“Thank you, dear,” Grams said, standing and taking the plate from her.
Felicity’s heart beat erratically as she sat down and stuffed a brownie in her mouth. What had just happened? Had Aiden admitted to still being in love with her? And had he really taken it back?
Felicity looked out at the palm trees swaying in the breeze. She tried not to feel affected by Aiden’s kiss but couldn’t calm her shaking hands. She wasn’t still in love with Aiden. Was she?
He came out on the deck and her gaze was involuntarily drawn to him. His muscled back hunched as he leaned over to take his seat. He seemed to avoid looking at her. “Pass the plate over here, Grams. I’ve been dying to eat one all evening.”
“I’ll get it,” Brittany said, practically purring. She hopped up and brought him the plate. She crouched beside his chair and slid the plate onto his lap.
Felicity held back a gagging noise as Brittany snuggled up to him. She ran a hand up his arm, her perfectly manicured nails standing out against his tan skin. “Aiden, have you been working out?”
He took a brownie from the plate. “No more than usual.”
“Ooh, your arms must be so strong.”
“Don’t hog the brownies over there. Bring the plate back here, Brittany,” Grams said, craning her neck to see what Brittany was doing.
Brittany pouted as she walked back to sit on the other side of Grams. Felicity bit the inside of her cheek to stop from smiling.
“Tell me what you’re planning on doing now? Do you have any jobs lined up?” Grams shifted to look at Brittany.
Felicity took another bite of her brownie and tried to ignore the heat she felt from Aiden sitting next to her. It had to be her imagination. He was nowhere near her. Yet, her body reacted to his close proximity anyway.
She forced herself to sit there for another few minutes as Grams pumped Brittany for information before standing up and stretching her arms. “Whew, I’m beat. Guess I’ll head to bed.”
Grams motioned to them. “Aiden, would you be kind and show Felicity to her room?”
He started to get up and she panicked. No way. She didn’t want to be alone in the house with him again. “No problem, Grams,” she rushed to say. “I can find it.”
Felicity practically ran into the house to get away from Aiden. She needed to clear her head so she didn’t make the same mistake again. She couldn’t be drawn back to him. She’d been down that road before, and she couldn’t handle a repeat.
She ran upstairs, found the guest bedroom and wheeled her carry-on into it. She brushed her teeth in the attached bathroom then changed and got into bed. But sleep didn’t come and she found herself tossing and turning.
No matter how hard she tried to push Aiden from her mind, it seemed that the universe was against her. The room smelled like him, for heaven’s sake. How was she supposed to sleep when his scent was covering everything?
She drew in a deep breath and let it out. What did she expect? This was his house. Of course, it would smell like him. She rolled over and tried to think of something else. Anything. It didn’t help.
A while later, she heard footsteps come up the stairs. Heavy footfalls. Must be Aiden. She listened as he came closer to her bedroom. Then the door opened and she closed her eyes, hoping he’d just check in on her and go away.
She waited and listened, but when the door didn’t close, she peeked one eye open. He stood just inside the doorway, unmoving. “Aiden? What are you doing?”
“I’m just trying to figure out what I should say.”
Felicity sighed and rolled over onto her back to stare at the ceiling. “There’s nothing to say, Aiden. We can’t go down this road again.”
“No. I mean...you’re in my bed.”
“What?” Felicity turned on the lamp and sat up, looking around the room. “Are you serious?”
Aiden’s lips twitched. “Yes.”
“But the room was so clean and tidy.” She pressed her hands to her cheeks as they heated. “I thought...I’m so sorry.” She climbed out of his bed, mortified that she’d been snuggling under his covers. Hugging his pillow. No wonder they smelled like him. How embarrassing. The cold hardwood floor was smooth under her bare feet. She walked to her suitcase and started shoving her things in.
Aiden chuckled. “Calm down, it’s not that big of a deal. I’ll show you to your room.”
