by Casey Hagen
She took a break and sipped her second beer before she headed back out to the dance floor. He couldn’t say he hated watching the way she moved to Mustang Sally.
He adjusted his pants.
Or that he didn’t get a thrill of being privy to her secret mega star status, like the secret bound them and made them the ultimate team.
“You sure do have yourself a pretty one there,” a stooped man of about seventy said as he took the empty seat next to Aiden.
“I’m a lucky man,” Aiden said, taking a sip of his beer.
“I had myself a spitfire once that looked a lot like her. Same hair.”
“What happened to her?”
The man got a faraway look in his eyes. “Cancer. Was a long time ago,” he said, taking a swig of his Budweiser.
“I’m sorry,” Aiden said, his gaze going straight to Natalie. “We never really know how much time we have, do we?”
“Nope. And the grim reaper is a shady bastard.”
“I’m Aiden,” he said, reaching a hand out to the man.
He shook Aiden’s hand with a surprisingly strong grip. “Burt. Lord have mercy, look at your girl go. She is the music.”
“Always,” Aiden said as they watched her step out the beat, snapping her fingers, rocking back and forth, everything forgotten but the song.
“Hold on to her. She’ll keep you warm at night, if you know what I mean. Meanin’ no disrespect.”
“None taken,” Aiden said as the song faded away, and couples flooded the dance floor.
“Who’s our friend?” Natalie asked, leaning her hand on the table and reaching for her drink.
“Burt, ma’am. Pleased to meet ya,” he said.
Aiden didn’t miss the way his cheeks reddened when he looked at her. “I’m willing to bet Natalie here is just waiting for a handsome guy to twirl her on the dance floor, and I’m all left feet. What do you say, Burt?”
Natalie’s bright eyes went right to Burt without missing a beat. “Would you? Please?”
“I’d be honored, my girl. Let’s go see if we can show these folks a thing or two.”
He took her hand and twirled her even as they walked out onto the floor. In seconds, they had merged into the line of couples cruising through in an ever-moving circle.
Joy lit Burt’s face, and for a handful of minutes, the decades that cracked his skin faded away, and the man he’d been before the decades drifted away, before cancer had stolen his reason, shone through.
Aiden lifted his camera and fired off a series of shots, capturing the way Natalie brought him back to life and gave him purpose for a time.
“YOU’RE STILL DANCING. You’re going to wake everyone up,” Aiden said, scooping her into his arms.
“I can’t help it,” she said, looping her arms around his neck. Until Aiden, no one had ever scooped her into their arms, and now she couldn’t imagine letting anyone else. “Doesn’t country music just make you want to make love on a soft bed of moss by a riverbank?”
“You make me want that. And in a cool lake on the Fourth of July. On the sundeck of a speedboat bobbing in the water. In a quiet cabin on a ski mountain on the floor in front of a roaring fire with fat snowflakes falling outside the picture window.”
“Hmmmm, I like that.”
“And in the back guest room of a life-size dollhouse overlooking a frozen garden” he said.
“Even better,” she murmured against his lips.
He pushed open the door and lowered her to her feet, never taking his arm from around her as he closed the door.
“Are you drunk?” he asked.
She narrowed her eyes. “No, why?”
“Because I want you with me for this,” he said, peeling her tank top out of the edge of her jeans and over her head.
The cool air washed over her flushed skin, and her nipples tightened, just begging to be touched. “Is there any end to your gallantry?”
“Probably, but I hope to God you don’t ever see it,” he said against her neck as he kissed her.
She held on as his lips traced over her skin, each kiss and swipe of his tongue more urgent.
“You were sweet with Burt tonight,” she said as she popped the button on his jeans.
“I didn’t do anything.”
“You did everything. You welcomed him in, you figured out what he needed, and you gave it to him. A man you don’t even know,” she whispered.
His pants fell to the floor even as he tilted her face up to his. “You remind him of someone he loves.”
“He told me.”
He stared into her eyes, searching for something. “I can’t imagine going back to a time when I didn’t have you in my arms. I don’t know what I’d do if—”
She laid her finger over his lips. “Shhhh, I’m not going anywhere,” she promised. She’d think about tours later and how they’d handle all that.
At some point, she’d worry that they moved too fast. She had no doubt he’d be right there to kiss the fear away and carry her off to their next adventure.
But right now, she wanted to give to him. She wanted to look into his eyes as she poured every last ounce of affection and love he’d filled her with into an intimate dance between their two bodies.
Remaining silent, their gazes locked, the rest of their clothes fell to the floor.
They tumbled onto their own personal cloud of cotton for the night in a tangle of arms, legs, kisses, and soft sighs.
Their hearts pounded as they rose up, and she straddled his lap, sinking onto him. Inch after inch slowly sliding inside, every thought, every emotion, and every sensation reflected in their eyes.
She rolled her hips torturously slow, letting the need build as she stared into his soul.
The little boy left by his mom lay buried in there, the seed to every aspect of his character that came after.
His hands tightened on her hips, his hooded gaze intent, filled with wonder and longing almost as if he knew what she saw inside him, and his instinct was to hold on to her so she didn’t vanish.
