Let Life Happen

by Jaqueline Snowe

  “No, it’s not bad. I just didn’t want to scare you away back in October or November. Things were just starting to happen between us, and, well…anyway. This is honest-to-God truth, okay?”

  “Okay. I’m listening.” I sat up in the bed so I was cross-legged directly in front of him.

  “No girl, besides you, has ever been in this room, in this bed with me.” He ran his hand down my leg as a gesture of comfort. I watched his hand continue to graze me, but I didn’t say anything yet. “This might sound shocking, but the guy who used to sleep around with women, the one I used to be, never brought a girl up here. I don’t know why. It was always somewhere else. You’re the only one.”

  This wasn’t the announcement I was expecting. I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. Was this huge? Yes. Fucking huge. He changed all his rules. For me. I wasn’t one to just throw the word love around, but I think it was the moment I knew I could love him. I was well on my way, but this was a game changer.

  “I’m not quite sure what to say, Aiden.”

  “You don’t have to say anything. I wanted you to know it’s only been you. I plan on it staying that way. It’s my resolution this year.”

  I quirked one eyebrow. “To not let other girls in here?”

  “No, smartass. To make sure I keep you.”

  The happiness I felt from those words was unexplainable. It spread from my chest to my head. I sat on his lap, my face an inch from his. “Wanna know my resolution?”

  “Of course. It’s only fair to share.”

  “To let life happen. To not question everything. To just be in the moment without second-guessing joy.”

  “You’re starting to sound all old and wise, Jen-Jen,” he said, lightening the mood. “But I really like your resolution.”

  “I really like you.” I flinched after I said those words because they were cheesy and not me. But the way Aiden’s eyes lit up with happiness, I knew it was the right thing to say.

  “Well, I really fucking like you, too. Now let’s go back downstairs, eat, drink, and kiss at midnight.”

  “Amen to that.”

  Kennedy and Nate were playing poker at one of the tables, and we walked up to them. “Mind if we join the game?”

  “Fo’ sho’, dude. Next round.” Nate patted the seats next to them, and we sat down. “Your neck is a little red there, Jenna. Aiden get rough with you?”

  “Oh, fuck off, Nate. You’re still just a surfer dude.” He smiled at my remark, and Kennedy laughed.

  “I just love the 1920s party. I give you guys mad props. You aren’t just a shallow party boy frat house. You have other dimensions.” I slung my arm around Aiden, even though I could barely reach.

  “That is all due to our leadership. This guy right here.” Nate nudged Aiden on the shoulder, and he blushed.

  “Come on, dude. I know I’m awesome, but you’re part of the reason, too.”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah.”

  “How do you guys feel about going to the beach for spring break?” I asked between hands.

  Kennedy looked up with a huge smile on her face. “Hell titties. I’m in.”

  “Me, too. I don’t even care where we’re going.” Nate held up his hands.

  “Well, Jen-Jen here has never been to California.”

  “Dude.” Nate looked at me and shook his head. “Dude. We have to go to San Diego.”

  “Hells yeah.” I raised my hand for a fist bump, and he obliged with a small smile.

  “We going to rent a house or what?” Nate asked.

  “Yeah. If we can get ten people to go, there are some houses with six or seven rooms. Jenna and I will obviously share one.” He raised his eyebrows at me to insinuate sexy time.

  “Obviously.” I rolled my eyes.

  “Then it’s settled. We can ask Maya, Jon, Zeke, and Kam. This’ll be perfect. Spring break 2016, here we come.”

  I cringed at the mention of Kam’s name. I hadn’t told Aiden about the awkward conversation we had during winter formal, and I hadn’t seen him since. I began to think it was just a fluke, because he normally had a calm demeanor and was easy to be around.

  The boys continued to plan the trip, and I casually listened, focused on winning blackjack. I lost everything, and Aiden laughed at me.

  “It’s not real money, shorty.”

  “I know, but I don’t like losing.” I pouted. I didn’t care. I wanted to win.

  “It’s okay, honey. You’re real pretty.” He baited me and winked.

