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Her lip was trembling. It took less than a second for him to reach out, and trace the plumpness of her mouth with his thumb. He expected her to pull him away from her, to stop him from stroking her. Instead, she pressed his palm to her mouth, kissing the rough skin there. The sensation shot straight through him, sending a shiver down his back. She looked at him, her eyes wide, and a single tear formed in the corner of one, threatening to spill over.
“Don’t cry.” He moved his finger up to wipe away the drop. “Please, don’t.”
She closed her eyes again, breathing his skin in. “Stay here for a moment. Let me pretend…”
Pretend what? That he wanted to touch her, feel her, have her? There was no pretense in that. He leaned forward, needing to inhale her the way she was doing to him. His face was only an inch away from hers. He could feel the warm sweetness of her breath against his skin, could see the way the corners of her lips curled up at his closeness. Her eyes suddenly opened, and he could see the deep blue of her irises, eclipsed by her dilating pupils.
“Aiden…”
He didn’t say a word. Instead, he closed the gap between them until the bridge of her nose was against his. She was too close for him to focus. Too close for him to do anything but breathe her in as though she were his last gasp of air.
“Don’t move,” he said, his voice rough. “Just pretend…”
Her chest hitched. He curled his hand around her neck, feeling her hair still damp from her shower. He ran his thumb slowly up and down, taking in the sensation of skin against skin, enjoying the way the air caught in her throat.
“I’m not pretending,” she whispered.
“Nor am I.” His voice was strong and sure.
He waited a moment, taking in the overwhelming sensation of her closeness. Every sense he had was full of her. She was the sweetest overdose.
He pulled his hand back to her jaw, running his finger along the edge of her face. He held her, angling her head until his nose slid along hers, and their lips touched with the briefest of touches. She was looking at him, holding her breath as he waited. For what? Her agreement? The way she was looking at him, he knew she was more than willing for him to kiss her.
Maybe it was Aiden who felt afraid. The need for her clawing at his chest felt insatiable. One step further and he’d have been gone. The way he’d been when he was a kid. She owned him, she always had. Even if she didn’t know it.
Her mouth parted beneath his, and that was all it took. He pulled her closer, his lips clashing with hers, skin on heated skin. She kissed him back, all strawberries and sweetness, her body arching until her chest pressed against him. She moaned into his mouth, lips trembling, and threaded her arms around his neck. The feel of her body sent a shot of desire straight through him, making him hard, wanting, needing.
“Aiden?”
It only took a moment to realize it wasn’t her calling his name. The voice was too young, too distant.
“Are you there?” Nick sounded fearful.
They jumped apart. “Yeah, and your mom’s here too. We’re coming.” He looked back at Brooke. Her eyes were wide, glassy. She lifted a finger to touch her already swollen lips. “We’re on our way, honey,” she called out. The two of them got up – Brooke shaking as she did – and hurried to Nick’s room.
He caught her hand, folding it in his. Before they made it to the bedroom he spoke, his voice raspy and low. “This isn’t over.”
She glanced at him, her expression questioning.
No, it wasn’t over. Not by a long shot. And this time he’d make sure of that.
19
“I had a phone call from a guy named Martin Newton last week. He had a lot to say about you.” Robert Carter folded his arms across his chest as the two of them stood in the middle of the construction site. Dust swirled around their legs, lifted into the air by the breeze blowing up from the ocean. Not that you could hear the ocean right now – the noise of the diggers and compactors drowned out the crashing waves. They both had to shout to get themselves heard.
“I thought you might,” Aiden said. Nine years ago that would have sent him into a tailspin. But he wasn’t afraid of Martin Newton any more. The man had no hold over him.
“He told me he could send a lot of business my way if I agreed to let you go.” Robert smirked. “That guy really doesn’t like you, does he?”
“What did you tell him?”
His old friend shrugged. “Not a lot. I’ve learned the best way to deal with bullies is to ignore them. And its not as if I need his endorsement. We’re not aiming at the business market, we’re looking at luxury. That man’s small fry.”
Aiden tried not to smile at Martin Newton being described like that. The very sound of it would make him throw a fit. Every kid in Angel Sands grew up knowing who he was, after all. Owner of Newton Pharmaceuticals, big cheese at the beach club, a man with a finger in every pie he could find.
But not this pie, apparently. And that made Aiden like his boss even more than he already did.
“I don’t want to make any trouble for you. He knows a lot of people around here. Probably could influence the zoning committee. It could end up costing us money.”
