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Clara tipped her head to the left, as though she was scrutinizing him. “Hmm. I don’t suppose you’d like to adopt her, would you?”
It was hard not to laugh out loud at Aiden’s expression, but Brooke managed it anyway. Mostly by biting down so hard on her lip she almost broke the skin.
“Um, I don’t think I have the time to devote to a dog.”
“How about a python? They don’t take too much care. Or we have some amazing rodents which only need food and company.”
Aiden looked ready to vomit.
Okay, it was time to put him out of his misery. “Don’t panic, she’s not going to force you to look after a snake.” Unable to hide her grin any longer, she looked over her shoulder at Clara. “Okay, where do you want us to start?”
* * *
“That’s the last one,” Brooke told him as Aiden carried a large cardboard box full of brochures out to the van. Which was so full he had to stack the box on top of a basket full of menus, before he stood and closed the double doors. At some point in the past couple of hours he’d abandoned his suit jacket and slid off his tie, rolling it up and stuffing it in his pocket, unfastening his top few buttons to give himself some air.
It was a warm, still night. Even at almost ten o’clock the temperature was high enough for him to break out into a sheen. Without the ocean breeze he’d become used to it was almost stifling.
“Thank you so much,” Clara said, giving him a beaming smile.
“It was my pleasure. And I meant what I said, any time you want out of this place, there’s a job for you.” He winked at her. It had been a running joke all night. She was so organized, so prepared. He knew she’d fit in well at Carter Leisure. Not that she’d ever leave the animals. Like Brooke, he could tell she had a connection with them. She cooed and talked to them all whenever they passed the glass pens.
“You can head off now.” Clara glanced at them both. “I’ll drive the van over to the Beach Club tomorrow. One of the stewards will help unload it and put the boxes in the storage area until Saturday.”
“And then the fun really begins.” Brooke smiled, and it lit up her face. Aiden wasn’t sure he’d ever get over how beautiful she was. Every time he looked at her it made him want to touch her.
Who was he kidding? The thought of her made his fingers ache with the need to feel her soft, smooth skin. He couldn’t get enough of her. Not after she’d spent the night at his place, their limbs tangled around each other and the sheets.
“Well, goodnight. See you tomorrow, Brooke.” Clara turned to him. “And if you change your mind about that python…”
“I’ll be sure to let you know.”
He watched as she let herself back into the shelter, ready to hand over care to the night manager who’d be keeping a special eye on the new kittens. He could tell Brooke was already getting attached to them. She’d picked one of them up to show him, and the sight of her holding the tiny bundle of fur had made his chest feel like a python was squeezing it tight. Was it possible to want to kiss somebody and shelter them from the world at the same time?
It made him realize he’d done the right thing, sending money to pay his brother off. She didn’t deserve to have to deal with Jamie, not after everything she’d been through. There was too much goodness in her to let it be squeezed away by his brother.
“Do you want to grab a coffee at mine?” she asked him. “I have to get home and pay Cora, otherwise she might not babysit for me on Saturday night.”
He nodded. “Yeah, sure.”
“We’ll have to be careful, though. Nick sometimes wakes up in the night.”
“I promise not to touch you at all,” he said, his voice solemn.
She laughed. “Let’s not go too far. It’s been hard enough having this distance between us all night, I’m not sure how much longer I can keep doing it.”
Knowing she felt the same way was enough to propel him forward. Her eyes were wide as she stared up at him, those same moss green pools that always kept him mesmerized. Slowly he lowered his head to press his lips against hers.
God, her mouth was soft. His tongue slid against hers, warm and velvety. He could feel himself react within seconds, and as she pushed her body against his, he couldn’t help but let out a moan.
“I take it back,” he whispered against her lips. “I can’t not touch you.”
“I’m glad.” She wrapped her arms around his neck. “Because I never want you to stop.
* * *
“I wish you could stay all night,” Brooke said as she snuggled into his side. Her warm body pressed against him as she lay her head on his chest. The two of them were in her living room, Cora having long since gone home. Nick was out for the count in his bedroom, but they were still fully-clothed. Neither of them wanted to risk him seeing something he shouldn’t.
Aiden kissed her hair. “I wish I could, too. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.” He still had to pinch himself sometimes, knowing he was with the girl he’d fallen for all those years ago. She was everything he wanted – warm, soft, kind – and this time he was determined not to let her go.