  “I’ll show you pretty.” I stood and pulled a cigar out of my purse. “I’m going to go smoke this in the back. Wanna come?”

  “Hell yeah. I’ll meet you back there in a few. I have to do a walk-through and congratulate the team who put this on. Don’t let anyone hit on you.” His eyes narrowed, and I laughed.

  “Go shake hands and kiss babies.” I hopped off the stool and walked the familiar path to the backyard. They had a beautiful deck. It was surprisingly cold for Phoenix, and I shivered a little when I stood out there.

  I’d just gotten the cigar lit and taken my first puff when I heard someone join me. I assumed it was Aiden and turned around with a huge smile but cringed when I saw Kam standing there.

  “Kam. Hey.”

  “You look gorgeous, Jenna. Seriously, fucking hot.” His eyes were red, and he had a wild look to him. “Are you cold? Do you want my jacket? I’ll keep you warm.”

  I shook my head. My alarms were going off again. I needed to take care of this situation now. “Kam, look. I don’t know what’s going on, but I don’t appreciate how you’re talking to me. We’re friends, aren’t we?”

  “I don’t know, Jenna. You flirted with me. Then, you led me on. I thought we could be more than friends…until you decided to fuck Aiden.” He sneered at me in disgust.

  I smelled the booze on him and took a step back.

  “I never meant to lead you on. I apologize if I did. I never grabbed lunch with you because I didn’t think it’d be fair. I appreciate you as a friend. I really do.” My heart took off, afraid of what he would do. He seemed unpredictable at the moment.

  “Right. I’m sure I’m a great fucking friend. How did Aiden do it? Did he give you money? I’ve seen him use women left and right. I don’t understand why he’s stuck on you. I asked him if I could ask you out, and he said yes.” His lip curled up on the side, his hatred alarming.

  “It doesn’t matter what you two have said or seen, Kam. It’s my decision to make, not yours or his. I’m happy. Why isn’t that enough?”

  “Because he fucks anything that walks, and you belong with me.” He took a step toward me, and my instincts took over. I threw the cigar on the ground, swung my arm back as far as I could, and punched him in the face.

  “Fuck you.” I marched past him into the house. Some of the new guys hollered greetings at me. I waved at them but was fuming mad. I needed to find Aiden.

  He was mid-conversation with one of the newbies when he looked up and saw my face. He said something to the kid and rushed over to me.

  “What’s going on?” He ran his hands over my face and arms. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine. I promise. Can we talk real quick?” My voice came out in huffs, still catching up from the adrenaline rush.

  “Den.” He barked the word and dragged me through the door and shut it within seconds. “Spill it.”

  “I punched Kam in the face.” I sat on the edge of the desk and watched him pace the room. “He was acting super fucking weird, Aiden. He approached me, saying things he shouldn’t and then said I belonged with him. I freaked out.”

  “What?” He ran his hand through his ruffled hair and stopped mid-step. “He said what?”

  “He said I belonged with him.” I didn’t need to tell him he said anything about Aiden. I had a feeling Aiden would go beat the shit out of him. His temper could be bad. Real bad.

  “What else?” he growled, angry with Kam, not me.


  “That I looked fucking hot, but there’s something else, too.” I bit my lip, unsure if I should even mention the winter formal. “He said something weird to me at the dance, too, when I was at the bar. Something like he would wait for you to be done with me.”

  Aiden’s eyes grew wide, and he clenched his fists at his sides. I stood and placed my hands over his. “I think it might be my fault a little bit. I didn’t mean to lead him on at all, but he’s easy to talk to and get along with, so whenever I saw him, we chatted. He asked for my number, and I gave it to him, but that was months ago. Nothing ever happened. I never felt anything for him.”

  “Don’t you dare say it’s your fault. It’s not. You don’t talk to someone’s girl like that, let alone anyone,” he rumbled, fuming. “Seriously, what the fuck?” he yelled and then looked at the door.

  I moved to block it.

  “Stay with me. I don’t want you doing anything about it tonight. Please.” I stood on my tiptoes and made him look me in the eye. “It’s our night. We can worry about the aftermath tomorrow. I want to forget about it.”

