I changed the subject. “How do you feel?”
“Better.”
“Good.”
She reached out her hand. “Thank you, Aiden. For everything.”
I wrapped mine around her outstretched palm.
“You’re welcome.”
Cami
Aiden stayed again, after spending the rest of the afternoon and evening. We’d settled on the sofa, watched another movie, and he had rubbed my neck until I fell asleep. I woke a few hours later, thirsty and achy, and I stood carefully so I didn’t disturb him. He was asleep on the end of the sofa, his feet kicked up on the coffee table. He looked peaceful, something I was sure was rare for him.
He appeared in the kitchen doorway while I was getting a glass of water, blinking and clearly worried.
“Are you all right?”
“Just a headache.”
“You didn’t have any pills before you fell asleep.” He held out his hand. “I’ll get you some, and you can go to bed.”
Obediently, I swallowed the pills and lay back down. I fidgeted, trying to get comfortable, and failing.
“What hurts, Sunshine?”
His endearment got me every time. I swallowed, not wanting him to know how it affected me.
“My shoulder. It hurts more than my knee.”
“You hit your knee on the stairs. You landed on your shoulder. Full-body impact.”
I snorted. “Yes. The weight ratio would be far greater.”
He crouched beside the bed. “Don’t you start with that bullshit.” He ran his hand down my side, resting his palm on my hip. “You’re perfect.”
I shut my eyes. “Well, there was a lot of perfectness on my shoulder.”
To my shock, he snapped off the light, then slid in behind me, caressing my neck and shoulders. “Give the pills a chance to work.” His gentle fingers slid along my skin. “Relax, Cami,” he crooned. “Just relax.” He started a circuit, slow and gentle, pressing and stroking. Never too hard, never too soft. His fingers found the pain, easing away the ache, then moving to the next spot.
I could feel every inch of him behind me, his firm chest close to me, touching my back as he breathed. His legs pressed along my calves, hard muscle to the soft curve of me. His breath was warm on my skin. He gathered my hair away from my neck, kneading at the sore muscles, making me feel better.
“I love your hair.”
His voice was low in the dark.
“Oh.”
“It’s so soft.”
I didn’t know what to say, so I hummed.
“I hate that you’re hurt,” he admitted. “I hate that more than anything.”
“I’m okay. You’ve helped me so much.” Unable to resist, I reached up and found his hand, threading my fingers with his. “I like having you here.”
He stilled, and I was about to release his hand and move away when he did the unexpected. He slid his arm under me, tucking me close to his chest.
“I have to be here, Cami. I need to make sure you’re okay,” he whispered, so quietly, I knew he didn’t want me to hear his confession.
I didn’t respond. The moment was too intimate, too overwhelming for us. Something was changing, and I needed to let it take root and grow.
I settled back, the heat of his body helping to dissipate the pain. With a sigh, I fell asleep, wrapped in his arms.
The next day, I only went to school in the afternoon, and I couldn’t wait to leave. I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to be there; I was still achy and sore, and I couldn’t concentrate. I fidgeted at my desk, rotating my neck to stretch it the way Aiden had shown me. I rolled my shoulders and sighed as the action eased the tension I felt. Then I tried again to focus on class. It was a lost cause today.
All I could think about was Aiden and his caring behavior toward me. What it meant—at least, to me.
He checked in with me to see how I was doing during the day and wasn’t happy when I told him I was attending my afternoon classes, but I insisted. I should have listened to him.
I was surprised and pleased to find him waiting for me when I left, insisting on driving me home.
“Dee is back tonight?” he asked as he pulled up outside our apartment building.
“Yes.”
“Okay, good. You’re not alone.”
“No.”
“All right.”
I slid out of the car, unsure what to do or say. He solved my dilemma by joining me on the sidewalk, telling me he would check on me later. He hesitated, then gently pulled me in for a hug and kissed my head.
“Call me if you need me, okay, Sunshine? I’ll be right there if you do.”
I watched as Aiden got back in the car, wishing I were brave enough to ask him to stay.
I had to remind myself to take baby steps. The ball was in his court.
Watching him drive away was one of the hardest things I had done in a long time.
Aiden
Saturday morning, I strolled into the office, feeling at loose ends. I wasn’t surprised to see Reid’s door open or to hear the constant clicks of his keyboard. I poked my head in, trying not to laugh. He was lying on the floor, a pillow under his head, and his feet propped up on his coffee table. A keyboard rested on his stomach, and a huge monitor on his desk showed some code he was working on. Headphones covered his ears, and his feet moved with a rhythm only he could hear as his fingers flew over the keys. The ground around him was littered with discarded food containers and empty coffee cups.
Maddox would go ballistic if he saw the mess. Everything around him was always in its place. Bentley would have to walk away after telling Reid to clean it up before Sandy saw the chaos. It didn’t bother me since I knew he was in his element.
I flicked his light, and he glanced over, pulling off his headphones. “Hey, Aiden. What’s up?”
“Just came in to catch up on some things. What are you working on?”
