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“Wait,” he said from behind me. I didn’t turn around or speak. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to… bring it up.”
“’S okay,” I murmured. “It’s fine.”
He stepped against my back until I could feel his chin resting on my shoulder.
“Aiden. I’m sorry,” he whispered. His breath tickled my ear, making the tiny hairs stand up on my neck. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. “I shouldn’t have mentioned it. What can I do to make it up to you?”
“It’s not your fault. I just saw my stepfather today and it brought up a lot of shit.”
“Okay then, what can I do to cheer you up?”
I turned to study his beautiful face, realizing now was the perfect time to bring up my weekend plans.
“Come away with me this weekend?”
Chapter 16
Ash
We spent nearly the entire drive to the shore lost in angry silence.
And it was because of the same damn thing that had been between us since the day I’d moved in with him.
Money.
As in, the big stack of cash that kept piling up on the counter in the kitchen. It was the money I left for Aiden every week to cover my part of the rent, groceries, and utilities.
Money Aiden refused to touch.
And it was pissing me the fuck off.
Him, too, if the tick in his jaw was anything to go by.
Today’s strife had been my fault, since I hadn’t waited until Aiden had already left the apartment with his duffel to add to the pile of cash. Aiden had noticed me do it. Since I’d made a habit of paying for my portion of things on Mondays and today was Friday, he’d nodded at the money and asked, “What’s that for?”
“Gas and groceries… for this weekend,” I’d said over my shoulder. He’d grabbed the cash on his way to follow me to the bedroom I was using at the other end of the apartment. A moment later, he’d stepped into my room and tossed the money on my bed.
“Keep it. This weekend was at my invitation.”
I’d turned to him, frustration flaring deep in my belly. It was a fight we’d had several times before, especially whenever we went out to dinner or saw a movie or did some other activity and I insisted on paying for myself. “No.”
“Dammit, Ash. I don’t need it. You do. Please keep it,” he’d said.
“No. You agreed to this, Aiden. You said you understood what it meant to me,” I’d said tiredly. “I can’t keep having this same fight with you.”
He hadn’t responded to my words. He’d merely scooped up the cash, turned on his heel and disappeared. I’d waited a few minutes and grabbed my bag, not sure if we were still even going. Aiden had been waiting in the living room, and as soon as he’d seen me, he’d snagged his own bag from the floor next to the sofa and led the way out of the apartment.
I’d expected him to say something as we’d made our way out of town, but he’d remained stoically silent. If he’d been Billy, I would have been terrified. But I had absolutely no fear around Aiden anymore. Even when we’d had a couple of heated arguments early on when he’d tried to make me keep my money, I’d never worried he’d use his fists to make me listen.
But even though there wasn’t any fear, there was a shitload of guilt.
Because despite my moving in with Aiden, he was still struggling. And I doubted it was only because of my insistence to pay my own way. I’d mentioned several times to Aiden over the past few weeks that he still looked tired, but he’d waved me off with a comment about being busy at work. I’d let it go, but looking at him now, I began to wonder if maybe I should have pressed him on the issue.
Especially since I knew he’d lied to me.
I’d heard the nightmares for myself.
Night after night.
A few times, I’d get up to check on him, but he’d usually go quiet by the time I reached his room. I’d end up watching him for a few moments as his body twitched restlessly in his big bed before I’d pad back to my own room. Inevitably, the nightmares would return throughout the night.
As we got closer to our destination, Aiden quietly began pointing out spots that held some relevance to his childhood. He mentioned riding his bike to an ice cream shop and pointed out a bookstore that Danny had loved to explore. By the time he pulled the car into the driveway of the large dove-gray Cape Cod house at the end of a quiet lane, some of the tension between us had eased, and I was able to relax enough to explore while Aiden took our bags into the house.
