“It’s fine.” His gaze remained on her face, his blue eyes taking on a bit of the soft green from the V-neck shirt he was wearing so well.
“Thank God you have friends like Michael and Kate. They really saved us, huh?” She shoved the bloody gauze in her purse, not sure what to do with it. She’d get Kate’s bag professionally cleaned. It probably cost as much as Ava spent on her whole summer wardrobe.
He nodded at her before pulling back onto the highway. “Four more hours. You up to drive again?”
“I’m used to little sleep.”
“I imagine getting your Ph.D. at Berkeley kept you up a lot.”
“How’d you know I went to Berkeley? I didn’t tell you that.” She turned in her seat to better face him. “Did you Google me?”
He smirked. “Yes.”
Her mouth dropped open a little. “Is that how you knew about my sister, Lily?” she fished. She noted his abashed expression. “You didn’t seem all that surprised by Michael’s reaction.” She leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms.
He didn’t speak for a moment.
“Does it bother you that your dates already know what you look like before getting in bed with you?” he asked at last.
Now her mouth was wide open. Jaw unhinged. “And why does this interest you?” She waited for an answer, but he didn’t respond. “She doesn’t pose nude, by the way.”
“Skimpy lingerie. Pretty damn close.” He kept his eyes on the road.
Ava wanted to slap him in the arm but remembered the wound he was sporting. “I don’t date all that much,” she admitted instead. She looked out her window, trying to will away the red in her cheeks. “I hate it, yes.”
“Do guys confuse you a lot?”
She nodded. “Yeah, which is why I try to look and dress as plainly as possible.”
Aiden released a deep laugh. “Plain? You think you’re plain?”
“Um. Yeah.”
“I’m sorry, love, but you couldn’t pass as plain without plastic surgery. You can’t exactly hide who you are just by not wearing make-up—and you can sure as hell look sexy in jeans and a T-shirt.”
His words moved through her, slow and deliberate. Aiden thought she was sexy? She fought back a nervous laugh and bit her lip as his eyes locked onto hers. “Hey, look at the road,” she shouted as a semi-truck edged into their lane, inches from the SUV’s front bumper.
Aiden swerved the car away from near disaster. “See, you’re one hell of a distraction.”
She could see the smile in his eyes, even from his profile. “You’re crazy.”
“I must be.”
“Ah. Gee. Thanks.”
He tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. “So, does your sister give you a lot of free lingerie?”
Now she couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re a horrible person.” But Aiden somehow had a way of making her feel almost human, despite the near-permanent state of anxiety that had settled into her over the last few days. He’d turned a topic she hated talking about—her twin—into a great diversion. “And yes. There are a lot of perks to being her sister, I suppose.”
“Perks? I bet there are an awful lot of perks,” he teased, slipping her a sideways grin.
“You’re bad.” She reached over and slapped his pecs, careful to avoid his arm. But as she started to pull her hand away, he caught her by the wrist. His touch was gentle, but having his hand on her—even in such an innocent place—made her body sizzle. She swallowed as he looked over at her.
He cleared his throat and released her wrist. “Your sister is lucky to have you, you know. She might be a supermodel, but you’ve got the looks and the brain. Much sexier,” he said with a deep, velvety voice.
She digested his words and tried to squeeze the image of Aiden’s naked body pinning her beneath him, out of her head. “And you’re going to get us in an accident. Keep your eyes on the road.”
“Then stop being such a bloody distraction.” He smirked. “Talking about lingerie and all.” His Irish accent was thick and sweet; it poured over her slowly, like molasses.
“Just get us to Charlotte in one piece, okay?” She reached for the radio and turned on the music. “I think I’ll shut my eyes for a bit, so I can stop being such a bloody distraction,” she drawled.
“Best idea you’ve had all day,” he joked, turning up the volume as the Ellie Goulding song, “Love Me Like You Do” came on the radio.
She peeked at her savior one last time before shutting her eyes. Although her life had turned upside down in the last two days, she had a feeling that Aiden was going to spin it full tilt.
