“Good morning,” he greeted, and the scent of coffee and food hit her.
For the first time, she noticed the two large coffees stuck into the tray set on top of the pink Dunkin’ Donuts box he carried.
“Were you here all night?” she asked.
“Most of it. Declan stayed for a bit while I went to shower and change,” he replied. He’d also gathered some weapons and picked up a replacement wallet with ID and money. “I sent him home when I came back from the donut shop.”
“Why did you stay here?”
“To make sure you remain safe.”
“Oh.” She had no idea what else to say to that.
He lifted the donut box a little higher. “I wasn’t sure which type of donut you liked, so I got you one of each.”
“One of each?” There she went parroting him all over again.
He stopped before her. “Yes. Plus some bagels and cream cheese, in case you don’t like donuts.”
“Oh,” she whispered. She hated the tears pricking her eyes, but she’d experienced kindness from only a rare few people in her life, and this was something so simple, yet so sweet.
“I’m also told you humans like this place,” he said and tapped the name on the front of the box.
She smiled at him. “Dunkin’ is the only way to go, at least for me. Thank you for this, but I was on my way out.”
Aiden’s heart thundered as he gazed at her. He lowered the box to cover his growing hard-on as he took in the body-hugging yoga pants emphasizing her shapely calves and thighs. She wore a black jacket and had her hair pulled into a knot on her head. Healthy color tinged her cheeks.
“You’re a runner,” he said, stating the obvious but unsure of what else to say to keep her from stepping inside and closing the door in his face again. He could make her leave here, but she’d hate him for it, and he’d already botched their meeting enough without making it worse.
“I’ve been training for the Boston Marathon. Some coworkers and I are going to run it this year.”
He didn’t tell her she probably couldn’t return to her old life; she would come to that conclusion in her own time.
“I didn’t think I’d like running, but last year, I agreed to try to qualify for the race because our team will be raising money for foster children. It turns out, I actually enjoy running.” Maggie couldn’t stop herself from blathering out words like an idiot. What did he care why she was running or if she liked it? “Anyway, I have to get a run in today.”
“I’ll go with you.”
“Why? You said the Savages couldn't go out in the day.”
“They can’t, but their cronies can.”
“Their cronies?” Stop repeating everything he says!
“Yes.” He glanced up and down the hall. “I’d prefer not to discuss this out here.”
Maggie examined her neighbor’s doors before her gaze fell on the box in his hands. Stepping back, she nudged the door further open with her heel. “You did bring breakfast, so you might as well come in.”
Aiden managed to stop himself from crushing the donuts as relief washed over him. This was a big step for her, he knew. One he hadn’t expected her to make. He vowed to bring her donuts and coffee every day for the rest of her mortal existence if it meant this much to her.
Entering the apartment, Aiden took in the threadbare furniture, small TV, and hall leading toward what he assumed were the bedroom and bathroom. Plants hung from hooks over the windows, orchids lined the windowsills, and sunflowers were in a vase on the kitchen table. The redolent aroma of the plants, the butterscotch of Maggie, and a soft cinnamon scent filled the air. The place was small, nothing within it new, but it was clean and obvious that she took pride in it.
He followed Maggie as she walked into the kitchen. Small paintings of landscapes hung on the walls, but he saw only one picture of someone else in the place. Setting the box on the counter separating the kitchen from the living room, he lifted the wooden picture frame to inspect the photo within.
In the photo, Maggie looked to be in her late teens. She was laughing and had her arm around the waist of a handsome young man. Love radiated from her eyes as she gazed up at the man. The man stared down at her with that same vibrant love evident in his eyes. He was also laughing at something.
Studying the picture, Aiden got a sense of closeness between them that made him think whatever they laughed at was a private joke meant only for their world.
He resisted crushing the photo in his hand. “Who’s this?”
Maggie nudged the top of the donut box open to peer inside. She didn’t glance at the photo as she replied, “A.J.”
“You two look very close.”
“We were.” She already felt herself shying away from this conversation. She poked a Boston crème donut before closing the box. “I should run before stuffing myself.”
Aiden continued to stare at the photo. “You were close?”
“Yes.”
“Was he your boyfriend?”
“What does it matter?” she replied impatiently.
“I’m trying to get to know you better.”
“Why?”
“Because I like you.”
Maggie blinked at him, unsure of how to respond to those honest words. “Are you willing to discuss all of your exes with me?” she inquired.
“So, he is an ex?” Aiden pushed.
“He was much more than that, and you didn’t answer my question.”
Aiden’s teeth ground together, but he knew he wouldn’t get any more out of her without giving her something too. “I don’t have any exes. I don’t date.”
“You don’t have even one ex-girlfriend?”
“No.”
Red flags waved all around Maggie’s face, but she ignored them all. “So you don’t have any exes because you don’t date; is that because you prefer to use prostitutes?”
