Hard to Handle litb-2

by Jessica Lemmon

  “Sit down.” His face was angry. His scar twitched.

  Aiden knew he was pushing his luck. He unzipped his jacket and dropped it by the door, then sat on the edge of a chair, wishing he could follow Evan up the stairs.

  Mike lowered himself onto the sofa with a heavy sigh. “I’m guessing that was Sadie.”

  Aiden took off his cap and twisted it in his hands. “Yeah.”

  “What did she want?”

  He shrugged, refused to meet Mike’s eyes. “I don’t know.”

  “You’re a terrible liar.”

  Aiden said nothing.

  “Your plan is to let her go, then?”

  Aiden’s anger sparked. “She let me go, Dad.” Shouldn’t everyone be able to see that? “I proposed to her, and she said no.”

  “Yeah, well, you still brought her to your bed, didn’t you?”

  Aiden ducked his head. “It’s what she wanted. It’s all she wanted.”

  “Yeah. I’m sure you didn’t want that.” The sarcasm in Dad’s voice was thick.

  Aiden lifted his chin, nostrils flaring. Mike had no right to corner him. He was the hurt party, here. And anyway, shouldn’t he be able to count on his own father taking his side? “I went through this with Harmony once already,” Aiden said, launching into the internal speech he’d given himself earlier. “The start and stall, the way she’d leave and come back—”

  His father yanked the soapbox out from under him before he could finish.

  “Dammit, Aiden! Stop being so stubborn.”

  Aiden closed his mouth, and stared into his father’s simmering eyes. Eyes the same color as his.

  Mike pulled a hand through his shaggy gray hair. “You don’t know how long you have with someone in this life, you know. You may get them for a few months, or you may get them for thirty-seven years.” He leaned over and rested his elbows on his knees, but didn’t take his eyes off his son. “You don’t know. That’s the point. Life isn’t laid out in neat little squares like some goddamn checkerboard,” he said, his voice gruff. “Your mom…” He paused, lifting his chin.

  Aiden kept quiet and waited.

  Mike cleared his throat. “Your mom,” he said in a titanium tone, “was supposed to grow old with me. That was the plan. That was always the plan. You may think I look old, but I don’t feel old. And she’s gone a lot sooner than I ever planned.

  “When the accident happened”—he pointed at his face—“she told me she was scared to death she might lose me. Told me she hadn’t thought about losing me so soon, if ever.”

  He was talking about the factory accident. It happened before Aiden was born. Mike’s coworker had gotten caught in one of the machines and when Mike pulled him loose, a piece of metal shot out and nearly took his eye. The scar his dad liked to make jokes about was caused by an accident that could have ended his life.

  “I didn’t remember how she’d cried back then until she was diagnosed with cancer the first time,” Dad continued. “Then I remembered. ’Cause I was doing the same for her. I realized what I was up against: losing her. Sooner than I expected.” He gave Aiden a hard look. “I never took her for granted after that.” His hands clenched into fists. “I held on to each minute I had with her with both hands. You’ve been through hell, son. You were with her in some of her darkest hours. You lost her. We all lost her.” His voice wavered, but his face stayed strong.

  “You have a chance to be with Sadie—to be with the woman who loves you. She came to you, Aiden. She came back,” he reiterated as Aiden felt guilt punch a hole through his chest. “She wants you and you’re sitting here like a jackass.”

  Aiden blinked at his dad. Mike was a good father, a tough father, but not since Aiden was fifteen and cheated on a final in school had he heard him speak to him with such authority.

  “Do you love her?” he demanded.

  Hearing Shane’s question repeated after all he’d been through with Sadie stopped Aiden’s thoughts in their tracks. Of course he loved her. Of all the excuses he’d made about not taking her back, not one of them had been because he didn’t love her. He loved her with all he was. That was the problem.

  Wasn’t it?

  He pictured Sadie, shivering, her shirt soaked through, her hair dripping, mascara running. Her eyes had been filled with fear, but her voice even when she’d told him the best news of his life. She’d bared her heart, confessed her feelings, and begged him to come back.

  And he sent her away.

