Robby appeared beside her, jumping like a pogo stick. “Come on, Mr. Aiden. Come in and order pizza.”
Aiden’s gaze had gone to Robby, then flew back to her and she feared he’d changed his mind. “Come on in,” she said.
He stepped in and reached for her hand, squeezing her fingers. “It’s wonderful, Amy. My house is so quiet compared to this.”
She stared at him in astonishment, only able to dream of quiet.
“Pizza,” Robby yelled and they got down to business, arguing over the toppings and how many to order. To her surprise, Aiden jumped right into the fray, throwing his two cents in whenever he could, then declaring that since he was paying, he was picking the pizza toppings. The kids groaned when he recited all the vegetables he would get, but then they caught on to his teasing and teased right back. Even Claire, who normally was too quiet around strangers, hanging back until she felt comfortable, gave as good as she got. Amy stepped back and watched, amazed at the change in her oldest. For the first time in forever, the girl flipped her hair out of her face and her eyes shown with something other than disdain.
After Aiden ordered the pizza, Amy made the kids settle down to homework. Again Aiden pitched in, pulling a chair up with Claire and explaining decimals in a way Amy hadn’t thought of. Her heart turned over at the look of excitement on her daughter’s face when she finally understood the concept she’d been struggling for weeks to conquer.
Her little pack of wolves consumed the pizza in what seemed like two and a half seconds and Amy sent Robby and Claire up to get ready for bed, then straightened the kitchen. When she stepped into the family room, tears sprung into her eyes. Aiden held the TV remote control in his hand, flipping through the channels while Lydia lay fast asleep in his arms, her little mouth open and small snores escaping.
She stood there for the longest time, taking in the scene, reliving the entire night. They’d never had nights like this when she was married to Rob. He was always too busy climbing the corporate ladder to that ever-elusive partnership and when he was home, more often than not, he was in his office on the phone.
She pushed the pain away, no longer willing or able to carry around such hatred and anger. Especially when the scene before her was so much more precious. For a small moment she allowed the hope that maybe they could have more nights like this, but quickly dashed it. It was one thing to involve her heart in another relationship, but she wouldn’t involve her kids. Not unless she was absolutely sure this one would last.
Aiden looked up and smiled that strange smile that never really revealed his teeth but always his emotions.
“She’s fast asleep,” he whispered.
Amy walked over to them and bent down, lifting her baby into her arms. She wasn’t much of a baby anymore with her long legs and strong body. That thought was bittersweet. Her kids were growing up and nothing she could do would stop it.
“I’ll put her to bed,” she said, heading for the steps, her stomach fluttering because after the kids were in bed, there would be nothing to distract her. And Aiden had said he wanted to talk. More than likely about her stupid actions the other night. What an idiot she’d been. But she’d reacted out of pure panic. Panic at what she’d felt. What Aiden had begun to mean to her, what her actions meant and what he thought her actions meant. Life was never easy.
It took her longer than normal to get Claire and Robby settled down. They were both wound up after having Aiden with them tonight and Robby’s eyes sparkled with something that Amy was afraid to identify. Sometimes her son scared her with the things he came up with and she still hadn’t discovered why he had been over at Aiden’s tonight. But eventually they calmed down and she headed back downstairs.
To find Aiden gone.
Her stomach lurched as she looked around the family room just as her excitement and hope plummeted. Then she heard a scraping sound coming from the kitchen and she headed that way to find Aiden on the back deck, lighting the tiki candles, two glasses of wine sitting on the small table between their chairs.
“Pretty soon it’ll be too cold to sit out here,” he said as she walked out on the deck. He turned and indicated her chair, then took a seat in his. His and her chairs. Oh, Amy, you’ve got it bad.
They sat in compatible silence for several minutes, listening to the crickets and the night sounds.
“So.” Amy was the one who broke the quiet. “What were you and Robby conspiring about this evening?”
Aiden sighed as he gazed toward the trees. “Robby asked me to be his dad.”