  “I don’t know. I’m so mad right now.” His chest heaved, and I placed my hand over his heart.

  “I know. Me, too. But let’s do us.”

  “Us.”

  “Yes.” I smiled and pressed a light kiss on his mouth. I jumped up and wrapped my legs around him, grinding against his hips. “See, this is nice, right?”

  “Are you trying to distract me with your body?” He narrowed his eyes at me.

  “Is it working?” I whispered into his ear, biting at it.

  “Yes. You devil woman.”

  “Let me distract you longer.”

  After a little distraction in the den, we drank, gambled, and took more pictures. I could see Aiden looking for Kam, but if Kam knew anything, he wouldn’t come near Aiden.

  I was starting to get tired, but the countdown started. “Twelve…Eleven…Ten…Nine…”

  “Happy New Year, Jenna,” Aiden whispered, drowning out all the other noise. It was one of the moments I wish I could freeze in time. The way his eyes looked at me like I was the most important thing in his world. His hands cupped my cheeks. He lowered his mouth to mine.

  It was a light kiss, but it was one that held unspeakable promises. Whether I wanted to admit it right then or not, that kiss sealed my fate. I was falling head over heels in love with Aiden Chad.

  “Happy New Year to you, too, Aiden.”

  Chapter 38

  Well, That Blindsided Me-Aiden

  “NICE of you both to join me for lunch today. It’s been a while since I’ve seen you, Jenna. What? A couple weeks or so? You have a good New Year?”

  “Yes! It was wonderful.” Jenna blushed. I felt pretty damn proud of her blush. Speaking of that night, my beard was still coming in nicely.

  I ignored the thought of Kam. He’d been avoiding me, as he fucking should. I forced myself to not think about him at the moment because it was Mike’s time.

  “How was yours? Any of the ladies go crazy at the home?” I asked.

  “No. It’s a cryin’ shame, too. I wouldn’t mind if Beatrice would flash me every once in a while.”

  “Mike, you old dog!” Jenna teased. “Did you know he was such a player, Aiden?”

  “Of course I did. Why do you think I like him so much? He taught me all his tricks.”

  “Now, son, don’t you get me in trouble with your lady. I ain’t admittin’ a single thing to either of ya. Now explain why you’re growing that shit on your face.”

  Jenna snorted into her coffee, and I couldn’t help but chuckle. “It’s called a beard, Mike. It’s in style now. I may even grow my hair out and wear a man bun.”

  “In my day, men kept a clean look. Made ’em look more attractive. I don’t know about this man bun business, but you wantin’ to be a hippie now and grow your hair?”

  “I’m surprised you remember anything from your day. Wasn’t that before the invention of cars?” I asked, sarcastic.

  “I just can’t keep up with this guy, Jenna. He’s too young and good-looking for me.”

  She laid a hand on his arm. “It’s what I’m here for. I’ll keep him in line.”

  “She’s right. She knocks me right on my ass if I deserve it.”

  “Good. You need someone to pop that big head of yours.”

  I pointed at him. “Speaking of big heads, you butted yours into my relationship with my dad.”

  “Yeah, I know. I don’t regret it. You yellin’ at me?”

  “No, I wouldn’t want to break your hearing aid. It’s just, he’s been nicer and more of a dad to me. I wanted to thank you for whatever you said.” I shrugged.

  Mike waved it off. “I just told him the truth. You must get your thick skull from him. Now tell me about this thesis you’re working on now.”

  An hour later, Jenna and I said goodbye to Mike and walked to the library. “Has Kam tried talking to you or anything since New Year’s Eve?” I kept my voice calm, knowing she would worry if I showed too much emotion.

  “Not at all. I haven’t even seen him.” She looked up at me with sadness in her eyes. “I don’t understand what happened. It’s fucking unsettling. Have you talked to him yet?”

  “Tried once. He took off when he saw me in the kitchen, and then every other time he’s at the house, he makes sure someone’s with him.”

  “Shit. He knows what he’s doing. Well, don’t do anything stupid, okay?” Jenna ended the conversation by yawning.

