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“I don’t know what to say to him, or if I should do something,” I admitted. I wasn’t good at consoling people. I really wasn’t. Some people knew what to say in all types of situations, knew what words were needed, and they used them perfectly. Me? I usually just settled for an “I’m sorry.” I wasn’t good with words even though I did want to do something for Zac. I just didn’t know what.
The big guy raised his shoulder. “Give him some time,” he suggested.
Mr. Congeniality right here was trying to give me advice on what I should do? Did that mean I should do the opposite?
“Yeah, I guess I will,” I said, before my conversation with Diana came back to me. “Umm, I’m going to El Paso for a few days this weekend. Remember I told you?” I stabbed at a few pieces of pasta scattered around the plate. “It’s my mom’s birthday.”
He shifted in his stool, the side of his knee touching mine. “Okay.”
There was no reason for me to feel awkward. None. If he said he’d go, great. If he didn’t want to go, it wasn’t a big deal. “I was thinking… maybe you could come with me. I haven’t told her we got married, and I would rather tell her in person than let them find out some other way.” I fidgeted in my seat and slanted him a look out of the corner of my eye.
Aiden simply forked some food into his mouth, chewing slowly.
I scratched at my ear. “If you want.” Then I added, “It’s just for the weekend.”
Dumb. Dumb. Dumb, dumb, dumb.
Why had I even bothered saying anything?
Aiden scratched at his jaw with the end of the fork in his hand. He twisted his lower body in his seat, his knee hitting the side of my leg again before he said, “I’d need to be back Sunday night.”
I almost had to do a double take. “Really?”
He shrugged down at his food, super casual, or at least as casual as someone his size could be. Honestly, I was surprised he could fit that butt onto one stool. I was even more surprised the stool’s legs hadn’t given out yet under his weight. “Yeah,” was his reply.
“Oh… okay. I was planning on leaving Friday. It’s an eight hour drive.”
That had his face swinging to me, his expression going from blank to disturbed in a second flat. “You want to drive there?”
I nodded.
He stared at me for a second longer before reaching into his pocket, pulling out his black leather wallet, and then holding a silver credit card out in my direction. “Buy two tickets and rent a car. I don’t do long road trips.”
Did I know he didn’t like riding in a car for longer than absolutely necessary? Yes, but I wanted to cross my eyes anyway. If I didn’t have to do an eight-hour road trip, I wasn’t going to, especially not if I wasn’t paying for it.
He couldn’t be considered my sugar daddy if we were legally married, right?
Shoving the thought aside, I took the card from him hesitantly. “Are you sure?”
He didn’t hold back his eye roll. “Get an afternoon flight, they usually let us out around three.” He eyeballed me from the side. “Don’t rent one of those tiny economy cars either just to save money.”
Yeah, his bossiness was bringing back not the best of memories. I nodded anyway and held his card between my fingers, hesitating. “Is this supposed to be a test?” I asked hesitantly.
Back to being busy eating, it took him a second to answer before he turned to me with a furrow between those thick eyebrows. “What are you talking about?”
“Is this a test?” I wiggled his credit card. “To see if I’ll spend your money or offer to pay for my own ticket.”
That full bottom lip of his dropped just a little, his eyelids hanging low. Then he shook his head slowly, so slowly I knew he was exasperated… or he thought I was a complete idiot. One or the other. Maybe both. “Don’t be dumb. I wouldn’t offer to pay for the tickets if I didn’t want to. You know me better than that.”
He had me there. I shrugged. “Okay. All right.” Sheesh. “I just wanted to be sure because if you want to pay for them, I’m not going to tell you no.”
“Just buy the tickets and rent the car.” He got up with his plate in hand and walked around to the sink before adding, “Where are we staying?”
“I was planning on staying at a hotel.”
“Good. What are you going to tell your family?”
I scratched at the back of my neck before picking at my food. “Just my mom. I don’t—my sisters don’t need to know. Either way, no one’s finding out the truth. They don’t know I’m living with you. I figured—” Shit. What? Was I expecting my mom to not remember who I worked for? Of course she remembered. Now. Ten years ago, she didn’t remember half the time that she’d given birth to me and I relied on her. That was an easier truth to consider than the idea that she loved drinking more than she loved her kids.
I needed to stop. I needed to stop five seconds ago. Everything in my life had worked out for the better. I had no reason to complain. My life was better than fine. Way better.
With that reminder, I cleared my throat and pasted a playful tone to my words. “If she asks, I’ll just tell her I quit and you came after me. You realized how madly in love with me you were—”
Honest to God, he snorted.
I put my hand on top of the table and extended my middle finger at him even though I smiled. “—and you can’t live without me, so we eloped. I figured I should stick with at least a partial truth so it doesn’t get too complicated. You got a problem with that?”