Chapter Eight
Amy almost spit her mouthful of wine out. As it was she inhaled a little bit of it and choked. “What? Please, tell me he didn’t say that.”
“Oh, he did.” Aiden grabbed her hand and curled his fingers around it. “I love touching you,” he said, staring down at their joined hands.
“Thank you. I, uh, like when you touch me.” Too much. “Now, about this…”
He raised her hand to his mouth and pressed his lips to her knuckles, then turned his head so her fingers brushed his stubble-roughened cheek. The action was so intimate that Amy couldn’t breathe for the emotions crowding through her. Oh, my, she loved him. She couldn’t deny it. Not anymore. She loved him and that terrified her because the last time she’d thought she’d loved like this, she’d been wrong and three other people had to pay for her mistake.
Hand still pressed to his cheek, his eyes met hers. “I want to touch you more. All over.” That beautiful voice flowed over her, mesmerizing her, putting her under some spell she neither wanted to get out of nor could if she tried. Because she wanted the same thing.
“Aiden—”
“Shhh, Amy-mine. No second-guessing tonight. I love being with you. I love touching you. I love…everything about you.”
Her breath came out in one big whoosh because she thought for sure he was going to say he loved her. But it was close enough. It would have to do.
He leaned over and put his free hand on the back of her head, nudging her forward until their lips met in an electrifying kiss that had her body humming with a need stronger than any she’d felt before. Even the one time they’d been together. Then she didn’t know what Aiden Reed could do to her. Now she did and it made the excitement that much more intense. The wait that much more brutal.
Aiden broke away first. He stared at her, his eyes dilated with desire and so much more.
He ran a finger down her cheek to her pulse point. “God, woman, what you do to me.” His voice was raspy, ragged, breathless. “You bring out the beast in me. I want to claim you as mine. Brand you so no other man can touch you.”
Tremors ran up her legs and into her stomach. She’d always considered herself a modern woman, but these words uttered by this man, and in this way made her want him to brand her. Never again would she want another man to touch her.
“Only you, Aiden. It will only ever be you.”
One corner of his mouth lifted in a grin. “If only it could be,” he said.
Her stomach twisted in knots. What? What did that mean? “Aiden.” Desperation drove her words. A desperate need to never lose him. “I lo—”
He placed a finger on her lips. “Shhh, Amy-mine.” Then he pulled away, both physically and emotionally, and Amy was left shivering in cold and dread. What the heck had just happened here?
“Robby wants me to be his father for the Boy Scout camp out,” he said.
For a long moment Amy’s brain couldn’t process the words. What? What camp out? Then, slowly, sluggishly, her memory returned. “Ah. Now I understand.”
“He said he’d called his father.”
Her heart ached for her little boy. She hadn’t known he’d called Rob, but could only imagine what her snake of an ex had said.
“I can’t take him to the camp out, Amy. I’d love to, but I just can’t.”
“I understand. You have a life and Robby isn’t your son.”
He turned to her, his dark eyes smoldering. “That
’s not why I can’t go. I love that kid and I would do anything in my power for him. Unfortunately, this isn’t in my power.”
“That’s okay. I really can’t afford to send him anyway.”
His gaze sharpened. “If money’s the problem—”
Her back went up and pride reared. “No. Thank you. I can’t possibly take your money.” She stared out over the rail of the deck. Robby would be heartbroken when he discovered Aiden wouldn’t go.
“If money’s that tight, Amy, you need to take Rob to court.”
“Yeah, right. He’s an attorney, Aiden. He’ll fight me and nickel and dime me, wasting my time, knowing I can’t afford the attorney fees. No thanks. I’ll survive.”
“Is that why you bake? For extra income?”
She nodded. “Mary, who owns the souvenir shop in town, buys my bread and sells it. Unfortunately, after the fall, when the leaves are gone, the tourists are gone too.” How she was going to get through the winter was a constant worry. Somewhere she’d have to find a second job that fit into her schedule and allowed her to be at home when the kids were. But, for right now, she wouldn’t think of that. She couldn’t or she’d get too depressed.
