All Chapters of OFF LIMITS: HIS BEST FRIEND'S MOTHER : Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Xander's Pov The moment her office door clicked shut, I felt the shift in the air. That quiet thud wasn’t just wood meeting metal, it was temptation snapping its fingers, calling me closer. Olivia leaned against the edge of her desk, arms folded like a shield, eyes flashing warnings that her lips didn’t quite believe. “You shouldn’t be here,” she said, voice low, almost desperate. “Not after that night. Not after that message.” I dropped into the chair across from her, stretching like I had all the time in the world. “You keep saying that.” She blinked, irritated. “Because it’s true.” “Funny,” I murmured, cocking my head, “if you really wanted me gone, why’d you lock the door?” Her arms tightened around her chest. “For privacy.” I leaned forward, resting my elbows on my knees, closing the space inch by inch. “Privacy for what? A shoulder check? An ice pack? Olivia, come on. You and I both know you didn’t lock that door to keep people out. You locked it because you wanted me in.

Olivia’s POV Road trips were supposed to be routine. Get the team through the game, keep the injuries iced, tape the wrists, stretch the shoulders, check the bruises. Pack up, move on to the next city. Nothing more. But tonight wasn’t routine. The win should’ve left me buzzing, riding the high with everyone else. Instead, I spent the bus ride back to the hotel staring out the window, heart pounding for reasons that had nothing to do with the scoreboard. Because he was here. Because he wouldn’t leave me alone. Because I didn’t want him to. The hallway carpet muffled my steps as I made my way toward my room. Laughter spilled from behind doors, music pulsed from somewhere down the hall, and the scent of cologne and sweat lingered in the air. I told myself over and over, go straight in, lock the door, take a shower, sleep. Be smart. Be responsible. But my phone buzzed, and all that resolve cracked. Xander: Door’s unlocked. No excuses. My breath caught. My feet froze halfway to

Olivia’s POVThe message came in the middle of the night. No name, no words, just an image.My hand shook as I tapped it open, and my stomach bottomed out.It was us.Blurry, grainy, but unmistakable. Me and Xander tangled together, his hand in my hair, my lips on his. The glow of a streetlamp lit us enough to make it clear what we were doing.Kissing.God.My phone slipped from my fingers and clattered against the floor. I pressed both hands over my mouth to keep the scream from tearing out.This was it. Proof. Evidence. The thing I had prayed no one would ever catch.The knock came fast, urgent. “Liv? It’s me.”Xander.I scrambled, shoving the phone under the pillow before pulling the door open. His face was tight, stormy, his hoodie thrown over his head like he’d run straight from his room.“You got it too, didn’t you?” he demanded, shoving his own phone in my face. The same photo glowed on his screen.My knees nearly buckled. “Oh my God.”He stalked inside, pacing like a caged ani

Olivia’s POVI couldn’t stop shaking.By the time I got back to my apartment, my hands were trembling so badly I dropped my keys twice before I even managed to get the door open. I kicked it shut behind me and leaned against it, pressing my forehead to the wood, forcing myself to breathe.One photo. Just one. But it was enough to shatter everything.My bag slipped from my shoulder and landed with a dull thud on the floor. I stumbled to the couch, collapsed, and pulled my phone out again even though I didn’t need to. That picture was seared into my brain. Xander’s hand in my hair, his lips on mine, my face tilted up toward him like I didn’t care who saw.Except someone had seen. Someone had been close enough to capture it.The message that came with it echoed in my head. Does Ethan know what you’re doing with his best friend?My stomach twisted, bile rising in my throat.Ethan. My son. My baby.If he ever saw that picture, it wouldn’t just ruin his trust in me. It would destroy him.I

Olivia's PovThe second Ethan’s bedroom door shut, my knees gave out. I sank onto the edge of my bed, Xander’s hoodie clutched tight to my chest like it could steady the shaking in my hands. My heart was still racing, pounding so hard it hurt.He’d almost seen him. One step farther into the room and everything would’ve been over—my secret, my relationship with my son, maybe even Xander’s career.I dragged in a shaky breath, forcing my hands to work, to move. I stuffed the hoodie under a pile of laundry in the basket, my motions jerky, frantic. Then I gathered my shirt, smoothed the sheets, checked the floor three times before convincing myself no trace of him was left.Still, my skin burned with guilt.The creak of the floorboards made me jump. Ethan’s door opening again.I grabbed the nearest thing, my water glass and pretended I’d been heading to the kitchen all along.He stepped out into the hall, arms crossed over his chest. His eyes narrowed on me, sharp, too much like his father