Piper thought it was time that she addressed the Tamara issue. She sidled closer to Aiden while Tamara grabbed some documents from the back of the car.
“Why is she driving your BMW?”
“Her car needs to go in for service.” He shrugged like he did that kind of thing all the time.
“I don’t trust her.”
“With the center?”
“No. With me. With anything. She’s different around me than she is around you. That day at your house, she really did attack me.”
He laughed, like Piper was being ridiculous, but kept his voice low. “This is Tamara we’re talking about? She wouldn’t hurt a fly.”
“Not a fly. Me,” Piper said. “Aiden, I think she’s jealous.”
His forehand creased. “Jealous of what?”
“What do you think? Of our relationship. I think she might have feelings for you.”
“I’ve worked with Tamara for three years. It’s nothing more than business.”
“But—”
“You know what I think?” He reached out for Piper and pulled her back in. “I think that Tamara’s not the jealous one.”
“What?” Her mouth dropped open. Was he not hearing her? Could he not see what Tamara was really like? But she supposed not. The first time they met, she never suspected Tamara was anything but sincere. Maybe she’d never showed Aiden that other side of her. And he’d known her a lot longer than he’d known Piper. How could she make him see?
“Look, Tamara’s here to help. It’s just business,” he explained. “I have some things to deal with at the office.”
“On the weekend?”
“Unfortunately, one of my deadlines unexpectedly moved up on me.” He chuckled. She threw him a questioning look, but he waved a dismissive hand. “I won’t bore you with the details.”
“Business?” She felt her mouth twist with annoyance.
“Business. But don’t worry.” Planting a kiss on her cheek, he began backing away to his Jaguar in the parking lot. “You’ll find out soon enough.”
“But—” she began, but her cell phone rang, pulling her up short. Taking it out, she checked the display. It was the vet hospital, probably calling with an emergency.
Tamara joined her on the sidewalk with an armload of insurance papers and documents. The moment Aiden was out of sight, the PA hissed at Piper. It was going to be a long day. But Tamara wasn’t even on the top of her to-worry-about list at the moment.
You’ll find out soon enough.
Aiden’s voice had been layered with something she couldn’t name, his expression suppressed of emotion, like a secret pleasure. Whatever it was, obviously he wasn’t going to tell her right then.
Were his company secrets something she could learn to live with? Maybe it really was none of her business. Maybe she didn’t need to know, she told herself, answering her phone before it went to voice mail. But the way he’d said it, like it was some inside joke between the two of them that he forgot to tell her, she worried that maybe she did.
25
Dog Tired
Piper took one last look around the rescue center courtyard, making sure the few remaining dogs had everything they needed before she left for the day. It felt wrong to leave them, like it would be perfectly reasonable to curl up with them and sleep there for the night. But they were all safe in their temporary doghouses that Tamara had ordered from the pet store. They would be fine.
Fine. The word was beginning to lose its comfort. Like each time Piper thought the word or said it out loud, an invisible question mark popped up behind it.
She let Colin slip out through the gate and into the back alley. He sniffed around, searching for the ultimate place to mark his territory. Some days he acted choosy, like a connoisseur of pee spots. Others he just went crazy, like he owned the whole world. It’s mine. All mine! he would declare maniacally as he swung his leg into the air.
Piper shut the gate behind her and closed the padlock, yanking on it to make sure it was secure before turning around. Someone was standing out there in the dark. Her body froze for a half second and her heart jumped into her throat. Had Tamara come back to corner her after dark? Did she not have enough opportunities to harass her that day? Or maybe it was worse. Maybe it was the arsonist.
She got ready to scream for help. Surely the cops stationed in front of the building would hear her. The person stepped out of the shadows and she quickly bit it back. It was just Aiden. She slumped against the fence in relief.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” he said. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. I’m fine.” She swallowed her heart back down into her chest. “I’m more worried about the dogs.”
“They’ll be okay. There’s no call for rain over the next few days, and they’ve got everything they need. Besides, the police said they’ll still be watching the building.”
Piper nodded, knowing everything that could be done that day was done—and then some. Addison had been in and out all day delivering guests to their temporary lodgings. On top of running to the vet hospital twice for emergency weekend calls, Piper had organized it all while doing the rest of the chores. There was nothing more she could do. Except sleep. Possibly forever.
“Did you just get finished at the office?” she asked Aiden.
“Yeah.”
“That’s a long day.”
“I bet yours was longer. I hope Tamara helped.”
“She did.” There was a definite “but” to Piper’s tone of voice. But she insulted me every time we were alone. But she threatened to feed me my own hair. But she’s bat shit crazy. However, Piper didn’t want to get into that at the moment. Tamara did deal with the investigators and insurance in Aiden’s absence. Although if Piper could take that responsibility on she would have, just so she didn’t have to deal with Tamara all day. But Piper was just a volunteer. It was a job for the landowner.
“That’s good. And I heard from the police today about the taxi.”
“You did? Did they find it?” Answers. Finally. Piper didn’t think she could fit any more questions or worries into her stuffed brain.