“A program for the condos. It will control all the lighting and plugs. They can do it right from the panel or their phones, if they want to override the main program. Turn on under counter lights in the kitchen or bathrooms, the hall lights, one specific light in the place, all sorts of cool features.”
“Awesome.”
“Then I’m going to work on the music accessibility feature. Satellite radio in every unit, full access to their own playlists, plus a whole bunch of other features.”
“I love it.”
He grinned widely. “I think I need to live there. We get, like, a staff discount, right?”
I chuckled. I knew if he asked, Bentley would give him a condo. Bentley would give this kid anything he wanted. After the way he helped find Emmy when she was kidnapped, the sky was the limit.
“I’m sure you’d get some sort of discount if you were serious.”
“This place is gonna be epic.” He waggled his eyebrows. “I bet some hot cougar would pick me up at the pool and become my love guru. Teach me everything I need to know.”
I burst out laughing, remembering his oversharing from his interview. “Okay, kid. Whatever you want. I’ll leave that discussion between you and Bent.”
“Is it catch-up Saturday with you guys, or what?” he asked, pausing as he pulled on his headphones.
“Why?”
“I saw Bentley earlier, and I swore Maddox looked in, but he was gone so fast I couldn’t be sure.”
I grinned. If Mad Dog had looked in and saw the shitstorm Reid’s office was, he would have hightailed it out of there.
“I guess we’re all behind.”
“You guys work too hard. You need to live a little.”
“Says the one working from the floor and, from the looks of it, who’s been doing it all night.” I cautioned. “Don’t overdo, Reid. We need you around here.”
He shook his head, his eyes bright behind his glasses.
“This isn’t working, man, this is fun.” He turned back to his computer.
I walked away, still laughing. We had scor
ed big with him. The kid had suffered enough in his past because of his talent and bad judgment. But he had rebounded, grabbed life and lived it. He was ecstatic with his job and his life—his zest knew no bounds.
I was rather envious of it, if I was being honest.
Bentley was at his desk, concentrating so hard on the screen, he didn’t even hear me come in.
“Hey, Bent. What’s up?”
He glanced up, startled, and slammed his laptop shut.
“Aiden. Good morning. I wasn’t expecting to see you today.”
Instantly, I knew something big was happening. Bentley fell back into his formal mode when he stressed over things. I racked my brain, but couldn’t think of anything we were working on that would cause him tension. I might need to bring Mad Dog in to help with the situation—whatever it was.
I strolled over and plunked myself into one of his new visitor chairs. I tried to find a comfortable position and failed.
“Have you sat in one of these?”
“Briefly.”
“They’re uncomfortable as shit, you know that?”
“Yes. People tend to linger, otherwise.” He arched his eyebrow at me. “Keeps visitors to a minimum.”
I knew he wanted me to leave, and I refused to budge.
“What if it were Emmy visiting?”
He didn’t blink. “She could sit on my lap.”
I threw back my head in laughter. I loved it when relaxed Bent appeared.
He grinned. “Sandy is sending them back. They are awful. Look great, but terrible to sit on.”
“Good.” I indicated his laptop. “What are you working on?”
He tensed. “Nothing much.”
“Ah.”
Internally, I was grinning. Bullshit.
“Where’s Emmy today?”
“Spending the day with Cami and Dee. She says Cami is feeling better.” He paused for effect. “She credits you with that recovery.”
I shrugged, though my neck felt warm. “I tried to help. I’m glad it seemed to work. They aren’t, ah, doing anything too strenuous, are they?”
He smirked. “Unless you consider the spa day I am treating them to strenuous, then no. Emmy’s been working hard, and so has Dee. I thought, given the fact that they needed some girl time together, this was a good option.”
“Great idea.”
He stood. “I need a coffee. The café downstairs is open. Would you like one?”
I pulled my phone from my pocket. “That would be awesome. I’ll catch up with emails while you’re gone. Grab a few Danish too while you’re there. The lemon ones if they have them.”
“Anything else?” he asked, the sarcasm thick in his voice.
“No. Unless Emmy sent some scones with you that I can eat while you’re gone. I’m starving.”
He grumbled as he headed for the door. “Try to survive while I’m gone.”
“I think Mad Dog is around. You should grab him a coffee too.”
“Only too happy to serve,” he called over his shoulder.
As soon as I heard the elevator, I was up. I grabbed his laptop, opening the lid. When the screen came to life, I overrode his password with my security clearance, my eyes widening at the site he had been on before he’d slammed the lid shut when I entered his office.
Bingo.
I reached for my cell phone and texted Mad Dog.
Get your bony ass into Bentley’s office. We got a mission, boy.
Seconds later, he hurried in.
“What’s up?”
I pointed to the screen.
He leaned down, then whistled. “Oh boy.”
“Yep.”
“He can’t do that online.”
“He can’t do that without us.” I snorted. “I mean, this is important shit.”
“Yep. Wait, where is he?”
“Getting coffee. He was trying to hide it from me.”
Maddox sat down, crossing his legs. “Not happening.”
I shut the laptop and pushed it back into place. “Nope.”
Then we waited to pounce.
