Anyone who saw her daughter as damaged was stupid.
The rest of the day went by in a blur as the Williamses brought in all of their children. Poor Louise was looking like she was ready to pop but she assured Marina she had several months to go.
Hippies wasn’t how she’d have described the brood of kids that stood like steps waiting for their turn. They had their summer hair, which was long around the ears and just falling into their eyes. She was grateful for their presence because Kellyn remembered playing with them at the park, and they all fell into a silent game in the corner.
“My kids are never this quiet. Maybe I should send them here when I’m up to my ears.”
Marina finished with the last Williams and set her scissors down. “They’re always welcome.”
Louise stared at Kellyn for a moment. “Poor little quiet thing.”
Marina stood tall and proud. “Oh, don’t count her out. She’s resilient and smart. She’s a survivor.”
Louise hugged Marina. “So is her mother. You two are going to be just fine. I feel it.”
Marina laughed when she looked at Louise and saw her stomach move in a ripple across her belly. “While I believe you, what you’re feeling is that little one.”
“This one’s already making himself known.”
“Boy?” Marina asked.
Louise nodded. “No one but you knows.”
“Your secret is safe with me.” Marina set her hand on her flat stomach and hoped that someday she’d be as blessed as Louise. She looked at the seven kids being rounded up like sheep and said to herself, maybe not that blessed.
Chapter Sixteen
The week passed by in a blissful blur. Aiden spent his days at the office and his evenings with Kellyn and Marina. It was downright domestic, and he loved it. They barbecued, gardened together, and played on the swing.
Kellyn had even asked him to read her a bedtime story by tugging him into her room and handing him a book. He read Is Your Mama a Llama. She let out a little giggle that made his heart swell, hoping soon she’d find her voice. But when he told her it was okay to use her words, her face turned ashen, and she buried herself under the blankets. He’d pushed too far, too soon. He hated that he’d taken one step forward and two back.
He despised what Craig Caswell had done to his girls. And Aiden considered Marina and Kellyn his. He felt a deep connection to both and couldn’t imagine his life without them in it.
Today he made his rounds and hoped to finish quickly. He and Marina had a date. The Williams family had invited Kellyn for a sleepover that she happily accepted with a smile and a nod.
He’d see where the night would end, but he hoped it was in his bed with Marina in his arms. He’d never pressure her, but with the way they both desperately clung to each other, it was time to bring their relationship to the next level.
First, he had to get his job done. If he was going to make the night perfect like he wanted, like he knew she’d want, he needed to get home and work some magic.
He drove down Main Street and parked in front of the new fire station. It was almost ready. Close enough that Samantha and Katie were putting together a small town festival to celebrate the grand opening in a couple of weeks. They’d reserved a blow-up big screen and decided to have a movie night in the park right after the ribbon cutting. Aiden had every intention of taking his girls.
He laughed out loud remembering how Bowie and Cannon suggested they show The Towering Inferno or Backdraft, but the women chose a family-friendly show. That was why women should rule the world. They almost always made better choices.
He got out of his car and walked into the building. It was solidly constructed of brick, but the way it was designed respected the architecture of the town. In a year or so, when the façade weathered, the building would look like it had been there forever.
“Hey, Coop, come on over and meet Luke, our new fire chief.” Wes nodded to the man, who was at least six foot four.
“Nice to meet you, Luke, I’m Aiden Cooper. Anything you need, just ask.”
Luke and Wes took him on a tour of the place. The fire station was two stories with sleeping quarters upstairs and a pole to slide down when the alarm sounded, but Luke told him the men generally used the stairs. The pole was another way to pay tribute to the town and the era in which it was built. They planned to let the kids take turns on opening day.
“We thought that having a public servant day would be a good idea,” Luke said. “The day we open we can bring out the truck, our equipment, and whatever else we can find to entertain the people who funded this amazing project. You could bring the cruiser or open the jail cells for tours.”
“That’s a great idea.” It had been at least two years since they’d held an open house. As the town grew, he didn’t have the manpower to provide the fun stuff, but with the influx of people coming to town, they would see more tax revenue and might be able to hire another deputy.
“It’s free and could be fun,” Wes added.
“Free is always good,” Aiden replied. “How many men are you bringing to town?”
“We’re stealing a man from the three stations in Copper Creek.”
Each time Aiden heard the town of Copper Creek mentioned, his muscles twitched. He was certain if Mayor Caswell had one more son he’d have run the fire department too. Those bastards had their hands in everything. They controlled that town with an iron fist. No doubt they would let it burn if it wasn’t in their best interests to save it.
He said goodbye to Wes and Luke and steered his cruiser to the next stop. The Guild Creative Center was coming along nicely. None other than Craig Caswell had held up the permits, but once they were in place, Lockhart Construction had gone to work. Samantha’s recording studio was finished. Dalton’s culinary school was a week from completion. The rest of the center would be ready for tenants shortly after the fire station opened.
He stepped out of his vehicle and peeked inside to see Noah and Ethan Lockhart working on an electrical box.
“Just stopping in to see how things are going.”