“Yes. Along with my briefcase. They think it was just a joyride, or else they were going to chop it for parts and decided not to. Whatever the reason, it seems it had nothing to do with the documents in my briefcase.”
So no answers, then. Just the lack of them. She rubbed a hand over her face and groaned in frustration.
Grabbing her hand, Aiden dragged her away from the fence and into his embrace. His hands rubbed her back comfortingly. The rubbing slowed until it became caressing, exploring, groping. Her brain, exhausted from one of the longest days of her life, relinquished control, and her body responded to his touches like he was her puppet master.
In the back of her mind, questions jingled like loose change. She knew she should pull them out and see what they were. However, like when she searched the bottom of her purse, she knew loose change never paid the bills at the end of the month. Never amounted to much … until you added them up, of course.
But it had been a long day. Piper wasn’t in any mental state to do the math, especially not as Aiden brought his mouth to hers. Questions? What questions?
He drew away. Even in the dark alley, she could see the desire in his half-lidded eyes. He grinned down at her. “You know what you need? Something to take your mind off things.”
“You’re totally right,” she teased. “Maybe I’ll go find something.” She pretended to pull away, but he yanked her back and pressed her up against the fence.
“I meant me.” He bent down and brought his lips back to hers.
“Be careful,” she said between kisses. “Holly might still be lurking around. She could catch us.” She bit her lip. That was a question she hadn’t even meant to ask. But there it was, just hanging out there. And now that the subject was broached, could she ignore it? Should she?
He paused along his trail of kisses down her neck. “And I’m supposed to ca
re?”
“You mean you don’t?” She tried to make it sound breezy, which was aided by the fact that she couldn’t catch her breath at the moment.
He snorted and resumed his path. “Of course not.”
She bit her lip, trying hard to ignore the little voice in the back of her head, that worry that had been rubbing her the wrong way ever since they’d gone to dinner earlier that week. But rubbing turned to blisters, and this one was about to pop.
“Are you sure you wouldn’t want someone, I dunno, say more … model-like or Harvard material?”
Yeah, real breezy, she chastised herself. That blister didn’t simply ooze out; it erupted.
The hand that had been sneaking up the hem of her shirt froze. He pulled back, and in the light glowing between the fence’s wooden slats she could see him cock his head.
“Been doing your research?”
She shrugged like, “No big deal.” It’s not like it had been on her mind since Wednesday or anything. It’s not like she had been unable to think of anything else, well, before the fire, that is. “Holly Hart might have let something slip at dinner the other night.”
Aiden sighed and stepped back. Way to kill the mood, Piper thought. Her brain was starting to find this coin particularly interesting, while her body threw a tantrum.
“Well,” he began. “I’d like to say that Holly is full of it. But there’s probably some truth to what she said.”
Piper’s heart clenched like it too was about to burst, like a miniexplosion in her chest. “There was?”
“It seems like a long time ago,” he said, kicking at the gravel underfoot. “Before my father died, I guess I took advantage of the easy life I had. Let’s just say, I overindulged.”
“In … models?” she asked.
He laughed. “In the lifestyle in general. I didn’t have a lot of responsibilities or care, but I possessed a large trust fund. I didn’t need to be the serious, focused CEO I am now. But then I lost one of the most important people in my life and the weight of the world fell on my shoulders, and I guess I started to care. I began to realize what was important in life.” He gave her a pointed look, like this was a message for her. Maybe even that he meant she was important.
“But what about at the restaurant the other night? It came across like you were embarrassed to be seen with me.” He looked about ready to argue, but she continued before he could interrupt. “We ate in a far corner of the restaurant, we snuck out the back alley, and when you saw Holly you practically hid under the table. It was obvious that you didn’t want us to be seen.”
“I didn’t.”
Kaboom. There went her heart. “Oh, well, glad we cleared that up.” She took a step back, feeling herself close off to him. She couldn’t help it, what with her exploding heart and all.
“Piper, I wasn’t embarrassed to be seen because I was with you. How could you think that?” He reached for her hand and squeezed it even as she tried to pull away. “I was embarrassed of my life, of exposing you to self-important snobs like Holly Hart, or making you a paparazzi target. I remember how nervous you were just to go on television last week. I wanted a normal night where the two of us could be … us, like when we go to the park.” His thumb made nervous little circles on the back of her hand. “I wanted you to go on a date with me: Aiden. Not the CEO of Caldwell and Son Investments.”
Now that she’d calculated that coin’s worth, it turned out to be worthless. Nothing. It was barely a penny. No, it was a button. She took his answer in, struggling to maintain a straight face while what she really wanted to do was a relieved happy dance. Either that, or take a page from Colin’s book and mark her territory. He’s mine, ladies. All mine!
She recalled that night at the restaurant. You can take the journalist out of the tabloid, but you can’t take the tabloid out of the journalist. Holly had been fishing for information, manipulating Piper’s insecurities for dirt on Aiden. She’d known Holly had targeted him for years, and yet Piper let herself be played.
