Spark (35 page)

“You know, with cookin’ like that, I’d be crazy to let you go home,” Aidan says, rubbing his belly, which is somehow still as flat as a washboard even after the two bowls he demolished.

“Like you said, there’s enough meatballs to last a week. I’ve got an essay due next week, so I should go home tomorrow, at least for a couple of nights so I can read through my lecture notes. We could always alternate between your place and mine. I still have to pay rent, you know.”

“Yeah, I know. Call me selfish, I didn’t realise how empty this house felt before you started messing up my kitchen, and ruining my shirts with your sweet perfume.”
If he’d followed his words up with that panty-dropping smile of his, I’d be a puddle at his feet right about now.

“You don’t have to impress me with all this sweet-talk. I’m a sure thing, you know.”

“Scratch that, then … How about my days are that much better when I know I’m comin’ home to a hot meal, and a hot woman.”
Now
, he flashes me that smile.

“
Now
you’re talking. How about you carry your hot woman to bed? I’m too full to move.”

Aidan sweeps me up in his arms, and I giggle as he carries me towards the bedroom.

We brush our teeth, and strip down for bed. I slip in under the covers, and we lie on our sides facing each other. Aidan brushes my hair back from my face, and traces soft lines around my jaw, down my neck, and across to my shoulder. I shiver as his gentle touch glides to the underside of my breast.

I mirror his actions, as he continues, running my hand over his satin smooth chest, leisurely down to the curvy part of his hip. I trail my fingers down to the sprinkling of hair just below his navel, and swirl over the contours of his taut stomach.

Aidan pulls me closer to him, and I wrap my arm around him, holding tight. I stroke the muscular lines of his back as he kisses me softly on the lips. In slow motion, we kiss. Our lips engage in a sensual dance as our bodies entwine together. This kiss, seemingly without end, is our hearts talking to one another … affirming our love.

When our hearts have said all they needed to say, we snuggle together and find sleep.

****

We’ve come a long way in the last couple of months.

The first time we made love after
it
happened was always going to be the hardest. Aidan was loving, tender, letting me set the pace … giving me the power. It was a release of everything that had gone through my mind. What might have caused a strain on our relationship only made our bond iron-clad. It wasn’t easy at first, and as much as Aidan tried to hide it, I could see the haunted look in his eyes. But that look slowly faded, and now, there was barely a trace. Aidan gave me everything I needed. He gave me time. He gave me support, and most of all he gave me love. Unconditional, unrestricted love. And with that, we dealt with our demons, our lives intertwining all the more.

The nightmares eased up after a month, which I know had everything to do with being with Aidan and trying to put the whole thing behind me. Even though we both knew staying at his place was a temporary arrangement, once the nightmares stopped, neither of us brought up the issue. Another month passed by. Falling asleep each night in his arms, there was nowhere else I wanted to be, but I knew that I had to get my head back into my studies. I had been distracted from them long enough.

****

I
finally
convinced Aidan to let me go home, on the proviso that he came, too. Aidan packed an overnight bag, and we drove across town.

Swinging the apartment door open, I’m hit with a wave of delicious smells from the kitchen, instantly making me salivate.

“Welcome home, Eevie,” Crystal sings from the kitchen.

“Hey guys,” Rob says, handing us each a glass of white wine.

“Thanks. Hey, yourself.” My eyes dart across to Aidan. “Did you organise this?”

Smirking, Aidan shrugs. “I
might
have said something to Crystal about you comin’ home.”

A wide smile spreads across my face. “Thank you.”

I stroll into the kitchen. “What’s cooking?” I ask excitedly. Crystal is carving meat, and puts down the knife to throw her arms around me.

“Roast lamb, with all the sides, and loads of potatoes.”

I give Aidan a quirky smile over the counter, and raise an eyebrow. “Okay, I might have tipped her off with the potatoes,” he says, and grins.
What a sweetheart
.

After enjoying a lovely meal, and a much-needed catch-up with Rob and Crystal, Aidan and I retreat to the couch. Crystal insisted on washing up, and they left shortly afterwards to stay at Rob’s place for the night. I wonder if Aidan set that up, too.