  “I’m a brainless bastard,” Aiden muttered.

  “And she loves you anyway.” Mike’s scar crinkled when he smiled. “Man doesn’t get any luckier than that.”

  An emotion swept over Aiden and in a rush, he named it. Certainty. The kind he’d possessed when he hadn’t hesitated to pack up his mother and move her to Oregon. The kind of certainty that had led him to sell his house and motorcycles to continue paying for her care behind his family’s back. The kind of certainty that made it impossible to ever feel regret.

  And he knew if he didn’t act on his decision to go after Sadie, he’d regret this moment forever. And forever was a long time. He pushed to his feet and turned to open the front door.

  “Don’t come back without her!” Dad yelled behind him.

  Aiden spared him a smile and pulled on his ball cap before taking off at a run for the garage. It’d be a painful bike ride in the rain to catch up with her, but he’d—

  He froze midway across the drive when he spotted Sadie’s car idling at the curb two houses down. But he only stilled for a moment. And then he ran to her.

  Like his very life depended on it.

  * * *

  Sadie hoped she wouldn’t have to sleep here. It’d be embarrassing to be outside Aiden’s father’s house in the morning with red, puffy eyes and an empty box of tissues on the front seat. She grabbed another from the crushed box she forgot she had in the car. She’d found them under the seat with a petrified french fry and about two dollars in change.

  She’d be able to drive in a second, she assured herself. The tears hadn’t stopped, exactly, but they were no longer a constant flow. She watched the windshield wipers swipe the flooding water off the windshield. It filled before they lifted to swipe it away again.

  Her tears were kind of like the rain. And her face kind of like the windshield.

  She couldn’t blame Aiden for pushing her away. Not really. She’d waited too long; she’d made her proclamation too late. Last year, she’d ignored his phone calls and walled herself up, promising to be hard and uncompromising where he was concerned. And when she saw him again at the wedding, she arranged a number of hoops for him to jump through. And dammit if he didn’t jump through every one of them.

  But it was Sadie, at the end of the day, who couldn’t be bothered to leave her comfort zone. Sadie, who’d looked at all he’d given her and thrown it away.

  Aiden looked as sad and broken as she’d felt when she’d told him she loved him. It was why she’d left his porch. He was hurting and needed to heal, and she was picking at the wound and dumping salt in it while she was at it. Sadie knew how hard it was to heal. How devastating it was to lose him the first time.

  So, she’d leave him alone and he could forget about her.

  This part sucked.

  She swiped her eyes again, closing them and pulling in a breath. She had to go home sometime. Now was a good a time as any.

  The windshield wipers pushed the rain away, but this time, she spotted a soaking wet figure wearing a ball cap standing in front of her car. Her heart thudded out his name, but she refused to think it. She wanted him too badly. This had to be a dream.

  But it wasn’t, she realized when her driver’s door opened. Aiden stood dripping wet and holding out a palm for her to take. Sadie put her hand in his and was swamped with familiarity, with the absolute rightness of the way they fit together.

  In every way.

  He pulled her to her feet and kissed her and she decided this wasn’t a dream after a
ll. She’d died and the Almighty was giving her a taste of heaven. When she moved to get closer to him and the cap got in the way, Aiden tossed it to the side to pull her against him and kissed her harder. Like he needed her. Like he loved her.

  She didn’t want to stop. Ever. She just wanted to stand here, shivering in the rain, and kiss him. This moment was perfect. This moment was what she’d imagined when she’d pulled into his driveway.

  He swiped her wet hair from her face. “Look at you,” he said, his voice low. “I’m so sorry I made you cry.”

  Which, of course, made her cry again.

  He swiped her tears, the rain, from her cheeks with the pads of his thumbs. “If I tell you I love you, will you stop crying?”

  She smiled but shook her head.

  He smiled back, his dimple denting his cheek and catching a droplet of rain. “If I let you punch me in the nose, will you stop crying?”

  She chuckled. “Maybe.”

  “Maybe, huh?” He bent and kissed her, his tongue warm against her cold lips. She held on to him and thought how they must look, clutching each other, making out in the rain, desperate not to let go. She liked that. No, she loved that. She loved him.