Ava stared at herself in the mirror. The master bathroom in Michael’s Charlotte home reminded her of the luxury resorts her twin always dragged her to. Well, she didn’t exactly resist when her sister asked her to go to Tahiti, Maui, or some other outrageous location. But she never wanted to get used to that lifestyle, either. She preferred to be independent, and that meant living on a budget.
“You ’bout done in there?” Aiden tapped on the door.
She released a deep breath and studied her appearance. They had arrived at Michael’s gorgeous loft only an hour ago. Although Aiden insisted that they rest and go to the Russian restaurant tomorrow, she wanted to move as fast as possible. She wanted to get answers, especially if Kat was in danger.
She ran a hand through her hair before wetting her lips. She’d applied eyeliner and mascara that Kate had given her, which made her eyes seem even more luminous. She’d also added a little blush, which emphasized her high cheekbones, and just a dab of red lipstick. She was looking more like her twin with every passing minute. When was the last time she’d worn blush? Oh yeah—on the last disaster of a date she’d had almost a year ago.
“Come on. I’m sure you look fine.” Aiden rapped on the door again.
She reached for the knob and swung the door open. Judging by the look on Aiden’s face, she looked better than fine. His eyes widened as he took in every inch of her.
She felt uncomfortable and far too bold in the figure-hugging black pencil skirt and lacy red and black blouse. And the matching red heels were so not her. But Kate had insisted she’d need a few nice outfits, especially to blend in at the upscale Russian restaurant.
Aiden ran a hand over his jaw before scratching the side of his head. His thick black hair was a little spiked up, which gave him an even sexier edginess that took Ava by surprise. He was wearing a white dress shirt with a trendy black blazer, paired with black slacks. She was going to have a hard time focusing tonight on anything but him.
“You clean up nicely,” he said, looking her square in the face.
“So do you,” she all but whispered.
“You sure you want to do this tonight?”
She moved past him, out of the doorway and into the master bedroom. “Yes. You managed to get reservations, right? I know it’s a Wednesday, but Michael said—”
“Michael called in a favor,” he reassured.
“Okay.” She sucked in a breath. “Well, what are we waiting for?” She spun around to face him.
He shook his head a little as he redirected his attention from her mouth to her eyes. “Sorry, just trying to remember what we’re supposed to be doing tonight.”
Yeah, me too, she thought as she attempted to unravel the knots that had tangled fast into a convoluted mess in her core.
“Let’s do this.” He released an obvious breath as they left the bedroom and headed out of Michael’s home.
“You think Kat’s in town?” She glanced in Aiden’s direction as he pulled out of the parking garage.
“Let’s hope so.”
She pursed her lips together and stared out the window in silence as they drove.
It took about twenty minutes to get to the restaurant, which was in an area known as Ballantyne, south of Uptown Charlotte. It was nestled inside a shopping plaza that boasted other fine dining restaurants, a few big box stores, and—oh jeez—a lingerie store, with a pic
ture of her sister on the window.
Aiden coughed a little and looked away from the window before parking in front of the restaurant. He hopped out of the car and walked around, opening the door for her.
She narrowed her eyes at him as though he were guilty of something.
“What? I can’t be a gentleman?” She caught sight of his one dimple as he smiled and held out his hand.
She hesitated for a moment, and then slipped her hand into his large one. His eyes drifted down as she stepped out of the SUV. “Aiden?”
His snapped his attention back up as he shut the car door. “Come on,” he mumbled, as if angry with himself for what—checking her out?
Confused, she shook her head and walked down the tree-lined path toward the restaurant.
“After you.” He pulled the door open and nodded.
She walked past him, but could feel his eyes on her. She tried not to think about the odd sensations that swirled around inside her whenever she caught Aiden looking at her.
“Hi, we have reservations.” They stopped in front of the hostess. “Aiden O’Connor.”
The young brunette brushed a strand of hair behind her ear as her cheeks reddened a little. Yeah, he has that effect on people.