Later that night, alone in his home, Aiden closed his eyes and fought the sexual need coursing through him and the constant hard-on he’d learned to live with. God, he wanted her in a way he’d never wanted another woman. It’d taken all his will power and then some to get up and walk away from her with a light kiss on the cheek when all he’d wanted to do was slam her against the side of the house and plunge inside her sweet heat. He hadn’t been lying when he said he wanted to brand her. It had to be the beast inside him. No one was that primitive anymore, were they?
Christ. He ran a hand through his loose hair and tugged on it just to feel a pain other than the throbbing one in his jeans.
To distract himself, he dialed Ben’s number, calculating the time difference between here and San Francisco then not giving a damn if he woke his best friend. He needed a diversion and Cerian and Boy Scouts would do well enough.
“Hollis here and this better be damn good.”
Aiden smiled, happy he’d made someone else as miserable as himself. “I don’t think Cerian’s left the area,” he said without preamble.
“Really? Why?” Already the ire was leaving his friend’s tone and Aiden filled him in on what he knew.
Ben blew out a deep breath. “Shit. That man’s just plain sick.”
And that’s why he needed to be eliminated.
“When’s this camp out?” Ben asked.
“Three weeks.”
“Tell me who to send your way.” Aiden listed the names of some of the best Rogue Hunters in the business. They’d need the best to keep those boys safe. With a promise to get everything he needed, Ben signed off and Aiden flipped his phone shut, his momentarily dormant sex drive rearing up.
He growled and pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes. He had the whole night ahead of him with nothing to do. Tracking Cerian would be a waste of time because the man was obviously waiting for his moment. The bar scene didn’t appeal to him anymore, not since he’d gotten a taste of Amy, and he certainly had no interest in picking up another woman.
A soft knock on his door had him whirling toward it, his mouth drawn down in a frown. Who the hell could that be? When he opened it, the capacity to speak momentarily left him.
“Make love to me, Aiden.”
He groaned in denial, her words hitting him like bullets. “Amy—”
She pressed a finger to his lips, the warm vanilla scent of her wrapping around his senses. “Shhhh. Not tonight. Just love me.”
He kissed her finger and pulled it away, torment eating a hole through him. “Nothing can come of this. I have to be truthful here. We can’t…you and I…there’s nothing I can do.” God, but the things he wanted to do, needed to do with her.
She nodded as pain flared in her eyes, quickly masked by a sad smile. “I know. I think I’ve known that. You’re different Aiden, I don’t know how, but you are.”
His eyes drifted closed as her words hit him again. If only she knew. If only he could tell her. If only… “This is insane.”
She shook her head. “No. This is right.”
With a smothered cry he reached for her, pulling her against his hard body and nearly bending her backwards with his kiss. They were both right. It was insane. It was right.
“Just give me one more night,” she panted. Pleaded.
He couldn’t deny her. One more night. But it wouldn’t be enough. He knew that now. An eternity wouldn’t be enough, but he’d take what he could get and store the memories and that would have to do. Her hands lifted the tails of his shirt, skimming over his bare skin and causing him to hiss.
Blood lust roared through his veins and he could smell her blood pounding through her, inflamed with her desire. He was already twice as hard as he’d ever been before and the need pulsed through him, hot and demanding, slick and fast. Her hands ripped at his shirt, her breath coming in short pants, eyes unfocused, dilated, needy. He pulled away long enough to shed his shirt and rip hers from her body. Fabric tore, buttons popped, words were murmured without meaning.
Wanting to see her naked beneath him on a bed of satin sheets, Aiden bent and scooped her up in his arms without breaking contact. She nibbled on his neck and his breath stopped as her teeth grazed his pulse point. He licked his fangs, needing to taste her. To make her his for eternity.
