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This only causes Olivia to laugh harder. She clutches her stomach, and I worry she might choke on her burger.

“Oh, don’t worry. I took an edible the other day and stared at a lamppost for three hours. Best afternoon I’ve had in weeks. I’m just glad she’s enjoying herself,” the young waiter whispers after glancing around to check no one could overhear.

I take the opportunity to swipe another bite of her chicken burger and without having to lie, I tell George the food was delicious and settle the bill.

“Sir, this is coming from my manager. He’s asked me that if you’re to return, you’ll need to be a little more conscious of the other guests. Otherwise, we can reserve a private room for you.”

“Of course, not a problem.”We won’t be returning.

Olivia is breathless and trying to regain her composure but ends up yelling, “How was the chicken?”at the top of her lungs before falling into fits of giggles again.

“However, if you have the name of the person who sold the edibles, I’d love to get their details,” he whispers.

“Next time, George.” I slap a one hundred dollar bill into his hand. “I’d better get her home.”

My arms are snaked around her slim waist, and I end up hauling her out of the restaurant and to the car.

“That was the best meal I’ve ever had.” She grins as I open her door.

“Me too.” And it really was.

We stop for ice cream. Olivia orders strawberry, and I take chocolate fudge. We swap halfway through until the last bite, and we swap back so she can have strawberries as the final taste in her mouth.

It feels strange to indulge her with this. I haven’t had such a fun dinner in years. I felt young again, as if life is meant to be more than what I’ve been doing. Olivia doesn’t have an easy life; she works hard, unbelievably hard. But she enjoys the little things and doesn’t take herself too seriously.

When we reach the house, I walk her down the path after sending Jimmy home with the car. She doesn’t tell me I can’t stay, so I assume she’s fine with it.

She unlocks the door, and as we step into the house, the glow of the living room light warms the room. The date has gone better than I could have imagined. She leaned into me, held my hand, and let me touch her. She’s been as playful as shewas when I was under her control in the basement. It gives me hope that she’s believing me when I say I’m not going to hurt her. But I temper my feelings. I can’t overwhelm her with this. It’s new to us both, but this change in dynamic is much more difficult for her. This has been inevitable to me since last week, probably since before then. But she tased me yesterday. So I’m going to have to live up to my word and be patient.

She stands, looking at the floor awkwardly. I run my fingers through her hair, with my other hand cupping her jaw. She licks her bottom lip before biting it lightly.

Fuck.

Any other date, any other woman, I’d take. Take her mouth, take her tongue, take her to bed. I’d take and take until there was nothing left for her to give.

I use my thumb to pull her lip down, all while she’s looking up at me with a mixture of lust and apprehension. It’s too soon, I know this.

“Tonight was better than I could have imagined. You’re perfect, Olivia.”

“You were mostly a gentleman, something that surprised me.”

I grin wickedly, desperate to spar a little longer with her.

Sighing, I run my fingers down her arm. When I reach her hand, I draw it up to my lips and kiss her knuckles.

“Good night, Killer.”

She frowns a little, and with a sag in her shoulders, she whispers, “Good night, Austin.”

For the second night in a row, I willingly descended the stairs to the basement alone.

???

Rolling over for the fifth time in as many minutes, I’m torn between striding up the stairs to pin Olivia to her bed or going for a run to shake off my discomfort. I never used toconsider options. I would take what I wanted, when I wanted it. And it was clear Olivia wanted me as much as I did her. At least her body did. But as discussed with Dr. Alfie, I’m in this for the long haul. My dick is protesting, but my chest is puffed out with pride. My control around her is hanging by a thread, but I cling to it like a life preserver. I won’t let my past dictate how I behave now.

That being said, there’s nothing wrong with watching her for a few moments as she sleeps. That wouldn’t technically be breaking the rules. And given that I’ve already watched her sleeping once before, it doesn’t really count.

With that justification, I slip out from under the blanket and pad up the stairs. Despite not being locked in the basement, my heart rate increases as I sneak through the moonlit hallway and into the living area. Reaching the stairs, I keep my feet close to the edges of the steps so as not to creak any loose floorboards.