“Right here with you,” she whispered in the darkness.
“I love you, Natalie,” he said quietly, his gaze searching her eyes, gauging her reaction.
Her lungs seized, and a hot tear rolled down her cheek. “I love you, too,” she said, choking the words out.
He laid his head against her breasts, pressing his cheek tight to her skin as if soaking her in. She smoothed his hair and kissed his forehead, her arms wrapping around him holding him close while whatever emotional storm brewed within him passed.
Before long, as her hips grew more urgent, his hands roamed over her belly to her breasts, teasing her nipples, and soon the chase of release took over.
She rocked her hips harder, their gasps more jagged and desperate as they tried to soothe the ache of attraction, lust, and ultimately love burning between them.
The first spasms of her release tightened inside her, rendering her helpless to do anything but slump against him and cry out.
He groaned, his lips going to her shoulder as he thrust harder, his arms wrapping around her, holding her together as she came apart in his arms.
Chapter 16
“UGH, DO WE HAVE TO go back? Let’s just stay in this bed forever,” Natalie said as she covered her eyes with her forearm to block out the light spilling through the gauzy curtains.
“Well, I don’t have to be back just yet. Do you?” he asked from where he lay next to her, propped up on his elbow.
She peeked out at him with one eye and smiled at his rumpled hair. “Yes, I promised my grandmother I’d take her to bingo tonight. Plus, I have a four o’clock appointment with Claire.”
“You’re serious?”
“As a heart attack. I’m quite literally going to be back at your office before you are. Feel bad for me?”
He crossed his hands behind the back of his head and leaned against his pillows. “Nope. This is what you get. Okay, so maybe a bit about the adjustment. My fault. Bu
t actually, I have a little project I need to get started on, so I can put the extra time to good use, but... I want to take you somewhere Saturday night. Think cocktail dress.”
“As Natalie, right?” she asked, wondering what he was up to.
“Yes, you’re not a circus monkey.” He rolled over and cupped her chin, turning her face to him. “I’m never going to ask you to show up as anyone other than Natalie. Understood?”
“Yes,” she whispered. God, why the hell did she go there? He’d never once given any indication that he ever wanted her for anything other than who she was.
But she’d never given a man the power he held in the images stored on his camera, and it would take time to get used to letting go of that control.
She was going to have to check herself and that niggling fear. It wasn’t fair to him, and it was her issue to get over. “Do I get any other details to go on other than just the expected dress?”
“Uhhh, no.”
“What are you up to?” she asked, curiosity burning through her.
He shook his head and made a point of looking at everything except for her. “Not a thing.”
“Liar.”
They showered together, dragging out the morning as long as they could, playing and teasing before dressing and checking out. Instead of rock, paper, scissors, they hit the interstate and made it home in a matter of just over two hours.
With his stuff transferred back to his car, he wrapped his arms around her in the driveway. “Be ready at six Saturday, okay?”
“I’ll be waiting,” she said, curling her fingers into his shirt and pulling him to her, this time holding him tight until she had no choice but to let him go. She breathed in his musky cologne and the lingering scent of his shampoo, scents that would forever be synonymous with him.
Fear crept in along with sadness that their trip had to end. They hadn’t been gone long, but in that time, she’d gotten so damned used to him filling her up and giving her a smile.
Two nights felt like forever.
“You’re shaking,” he said into her neck as he squeezed her tight.
“Why is this so hard?” she asked.
“New, uncertain territory. And you can’t live without me,” he said with a rough laugh that told her he was just as emotional as she was.
She smacked his shoulder and pulled away to wipe the tears from her eyes. “Sick man.”
He took her hands and pressed his forehead to hers. “But you love me.”
She cupped his face and held him there. “I do.”
“Get inside, it’s cold out here,” he said, giving her quick kiss and stepping back. “Saturday, six o’clock.”
SHE WATCHED HIM FROM the window as he backed out of her driveway. Aiden waved and gave her a brief honk before he headed back for Stamford. He’d just gotten onto Route 33 when his cell rang.
“Oliver, tell me you’ve got good news,” he said by way of answering.
“I’ve got a small room I can let you set up for Saturday night. We have a private showing in our main room that night, but it won’t spill over. It’s invite only. Limited to fifty people.”
Aiden slapped a hand against his thigh. “I can be there first thing in the morning to get ready. You mind if I use your print room?”
“It’s yours. Our prints are ready to go for Saturday and framed. We’ve got plenty of frames here, use what you need. I’m intrigued to see what you’ve got.”
“Me too,” he said with a laugh, hoping he wasn’t about to make a huge idiot of himself. He was biased and he knew it, so he’d print the pictures at Oliver’s gallery and see if Oliver saw the same things he did. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
“You got it,” Oliver said before hanging up.
He got home within the hour and before he did anything else, he called his father. “Hey, Dad. How are you?”
“It’s a good day, son. Your brother showed up to have lunch, and I just finished smiting him in all three rounds of chess.”
“He cheats,” Aiden heard his brother call out in the background.
