Luca was a professional surfer in California,” Trace explained
, since Luca had turned into a mute once more.

“Why’d you quit
?” Avery asked.

Luca huffed a sigh, leveling Trace with his eerie pale blue eyes. Reluctantly, he removed his fedora and pushed his shaggy
light brown hair off his forehead showing us a jagged white scar that marred at least an inch of his forehead and disappeared into his hair.

Avery’s eyes widened and her mouth formed a perfect O. “What happened?”

Luca glared at Trace and then met Avery’s eyes. “Surfing accident, the scar’s about six inches long. I lost a lot of blood and almost lost my life. After that, I didn’t have the passion for the sport anymore, so I quit,” he shrugged, pulling his hair down to hide the scar once more and replaced his hat.

“Wow,” Avery gasped.

I wondered if she was saying wow about his surfing accident, or at the fact that he spoke a whole freakin’ paragraph.

The waitress came with our food but Avery was too busy staring at Luca to notice.

I rolled my eyes, choosing to ignore them.

I
tried to eat my dinner as quickly as possible. I wanted to go. I felt so incredibly awkward, more awkward than I normally felt. I was able to talk to Trace easily now, but something about having extra company there, scared me. I was afraid I’d say something to Trace, Avery would overhear me, and proceed to tell me that I should talk about something else.

I really needed to stop being so insecure.

Trace’s eyes twinkled and his lips quirked with barely contained laughter.

“What?” I asked, automatically reaching up to touch my face.

Oh, shit.

I had BBQ sauce all over my mouth. I pulled my hand away, staring at the stickiness now covering my fingers.

I bit down on my lip, trying not to cry. This was so
embarrassing!

“Here,” Trace tossed one of the wet wipes at me.

That only made me want to cry more. I felt like a child.

I was really beginning to hate that I was so shy.
Avery would have brushed this off as if it was nothing. But I couldn’t do that.

I ripped the packet open and hastily wiped my mouth and finger
s clean, vowing to,
never-ever-not-in-a-million-years
, eat BBQ wings again. Nope. Never.

“Hey,” Trace leaned across the table, “it’s okay.”

No, it most certainly was
not
okay. I was about to cry in front of a room full of strangers…and Trace.

I nodded, avoiding his scrutiny. I stared at the basket of chicken. I’d only eaten two of them, but suddenly
, I wasn’t hungry. In fact, I was pretty sure I would never be hungry again.

I pushed my basket away and covered them with a napkin.

Trace watched my movements, not missing anything, before doing the same and motioning the waitress over.

She scurried quickly
to the table. “Is there something I can get you?” She looked down at the food we’d barely touched. “Did you not like the food?”

“We’re not very hungry,” Trace explained with a grin. Pulling his wallet out of his pocket he handed her money. “This should cover our meals,” he pointed to himself and me, “and a tip for you.”

“Alright,” she accepted the money. “If you didn’t enjoy your meal I can speak to my manager and-”

Trace held up a hand to stop her. She tucked a piece of blond
e hair that had fallen out of her ponytail, behind her ear.

“That’s not necessary,” he told her.

“Okay,” she said softly, skittering away, but glancing back over her shoulder at Trace.

“Did you drive?” He asked me.

“No,” I shook my head. “Avery brought me.”

“Good,” he grinned, tapping Luca on the shoulder. “We’re gonna head out. Get Avery to take you home.”

Avery grinned like the cat that ate the canary. “Don’t expect me back tonight,” she informed me.

I rolled my eyes. Avery was cocky enough to be a guy. There was no one else on the planet like her.

Trace stood and shrugged his lean shoulders into his leather jacket. I raked my eyes over him, I’d been too nervous earlier to see what he was wearing. Surprise, surprise, he wore a purple plaid shirt.

“Come on,” he reached for my hand and led me outside.

I noticed that there was an area for people to eat outside but it was currently closed for the winter months.

Trace led me to a black car that definitely wasn’t the one he’d been driving.

“New car?” I asked, as he used a push button to unlock it.
Definitely a new car.

“Yeah,” he shrugged. “I’ve had it a few months. I don’t like to drive the other one much.”

“Hmmm,” I mused, sliding inside, and then rubbing my hands along the black leather seats.
How did he afford this?
“What kind of car is this?” I asked.

“Dodge Charger,” He answered, backing out.

I grew quiet as he drove down the road and turned left at the stoplight, driving passed the CVS and Payless, before turning sharply into the Dairy Queen parking lot.

My body slammed into the door. “Oomph,” I groaned.