Romans de GRACIE

Olivia I was so furious and did not want to see Jake again. I literally ran out, like in the movies only it took a while for a cab to pull up. Then I remembered the car we came with was in the parking. Jake could take the cab for all I cared. The cool night air wrapped around me like a slap, sharp and sobering. I walked fast, ignoring the throb in my feet from the heels I’d insisted on wearing just to look the part, they were killing my feet It wasn’t far to the parking garage, but every step made the storm inside me swell a little more.I heard his footsteps before I saw him.“Olivia,” Jake called after me. “Wait.”I didn’t. I reached the car first, the black SUV we’d taken from the hotel, yanked the passenger door open and climbed in, slamming it harder than I meant to. I crossed my arms, staring straight ahead, jaw tight. Jake slid into the driver’s seat beside me, shut his door more calmly, and sat in silence for a second.Then he exhaled like I was the one who’d started all thi

Olivia. I was so happy this night was almost over, all I wanted to do was go back to the hotel and get into my bed. I was exhausted from making small conversation all night. This was exhausting, how do people go on multiple dates every other day. I couldn’t do it. I would rather be home instead curled up watching my favorite show. The music pulsed through the lounge, vibrating the floor beneath my heels as I leaned a little closer to the man in front of me Lamont, or maybe Larry, something with a L. He had a nice smile, easy eyes, the kind of harmless charm that made conversation flow without effort. I wasn’t looking for anything. Just a drink, a laugh, the illusion of control after a week of long hours and passive aggressive meetings. All I knew was that he was a big investor and Jake needed to get him, but I also liked the attention he was giving me and how much it was bothering Jake. But he was a nice breath of fresh air, and I loved that all night he had managed to get me off m

Jake. This was going to be a really long night for me, I couldn't even get my eyes off her, everything about her was just getting to me. How she was moving, just everything. We were seated at the private rooftop table less than five minutes when I realized I wasn’t going to retain a damn thing anyone said tonight.Not with Olivia sitting next to me like that. She was doing her job, sitting next to me taking notes but this was more distracting, I could smell her scent all over me. Everything about her was divine. I don’t even remember what she ordered. My brain had short circuited the second we sat down and she uncrossed those impossibly long legs, leaned forward with a smile, and lit up the room.And I mean lit it up.The investor we were meeting, Greg Lamont, looked like someone had dropped a glass of hundred year old Scotch in his lap. Wide eyed. Flushed. Completely smitten.And Olivia? She was working it. Laughing, tossing her hair, making small talk about real estate and whiske

Jake. I was halfway through reviewing the talking points for tonight’s dinner when the suite door creaked open behind me.I didn’t look up right away, figured it was Olivia, probably back from shopping, maybe annoyed. I wouldn’t blame her. The things I said last night… I’d been drunk, yes, but not out of control. Just careless.And for some reason, her hurt had stayed with me.The way she had looked at me, I felt bad about how I had worded some things, she didn't deserve it and I was going to apologize later on for it. I closed the laptop slowly, rubbing the bridge of my nose, trying to find the right words to say when she walked out.But when I finally turned toward her, I forgot how to breathe.She stood there in the middle of the room, poised like something out of a fever dream.A deep green dress hugged her in all the right places, tailored within an inch of its life. The fabric shimmered ever so slightly under the light, making her skin glow. Her heels added just enough height

Olivia. I don't know how long I stayed downstairs before I went back up to my room. But when I got back he was in his own room snoring so loud I could hear him from my own room. Vegas mornings felt like hangovers even if you hadn’t been drinking.I woke up in a sunlit suite that felt colder than it should’ve. Jake’s door was still closed. The echo of last night hung between the walls like smoke lipstick, whiskey, and words I couldn't forget.“Something that’ll look good beside me.”The phrase looped in my head like some twisted mantra. I didn’t know if it was the insult or the implication that stung more.Either way, I wasn’t going to let him have the last word.I got dressed in jeans and a basic tank, slipped on my sandals, and left without knocking on his door. He’d made it clear what he wanted: someone polished. Decorative. Assistant Barbie. Fine. I’d give him that.But I’d do it my way. I picked up the perfectly laid black card he left out for me last night to use on my shopping

OliviaI wasn’t expecting the sound of the door. I had already come into terms that Jake was not coming back tonight, so the door opening actually caught me unaware. It was past two in the morning, and I’d finally dozed off on the velvet chaise in my room, phone clutched in one hand, heartache clenched in the other.The soft beep of the door unlocking startled me awake.I blinked, dazed, sitting up as the suite door swung open and Jake stepped inside like nothing had happened. Like it wasn’t the middle of the night. Like I hadn’t spent hours wondering where he was and hating myself for it.He shut the door behind him, and that’s when I saw it.The stagger in his step. The flush in his cheeks. The unmistakable smell of whiskey and something musky and expensive on his breath.And then the lipstick.Faint, but obvious, smeared along the collar of his white dress shirt. A wine colored mark that didn’t belong to me since I didn't even touch him when he dropped me off at the hotel. I don'