Her face burned. “Now I feel stupid that I didn’t let you do that an hour ago.”
He walked to her and grabbed her hand, stilling her. “Hey, I said it’s not a big deal.”
She looked up at him and he slowly removed his hand. Her heart thumped loudly. “Okay,” she said.
After she gathered her things, Aiden took her down the hallway to her room. She’d peeked in there before, but the room was decorated in dark colors and it looked masculine, so she assumed it was Aiden’s. She walked in and sat on the bed, running her hand along the chocolate brown bedspread. “Sorry. Once again. I seem to be incapable of doing anything right.”
Aiden sat on the bed next to her. “Hey, now. Don’t say that.”
It was nice of Aiden to try to console her. “Maybe I shouldn’t go to the cave tomorrow.”
His mouth dropped open. “You can’t back out. You’ll love the tour. Bring extra clothes and good hiking shoes you don’t mind getting wet. Some of the tour involves swimming. But it’s amazing, and you can’t back out and leave me with Brittany all day long.” He made a face and she couldn’t help but laugh.
“What, she’s not your soul mate?”
He rolled his eyes.
Felicity grabbed his arm. “Oooh, your muscles are so big, Aiden. Pose for me. Flex those muscles.”
He shoved her playfully and she fell against the pillows. “Shut up.”
She giggled and sat up. “What, you don’t like her blatant flirting?”
“How am I going to politely tell her to bug off?”
Felicity shrugged. “Maybe you just need to come out and tell her you’re not interested.” Like you did with me.
The thought was there before Felicity could push it away. Had that been what he’d done? Or was he trying to hide feelings for her he’d long since buried?
Aiden ran a hand through his hair. “I guess so.”
Neither one spoke for a moment, and it looked like he was going to stand up, but for some reason, a desperation surged in her. She didn’t want him to leave. “Tell me about your mother,” she blurted out.
He tensed. “What’s there to tell?”
“I know she died a long time ago, but you’ve never given me any details.”
He worked his jaw. “There aren’t any details to tell.”
Felicity could feel him putting up a wall. That familiar barrier that Aiden wouldn’t let anyone cross. “How did she die?” Felicity asked quietly.
She knew she was prodding where she shouldn’t be, but she couldn’t help it. Part of her wanted to know if he’d let her in if she persisted.
“It’s late. That’s a conversation for another day.”
“Is that your way of shutting me out?”
Aiden looked at her, his eyes wide. “No. It’s just hard for me to talk about, okay?”
She nodded, deciding to let him off the hook again. “Okay.”
He suddenly stood from the bed. “I’d better let you get some sleep. Brittany said she’d be by in the morning.”
“Yay. I can’t wait.”
Aiden made a face. “Why is she even here?”
Felicity gave him a flat look. “You really don’t know? She’s here to snag herself another rich husband.”
Aiden pointed to his chest, his eyes widening. “Me?”
“Who else has she been flirting with?”
“Well, she’s delusional if she thinks we’d ever get together. What on earth made her think of me as a target anyway?”
Felicity pressed her lips together. Oops. That was her fault.
“What? Why are you looking guilty?”
&
nbsp; She scooted under the covers. “Well, I’m tired. Aren’t you?”
“Oh, no, you’re not getting away with that. What did you do?”
Felicity sighed, knowing she’d already given him too much. He’d just bug her until she told him. “I may have accidentally mentioned to her that you’re a billionaire.”
He stared at her. “Why did you do that?”
“I didn’t mean to. It just sort of happened, and then I couldn’t take it back, and she started joking that she was going to come out here, but I didn’t think she was serious.” Guilt surged in her and she buried herself under the covers.
“Come on now. You have to fix this.”
She peeked at him. “What can I do? She knows you have money. The only way she’s going to leave you alone now is if she thinks we’ve gotten back together.”
Aiden pointed at her, his eyes bright. “What did you say?”
“I said the only way—”
“Stop. I know what you said. You’re brilliant!”