“Well,” she began, reining in her sudden irritation with herself, “sometimes that’s going to be your life. You can’t escape it. And if I date you, I have to accept that.” Which was the nicest way she could find to tell him he was being a complete idiot.
He gave her that lost puppy look. “If you date me?”
“Now that I’m dating you,” she corrected. God, how those words made her heart dance in her chest. Oh, look. Not exploded at all.
His dimple made an appearance at her answer. “I wish I could make it up to you, take you on another date right now. But I suppose it’s getting a little late.” He eyed the sky. The sun had long since set. What light was left blushed along the skyline.
“But we could still pretend,” Piper said hopefully. “That we had our date and you’re walking me to my car.” She pulled out her keys and started to stroll to the VW Bug waiting in the dark parking lot. Colin followed behind, marking things as he went.
“And how did it go?” Aiden asked, playing along. “You know, any initial feelings, ideas, impressions?”
“It went well. I had the chicken; you had the risotto. We shared some wine. I probably had too much, because I was nervous.”
“And how was I? Was I charming? Funny?” He pulled a silly face, but his posture tensed, like he was waiting for honest feedback.
“Yeah. You made some good jokes. A couple times I laughed when it wasn’t funny, but overall, very charming.”
“Oh no. A pity laugh.” He ran a hand through his already tousled hair. “Did I make up for it? Did I at least get a good-night kiss? Was it good enough to warrant another date?”
“I don’t know. It hasn’t happened yet.” She slowed down as they approached her car and she fiddled with her keys. “I’m still waiting for one.”
“I suppose it better be a good one to make up for that pity laugh.” He rolled his shoulders, straightening his collar like he was preparing.
She laughed and pulled him in. He kissed her softly once, then again, his lips lingering against hers. A kiss worthy of a second date, sure. But after two weeks of seeing him almost every day, Piper was ready for more than second-date action; she craved a tenth-date kiss.
Dropping her keys, she reached up and gripped his collar, pulling his body closer. Aiden backed her up until her butt hit the trunk of her car, pressing, grinding against her until something firm pressed against her stomach and she knew it wasn’t the dog treats in his pocket. And if it had been a dog treat, he must have switched to feeding Sophie extra-large bones. What would his dry cleaner have to say about that one?
Her body was back in control. Her brain wasn’t just taking a break; it was gone. Away on vacation. His mouth found her earlobe and he tugged with his teeth. She felt a shiver run down her neck and right to her toes.
The little German car rocked on its wheels, squeaking with each nudge from Aiden’s hips. Piper’s groans added to the rhythm. His hand slid over her jeans and across her butt. He gripped her thigh and hiked her leg up until it wrapped around his hip in order to get his bone closer. She moaned, the sound echoing across the empty lot.
The fire the night before had done something to her. That sense of urgency, the adrenaline, still lingered in her veins, reminding her how precious life was, bringing her feelings for Aiden to the surface.
Now that the fire was out and the danger settled, all that remained, all that mattered, was the two of them. Being in his arms, feeling the touch of his hands, his mouth, the pressure of his body against hers, was a reassurance. Because life was too short.
His five-o’clock shadow rubbed against her collarbone, and she was certain she’d already died and gone to Heaven. Heaven’s gates had opened up and, oh wow, she could see the light. And it was dazzling. And bright. Really, really bright.
Piper squinted, cringing away from it, and held up a hand in front of her face. Turns out, that wasn’t the heavens smiling down upon her and Aiden. It was an LED flashlight pointed at their flushed f
aces.
“Is everything all right here?” a voice asked.
And those weren’t angels in white. They were cops in blue.
“We heard sounds of a struggle,” the other said.
Aiden jumped back, and Piper ran a hand over her clothes to make sure everything was where it should be. She tried to act natural, leaning on the car like what could they possibly be doing alone in a dark, quiet parking lot at night?
“N-n-no. No struggle, Officer,” she stammered. The only thing she would struggle with that night was her libido. “We’re fine.”
Aiden cleared his throat, straightening his tie. “Thank you, Officers.”
The flashlight lowered and Piper could see again. She didn’t miss the look that the two cops exchanged. They didn’t appear annoyed or like they were about to arrest Aiden and Piper, although it was a good thing they showed up sooner rather than later, because the things she’d wanted to do to him in her car would have been all sorts of indecent public exposure. They would have spent the night behind bars for sure. She could just imagine the headlines that Holly would come up with for that one.
“All right,” the first cop said, an unspoken warning beneath the amusement in his voice. “You two have a good night.”
“Thank you,” Piper said, stifling a giggle as they turned away.
Aiden rested his head against hers, his own shoulders shaking with silent laughter. “So?” he said when he got it under control. “What do you think? Does that warrant another date?”
“I think that warrants the next hundred dates.”
“Well, at least it didn’t warrant a trip to jail,” he said as though he’d read her earlier thoughts.
Laughing, she bent down to find her keys where she’d dropped them on the ground. She groped among the gravel in the dark, listening for the telltale jingle; then something sharp stabbed her finger. She hissed.
“Ouch!”
“What’s wrong?”
“Something cut me.”
Must Love Wieners Page 21
