Candescent

Chapter Five, Olivia

ELLIS KING IS HOT ON my tail. I clutch my bag of sweets tighter, a storm of anger brewing in my gut. If I speak without at least trying to calm down, he might get swept away by the intensity of my emotions.

I've been in a heated battle with my own mind for the past couple of weeks, and the external influences are doing nothing to help. Jess is alright — all she does is ask me how I'm doing — but Mom won't stop going on and on about Mitchell and how hard it must be for him. So much for supporting me wholeheartedly. I guess her desire for grandkids is stronger than the love she has for her daughter.

"Olivia, wait," Ellis calls after me. He must be moving at a comfortable pace, because with his long legs, there's no reason he shouldn't have caught up with me by now. Maybe this is his way of giving me space while effectively pursuing me. I wonder what he'll say this time.

I'm not curious enough to stick around and find out.

Ellis grabs a hold of me while I'm distracted with searching for my car keys. Up until now, I'd done a good job of pretending he doesnt exist which was exceptionally hard as he phoned me every evening.

"Can you let go?" I ask in a measured tone without turning to look at him. My patience is wearing thinner than it's ever been, even as an older sister to two others. All I wanted ro do today was bake uninterrupted while occasionally tossing a lemon flavored Turkish delight in my mouth, but oh flipping well.

Ellis releases my wrist like it's burned him, then clears his throat. "Sorry. I'm sorry, about that and...the other day.""

"Okay, Ellis." I turn to him finally, a strained smile stretching across my lips. "You're forgiven."

His face falls. "Liv."

"Ellis, seriously. We're good. I have to get back to work."

He watches in silence as I climb into the driver's seat of my silver Honda Civic. I get as far as starting the engine before Ellis says, "I'll leave you alone when Mitchell leaves me alone, and it doesn't look like that's happening any time soon."

"What has that got to do with me?" I ask, hands on the steering wheel.

"Are you serious? What you did was cruel, Olivia. Talk to the man."

"I have nothing to say to him."

"You owe him an apology at the very least. How would you feel if someone left Jess or Caleb at the altar?"

Starting with arson, I'd commit a string of felonies most likely.

"What are the chances of that happening?"

"Olivia," he presses, his voice determined. I wonder if something has changed between now and the last time we met. "Even if you won't talk to Mitchell, at least talk to me. You're making this much harder than it needs to be."

"What do we have to talk about, Ellis? Your impeccable timing? Your sudden obsession with me and Mitchell? This isn't one of your cases, and I would appreciate it if you stopped treating it like one."

Ellis stands in stunned silence. I put my car in reverse and start to back out of my parking space when he knocks on a window, startling me. "We could talk about what happened the other day."

That's funny. You're funny.

"I have no idea what you mean. Nothing happened between you and me."

"Liv—"

"For Pete's sake, Ellis, drop the topic. That was a momentary lapse in judgment. Nothing came of it. Just fucking forget about it already."