Reaching his bedroom, he tossed her on the bed and followed her. She spread her legs and he fit his hips with hers to relieve the intense pressure of his erection. Pinning her head between his hands, he kissed her, raking his tongue through her mouth, devouring the taste of her. His nostrils flared at her unique scent.
His hips bucked and she gasped, her fingernails tearing at the denim at his waist, her fingers brushing against his arousal causing it to pulse. He hissed in a breath and clenched his eyes shut, attempting to pull in his wayward control.
The button on his jeans unsnapped, the zipper lowered and he sprang free into her hand. Warm skin surrounded him, stroked him, feather light touches interspersed with bold strokes that had stars dancing before his eyes.
“I want you. Now.” She rocked her hips into him and Aiden groaned, his world going gray, the pressure building to an explosion neither of them were ready for. Her nails raked his back as his gaze centered on the rapidly beating pulse at her throat. She turned her head, revealing the smooth length of her neck. He licked his fangs, testing the sharp points and lowering his head, the scent of her sweat-slicked skin invading his body.
His teeth grazed her neck and she gasped, her body arching into his. With fevered movements, Aiden stripped her pants, tossing them away and plunging inside her without any preparation. For a moment, he stopped, worried he’d hurt her. He stared down at her, but her eyes were closed and a moan tore loose from between her parted lips.
She pulled him down, settling his weight on her and he began to move. Slow thrusts in, then out. The feel of her wet walls surrounding him, squeezing him, tightened his sac. Making him want to pump faster, harder. His gaze locked on her neck and he lowered his head, nipping at the delicate skin, prolonging the moment, the pressure building until nothing but the intense sensation of pounding into Amy’s heat remained.
Amy lifted her hips from the bed and threw her head back, the muscles in her neck straining, her eyes clenched tight as she forced him to drive into her. She threw her head back, her tendons standing out as a keening cry ripped through her and she clutched at the satin sheets, trying to find purchase. Going on pure instinct now, unable to control himself, he pierced her skin with his fangs and cried out at the sweet taste of her blood.
Almost immediately, he could feel her orgasm. Feel the tremendous pressure between her legs, feel himself slide in and out of her even as he felt his own sensations, his cock pumping her. It was like being inside her body and his at the same time and the sensations
were almost too much to handle. He was afraid he’d be torn apart.
His hips pumped faster until the bed springs protested. Amy screamed as she clamped down on him. Warm, sweet blood flowed from her neck into his mouth and it tasted like nothing he’d ever had before. Sweet and sensual. Bold and spicy.
Just as her orgasm began to abate, it started to build again and he didn’t know if he could survive another one, feeling them the way he was and he’d still yet to feel his own. Her eyes flew open to meet his. For the first time, he allowed her to see his smile, but her eyes drifted closed as her head whipped back and forth, small moans erupting from her.
He let loose, throwing his head back and roaring with a release so intense he’d never recover from it. When at last he’d pumped the last of his seed into her, he collapsed, unable to move.
Beneath him, Amy’s chest rose and fell in rapid movements. Without raising his head he stroked the damp hair away from her face, his fingers feathering down her cheek until they reached the two small holes in the side of her neck. His body stiffened as his mind whirled. Oh, Christ. What had he done?
He pulled back and looked at the small spot where a bruise was starting to form. Shit. Amy pushed at him and his gaze raced to her face, but she was half-asleep and when he lifted his weight off her, she merely rolled over and curled into a ball. He fell to his side and gathered her close.
What was he going to do now? He closed his eyes, his nostrils flaring at the floral and vanilla scent that now invaded his sheets.
He’d lose her for sure when she discovered what he was. What he’d done.
Chapter Nine
Amy awoke and rolled over, cuddling into the warmth at her back. A small purr of contentment rumbled through her as Aiden’s arm tightened around her waist. She didn’t want to leave, but knew she needed to get back home. Sometimes Robby wandered the house in the middle of the night and she needed to be there. With a small stretch and a whole lot of reluctance, she eased out of bed, careful not to wake Aiden.
Night Song Page 5