After Carha’s words last night about not using her services again, Aiden knew why Maggie had asked that question. He dreaded the one he knew would follow his answer. “No.”
“Then what services of Carha’s were you using? Do you do drugs?”
“I don’t do drugs.”
Maggie tapped her fingers on the counter as she waited for him to explain more, but he remained silent. “Not going to tell me what she did for you then?” she inquired.
“There are things I’d prefer you didn’t know.”
“And there are things I’d prefer you didn’t know.” Taking A.J.’s photo from him, she traced his beloved face before placing the picture down. “I’m going for a run now.”
“There are things about me, Maggie, that I don’t want to touch your life.”
She’d been making her way between her countertop and the card table that served as the kitchen table she never used. His words stopped her. “Are you going to hurt me?” she demanded.
“No! Never!”
“I’ve seen and been through a lot in my life. I think I managed last night pretty well. Most probably would have shit themselves or run screaming. Believe me, there’s nothing I can’t handle.”
“You did handle last night well.” She’d certainly taken the knowledge of vampires with far more ease than he would have expected from someone who’d been doing her job one minute and plunged into a supernatural war the next.
“But you’re still not going to tell me what Carha was talking about?” she asked.
“No. Not now.”
“Fair enough.” She took another step forward before recalling his earlier words and halting. “What about these cronies you mentioned before?”
“Since they can’t tolerate the sun, Savages sometimes use humans to do their bidding during the daytime. If the Savages know where you are, they could send some of those humans after you to either monitor you or to take you to them.”
“Why would those people do anything the Savages wanted them to do?”
“There are some who will do anything for a chance at immortality.”
/> “You think the Savages would send those people for me?” she asked.
“Yes. You shouldn’t go out alone, at any time.”
“I’m not getting my life back, am I?”
“Not anytime soon, and maybe not ever.”
“I’m going for a run.”
CHAPTER 22
Maggie’s feet slapped against the sidewalk as she ran up the hill with her head bowed and her arms and legs pumping to propel her faster. Sweat dripped off her brow and stuck her clothes to her body. Strands of hair had worked free of her bun to stick to her face. Her lungs burned as she pushed herself onward. He kept pace with her as she ran up one hill and down another. She ran so far they went through neighborhoods she’d only ever traversed in the ambulance before.
She’d never run this far or fast before, but she couldn’t stop as her mind spun with Aiden’s revelations. They hadn’t spoken since she’d walked out of her apartment with him trailing her.
Finally, unable to continue, she came to a gasping halt on a street corner. Her hand went to the stitch in her side as she bent over to catch her breath. Aiden rested his hands on his knees beside her.
“Thank you for stopping,” he muttered, and she burst into laughter broken only by her inability to breathe. It felt weird to be laughing when everything was crumbling around her, but she had no idea what else to do, not anymore.
“You’re in good shape, Nosferatu.” That was the understatement of the century. “You should have no problem keeping up with a mere mortal.”
“I’m not much of a marathon runner, and I’m not used to working out in jeans. Which is something I hope never to do again.”
He pulled at the denim sticking like glue to his legs, and she bit her lip to keep from laughing again. Rising, Maggie stretched her arms and legs before pulling her bottle of water free from where she’d strapped it to her side. She squirted some liquid into her mouth as she took in their surroundings.
Without realizing it, she’d looped around to within three blocks of her place. Only a few people were venturing out this early on a Saturday morning. Watching them, she couldn’t help but wonder if one of them might be working for a Savage and hunting her.
“At the club last night, I could differentiate between the vamps and the humans, but would I be able to spot one of the people who work for the Savages?” she asked.
“No. They’ll look and act as human as you. How did you tell the difference between us at the club?”
His words chilled her. Did enemies surround her now? Was that woman in the pink jumpsuit really someone looking to take her to something that would tear her throat out, or was that man walking his poodle a threat to her?
“Vamps move differently,” she answered as she studied every possible enemy strolling the sidewalks. “And there’s something predatory about all of you that’s almost undetectable unless someone is looking for it.”
“Most people wouldn’t bother to look for it.”
“Most people wouldn’t know to look for it,” she pointed out. “I did.”
“Even if they did know, many wouldn't spot it.”
“You don’t grow up like I did and not learn to trust your instincts and learn your environment really well.”
“And how did you grow up?”
“That conversation is way too complicated to have right now.”
Aiden took the water bottle from her before she could replace it. She stretched her legs as he squeezed water into his mouth and swallowed it. He’d taken his sweater and coat off before they’d left her apartment. A sheen of sweat covered his chest and abs in an enticing way that had her contemplating licking her lips, or him.
“Can all vampires drink stuff other than blood?” she asked to distract herself from the bead of sweat making its way through the trail of hair leading from his belly button to his waistband.