“Wait, what?” Felicity sat up. “I’m confused.”
Aiden paced the room and scrubbed his hand down his face. “Yes. This is perfect.”
“Would you clue me in as to what you’re talking about?”
He stopped and faced her. She hadn’t seen him so excited in a long time. “We pretend we’ve gotten back together. Brittany will stop flirting shamelessly and Grams will stop doing crazy things like cutting your power.”
“Really? That’s your bright idea?” Felicity couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
“Why wouldn’t it work? This is what Grams wants. And Brittany is crazy, but she won’t mess with us if she thinks we’re back together. It’s perfect.” He rubbed his hands together, a smile widening on his face.
Images flashed through Felicity’s mind of them holding hands and plastering on smiles to pretend they were happy and back together. Grams might like it, but what about her? What about the suffocating feeling when she was near him? What would she have to endure while Aiden was acting like he was back in love with her? She shook her head. “I don’t like the idea.”
“Come on. It’s your fault Brittany is here looking at me like there’s a meat sale at Albertson’s.”
Felicity ran her hand along the edge of the sheets as she contemplated Aiden’s plan. What if they did do this? How would this whole thing end? Grams would have to find out eventually that they were making it up. She swallowed and snuggled down deeper into the bed. “Grams will be happy at first, but she’ll be crushed when she finds out the truth.”
“That’s the beauty of it. She doesn’t have to find out. We can stage a fight before you leave and break up. Grams will be happy because we gave our relationship another try. We can’t help it if we’re just not meant to be together.” He sat on the bed and patted her knee through the covers. “Please? Let’s just try it for a little while. If it doesn’t work, we can give up.”
Felicity couldn’t believe she was actually thinking of going along with Aiden’s crazy plan. “So, tomorrow morning we tell everyone we’re a couple again? Just like that?”
“Why not? We could say we talked late into the night.” He looked at his clock. “That’s not a lie.”
She worried her lip. This was insane. He knew that, right? “I don’t know.”
“It’s the perfect plan. Say you’ll do this with me.”
Aiden seemed so convinced this would work, Felicity almost believed him. “All right.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, she regretted them. But Aiden looked so happy, she couldn’t take it back. He grinned at her. “Great. Don’t worry. Everything will be fine.”
Felicity sat staring at the back of the door long after Aiden left. A foreboding feeling settled in on her as she thought about what would happen tomorrow when Aiden announced they were back together.
This was a bad idea, she could tell. But there wasn’t anything she could do about it now.
Chapter 17
Aiden walked into the kitchen and reached for a piece of bacon. Grams turned around so fast, he thought maybe she’d fall over. “Don’t you dare.” She lightly slapped his hand back. “You wait until Felicity gets down here.”
He gave her an innocent look. “I was just making sure they turned out okay. Might be embarrassing for you if the bacon is too soggy or something.”
Grams scoffed at him, but he saw the hint of a smile tugging on her lips. “You just sit over there. I’m making pancakes.”
“I’ll grab the eggs.”
“Thank you.”
Aiden opened the refrigerator and pulled out the plastic bucket that held the eggs. Only a few left. He’d have to pay the boy up the road to bring a few more.
Grams gave him a sideways glance. “What has you all chipper this morning?”
“Chipper?”
“You were humming.”
He was? He hadn’t noticed. But this was the perfect opportunity to unfold his plan. “No reason. Just had a great evening last night.”
She raised her eyebrows. “You did?”
He allowed a small smile to form on his face. “Felicity and I talked.”
“And?”
Aiden paused to draw out the suspense. “We’re getting back together.”
He expected Grams to get excited but instead, she just said, “About time.”
A motion from the other room caught his attention and he turned to see Felicity enter the room. “And here she is now. Good morning, sweetie.” He walked to her and gave her a peck on the cheek.
Surprise flashed across Felicity’s face before she smoothed it out. “Good morning.”
