Chapter_62
It was a Monday morning, and Olivia felt as though her body was weighed down by exhaustion. She had barely managed to wake up, the sunlight already high in the sky, streaming through the window. When her blurry gaze focused, she froze—there, sitting next to her, was Tyler.
Her heart skipped a beat, and instinctively, she buried herself beneath the sheets. Her voice came out small, almost a whisper, as she asked, “Didn’t you leave?”
Tyler didn’t seem at all startled by her reaction. Dressed in a shirt and slacks, his tie and coat still untouched, he looked over at her and answered calmly, “I called your school and gave you the day off. Thought you might want to sleep in.”
Olivia’s face flushed, a wave of embarrassment flooding over her. She pulled the sheets tighter around herself and barely managed to say, “I… It’s okay. I can go to school.”
Tyler didn’t press her, merely shrugging. “It’s up to you. I figured you might want to rest longer.”
She could feel the heat rising in her cheeks. The awkwardness of being in his bed, uninvited and with no memory of how she had ended up there, was suffocating. What if the maid saw her? What would she say? The questions bounced around in her mind as she hesitated.
Tyler, on the other hand, seemed utterly unfazed by the situation. Standing up, he casually announced, “I’m going to change.” His presence was calm, unaffected, as if the moment held no significance at all.
Olivia stayed where she was, feeling as if the bed was the only place safe enough to hide. She could still hear him moving around, the soft rustle of fabric, and the click of his collar as he adjusted it. Her thoughts, however, were far from focused on the reality around her. Her mind kept replaying the words he had said to her last night, words that had been so teasing, so intimate. She told herself she shouldn’t read too much into it—he had only been flirting, right?
When Tyler emerged from the walk-in closet, dressed and looking effortlessly polished, Olivia snapped out of her daze. She hadn’t expected him to return so quickly, and in her haste to escape, she scrambled out of the bed—and collided with him.
Tyler’s reflexes were quick, and he caught her easily, his hands steady as they gripped her waist. Olivia’s breath hitched. Embarrassed, she lowered her gaze, her hands instinctively gripping the fabric of his collar, her heart racing.
His eyes twinkled with amusement as he regarded her. “Why the panic?” he asked, his voice smooth, playful.
Olivia, flustered, mumbled from within his arms, “Nothing. I just… suddenly felt dizzy.”
She desperately tried to salvage her dignity, hoping her excuse would hold up, but she knew it sounded weak. Tyler, however, seemed entertained. He leaned in closer, his breath warm against her ear, whispering, “Do you still feel dizzy now, then?”
Olivia’s heart skipped again, a flutter of nervous energy rushing through her at the sound of his words and the closeness of his lips brushing against her earlobe. It felt so intimate, so charged. She stayed still, unwilling to look up, caught between her desire to retreat and the pull of his presence.
After a moment, Tyler pulled away, his voice soft but laced with an intimacy that made Olivia’s pulse quicken. “I’m leaving now.” The way he said it—almost tender, like a husband speaking to a newlywed wife—made Olivia’s heart flutter once more.
She reluctantly let go of his collar, her fingers tingling from the contact. “Hmm, okay,” she replied softly, her voice betraying the strange mix of emotions swirling inside her.
Tyler turned to leave, but as he reached for his phone, it rang. Looking at the screen, he saw that it was Naomi calling, several missed calls flashing up. A frown crossed his face as he glanced at the phone, then at Olivia. She felt a tight knot form in her stomach, a strange sense of panic bubbling up within her as she instinctively stepped back, creating a small, unspoken distance between them.
Tyler noticed the shift in her posture but didn’t comment. His expression was unreadable as he gripped his phone and left the bedroom, the door clicking softly behind him.
Olivia’s heart was still pounding in her chest as she stood in the room, left alone with her thoughts. The intimacy of the moment, Tyler’s teasing words, the way he had held her… all of it left her feeling vulnerable, exposed.
She tried to push it all down, but it was hard. She couldn’t shake the feeling that things were shifting, changing between them in ways she couldn’t fully understand.
Making her way downstairs, she hoped to escape the tension, but as she entered the hallway, she was met with the sight of the maid, who greeted her with a smile. “You looked exhausted after Ms. Naomi’s birthday party yesterday.”
The maid’s friendly tone felt like a knife to the chest. Olivia forced a smile, trying to ignore the guilt and unease that clawed at her. She nodded silently, trying to act casual, but the words lingered, reminding her of everything she had been trying to forget.