“Of course, Mr. O’Connor.” She tapped on her iPad, nodded, and reached for two menus. “Right this way.” She led them through the restaurant, which was surprisingly full given the late hour.
Ava looked at the booth, and her body warmed when realizing she’d be sitting next to Aiden with little wiggle room.
“Ava?” Aiden placed his hand on her back. “You okay?”
She blinked and forced a smile before sitting down on the curved leather seat. She scooted over for Aiden to join her, and listened as the hostess rattled off the specials.
Once the hostess was out of sight, Ava sucked in a deep breath, attempting to calm her nerves. “So . . .” She angled her head to face Aiden and found herself far too close to him. She had to fight the compulsion to inhale his scent.
“Good evening.”
Relieved at the distraction, Ava smiled at the waiter who had joined their table. She busied herself with the menu as the waiter made small talk.
“Wine?” the waiter asked.
Aiden ordered a bottle of champagne instead, and Ava baulked when she spotted the price on the menu. “Aiden, I don’t have much cash on me, remember,” she whispered in his ear.
The touch of his hand on her thigh sent an electric wave of desire through her. She sucked in a breath, dropped the menu, and looked down at his hand before averting her attention back to his scintillating blue eyes. His touch was like a fuse lighting inside her, burning from her thigh to her groin. She clamped her legs shut to extinguish the flames.
“Relax. I’ve got this covered.” He patted her leg and placed his hand back on the table.
What is happening to me? Ava shifted in her seat, trying to get comfortable. She had the feeling that she could never be entirely comfortable within six feet of Aiden O’Connor. His every look and touch struck a perfect chord within her, creating the most sinfully seductive music. His voice slid through her like sweet notes from a well-played instrument, making her body hum with a crazy, insatiable need. She, the violin—he, the bow.
When was the last time someone made me feel like this? And why now?
“Ava? Would you like to try the champagne?”
“Huh? What?” She blushed and looked up to find that the waiter had returned. He’d only just left the table a second ago, hadn’t he? Pull it together. “It’s great,” she said, after taking a sip from the small pour.
“What’s going on?” Aiden asked once the waiter left the table.
“Sorry. I was, um, thinking.”
“About?”
“Our plan,” she lied and took another sip of her drink.
“Your nerves getting to you?”
“Someone did attack me just this morning.”
“Aye, but I’ll keep you safe.”
For some reason, she believed him. “Are you ex-military?” she found herself asking, which must have seemed out of left field to him, but the question had been burning her mind since they’d left Boston that morning. Aiden looked down at the menu, and she pressed on. “Because Kate mentioned that Michael was an investor in your bar, and I thought he only invested in veterans. I’m assuming that’s how you know him?”
He looked as though someone had slapped him in the face a few times with a ruler before twisting his arm behind his back. He was the one now reaching for his drink, and he kept at it until the champagne glass was empty.
“Aiden, what is it that you aren’t telling me?”
“Are you two ready to order?”
Damn the waiter . . .
“Actually, I was wondering if Alex was here tonight.”
“The owner? Are you a friend?” The waiter was cautious. Clearly, Alex didn’t make appearances for just anybody.
“Just tell him I’m a close friend of Michael Maddox, and I’d like a moment of his time,” Aiden said with flawless, unaccented English.
The waiter nodded without speaking and walked away. Michael’s name must go a long way in this town. “What do you think?” she asked after a few passing minutes while reaching for her glass.
“I think that’s Alex coming this way,” he said with eyes pinned on a tall, blonde man who was walking their way. He looked to be about forty, with spiky blonde hair, a goatee, and a well-tailored black suit. He could be on the billboard for some fancy designer label. She’d met a lot of guys like him through her sister, and she rarely liked any of them.
Alex reached the table, braced his left hand on the edge of the leather booth behind Ava, and extended his right hand to Aiden. “Hello, I’m Alex Kerensky. And you are?” He angled his head toward Ava and smoothed on a brilliant smile as Aiden took his hand. Unlike Alex’s sister, who had no accent, Ava could detect the slightest hint of one in Alex’s voice.