Why was she shocked? They’d talked about this. He put his arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him. She stiffened, but when he didn’t move, she forced a smile. “Can I help with anything, Phoebe?”
Grams shot them a look. “If you and Aiden want to set the table, that would be good.”
“Sure thing.” Felicity moved out of his grasp and opened the cupboard.
He held out his hand for the plates. When they were in the dining room, he leaned toward her. “I thought you were on board with this.”
“Sorry. I’m just nervous she’ll find out.”
“It will be fine if you just act natural.”
“I’ve never been comfortable with lying. You know that.”
The plates thunked as he set them down a little too forcefully. He cringed. He hadn’t meant to do that. “Don’t think of it as lying.”
She narrowed her eyes at him and folded her arms. “Then what is it?”
He paused, trying to come up with a comeback. He said the first thing that popped into his head. “Acting.”
She scoffed and left the room. He followed her. Not a great idea to let Grams see them arguing. He put on a wide grin while they got out the silverware and napkins.
In the dining room, she rolled her eyes. “Wipe that ridiculous smile off your face. You look silly.”
He sobered. “Look, if this was a bad idea—”
Grams entered the room with the plate of bacon. “I can’t tell you how happy I am you two realized you were right for each other.” She set the plate down and gave Felicity a hug. “You belong in the family.”
“Thanks, Grams.”
A knock sounded and his grandmother went to answer the door. Felicity turned to him. “I feel guilty already.”
“Acting. That’s it. And don’t worry about Grams. She’s resilient. She’ll bounce back.”
Brittany entered with Grams on her heels. “What’s the good news your grandmother is talking about?” Brittany hiked her shoulder bag up.
Aiden reached out and pulled Felicity to his side. “Felicity and I stayed up late talking last night. We’ve decided to get back together.”
Brittany froze, her smile looking like it might crack her face. “Oh?”
“Yes. We realized we still love each other.”
“Well, that’s...great.” Brittany rushed over
to him and gave him a hug. He wondered if she were making one last ditch effort to snag him, since it took a long time for her to let go. Then she turned to Felicity. “Let me be the first to congratulate you.”
“Thanks,” Felicity said into Brittany’s shoulder as she was accosted.
“Have you eaten, dear?” Grams asked. “We have pancakes on the griddle, and I think they’re about done.”
“Oh, I can’t eat that. I only eat organic whole foods. But thank you.”
Grams looked at her sideways. “You don’t eat pancakes?”
“No. I’m watching my carb intake.”
Grams shook her head slightly and muttered under her breath. “I watch mine too. I watch it go down my throat.”
Brittany didn’t seem to hear her.
Grams motioned to the table. “Why don’t you sit down and join us anyway. We can talk.”
“Okay.” Brittany pulled out a chair and sat, putting her bag on the seat next to her.
“I’ll help you get the pancakes, Grams.” Felicity left the room with her.
Aiden slid out a chair and joined Brittany at the table. “So.” He tried to think of something to say that couldn’t be taken for interest in her. “Sleep well last night?”
“Oh, yes. The beds here are super comfortable. You did an amazing job with this place.”
The curtains blew as a morning breeze came in the window. It was promising to be a beautiful day outside. Aiden picked up his napkin and put it in his lap.
Brittany tapped the table with a finger. “You and Felicity, then. Wow. I thought she’d never forgive you for what you did.”
He bristled. It wasn’t all his fault. She was the one who left without talking to him. “Yeah, well, she did.”
“I guess a billion dollars is pretty good incentive.” Brittany looked down at her fingernails.
Aiden’s mouth fell open. But before he could say anything, Felicity came back in the room with a container of syrup and some butter. Grams followed her with the plate of pancakes. “You’ll have to eat quickly. There’s not a lot of time.”
Felicity sat next to him and then leaned closer. “What’s wrong?” she whispered.
Her Big Fat Dreamy Billionaire Ex Page 11
