Page 38 of Learn For Me
So, that left his personality.
Zeke choked on a self-deprecating snort.
For an old guy, his sense of humor wasn’t too outdated; he made the subbies laugh at family barbeques, and the kids loved him on the nights he babysat. At least the oldest ones called him Uncle, not Grandpa—he wasn’t sure his pride would stand up to that title just yet.
Maybe he had a temper, but it was kept under lock and key. When a man held a woman’s trust in his hands along with her vulnerable body, there was no place for quick fists or a volatile tongue.
Patience, compassion, andunderstandingwere far more effective at soothing a nervous submissive, and there were kinder ways to reprimand a recalcitrant female than beating the brat out of her.
Sex didn’t really apply to these calculations, he reminded himself, studying the note again. At the time she wrote it, they hadn’t shared so much as a kiss, so anything intimate wasn’t relevant.
Perhaps he should just be grateful that shedidlove him instead of digging into the why. Did it honestly matter if it was his witty conversational skills or his burned, battered body which had done the trick?
No. No, the only thing he needed to focus on was loving her back and figuring out a way to keep her.
Collar, cuffs, or ring?
***
Olivia
It was incredibly annoying to wake in yet another strange bedroom, to discover that she was naked. Peering under the covers, she sighed at the sight of her pale legs almost glowing in the shadows, and her exposed red curls guarding the apex of her thighs.
Remembering Zeke’s proclamation that he liked them short, she was grateful he hadn’t shorn her while she slept.
Dropping the covers, she blinked away the fuzziness of her vision and took the time to examine the room in the light from the dimmer lamp beside the bed. Blackout blinds were on the windows, sealing off the view outside. The furniture was cherrywood; a light layer of dust covering most of it, but quality pieces from what her inexperienced eyes told her.
A rug sprawled over the varnished floorboards, the black and green threads matching the bedcovers.
It was very simplistic. Homey, but inherently masculine.
With a groan, Olivia forced herself to sit up and swing her legs off the bed, the first step toward returning to being a productive human female. The covers beckoned her back, luring her with siren songs of how soft and warm they were, teasing her with images of what they might accomplish if she just stayed in bed…
Tempting. So fucking tempting when fatigue gnawed lazily on her bones.
“No,” she reprimanded herself sternly. “It’s time to go to work and fall into the swing of things again. Find a bathroom, and take a shower. Rustle up a toothbrush, then hunt down caffeine and the laptop.”
“Not happening, Livvy.”
Her head jerked up, swinging toward the door where Zeke stood, arms folded across his chest, backlit by bright sunshine from what she presumed was a hallway. Her heart melted at the thought of him leaving a nightlight on for her so she wouldn’t wake in darkness.
Dressed only in jeans, his torso and feet bare, he was edible. The top button of those jeans was open, the zipper fastened, but she swore the man had a future as a model if he wanted to pursue it. If a photographer captured that glowering intensity and fierce dominance, it didn’t matter what the product was, the shelves would be empty in minutes.
“The team is relying on me—”
He grunted. “The team utilized you throughout your mother’s terminal illness, Olivia. Aside from the day of her death and the one after, you continued to work without informing your employer of a death in the family.” His disapproval was blatantly clear. “Two years of unceasing stress and you never asked for help. Is it any wonder you had a fucking mental breakdown?”
Mental breakdownwas a little extreme, she thought. “I feel better.”
“Callin’ bullshit on that. Stand up,” he challenged.
Did he think she was incapable of functioning because she’d gotten upset and burned her frustration off with work? That was just how she operated; she dealt with her emotions more efficiently if she focused on a problem outside the one bugging her.
Willing to rise to the bait and prove him wrong, Olivia pushed herself to her feet. She lasted all of three seconds before her legs began to shake, and her knees buckled. Her butt bounced back onto the mattress it had just vacated.
“What day is it, Olivia?” Zeke stalked over to loom above her. “How long do you think you’ve been asleep?”
Oh God, he smelled so fucking good. She sucked in a deep breath, letting his scent fill her lungs and bubble like champagne in her veins. Her eyes latched onto the happy trail leading down past his waistband, realizing her mouth was almost perfectly aligned with his cock.