“Hey, Coop,” Noah said. He was the oldest of four brothers who had a constant presence in town. Looking at them made Aiden wish he wasn’t an only child. He thought about Kellyn and how much she loved to play with other kids. He’d hate to see her grow up alone. He smiled to himself. If his long-term plan worked out, he’d give her a sibling or maybe two in the not-too-distant future.
“Everything going all right?” Just last week the Lockharts had some of their tools stolen from the site.
“We’re locking everything down now. Living and working in a small town makes a person get complacent,” Ethan added.
Aiden scanned the building.
“Crime has no address.”
Noah laughed. “It did last week, and that address was here.”
“Glad it’s been quiet since.” Aiden was certain the equipment would show up in a pawnshop in Copper Creek or Silver Springs soon. It was only a matter of time. “I gotta go.”
He drove up Main Street only to see Cannon escorting a man out of his bar. By the grip he had on the man’s T-shirt, there was trouble.
Aiden parked and walked to where Cannon stood outside the Brewhouse.
“Do we have a problem here?” He recognized the man from before—the guy he’d offered an orange jumpsuit to.
The idiot looked at him. “Yeah, I got a problem with this whole town,” he slurred. He turned to Cannon. “He put a two-drink limit on us.”
“That’s about one more than you need,” Aiden replied.
“What do you know? Bet you’ve never had a fun day in your life.”
“I’ve got this,” he said to Cannon. Aiden lifted his forearm and pressed it against the chest of the man until he was standing against the wall. “I know that you’re drunk, which means you had a few before you got here. I know that if you try to climb in your car, I’m locking you up in a cell so you don’t kill someone. If you so much as blink in
the wrong direction, you’ll find you have bigger problems in this town.”
He noticed movement to his right. Marina and Kellyn were coming out of the shop. They stopped and stared. “Hey, sweetheart,” he said without missing a beat. “I’ll see you tonight.”
Marina smiled. “You okay? Should I get Mark?”
“No, I’ve got it. We were just having a discussion about life in small towns.”
“Carry on.” She ushered Kellyn to the beauty shop and disappeared.
“Where were we?” He pushed off the man’s chest, making him gasp for his next breath. “Oh that’s right, I was getting ready to tell you that I’ve met you twice and I’m not impressed. Figure it out soon or I’ll help you. There’s nothing like a week or two in a cold empty cell to bring clarity and common sense to a man.” He nodded toward the door. “Go get your friends and tell them you need a ride home. Hopefully one of you is sober.”
The guy nearly tripped over his feet to get away. Minutes later, the four of them walked out of Bishop’s Brewhouse and climbed into a beat-up pickup and drove off. Aiden wouldn’t have been surprised if those were the thieves.
Cannon stood at the doorway. “Who said growth is good?”
“Not me.” Before he could get delayed again, he headed for home.
The house was clean. He’d changed the bed and cut every flower from his garden to place around the house. He’d picked up several candles from Abby Garrett, who made them from beeswax. The bottle of wine was aerating on the counter. The meal he’d ordered from Dalton was in the oven. The cheesy, garlicky smell of chicken parmesan filled the air.
Marina once remarked how much she liked him in light blue so he dressed in her favorite shirt, a pair of jeans, and he waited.
At fifteen minutes to six he heard her pull up. By six he was pacing the floors. His damn nerves were strung tight. When a light knock sounded at the front door, his heart nearly leaped from his chest.
He opened the door to find her standing there as beautiful as ever. Wearing a sundress, she looked stunning. “Beautiful. Always so beautiful.”
He pulled her inside and kissed her. He loved the way she melted in his arms. It was as if his kisses weakened her knees.
When he pulled away, he looked at the heat of passion in her eyes. Dinner might have to wait.
“Did you get Kellyn to the Williamses’ okay?”
“She practically dragged me there. I swear if she could drive she would have taken my keys and left an hour ago.”
“She likes the kids. She likes to play.”
She pressed her head against his chest. “I like you and I like to play too.” Her hands roamed up his chest to wrap around his body before she settled them on his ass.
“You’re killing me. How am I supposed to do the right thing here with you telling me you want to play and moving your hands around my body like you want more than a kiss?” He stood back a step. “Do you want more than a kiss?”
She pulled her lower lip between her teeth and gnawed. When it popped free, it was red and puffy.
“I want you, Aiden. All of you, but I’m scared.”
He tugged her back to his chest. “I’ll never hurt you. All I want is to make you happy. To make you feel good.”
“I want you to make me feel good.” She peeked around him toward the kitchen. “How long before dinner?”
He glanced at his watch. “Thirty minutes.”
She held his hand and walked him toward his room. “We’ve got time.”
He stopped. “Oh, honey, if you think thirty minutes is enough time, you’re mistaken. When I take you to my bed, you’ll be there for hours.”
He turned her around and walked her to the kitchen, where he poured her a glass of wine and pulled out her seat. “Have a glass of wine. Let me feed you. If you want me to make love to you I will, but you’ll need your energy because once I start, it will be a long time before I finish.”
A shudder shook her body. He hoped it was from excitement and not fear.
She was on her second glass of wine when they started dinner. They talked about their day, but all they had on their minds was each other.