Laid back with his feet on the table, one hand on my leg, Aidan flips through channels in a daze.

I sort through my mail on the coffee table, something I hadn’t gotten to in a couple of weeks. An envelope catches my eye, more so than the others, as my name and address is messily handwritten. I sit up and flip the envelope over to find no return address. I rip it open, and unfold a white piece of paper.

Dear Eevie,
I don’t know where else to begin but to say I’m sorry.

A thousand times, I’m so sorry for what I did to you.

Blinking, a hot tear slips from my face.

“Babe?” Aidan says softly.

I turn to face him, my vision blurred. A heavy line forms between Aidan’s eyebrows. Suddenly my mouth won’t work. Shuffling in my seat, I continue reading.

I know there is nothing in the world I can say

to justify what I did, but I want you to know

that I am undergoing treatment for drug use.

I’m moving to Melbourne to live with my parents

until I recover, but I don’t think I’ll come back.

“What is it?” Aidan asks, sitting up. Unable to look away from the letter, I ignore him and continue reading.

The night of Rob’s party, I wanted to tell you

how I felt about you, but I never got the chance.

I was already kinda messed up doing drugs,

and feeling the way I do about you, I did

things I never would have imagined. I never

meant to hurt you. I will accept whatever the

consequences may be. Again, I’m so sorry,

and I hope that one day you can forgive me.

- Dean

I’d dealt with this. I’d managed to put Dean out of my mind. My hand goes limp and drops to Aidan’s lap. He picks up the letter, his eyes scanning over it. His breathing quickens, and his face turns red.

“I’ll fucking rip him limb from limb,” Aidan growls, bolting off the couch. “Rob and I fuckin’ warned him not to have any contact with you girls, and this letter is a fucking licence to tear him a new one.” In a rage, Aidan snatches his keys from the dining table. I jump off the lounge, and stand with my back against the door. Aidan’s chest rises and falls, a menacing look on his face.

I take his face in my hands, my eyes begging him not to do something stupid. “Don’t, Aidan … he’s not worth it.”

“He doesn’t deserve life. If I hadn’t have been there to stop him, he would have raped you! I don’t give a fuck what drugs he was on, someone who does that to a woman deserves to have their cock fed to them in pieces. I’m not a violent person, Eevie, but I’ve
never
wanted to hurt someone so fucking bad,” he says through gritted teeth.

“You don’t think I’ve wanted to do the same? I can’t count the number of times I’ve wanted to go around there and pound his face, fucking rip his eyes out …” My voice is gruff, anger I thought I’d dealt with surrounding each word.

Aidan’s face falls. “Why didn’t you say somethin’?”

“Because it was eating me alive! Once I let go of the hate, the nightmares stopped. I couldn’t keep living that night over and over in my head. It was killing me.”

“He doesn’t deserve your forgiveness.” Aidan breathes out, his jaw tense.

“Maybe not, but it’s the past. I’m not carrying it with me into the future.
Our
future. He’s getting help. He’s gone.”

Aidan tilts his head back, and scans the ceiling. His chest expands with each deep breath. Tension radiates from him in waves. It’s like we’re right back in the hospital on that dreaded night.

I tease the keys from the stiff grip of his fist, and take them from him. “You’re better than this, Aidan,” I say calmly.

A resigned puff of air leaves his mouth. “I promise you … he won’t get another chance.”

“And I promise you. I won’t give him one,” I mutter, standing on tippy-toes, willing Aidan to look at me.

He breathes out and slowly lowers his head, his heart racing beneath my hand.

“I’m a lover, not a fighter, Eevie.”

And don’t I love you for it.

“I know, and an exceptional one at that.”

The corner of his mouth curls up, and I know he’s seeing reason.

“We’ve moved on from this, Aidan, and I don’t want to give it another thought … you either.”

“I’d do anything, Eevie … anything to protect you,” Aidan whispers, his forehead resting against mine.

“I know, baby, I know,” I say, sweeping his wild hair back off his creased forehead. “Now, burn that fucking letter before I change my mind and give you these keys back.”