Bentley’s footsteps faltered as he came back into his office. Maddox and I were messing around with our phones, lulling him into a false sense of security.
He slid a tray of coffee onto the desk, along with a box of pastries. Leaning over, I grabbed the box, and snagged a lemon Danish. Maddox handed me a coffee, choosing a cinnamon roll, and we sipped and munched in silence.
Maddox cleared his throat. “What’s going on, Bent? Rare to see you in on a Saturday anymore.”
“I had a few things to do. Emmy’s with the girls.” He fixed us with a look over the rim of his cup. “You know—the girls.”
“I’m aware of the trio, yes,” Maddox replied, wiping his mouth.
“I bet you are.”
I smirked watching them, until Bentley’s eyes landed on me. “Cami probably won’t benefit as much at the spa as she did under your personal care, Aiden.”
I narrowed my eyes but refused to let him get to me. “Probably not. That’s what you do for friends, though. You help them.” I arched my eyebrow. “Even if they don’t ask for it.”
His gaze bounced between Maddox and me, then to his laptop. “Why is my laptop the wrong way around? Dammit, did you open it, Aiden?”
I shrugged. “What would I see if I did?”
“Nothing. I was just browsing.”
Maddox rolled his shoulders, leaning back in his seat. “Fuck, these chairs are uncomfortable.” He grinned. “Browsing, Bent? Browsing for what, exactly?”
“Do you two fuckers know the words ‘violation of privacy’?”
I smirked. “Do you know the words ‘head of security’?” I started to laugh. “As if I couldn’t find out what you were browsing with a few clicks of my mouse?”
“Leave it.”
“No.”
Maddox leaned forward, resting his elbows on his thighs. “Really, Bent? Scoping out engagement rings on the internet? Where is your sense of romance? You don’t buy a ring like that on the internet.”
“I wasn’t buying. I was browsing.”
“Aha!”
Bentley sat back, running a hand through his hair. “Fine, you got me. Have you seen the jewelry stores? Jesus, they’re all over you when you walk in. Let me show you this, can I take that out? I don’t even know what fucking size she wears or what kind of ring I want for her!”
“You don’t know her ring size?” I asked.
He shook his head. “I tried to sneak the one she wears on her right hand, but she only takes it off when she goes to bed and showers. She would notice.” He pulled a piece of paper from his pocket. “I traced the inside, thinking that would help.”
I pushed his laptop to Maddox. “Go to jewelryguide.com.”
“Okay. Done.”
I looked over Maddox’s shoulder, tapping the screen. “Print this.”
“You’re a fucking genius.”
“What are you doing?” Bentley asked.
I stood to go and pick up the printed page. “Saving the day. Gimme some scissors.”
A few minutes later, after cutting and bending, I looked up. “She takes a four.”
“How did you do that?”
“There’s a size guide.”
“How did you know about that?” Bentley demanded.
“Sandy used it one day to figure out a ring size for her granddaughter. You know me—this stuff sticks.”
“Great. One problem solved.”
“Bent, you can’t choose a ring on the ’net. You need to see what they look like on her hand.”
“I want it to be a surprise. I tried hinting and got nowhere. If I let her pick something, she’ll be so worried over cost we’ll come out with a plain band worth a hundred bucks.” He fiddled with his sleeves, the way he did every time he was nervous. “I want to give her something special. Something she’ll love. Something that tells the world how loved she is by me.”
Maddox and I shared a glance. H
e spoke quietly.
“You’re really doing this, Bent? You haven’t lived together very long.”
“She’s it for me. I’m done. Why should we wait? Because society dictates it? Because people think we’re rushing into something? I’m tired of doing what I should do. I want to marry her, so I’m fucking going to marry her.” He thumped on his desk as if to make his point.
Maddox chuckled. “Okay, Bent, just asking.”
“I’m just answering. I have never been more certain of anything. I have to figure out how to buy a ring without screwing it up though.”
“You do tend to go overboard,” I mused.
“I do not.”
“Laptop for her birthday right after you met her?” Maddox laughed. “That ring a bell?”
“Whatever. I didn’t give it to her right away.”
“No, you bought her two outrageously priced shawls and a leather messenger bag instead—and handed her the laptop less than a week later. Such restraint.”
“Bite me.”
“You first.”
I held up my hand. “Knock it off. We need to get back to the issue at hand. I have an idea.”
“What?” Bentley asked, suspicious.
“I know a place.”
“A place?”
“Yeah. A place. You trust me?”
“Do I have a choice?”
“Not really.”
“Then I suppose the answer is yes.”
Maddox grinned widely. “Yes! Road trip.”
Bentley looked around, shaking his head, muttering to himself. “Explain why we are here.”
“See all these diamond rings? The loose rocks? They’re fake. All the empty settings? You can try them on and see what diamonds look good in them, and then decide on a style and diamond size.”
“I don’t want to buy some piece of shit ring.”
“You don’t have to, Bent. You can get ideas, then have it made to your specifications wherever you want. But this is a great place to narrow it down.”
“Should I ask how you know all that?”
Vested Interest Box Set: Books 1-3 Page 33