She’d eaten half her meal when she laid her fork down and said, “I can’t stand it anymore. Take me to bed.”
A chill raced down his spine. It was half anticipation and half anxiety. What if he didn’t satisfy her? What if he fell short of everything she imagined their first time would be?
“You got it.” He acted with the confidence he wasn’t sure he had and swept her into his arms to carry her into his room, where he placed her on top of the navy blue bedspread. He’d imagined her there many times, but his mind couldn’t conjure how incredible the true experience could be. “Let me set the mood.”
He lit the candles he’d placed around the room, and their honeyed scent floated through the air as they burned. He sat on the edge of the bed next to her.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” He hated to ask because it gave her the option to change her mind, but it was important to him that she went into the night understanding what it meant to him.
“I’m sure.”
He kicked off his shoes and lay down beside her. His hand fell to her hip. His forehead pressed against hers. “This isn’t just sex for me. I’m falling in love with you, Marina. When our bodies connect, you become mine in my heart and my mind.”
She toed off her shoes. They hit the floor with a thud. Her eyes stayed locked on his.
Tilting her chin so their lips met, he took her mouth in a long, lazy kiss that seemed to last for minutes. She tasted sweet with a hint of wine. His hunger couldn’t be sated with a single kiss. Each moan and whimper that slipped from her beautiful mouth caused a craving inside that drove him forward. He wanted more. He needed more.
He trailed his hand from her hip to the zipper at the back of her dress. Slowly he lowered it tooth by tooth until the yellow material fell from her shoulder to show a pink lace bra beneath. She lifted her hips so he could pull the fabric away and toss it aside.
“Your turn,” she said breathlessly while she tugged at the hem of his T-shirt until it rode high on his chest.
“Wait.” He covered her hands with his. “I want to look at you. Really look at you.” He leaned back and took her in from the top of her head to her pink-painted toenails. She was perfection. The need in her eyes called to him. “Do you have any idea what you do to me?” Her pale skin nearly glowed against his dark bedspread.
She briefly glanced down to his pants. “I’ve got a good notion.”
A minute later he was shirtless, and it was her turn to devour him with her eyes.
“You’re so beautiful,” she said as she traced her fingers over his chest, down his stomach to the button of his jeans.
“That’s something I’ve never been called.” Few men thought of themselves at beautiful, but he believed that she thought he was. He saw the conviction in her eyes. Her expressive eyes didn’t lie.
He kissed her lips, jaw, and neck, then made his way to her breasts. He plucked at her puckered nipples through the pretty lace. She pressed forward into him like she was offering him more—needed more.
He nibbled and teased her over the material until it was damp and her breath was labored. With skillful hands he reached behind her to unsnap and discard the lacy material. Ripe breasts heaved under his lips. He laved them equally before he left a wet trail of kisses down her stomach to the edge of her matching panties. It didn’t take him long to remove them and find pleasure in the sweet taste of her.
It was his plan to indulge for minutes or maybe hours if need be. Her pent-up passion burst forth. He didn’t expect her to teeter on the edge of her release so quickly. She moved beneath his mouth, sometimes pulling him in and at others pushing him away.
“Oh…oh…Aiden,” she said in a sexy, breathy exhale. “It’s been so long. So damn long.”
He pulled the swollen nub into his mouth until her legs shook, her breath hitched, and a moan of
pure satisfaction filled the air.
What a beautiful sight it was to have this woman come undone in his arms. When he was sure he’d drawn every quiver from her body, he moved up to make love to her mouth.
He shifted to stand so he could shed his jeans. She pressed against him, clinging to him like she feared he would leave.
“I’m here. I’m not going anywhere.”
“You have no idea how amazing that was.” A single tear ran down her face.
By her smile he knew it wasn’t caused by sorrow.
He brushed it away. “Amazing for me to know I can please you. All I want is to make you happy.” He cupped her face in his palm. “You want to rest or do you want more?” He prayed she wanted more. His length throbbed with need. He didn’t want to wait another minute to be inside her, but he would if that was what she needed. Without a doubt, she’d be worth the wait.
She lifted on her elbow, the flush of passion coloring her skin. Pink splotches laid a path where he’d licked and kissed her body from her neck to her core.
“Let me love you,” she said, reaching for him.
“Baby, let’s love each other.” He opened his nightstand drawer, pulled out a condom and rolled it on before he found his place between her thighs. “Look at me,” he said as he pressed against her. “I want you to see me when I make love to you. See the man I am. A man who worships you.”
He pressed inside and watched her eyes grow heavy with desire. Inch by inch he filled her until there was no place else to go. Being one with Marina was almost more than he could take. Never had he felt so complete as he did in that moment.
Looking deep into her eyes, he made promises he would always keep. “I will never hurt you.” He pulled back and pressed forward. “I’ll always give you more than I take.” In and out he moved, pulling her body to the edge again. “You’re beautiful.” Again and again he thrust inside her. “You are worthy.” She moved with him but her eyes never left his. He saw her desire, but most importantly, he saw her love. “I want you to be mine.”
One Hundred Excuses (An Aspen Cove Romance Book 5) Page 11
