“Let’s go get the rest of your stuff, okay?” he said.
Once everything was in my room, Aaron and I went back downstairs and he showed me around to the areas I hadn’t seen before: laundry room, living room, and even though I’d seen the kitchen, he pointed out where everything was. On the other side of the kitchen was Aaron’s office.
We were chatting in the kitchen when Delilah wandered in. “Callie, can I play with this?” she asked.
“Play with what?” I asked, trying to see what she was holding.
Both Aaron and I approached her, and as we got closer, my heart leaped to my throat when I recognized the box she was holding.
“Delilah, can I have that back, please?” I asked. I went to go take it from her hands before Aaron could see what it was, but she yanked her arms back, bringing the box closer into herself.
“Where did you get that box?” Aaron questioned
“Callie’s room. She has toys in her boxes.”
Luckily with the box held close to her body, Aaron wasn’t able to see what kind of toy it was. If he could, he would’ve seen his daughter was holding my Rabbit vibrator in her hands.
I was dying. It became harder to breathe, and I concluded all of my internal organs were shutting down. My body was trying to save me the humiliation of Aaron finding out I brought a vibrator into his house. I was going to get fired and kicked out at once for being a pervert.
“Callie’s things are not for you to be going through, young lady,” Aaron said sternly. “Now, go back upstairs and put that back where you found it right now.”
“That’s okay,” I said. “I’m heading upstairs right now and I’ll take it.” I moved toward Delilah again to retrieve the box, but she jerked away again.
Then, to my horror, she turned the box around and held it up to Aaron. “But, Daddy, I don’t have one of these. Callie has a toy cucumber, and I don’t have one this big for my play kitchen. Plus, it has buttons to do stuff.”
I was frozen in complete and utter shame. Aaron’s eyes squinted at the box trying to identify what it was, and then once the realization hit, his eyes enlarged to the size of baseballs, possibly softballs.
“Give that back to Callie now,” he shouted. Without waiting for her to decide, he grabbed the box out of her hands. He shoved it at me, crushing the box against my chest.
“Be right back,” I said, running out of the room. By the time I reached the stairs, I heard Delilah crying and Aaron reprimanding her.
I hope the remains of my patent leather Venom skirt can be salvaged from the Dumpster behind Venom because I’m going to be back behind the bar by nightfall.
Once in my room, I tried to find an appropriate spot to hide my “Kids Choice for Toy of the Year.” I opened the closet door and hid the box on the top shelf behind an extra blanket. I sat on the edge of my bed and put my face in my hands, praying I would survive this.
A soft knock at the door brought me out of my thoughts. I turned and Aaron and Delilah were standing in the doorway. Aaron nudged Delilah gently.
“I’m sorry I went through your box and took out your toy cucumber,” Delilah said shyly, her eyes rimmed red.
I smiled. “Thank you. Do you want to play with your Hello Kitty stuff now?” I asked.
“Yes, please.”
I looked at Aaron, and with a silent understanding, we told each other we would never mention this to each other again.
I spent the rest of the afternoon and into the evening playing with Delilah and letting her show me all her favorite things. After dinner, I helped her take a bath and get ready for bed. Once I had her all tucked in, I called down to Aaron and he came in to read her a story.
I let them say their good nights in private, and I walked back to my room. I lifted one of my suitcases onto the bed and unzipped it, putting my clothes away, one by one.
“She’s out like a light already. I think you wore her out,” Aaron said, leaning against my doorway.
“Well, we have lots of plans for tomorrow. The park, Strawberry Shortcake movie, Easy-Bake Oven treats, and she wants me to paint her toenails, but I didn’t know if that was okay.”
“Yeah, it’s fine. My mom has already taken her to the spa to have pedicures and stuff.” He rolled his eyes and shook his head.
“So, I think I’m going to unpack and get settled, unless there’s something else you need?” I asked.
“No, please make yourself at home. Like I said before, this is your home now, too, so watch TV, use the kitchen, whatever you would like.” He looked at the floor for a second and shifted back and forth on his feet. “Um…thank you,” he said.
“For what?”
“I know this probably isn’t the easiest situation to come into and I appreciate your enthusiasm.” As soon as he was done talking, his eyes shifted from the floor to me. For the briefest of moments, I felt like we were Aaron and Callie and not boss and employee. Two people wanting something more from each other, and not knowing what that meant. It was fleeting, but it made me wonder, What if things were different?
“I’m happy to be here,” I said.
“Good night, Callie.”
“Good night, Aaron.”
He closed the door behind him, as I collapsed onto the bed from both physical and mental exhaustion. My body ached from tension from head to toe. I decided as soon as I was done unpacking, I was going to soak in the tub with the hottest water I could stand.
Or I could accept Aaron’s invitation to make myself at home and hit up the rooftop hot tub. The thought made me unpack as quickly as possible while I searched for my bikini. Once I found it, I slipped it on and grabbed a towel from the bathroom.