  “No promises, babe. That was quite the yawn, though. Sorry I kept you up so late last night.”

  She bumped into me. “Oh, I’m not complaining. I didn’t know I could bend like that. I’m just tired.”

  “Let’s get some coffee. It’s the least I can do.”

  “Sure. I need the caffeine.” She yawned again and made a little sound. It was fucking adorable. “Shit, I forgot to ask. What’s the update on the stolen money? You and Jon found him, but what happens next?”

  “Yeah. We know who it is. We haven’t told anyone in the house yet. Actually, it’s not public knowledge at all because the guys at the top of the organization need to decide if they want to handle it or if we should. It was only three hundred, but they could make an example by punishing this kid hard.”

  “What do you want to happen?”

  “I’m not sure. I don’t want to press charges. I know the guy; he’s a good kid. It was a freshman pledge. He was assigned to get some supplies, and it was as simple as him taking the hundred as cash back three different times.”

  “How did you find out it was him?”

  “Well, we narrowed it down to the week. Jon and I did our own little investigation with each of the guys from the trip. Sorry, but I trust Nate with my life. I knew he didn’t do it. He just trusted the young’un a little too much. He took advantage of the situation. It just sucks he made this bad decision. I think he should pay the money back—double it actually—then we can donate supplies or something. Plus, I think he should put in double hours at the nursing home. I’ll sic Mike on him. He would teach him more of a lesson than pressing charges.”

  Jenna chuckled. “I totally agree with you. Mike could set anybody straight. Can you talk to the kid about it?”

  “Not yet. If they decide to press charges, it’s out of my hands. He doesn’t know we know either. It’s been pretty damn hard keeping my mouth shut. I’ve been avoiding him so I don’t spill it.”

  “You are quite the hothead sometimes.” She leaned into my arm and patted my hand. “I definitely think it should be your call.”

  “Me, too.” I sighed, pissed this even happened. If I reached out to the kid before or noticed something off, I could’ve reassigned him or helped him out. We still didn’t know what he needed the money for.

  She grabbed my hand and turned me to face her. “Don’t take it personally. I can see the worry on your face. This isn’t your fault.�
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  “Am I that obvious?”

  “No, I can just read you pretty damn well. You take full responsibility for the frat, which is honorable, but this is unrealistic. You can’t prevent his behavior any more than I can prevent bar fights.” She stopped and smiled to herself.

  “Did you seriously just compare this to a bar?”

  “Yep. Sure did.” She grinned, and I couldn’t help but release some of the tension. “What you gonna do about it?”

  “So feisty.”

  We grabbed coffee and made camp at a table in the library shortly after. I was an hour into researching my thesis when Jenna set her coffee down and sighed.

  “You know what fucking sucks? The fact you don’t have any classes on Fridays and I do. I’m insanely jealous.”

  “I’ve done my time. When you’re a junior, you’ll be able to have free Fridays.”

  “Well, remind me next year when I’m pissed about having a Thursday class or something.”

  “Will do. You have any homework yet?” she asked, adjusting her glasses that were falling down her nose. I kept thinking about her ripping down her hair and being a mean librarian. Ah, another fantasy for another day.

  “Eh, a little. I just have to overload since I changed my thesis and actually chose a major. Hey, are you taking another lecture with Jackson?” I got out my class schedule and grabbed hers to compare. “Hot damn. We have the same lecture on Thursdays!”

  “No way!” She looked at the schedules and gave me a Cheshire grin. “I hate admitting this out loud, but I was going to miss having class with you. You were a great partner.”

  “Partner?” I made an obscene gesture with my hands, which caused her to hit me. “What kind of partner are we talking about?”

  “Lab partner. You know exactly what I’m talking about,” she scoffed and put in her headphones.

  I pulled one out and pressed a kiss to her cheek. “I was going to miss having class with you, too. Although you’re distracting, it made me never skip class.”

  “Some of us take our education seriously.” She glared at me and put her earphone back in. It made me grin. I knew she wasn’t really peeved at me, because I saw her mouth tilt up at the side. “Are you going to continually stare at me or get some work done? You’re being distracting now.”