Chapter 154: A Massage.
Chapter 154
"I’m just doing what any other mother would do."
Alex shook his head, using his smooth tongue to continue.
"Well. Not everyone would be able to handle everything the way you have."
Hearing those words coming out of Alex’s mouth caused the blush on her face to deepen slightly. For some reason, receiving praise from him made her happier than she wanted to admit.
[+5 Desire Energy Gained]
[+8 Desire Points Gained]
Trying to hide her embarrassment, she adjusted her glasses and cleared her throat.
"I think you’re giving me way too much credit."
Alex smiled.
"Not at all."
After saying that, a small silence settled between both of them. Alex used that chance to briefly look at Olivia, trying to find a way to take the first step. After observing the slight stiffness in her shoulders, an idea suddenly came to him.
"You know... You look like you’ve probably been carrying a lot of tension lately from taking care of both Zack and your work."
Olivia looked up curiously.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean how about I give you a quick head massage to help relieve some of that stress."
"I’m telling you I’m kind of a wiz at it. And I promise you’ll feel much better afterward."
Her eyes widened.
"A massage?" She looked visibly conflicted with the idea. "I... I don’t really know if that’s appropriate."
Before she could continue, Alex simply stood up and walked behind the couch.
"Relax Olivia, I’m not going to do anything bad. It’s only a massage. You’ve been under a lot of stress lately so you definitely need it."
Olivia still hesitated. She knew she probably should refuse his offer. After all... Alex was her son’s best friend. And aside from that there was also the matter of the considerable age difference between them.
None of this should have felt appropriate. Yet every single time she remembered how kindly he had treated her when she had come down with the flu, and how he had rescued and protected her when those thugs kidnapped her.
And how naturally he always seemed to care for her... The strange feelings quietly growing inside her heart became even harder to ignore. She didn’t dare to say it, but deep down she knew that she had most likely fallen for this young man in front of her.
Every night she craved his presence and he had sort of become a figure of warmth, safety, and security to her.
Before she realized it, Alex’s hands had gently settled against the sides of her head. His long, slender fingers began moving with practical precision and control. He applied some pressure but made sure that it was firm without it being hurting.
At first, her shoulders remained stiff and her breathing slightly uneven. She clearly wasn’t too used to a man touching her. However, as Alex’s fingers expertly worked around the pressure points on her scalp, her previously tensed shoulders gradually relaxed. And before she even realized it, her eyes had drifted shut.
"... Ah..." And a soft quiet sigh unconsciously escaped her lips as the tension that had been built up over countless sleepless nights seemed to melt away little by little.
Every movement of his felt natural and strangely comforting. It was like her head was being massaged by an angel.
Behind her, Alex couldn’t help smiling to himself as he watched how comfortable she was with him massaging her.
Back in his previous life, when he still thought that Bitch called Emily was a loving wife, he would always help her with a head massage whenever she was feeling severely stressed. Years of doing all that had unexpectedly turned him into someone surprisingly skilled at it.
And though he had temporarily forgotten about it, he had never imagined that experience would one day become useful again.
With an amused smile, he continued to gently work through the tension in Olivia’s scalp before slowly moving both of his sneaky hands toward her shoulders, carefully beginning to massage them as well.
Olivia’s entire body went completely stiff all over again the very moment his hands slowly slipped down from her head and settled directly onto her soft shoulders.
A sharp nervous gasp caught in her throat and her eyes immediately fluttered open as she felt his warm palm resting against her skin.
"A-Alex..." she stammered, her voice shaking slightly as she tried to look over her shoulder at him. "What... What are you doing now? I thought you said it was just a head massage."
Alex only offered a small, amused smile, keeping his movements as incredibly gentle and.. heh... deliberate. He didn’t pull his hands away; instead, his thumbs began to rub slow soothing circles against the base of her neck.
"Relax, Olivia," he replied innocently, his voice smooth and calm as he continued to massage her. "You can’t really have a good and proper massage without also taking care of the shoulders too."
"They are carrying almost as much tension as your neck. So just trust me and enjoy the process, hmm."
Without waiting for another objection, his fingers began kneading the stiff muscles with precise control. The pressure was gentle but at the same time, firm enough to loosen the tightness, and most importantly, careful enough not to cause any discomfort.
Olivia bit her lower lip and muttered.
"... You’re surprisingly good at this."
"I know milady. Now just continue to relax while I help lessen some of this tension."
As he worked, Alex’s mind began to wander, mentally contemplating his next move. Should he use the Aura of seduction, which had helped him quite a lot since he came back to this life? After all, It would certainly make things very easy just like how it had always done in the past.
But, as he looked down at the soft curve of her neck and the genuine vulnerability she was showing, a different thought took root in his mind.
For the first time in this life, he suddenly felt the urge to be a man and seduce a woman entirely on his own merit, without relying on the Aura Of Seduction skill from the system.
Olivia was already someone that secretly harboured feelings for him even if she didn’t want to admit it, so seducing her without using the Aura Of Seduction wasn’t going to be that difficult. If he could just play his cards right then everything could go well.
Besides, he couldn’t always depend on the skill every time, could he? He wanted to see her react to him, to his own words and actions, rather than because of the pull of his system skill.
With that decision made, his fingers became just a little bit more naughty, yet remaining incredibly gentle.
He allowed his touch to linger a second longer than usual against her collarbone, his hands sliding just a bit lower, brushing against the edge of her top as he smoothed out the tension in her upper back like a pro that he now was.
Olivia unconsciously relaxed once again. She had never imagined something as simple as a shoulder massage could feel so comforting.
Every touch from his magical fingers seemed to hit just the right spot. Without even realizing it, she leaned back ever so slightly.
Alex noticed and his smile deepened.
"You’ve always been carrying far too much. You should at least let someone take care of you once in a while."
Immediately he said that he could have sworn he mentally saw the little gremlin called his system, slap a palm over her face.
Meanwhile, as for Olivia, those simple words struck her far harder than she expected. For years... She had always been the one taking care of others. Looking after Zack. Working endlessly. And handling every problem alone. No one has ever stopped to ask whether she herself was tired.
Her beautiful siren like eyes gradually became moist. And the confusion, the guilt, and the intense longing she had been bottling up for how long, suddenly came rushing to the surface all at once. Her breath hitched, and a small, choked sound escaped her throat.
"Stop.... Please, Alex, just stop," Olivia suddenly said, her voice cracking with emotion as she reached up and weakly grabbed his wrists, halting his movements.
Alex immediately stopped rubbing her shoulders, but he didn’t pull his hands away entirely. He remained standing behind the couch, watching her closely.
He could see the way her shoulders were trembling, and her head dropping forward as she fought back tears.
"If you keep acting like this... If you continue to be this close to me, saying such dumb words, I won’t be able to stop myself anymore,"
she whispered as her fingers began tightening around his wrists with a mix of desperation and hidden affection.
"If you keep treating me like this... I don’t think I’ll be able to stop myself from falling even more for you than I already have."
She let out a shaky breath, finally letting the words she had hidden for so long spill out into the silent living room.
Then Olivia smiled weakly to herself and said...