Aidan lets out a heavy sigh. “Come on, let’s go to bed.”

He lifts me up, and I wrap my legs around his waist as he carries me down the hallway.

Once snuggled in bed, I decide it’s time to confront him. I’m not letting him get away with it today. Leaning on my elbow, I do my best to stare him down.

“What?” he asks, his eyebrows knitting together.

“If I didn’t know better, Aidan, I’d think you were avoiding telling me today’s ‘something’.”

Relief sweeps over his face. “Oh, that.”

“And yesterday’s lame-arse ‘I love long walks on the beach’ does
not
count, so make it good.” I poke his chest.

“Okay then … well, you know how you’re always buggin’ me about my middle name …”

“Yeah …”
Yes, yes, yes, he’s going to tell me! All that nagging has paid off
.

“It’s … Maverick,” he says shyly. A smug smile creeps over his face.

A giggle escapes me. “As in,
Top Gun
?”

He nods his head, and I throw my head back and laugh out loud.

Aidan Maverick Stone.

Just when I thought his name couldn’t get any sexier.

“You can be my wingman any time,” I say in a deep voice, and then flash him a toothy grin. I’m gonna enjoy quoting that movie, line by line. I don’t know how many hundreds of times my brothers and I have watched it.

“Bullshit, you can be mine,” Aidan says, and juts his eyebrows up and down. He flips me onto my back, positioning his pelvis between my thighs.
Mmm
.

“Okay, now you … and make it good. I was hopin’ to hang on to that for at least another month,” Aidan teases.

I guess it’s time to tell him.

“You’re an overachiever,” I say with certainty.

“No, no, we’re talkin’ about you.” He moves down, tweaking my nipple with his teeth.

I pull him back up so his eyes meet mine. “Let me finish.” I purse my lips.

“Hurry up then.”

“You were my
first
time. You are my
first
love —”

“And last,” Aidan interrupts, brushing his lips against mine.

“Yes, of course my last … and you were responsible for my
first
wet dream.”

The way he’s gawking at me right now, I must be smiling like a crazy person.

Aidan raises an eyebrow. “Really? When?”

“That night you slept on my couch.”

“Damn, girl.” He shakes his head in disbelief. “So you were already mine before I’d even made a move.”

I nod my head, drinking in his beautiful smile. “And with you it was the
first
time I’d felt that spark.”

“That night I walked you home?” he adds. I knew he felt it, too.

“Yep. That’s a lotta firsts.”

“I’ve really outdone myself, haven’t I?” he says proudly, cocking his head to the side.

“Yes, you have.”

Aidan buries his head in my neck, my heart beating madly in my chest … for him. His name, forever tattooed on my heart.

To create a wildfire, all it takes is a spark.

EPILOGUE

AIDAN

THEN

In a sea of black and white, she boldly wears red. She is
wearing
that dress like it was made for her. Every curve held and wrapped in a delicious package … and she’s mine. At least, I think she’s mine. Her eyes tell me she wants to be.

My feet have been itching to run to her from the second our eyes locked. If I don’t make a move soon, one of the other pair of eyes admiring her will. I see the way Dean watches her.
Fucking oxygen thief.
His beady eyes follow her around the room, but she barely knows he’s alive. I’ve seen her cringe at his touch; hell,
I’ve
cringed when he’s been near her. She doesn’t look at him like she does me. He doesn’t stand a chance. Not tonight. Not ever. I’ll make sure of it.

Her energy and laughter light up the room wherever she goes, drawing me in when her eyes meet mine, rendering any conversation obsolete. Her flawless golden skin glows under the muted lighting, the cut of her dress luring me in—urging me, taunting me to explore every inch of her body, leaving nothing untouched.

Since Rob told me she was single, there might as well be no one else in the room but her. What’s the point of everything I’ve worked so hard for if I don’t have someone special to share it with?

I’ll never admit to anyone that I’m lonely. I have been for a long time, even when I was with Tara. Something was missing. Whatever it was, the second I took Eevie’s hand and dragged her out of that club, I’d felt it, like a charge to my heart, and it excited me and frightened the shit out of me all at the same time.