“We’re friends of Michael Maddox,” Aiden responded before releasing his grip.
“And I’m also a friend of your sister, Kat.” Ava held out her hand, and Alex took it swiftly between both of his palms, holding it a touch longer than she liked. Aiden cleared his throat at an obnoxiously loud level, and their fingers parted.
“Kat? Really?” He rubbed his goatee, his attention still honed in on Ava.
“We work together in Maryland, for the CSAC.”
She had caught the slightest bit of a frown before Alex masked it with his million-dollar smile. It was a smile, she bet, that could make half the women in Charlotte swoon. Not her, though. Ava was not a fan of the too good-looking—the too-perfect—man. She stole a glimpse of Aiden out of the corner of his eye. Now he was a real man. Rugged and rough around the edges, but incredibly sexy.
“Kat is no longer working for the government, from what I understand.” He took a step back and clasped his hands in front of him, resting them against his (no doubt chiseled) abs. He probably spent hours in the gym every day to carve them out.
She wished she hadn’t such an immediate distaste for this guy, especially since he was Kat’s brother, but he reminded her of the long list of men who had unsuccessfully tried to win her over just because she was Lily Daniels’s twin.
“I know who you are.”
Alex caught both Ava and Aiden off guard. They exchanged puzzled looks before turning back to him. “I just told you that I’m Kat’s coworker. Well, ex-coworker.”
“No, I mean, Kat mentioned to me that she was working with you—your sister’s that hot supermodel. I thought you looked familiar.”
There it was. Ava wondered whether she should dye her hair blonde or red or something, and wear colored contact lens. Maybe she should even get a breast reduction. Although a C-cup wasn’t that big, was it? No, her sister just wore crazy push-up bras in those ads, offering the illusion to men that she was super endowed. Not that a C was small, but—what in the hell are you thinking about right now,
Ava? She touched her collarbone and tried to recall their mission.
“Is Kat in town, by chance? I’d love to see her.”
Alex looked at his gold watch, a Rolex or some outlandishly expensive thing, she was sure. “She just got here the other night. She’s staying with me at my loft downtown. But it’s going on ten. There’s only one place she goes when she’s in town.”
Thank God. She raised a brow, waiting for Alex to continue.
“There’s a karaoke bar in the heart of Charlotte, about a block from Whiskey River—a hot spot in the downtown area. The Midnight Bar.”
Karaoke and Kat? Ava straightened in her seat. “Thank you so much. Um, I’m only here for one night, so if you don’t mind, we might just go straight there.”
Alex cocked his head to the side before reaching into his pocket. “Drinks are on me. But call me the next time you’re in town,” he said, slipping Ava his business card.
She feigned interest by offering him a forced smile, exposing her straight, white teeth. “Thank you.”
When Alex left, Ava turned toward Aiden. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
“Yes, please. I feel like clocking that guy.”
Ava chuckled a little as she rose to her feet. “Yeah, you and me both.” Her shoulders flinched at the touch of Aiden’s hand on the small of her back. His touch sent weird, spammy messages of desire to her brain. Flashing lights, orange cones, and warning flags fought against the strange, lustful temptations that belied rational, focused thought.
One touch from this guy—one tiny little touch on her back, and she was a new woman.
As Ava slid into the passenger seat of the SUV, she hit the repeat button on her thoughts, hoping to recapture some semblance of brain function not ruled by her libido: Remember Henry. Focus. Henry. Focus. Henry.
All the Midnight Bar was missing were clouds of rancid smoke drifting as bad harmonies mixed with intoxicated people. Thank God smoking was banned years ago. But why hadn’t they outlawed karaoke?
The tiny hole in the wall was crowded; Ava’s shoulder pressed against Aiden’s body as they worked their way through the place. She searched for a skinny blonde and found quite a few of them. None of them were Kat, however. “She’ll show—she has to.”
The Hidden Truths Series Box Set Page 31