  He pulled away and clasped her hand, then ducked into her car and came out with the keys. He clicked the key fob to lock the door and led her to the back of his father’s house and into the kitchen.

  Aiden’s father was cracking open a beer when they entered. He spared Sadie a smile and Aiden a wink, then scuttled through the doorway and up the stairs.

  Aiden tightened his hold on her wet hand and pulled Sadie through the den and into his room, shutting the door behind them. Remembering the night he’d sat on this comforter with her in his lap was almost enough to buckle her knees. She never thought she would be in here again. But here she was.

  He didn’t let go of her hand until they stood in front of his dresser. She surveyed the items on the surface. A coffee mug full of change, a ball cap, a magazine, a key chain…

  She smiled down at the cartoon of a bride and groom, and the words that read UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT. Her smile faded as her eyes tracked to what was attached to the chain.

  Not a key.

  Aiden lifted the key chain and dangled the platinum engagement ring in front of her. “This,” he said, his voice tight, “is what I had planned for the night I came to take you to dinner.”

  Sadie stared as the ring swayed back and forth. “The night I blew it.” She had, too. He’d stood there proclaiming how much he loved her and how he’d always loved her, and he’d had this in his pocket. She’d completely blown it.

  “No more crying, remember?” he said as he unhooked the ring from the chain. “And you didn’t blow it.” He held out a palm. “Give me your hand.”

  Heart pounding ninety miles a minute, Sadie did as he instructed.

  “You only delayed it,” he murmured, clasping her fingers gently in his. “Marry me, Sadie.”

  She snort-laughed and covered her mouth to muffle the sound.

  Aiden’s lips quirked. “I forget, is it one snort for yes, or two?”

  She laughed as she swiped at her leaking eyes. “One,” she managed. He grinned as he slid the ring home, a perfect fit. Like him, she thought. She threw her arms around his neck. “I love you,” she said into his ear. “I’m sorry I didn’t realize it sooner. I’m sorry I ruined everything.”

  He pried her away from him and tipped her chin. “Look at me, Sadie. Do I look ruined?”

  No. He looked devastatingly handsome. His hair wet and mussed, his face damp, water droplets hanging off the longer scruff on his jaw. She raked her fingers through it, the rasping sound making her shiver. “Make love to me.”

  Aiden’s smile vanished.

  He dipped his head and took her lips, gingerly unbuttoning her wet shirt and dropping it with a plop at her feet. Then he peeled his own shirt away, revealing his damp, bare chest. He seemed to consider something, before moving to a radio on the nightstand. He turned it on.

  “Maybe they won’t hear you over the music,” he said, standing in front of her again.

  Sadie palmed his jutting erection. “Me?” she teased, enjoying him looking down at her with hungry, ever-darkening eyes. “You’re the one who’s going to have to try and keep it down tonight.”

  She was grinning, a big, stupid, happy grin that felt so much better than the agony she’d felt moments ago. Biting her bottom lip, she slid her fingers beneath the band of his running shorts.

  He dropped his head back on his neck and groaned before fishing her hand out and undressing himself. Sadie simply stared at his naked body, his damp, golden skin, broad shoulders, taking all of him in, and feeling so grateful to be here with him like this.

  He undid her bra, slowly slid it down her arms, his fingertips trailing along her exposed flesh. Sadie shuddered at the intensity in his eyes. He unzipped her skirt, dropped it to her feet. When she bent to take off her high heels, he shook his head. “Leave them on.”

  She obeyed and Aiden dipped his head to take her nipple with his tongue. His hand slipped between her legs and when she brought her hand to the back of his head, the diamond on her ring finger glinted in the lamplight. He sensed her hesitation and lifted his face, still stroking her below, his other arm braced at her lower back.

  “Tell me,” he commanded.

  She was disintegrating beneath his touch, but she managed to whisper, “I love you.”

  He dropped his forehead on hers and closed his eyes. “I love you.”

  And then he proceeded to show her how much.