I tiptoed down the hallway and up the stairs to the balcony door. After keying in the password, I opened the door as gently and softly as possible. I gasped when I saw I wasn’t alone. It looked like I wasn’t the only one who had the idea for an evening hot tub dip. Aaron had beaten me to it and was already seated in the tub, his arms outstretched and his head back. The frigid night air hit me hard, and my body erupted in goose bumps. I wrapped the towel around my body and stepped out onto the balcony. When the door closed behind me, Aaron’s head popped up.
Steam rose around him before disappearing into the darkness surrounding us. His face glowed under the soft lighting as I caught him off guard, his eyes fixated on mine.
Now or never.
“Um, hi,” I said. I opened my towel and let it fall to the tile floor. “Can I join you?” I asked.
Chapter Six
AARON—
My eyes lazily raked over her body, from head to toe. I couldn’t even stop myself from doing it before it was too late.
My tongue swept over my bottom lip. “Absolutely,” I said, clearing my throat. “It’s nice to have the company.”
It was nice, but I wasn’t sure how long I could stand being around her in that tiny white bikini. Small triangles of fabric covered her breasts, but her hardened nipples were visible, no doubt from the cold Chicago air.
She stepped forward, closer to the hot tub, as I remained still. I needed one more moment to take her in. Her body was insane, toned but not too thin, with legs on her five-foot-six frame that went on for days. I thought about how her smooth skin would feel beneath my touch.
And that ass.
Fuck.
Stop.
She works for you. She LIVES with you.
When she reached the hot tub, I sat up and offered my hand to assist her in getting in. As she sat on the edge of the tub, her legs swung around to the water and she eased herself into the tub. I released her grip, moving myself to the opposite side of the tub.
“Thank you,” she said.
“Again, it’s nice to have the company,” I replied. “I’m always out here alone.”
We were quiet for a minute, averting our eyes from each other to the view around us.
“You have a beautiful home, Aaron,” she said, breaking the silence.
“Thank you.”
I shrugged my shoulders, unsure if I should continue. “My ex-wife wanted to live here, and you know, I wanted to make her happy. We moved in shortly before we married.”
“Do you not like it here?” she asked. “I mean, it’s none of my business, but how could you not want this?” She lifted her arms and gestured around.
“It’s not that I don’t like it here. I know how lucky I am to have such an awesome place for me and Delilah, but…” I trailed off.
I shifted uncomfortably, my body creating waves of water that moved around us. My eyes moved to above Callie’s head as I decided how much or how little to tell her about my past.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I shouldn’t have brought it up.”
“No. It’s okay. If you’re going to be living with us and taking care of Delilah, these things are going to come up. There’s no need to apologize.”
I ran my hands through my wet hair roughly. “It’s not a big deal, but I suppose I should explain to you about the situation with Delilah’s mother.”
“Oh no. You don’t have to. I mean—”
“No,” I said cutting her off. “It’s important you know.” I took a deep breath before continuing. “My ex-wife decided she didn’t want to be a mother anymore shortly before Delilah turned one.” I paused, looking up at the sky. “We got divorced and I got full custody. She didn’t even want visitation.”
I continued to avoid looking at her because I didn’t want to see that sad, pathetic look she was no doubt giving me. It was always the same reaction when I told people. While I knew it was genuine, I couldn’t help but assume it was me they viewed as pitiful.
“I’m so sorry,” she said. “That’s beyond messed up. It must’ve been so hard for you.”
I held up my hand and shook my head. “Don’t. Don’t feel sorry for me. I can deal with it, but it’s Delilah. She got cheated out of having a mother, and as much as my mom steps in, it doesn’t replace what she lost,” I said. After a moment, I continued. “I don’t particularly like living here. There are too many memories, but it’s the only home Delilah has ever known. I don’t want to take that away from her.”
“You’re all that matters to her,” she responded. “You could move to the North Pole, and as long as you were with her, she’d know all the love and stability a little girl could ask for.”
I shrugged. “I suppose.”
“You know, my family dynamic was different at best, but I never felt unloved or unsafe. Kids are smarter and stronger than we give them credit for.”
“It’s just really overwhelming at times. No one can understand the pressure I have to make sure that little girl has everything to make up for the fact that she had a mother that didn’t want her.”
She slid her body across the rounded bench. My body stiffened, and I sat upright as she got close, but my eyes never lost sight of her movements. She was getting too close, but wasn’t close enough. A push and pull inside me grew until it scared me enough to force it away. I moved back over, creating the distance I needed.
“Listen, I’m no expert,” she said. “I don’t have kids, but what I do know is that no matter their upbringing, they’ll take what they know and do with it as they want. Some kids wallow in their disadvantages; others use it as catalyst to do better. It’s the reason I work so hard and have had a job since I was sixteen. I was that little girl at school with the hand-me-down clothes and taped-up shoes. I’d stand in the cafeteria line with my purple lunch ticket, embarrassed that everyone knew that the purple ticket meant I got the state-provided lunch. I wanted the yellow ones like my other friends had. The yellows meant their parents had enough money to buy them a proper lunch themselves. I didn’t want to live my life holding the purple ticket.”
Everyone had a story. She’d lived a lifetime before I’d even met her. No better, no worse, but different.
“It seems like you’ve been through a lot, too,” I said. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. You don’t want me to feel sorry for you, so please don’t feel sorry for me.”