“Yes.” He handed the bottle back to her and tucked a strand of loose hair behind her ear. She started but didn’t pull away from him when he traced the outer shell of her ear with his finger before lowering his hand. She’d almost killed him with her run, but the sparkle in her eyes was worth it. “We can eat too if it’s necessary.”
“Fascinating.”
“Do you always run so far and fast?” he asked.
She smiled at him and drank some more water before recapping the bottle. “No. I was trying to work things out in my mind, and running helps me do that.”
“And did you get things worked out?”
“No.”
The smile slid from his face. “I’ll keep you safe, Maggie.”
“I don’t know you, Aiden. And no offense, but my life has gone to shit since you entered it.”
He winced at the truth of her words. He was supposed to bring happiness to his mate’s life, not turn it upside down and place her in danger.
“What would you like to know about me?” he asked.
She tilted her head to the side. “But you said, ‘there are things about me, Maggie, that I don’t want to touch your life.’ Now you’re willing to share with me?”
No. But instead, he found himself saying, “If it helps you to trust me more, I will tell you as much as I can.”
“And what do you expect from me in return?”
“Who said I expected anything from you?” he asked.
“Everyone always expects something.”
“Not true.”
“For a vampire, you’re very naïve.”
“For a human, you’re very jaded,” he said with a smile.
Maggie didn’t smile back. “Why did you attack Nigel like that?”
Aiden stiffened as he contemplated his answer. “He hurt you, he was harassing you, and I won’t tolerate someone treating you that way.”
“But it was so… so…”
“Violent,” he supplied when she seemed unable to find the word.
“Yes. And an unnecessary overreaction.”
“I know,” he admitted. He ran a hand through his hair as she studied him warily. “You never should have witnessed it, and I will try to keep you from seeing anything like that again, but I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you safe.”
“Why?”
“Because I got you into this mess, and I will get you through whatever follows. But no matter what happens, I will never hurt you.”
“Hmm,” Maggie grunted, not entirely sure she believed him about why he’d reacted that way, but she did believe him when he said he wouldn’t hurt her. “Why did you stop hitting Nigel when I asked you to?”
“Because I knew I’d overreacted and you’d already been through and seen too much. I never should have attacked him like that, not in front of you.”
His earnest words and the plea radiating from his eyes for her to understand tugged at her heart.
“Don’t fear me, Maggie,” he whispered.
“I don’t,” she replied honestly.
She turned away from him and started walking down the street. She stopped at the small convenience store on the corner, pushed the glass door open, and waved to the clerk behind the counter. She saw the clerk every day, and they always exchanged casual conversation, but she couldn’t remember his name, and he didn’t wear a tag.
“Hey, you! No shirt, no service!” the clerk declared when the bell over the door jangled and Aiden stepped into the store behind her.
Maggie glanced over her shoulder and froze when Aiden’s gaze locked onto the clerk. “It’s fine,” Aiden said in a soothing tone. “We’ll be out of here soon. Go back to doing what you were doing before we entered.”
The clerk became slack-jawed before he went back to flipping through the magazine on the counter. Maggie frowned at Aiden when he walked over to join her. “Have you done that to me?” she demanded.
“No.”
“Would you tell me if you had?”
He cupped her cheek with his hand and rubbed his thumb tenderly over her skin. “I will not lie to you, Maggie. And you don’t ever have to be concerned abo
ut me changing your memories or messing with your mind. I will never do that to you.”
“And I’m supposed to believe you?”
“You remember everything about last night. It would have made things much easier on me if I erased our first encounter, but I will not mess with your mind.”
“Hmm.” She wasn’t entirely sure she believed him, but she did recall everything about last night, or at least she thought she remembered it all.
Turning away from Aiden, she strolled down the cramped aisles until she found the disposable phones hanging from a rack at the end of one. She cringed when she saw the twenty-five-dollar price tag, but there was nothing she could do about that. She removed the phone and a phone card before hurrying to the front with them.
“That it for today, Maggie?” the clerk asked as he flipped his car magazine closed.
“That’s it,” she replied and pulled her debit card from the pocket of her jacket.
“Sure you don’t want some scratchies? You could hit the lotto.”
“I’m not that lucky.”
“You’ll never know if you don’t play.”
“No thanks,” she muttered and tapped her fingers as he ran her card.
Aiden prowled closer until she could feel him against her shoulder. The clerk glanced nervously at him before smiling at her and handing her card back. “You’re all set. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“See you tomorrow,” Maggie replied with a smile and then cringed when she wondered if she would see him tomorrow.
Back on the city street, Maggie studied the increasing number of people moving about. “Anyone of them could be an enemy,” she murmured.
Aiden clasped her elbow and drew her closer. “Yes.”
“What have I gotten into?”
Ravaged (Vampire Awakenings, Book 7) Page 12
