A Beautiful Mess Read Online Free PDF Page B

direction possible. It was messy but incredibly sexy as well.
    “Mine used to say the same thing.” Alexander wondered what she was in therapy for. Too many puzzle pieces were falling into place. But it was impossible. Alexander could hear his sister’s voice in his head. “ You need to stop seeing her face in everyone you see. She’s gone .” And Alexander had stopped over a year ago. Until that night.
    “It wasn’t a serious relationship,” Olivia continued rambling, her nerves causing her to tell Alexander about herself when normally she wouldn’t. Something about him made her want to open up to him and tell him about herself. And she didn’t want him to see her as a helpless victim or a weak person. She was much stronger than that. “I have issues with serious relationships, I guess. But a girl has needs and I’ve always done the no-strings-attached type of thing.”
    He cocked his head and looked at her.
    “Safely though,” she interjected immediately. “I’m a stickler for protection.” She blushed. Olivia never blushed. Why am I telling this total stranger about my sex life? she thought to herself.
    Olivia greatly intrigued him. There was something so familiar about her. Even so, she was a beautiful woman who admitted she was not interested in a serious relationship. She could most certainly suit his needs as well.
    “I have no idea why I’m telling you all this. I’m sure the last thing you wanted to have to do on a Friday night was rescue some idiotic girl from her drunken ex outside of your building and then have to hear about her sex life,” she blurted out, overwhelmed by the handsome man standing in front of her. She looked down, tying her hands in knots on her lap.
    “It’s okay,” he said, turning back to the first aid kit, grabbing a bandage and some Neosporin. He tilted Olivia’s chin up, forcing her to gaze into his green eyes again. Leaning down, his lips were only inches from hers. “This might sting a little,” he said quietly, sending shivers through Olivia’s body. Not only was the proximity overwhelming, but his husky voice forced a reaction from her that she had never experienced before.
    He watched as Olivia opened her mouth slightly, her breathing increasing. He could smell her sweet breath. Alexander rubbed a little cream over the cut on her forehead, trying to hide that he was seriously checking out her fit body. She clearly worked out, and often.
    “This cut could have been a lot worse. You won’t need stitches.” His fingers gently brushed one of her curls behind her ear and placed a small bandage on the treated wound. His hand lingered on her face, gently caressing her cheek and chin. God, her skin is so soft , he thought to himself.
    She stared back into his eyes, biting her lower lip, and Olivia felt that strange tingling feeling again. It was an odd sensation. There was something about that beautiful man in front of her that made her want to drop all her normal defenses and get close to him. Who was this guy and why did he have this kind of power over her? That worried her.
    Alexander’s cell phone buzzed, breaking the growing tension, and he quickly removed his hand from Olivia’s face, leaving to answer his phone in private. Olivia snapped back to reality and remembered her reason for keeping everyone away, the fear of getting close to someone and losing them resurfacing in her subconscious.
    She turned to glance in the mirror and examined her injury. Even with the bandage, it was clear that there was a slight bump where Simon slammed her head into the wall. Other than that, there didn’t appear to be any permanent damage.
    “You’ll probably have a bruise there,” Alexander said, startling Olivia as he walked back into the bathroom. She turned to face him. “Detective Wilder is here. I’ll give you some privacy to speak with her here in my office.” The last thing Alexander wanted to do was leave that woman’s side, but he knew privacy sometimes