His father went on about the past few days and the movies he and Anthony had watched each night after dinner while Aiden tried to suck in the air that had been knocked out of him.
“Listen, your brother wants to talk to you. Hang on.”
“Okay,” Aiden said around the lump in his throat. He didn’t know if he was more relieved to hear his brother had stepped up or scared of the prospect of easing the grip he had on the situation. If his brother was ready to step in and share the responsibility, Aiden would have to figure out how because he didn’t know how to be anything else.
Apparently, there was one hell of a learning curve waiting ahead for both of them.
“Hey,” his brother said quietly. “Listen, about what I said before...”
As his brother hovered there, poised to apologize, Aiden realized he didn’t even need to hear it.
“It’s all good, Anthony,” Aiden said, surprised that it was the truth.
“You were right all along,” Anthony said.
Aiden bit the inside of his cheek. This he kind of did want to hear.
“I thought Dad would have been worse off. I was afraid to spend more than a few minutes with him. Afraid to see what was coming, but now that I’m here, I want to get as much time in as I can.”
“Good. That’s real good,” Aiden said.
“Listen, I have to get back to the office, but I left a proposal there for you to divvy up the schedule. When you get back on Monday, let’s talk about it.”
“Sure thing,” Aiden agreed.
“Okay, I have to go, and Dad is in the bathroom so I’ll tell him you said goodbye. I think he has a crush on his nurse. He’s already reset the board and decided it’s his life’s mission to teach her how to play chess,” Anthony said with his real laugh.
The one Aiden hadn’t heard in years. The one that wasn’t laced with sarcasm or his player ways but instead filled with his natural, relaxed confidence.
“See you Monday,” Aiden said before hanging up.
He scrubbed a hand over his face, and his chest expanded with what might have been the first real deep breath he’d taken in a good year.
Following the ragged intake of air was a flood of tears he didn’t even know he had in him. The ones he’d never cried for his mother, the loss of his twin, the years he spent in school exhausted, knowing that one day his father dreamed of them taking over the family business, and the strain of trying to hold it all together.
He headed for the shower and let it all go, standing under the spray, the tears rushing off his skin under a torrent of water from the sprayer until the water ran cold.
Spent, he dropped onto his bed, still wrapped in a damp towel, and didn’t wake up until five the next morning.
“CHRIST, MAN. YOU TOOK this?” Oliver asked, staring at the image of Natalie framed and propped against the gleaming white wall just outside of the printing room tucked on the far side of the gallery.
“I did,” Aiden said, hardly able to believe it himself.
“Who is she?”
“My girlfriend,” he said, his chest swelling with pride he couldn’t hold back. He’d woken up to a text from her, a selfie of her with a cup of hot coffee tipped to her pink lips and a message. “Why aren’t you here with me?”
“I didn’t know you were seeing somebody. Last time I talked to you, you were up to your eyeballs holding the practice together by your sheer force of will,” Oliver said, still studying the photo.
He’d met Oliver in college. They’d run into each other, both with their cameras around their necks, Oliver in the art program and Aiden pre-med. Oliver had told him a long time ago that he was in the wrong major, but Aiden maintained that he fit in two disciplines.
He still believed that.
“A few things have changed, and for the better,” Aiden said, clapping Oliver on the shoulder.
“I’m happy for you. I really am.” Oliver continu
ed to examine the picture, muttering to himself and shaking his head. “Where was she when this was taken?”
“Kneeling by a Sandy Hook memorial behind a church that shut down a couple years ago,” Aiden said.
Oliver’s sharp look conveyed it all. “Jesus.”
Aiden shook his head, that day still alive in his mind as if it had happened just minutes ago. “Yeah, looks like he’s there, too.”
“You’re not kidding. She talks to angels.”
Aiden froze, tingles shooting up his spine so strong his fingertips prickled with Oliver’s words. The same words that had come to him when he saw the image for the first time. “What made you say that?” Aiden said, studying him.
“Just the feeling I get looking at that. The light is highly unusual for the clouds in the distance. It’s like the storm clouds opened up for just that moment, and the angels reached for her. God, that sounds ridiculous, but that’s exactly what I get.”
“So, I wasn’t wrong,” Aiden murmured. “I’ve got to tell you, I’ve always questioned if there was a man upstairs, but this works in his favor for sure.”
“This belongs as a featured piece. I’ve never done this before, but I’d be willing to bump Saturday’s feature for this,” Oliver said.
“Can’t do it,” Aiden said with a hard shake of his head. He wouldn’t betray her. “I promised her none of my photos of her get shared without permission.”
Oliver pursed his lips. “Most women would be flattered.”
“Not her. She’s private.”
“Aiden, if there’s any way you think she’ll change your mind...seriously, this could lead to some serious money and fame for you.”
“That doesn’t matter.”
Oliver shook his head and smiled. “Okay, but if you change your mind, I better be the first one you call. Hell, I’m probably still going to try to convince you.”
“You’ll be the first to know,” Aiden said.
NATALIE ADDED ONE MORE spritz to her curls to keep them under control and spun one last time in the full length mirror to make sure not a stitch was out of place.
