Page 66 of Between Desire and Denial

“Never going to get bored with this one, Jameson. This one has my girl’s heart.” He kissed the side of my head.

“Yeah. She’s got everyone’s heart even if she doesn’t know it,” Jameson said, his eyes on me. “Olive, you have some free time to get lunch this week or next? I’d like to hear more about the article you’re writing.”

“Oh, sure. We’ll plan something soon, okay?”

Dimitri didn’t say anything, but I felt his hand steer me forward, like he was done talking with Jameson for the day. “We’ll see you guys later.”

Jameson said goodbye, and I looked up at Dimitri as we walked, “What other community?”

“I’ll show you.” He got a gleam in his eye. “We can look at it later tonight and you can tell me what you think?”

A little piece of my heart lurched. “Why?” I whispered.

“You grew up here. You probably know more about them than I do.”

“So you wantmyhonest opinion on another huge investment you’re going to make? You think I’m qualified to give that to you?” I looked down at the sidewalk and tried not to read too much into it.

“Why wouldn’t I want your opinion? You might be the most qualified since I’ll be wanting you around while I’m working on it.”

It was a small moment, so small no one else would have noticed. Yet, the small moments made the biggest impact in a person’s life sometimes. “I just… I used to work on research with Rufford, and he would say what I thought didn’t matter and—”

“I don’t give a fuck what that guy had to say, Olive. Your opinion matters to me.”

“Okay,” I whispered because that meant more to me than I realized. It occurred to me right then that Rufford really had never respected me, nor did my stepmom or father. But Kee had, and I’d followed her around the world. I might just follow through with Dimitri’s plan, too, if he made me feel important enough.

Then Dimitri announced, “You know, I have to leave again Saturday. You should just come with me?”

“Oh.” His announcement felt like a knife to my gut for some reason. It twisted in like I cared whether or not he would be here. “No. I need to stay and make sure we get the mattress delivery and finish up this article. The board meeting is coming up.”

“So?” He didn’t seem to care at all about the HOA and the ordinances now.

I reminded him, “So, we need to get people to vote for your condos and offices, Dimitri. I’ll stay here and work on that.”

“Maybe. Or maybe not,” he grumbled, and for just a second, I wondered what it would be like if he wasn’t there for the investment. What if he was there for me?

That day, I chose not to be mad at him about the birth control or about hooking up. I chose to consider what it would be like if I really dated him. And what I considered made my heart thump wildly, happily, and fearfully.

Yet, it stuttered to a stop as we neared my childhood home. No one was ever home when I usually passed, but now, I froze on the sidewalk when the front door opened and my brother came outside with a basketball. He’d always played, but I hadn’t seen him do so at all since I’d been back.

“That your brother?” Dimitri asked.

I nodded and bit my lip. All this time, I’d been hoping to catch him outside, but now that it was happening, I wasn’t sure what to do.

“Yeah, but he’s ignoring me and mad at me, Dimitri,” I whispered because that’s all I could say without letting loose the emotions I was feeling. I hadn’t exactly told Dimitri what the problem with Knox was, just that there was one. I couldn’t explain to him the drugs. It felt too complicated, too painful.

And maybe he saw how stuck I was there on that sidewalk, because he didn’t miss a step. He gripped my hand and pulled me a little forward before looking me in the eyes to ask, “Want to do this? Is it time to introduce me to your family?”

He was standing with me, not leaving. He had my hand in his like he was there to give me the support I needed. It made me want to move forward, to take a chance, and not run away. I took one breath before I said, “It’s now or never.”

Chapter Twenty-Three

OLIVE

My brother tuckeda basketball under his arm and glared at us as soon as he saw us making our way over. I tried to talk fast under my breath to Dimitri. “So, we don’t get along, we haven’t in years. He’s not been himself lately. He won’t want to talk to you or me."

“Best time to make amends is the present time,” he murmured.

One foot in front of the other, I thought of what I would say when we got to the driveway.