  Epilogue

  Snow drifted down from the sky, blanketing the front of Mike Downey’s yard in a few inches of the stuff. Sadie stood at the front window, clasping her arms around herself and watching the serene picture outside.

  The neighborhood was quiet, the holiday lights strung white on some houses, red or blue on others. It made for a twinkling, happy backdrop to the happiest time of Sadie’s life.

  “Here you go.” Crickitt handed over a hot mug of cocoa. “Yours has Bailey’s in it.” She took a long, appreciative sniff and rubbed her protruding belly. “I’m so jealous you get to drink alcohol. Does that make me a horrible mom?”

  “Not at all,” Sadie said, palming her best friend’s arm. “How are you feeling? Better?” Dinner tonight had featured a slab of perfectly seasoned, red, juicy prime rib. Crickitt had turned green at the sight of it and Shane and Aiden had whisked the platter back into the kitchen before Crickitt’s unborn baby kicked the food right out of her stomach.

  “Better.” She rubbed her tummy. “I might have to stick to fish and chicken from here on out.”

  Deep laughter rumbled from the den, and Sadie’s arm broke into goose bumps. Aiden was in there, she could hear his distinct chuckle apart from the others.

  “You’ve never looked so happy,” Crickitt said.

  Sadie smiled at her, shrugging her shoulders to downplay her emotions. Love was a vibrant light and Sadie emitted it like the Gloworm she’d bought for Celeste for Christmas. Well, for her niece or nephew currently incubating in Celeste’s belly, anyway.

  Aiden had come with her to her mother’s Christmas Eve dinner last night. It was the first time he’d met her mother and stepfather, her sister, and Trey. Sadie was a nervous wreck, despite having mended things with Celeste last month.

  Celeste’s pregnancy had been a rough one, and that had brought out Sadie’s kind side. She saw Celeste several times a week, either to bring her food or magazines, or just to sit and talk to her about things they should have resolved long ago.

  Yes, she and Celeste were a-okay…it was Aiden she’d worried about around Trey. She shouldn’t have worried. Aiden had glided into her mother’s house and greeted her family like he’d known them for years.

  When he met Trey, he pulled Sadie flush against his side and rubbed her arm as he talked to her ex, simultaneously calming her and letting Trey know unequivocally that Sadie was his. Not that Aid
en needed to claim her, but she’d appreciated his protection—so much she pulled him into a back bedroom after dessert and made out with him for several minutes.

  “I’ve never been this happy,” Sadie told Crickitt, belatedly responding to her statement. Aiden meandered into the living room from the direction of the kitchen and suddenly Sadie was even happier. Crickitt excused herself as Aiden ambled his way over to Sadie and stopped in front of her.

  His hair was getting longer, just brushing his jaw. A piece fell over his cheek and he moved it aside. “Hello, beautiful.” He embraced her, resting his hands on her hips the way he always had. They fit there like she was made for him. She’d begun to believe maybe she was.

  “Hi.” She held her mug out of the way. Aiden took it from her hands, setting it aside. “I love you,” she told him.

  There went his dimple. “I love you.”

  She beamed, no doubt lit up like the decked out Christmas tree standing behind him. She couldn’t get enough of Aiden. Couldn’t get sick of him no matter how hard she tried. Once she’d flipped the switch and allowed herself to love him, it had become impossible to flip it the other direction. She was his, through and through. There was no going back.

  She never wanted to.

  “One week,” Aiden whispered in her ear before pressing a kiss to her neck. “And then you’ll be mine. We can finally have sex legally.”

  Sadie laughed at his joke. Their wedding wasn’t going to rival the royals, but it wasn’t going to be at the courthouse, either. They’d settled on something in between, something that suited both of them. A small church Aiden and his family used to attend would perform the ceremony, with the reception being held at Shane and Crickitt’s house in Osborn.

  Sadie couldn’t wait to become Mrs. Aiden Downey.

  She stroked the scruff quickly turning into beard on his face. How did he look mouthwatering clean-shaven or hairy? Long ponytail, or short hair? Oh, right, she realized as he grinned down at her. The dimple. She stroked her hands down his arms. The biceps weren’t hurting matters, either.