As our conversation stalled and we sat in silence, I snuck glances while she looked at the starry night sky. She was beautiful. There was no mistaking that. Her hair, which was the same color as my favorite Pinot Noir, was piled on top of her head, with a few loose strands falling around her face. My eyes drifted lower, to the tiny strings that held her small white bikini up and curved around the roundness of her perfectly sized breasts.
Shit.
I was hard just looking at her. Who the hell was I kidding? I was hard the moment she dropped her towel.
Maybe even before then.
This had never happened to me before. I’d been the boss to many people for many years. Of course, there were attractive employees, but that was a line I never considered crossing. Leading my life by emotions instead of logic was how I got in trouble with Lexie.
Her head turned, and like that, I’d been busted. Her green eyes didn’t waver, though. It was like she knew and didn’t care.
Of course she’d care, dickhead. You’re her boss. She just moved in, and you’re looking her over like a hungry animal.
These years of not having a woman, in any kind of intimate setting, made me lose any sense of decency.
“I think I better head in,” I said.
I couldn’t be around her anymore, not like this. As I hopped out, I heard her gasp.
“What?” I asked.
She swallowed and blinked rapidly. “Is that what I think it is?” she asked, pointing to my side.
I laughed as I grabbed a towel from the ledge and wrapped it around my waist. “Yeah, it’s a tattoo from my wild and crazy days.”
I rubbed my hand across the massive tattoo that went from my underarm all the way down my body and stopping above my right hip. It was an unrolled scroll, 3-D in design, with intricate edges to convey the old, worn edges of the paper. I’d had elaborate plans for the center, which was blank where words should be.
“How long have you had it?” she questioned, squinting her eyes to get the best look she could without much light to help her. I briefly thought about moving back toward her again, so she could look closer, but I knew I shouldn’t push it.
“I got it when I was twenty-two and never finished it. My ex-wife wasn’t crazy about tattoos, and then after we were done, I didn’t even think about it,” I said, picking up a terry cloth robe that hung over a chair. I put it on, my body shivering even with the heat from the lamps and floor. “It’ll be finished one day. It was supposed to be the story of my life. I’m just not sure what that is yet.”
I tied my robe and was trying to make my exit, when I noticed her staring, her mouth hanging open.
“It’s…incredible,” she said. “Like…yeah.”
She looked around for a moment, and began to climb out of the hot tub. Her entire body was wet, her bikini clung to her body…everywhere. As she moved to step on the floor, I rushed to her side.
“Be careful, it gets slippery sometimes,” I said, taking hold of her arm. I held on until she was safely down.
“Thank you,” she said, running over to pick up the towel she’d dropped earlier. She wrapped it around her shoulders like a cape, but before the oversized towel covered most of the top of her body, I saw something that made me tie my robe tighter.
She turned, looking confused. “What?” she asked.
“You, um…,” I stammered. “Have…umm, a tattoo, too.”
“Yes, I do. Just a small heart right here.” She opened her towel slightly, pushing the bottom of her bikini down to expose the tattoo completely.
Jesus Christ.
My mind went to thoughts of touching it, licking it, and—
I turned around and leaned over the back of the hot tub. After opening a cabinet, I got another towel out.
“You’re probably cold. Here’s another towel,” I said. Instead of handing it to her, I tossed it like a hot potato. And because she wasn’t expecting it and I was a moron, it hit her in
the face.
“Shit,” I said. “Sorry.”
“Thank you. Should we head in?” she said, rearranging the towel.
I nodded and headed to the door with her following close behind. Once inside, we walked down the stairs, being careful to be quiet and not wake Delilah. She passed me, quickly tiptoeing down the hallway, pausing in front of her bedroom door.
I had stopped outside my door as well, watching her. We stared for a moment, maybe two, before the sound of tiny cough from Delilah’s room broke the spell.
“Good night, Aaron,” she whispered.
“Sleep well…Calliope.”
Chapter Seven
CALLIE—
I woke the following morning close to seven, and as I rubbed the sleep from my eyes, I was confused by my surroundings. After sleeping so hard, I’d forgotten where I was until I recalled I was in my new room, in my new home.
I glanced at the clock and had forty-five minutes before Delilah was due to be up. After a stretch, I made my way to the bathroom and took longer than usual to get ready for any normal day. I wanted Aaron to be under the impression I woke up flawless and free of morning breath and drool crust. It was like how I was at Venom, getting all dolled up for the job, but instead of impressing strangers, I was trying to impress my boss.
Yes. My boss. Impress. Nothing more than that.
There was a spark, though. I knew it. I felt it all over my body, an electricity that tingled from every extremity. I was unsure what it meant, though. He was so attractive. Besides the age difference and the whole boss-employee thing, I didn’t know if a plain, college girl would be enough for him.
Hypothetically, of course.
I walked down the stairs of the quiet house. The morning sun was sneaking through the slats of the blinds and curtains, desperately trying to light up the darkened home. I stopped to peek out the window on the way to the kitchen. Most of the winter’s snow and ice had melted and spring was going to start showing her face shortly.
So Twisted Page 6
