On A Night Like This (The Callaways) (24 page)

"You," he said simply.

"In a good way?"

"A very, very good way."

Relief filled her gaze. "I thought it was amazing. Better than any of my fantasies about us."

"You had fantasies about me?"

"Since I was fourteen. You already knew that."

"I knew you had a crush; I didn't know it was X-rated."

"I've always had a big imagination."

He ran his fingers down her bare thigh, smiling into her eyes. "Why did you have a crush on me, Sara?"

"You have a mirror, don't you?" she asked dryly.

"So it was all physical?"

"You were nice to look at it, but there was a lot more. I liked the way you stood up to bullies, the way you looked out for Emma and your family. Most of all, I admired your daredevil approach to life. You made me want to push my own boundaries, even though I was never quite brave enough to actually do it."

"That daredevil attitude has gotten me into a lot of trouble." He paused. "I think you saw me as better than I actually was."

"Well, that's what daydreams are for," she said lightly. "But tonight isn't about the past, or the future," she added hastily. "It's just about now—this moment. Tomorrow is another day."

He pushed a strand of hair off her face and smiled. "Tomorrow is still several hours away. You know I don't sleep much these days."

"I don't feel like sleeping either," she said, her hand slipping down the sheet between them. "Oh, my."

He smiled. "I have a few ideas on how we might pass the time. This time we'll go slow."

"You're going to kill me, aren't you?"

"I'm going to give it my best shot."

Chapter Eighteen

Sara woke up to the warmth of the sun on her face. She reached for Aiden, but he was gone. She rolled over, staring at the empty side of the bed. She felt a sudden wave of fear. She knew they would eventually go back to their separate lives, but she wasn't ready yet. It was too soon.

She slid out of bed and grabbed Aiden's robe off the back of the door. It was too big for her, but it was warm and cozy, and she felt like Aiden's arms were still around her. They'd made love three times, each time better than the last. She'd had sex before but not this kind of mind-blowing, life-altering sex. No wonder Aiden was such a hit with the ladies.

She frowned, not wanting to put Aiden, sex and other women all in the same thought.

Walking out of the room, relief washed over her at the smell of coffee and the sound of Aiden's voice on the phone. He'd gotten out of bed, but he hadn't gone far.

He glanced up as she entered the living room, his expression tense. As she sat down on the couch, she wondered who he was talking to. It was obviously a serious conversation."

"Thanks," he said. "I'll wait to hear from you."

"Who was that?" she asked as he ended the call.

"Jeanne. She was able to obtain access to some of Kyle's financial information—I'm not sure how, and I didn't ask."

"What did she discover?"

"A lot of debt. Kyle was drowning in it. His credit cards were maxed out. And the mortgage has a high interest rate because of their poor credit rating. Apparently, the only way they got the condo was because Vicky's parents came up with a thirty percent down payment. But Kyle was still going to face a stiff mortgage payment not to mention property taxes and homeowner association fees. He never should have agreed to buy that place. But Vicky fell in love with it, and he didn't want to say no to her."

"I wonder if that was because he felt guilty because he was having an affair or if the affair was because he was feeling super-stressed about his marital life."

"Or neither," he said, his mouth turning down in a frown. "I don't know that he was having an affair."

"Just offering a theory, Aiden. You know I'm not trying to paint Kyle in a bad light. I'm just trying to help you work through things."

"I know. I get it. And I can't have blinders on. Kyle wasn't a saint. I wouldn't have liked him if he was."

"The financial issues could be a reason for gambling, not having an affair," she said. "That was another one of your ideas."

"Jeanne hasn't found anything to support that." Aiden got to his feet and paced around the apartment. "I don't know why Kyle didn't tell me about his problems. I would have helped him. I would have loaned him money. I have some saved up, and I think he knew that."

"He might have been too proud to ask for help."

"There was a big life insurance policy," Aiden said a moment later. "Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. They took out the policy after Robbie was born." He paused again, his gaze meeting hers. "I worry that Kyle was feeling desperate. And in that moment, in the blazing heat of that fire, he thought maybe he was worth more to his family dead than alive."

She sucked in a quick breath, not wanting to believe that any more than Aiden did.

Aiden sank down on the edge of the recliner, his eyes dark and filled with painful shadows. "I just don't want to believe that Kyle might have killed himself. But in my dreams, he heads straight into the fire, as if he knows exactly where he's going. There's no hesitation in his step. He never looks back." He let out a heavy sigh. "I should have seen that he was in trouble."

"You can't see what people don't want you to see," she said. "Kyle knew you were there. He chose not to involve you. We don't know why. Maybe out of respect for your long friendship, he didn't want to burden you with anything, not even perhaps his last decision. And," she added hastily, "we still don't know that's what happened."

"It's sure looking that way."

"What about the woman from the bar. Did Jeanne find out anything about her?"

"Not yet. She said she'd call me later today."

"Okay, so we don't have the whole story yet, let's not jump ahead to the end."

"Too late."

She gave him a compassionate smile and knowing that he needed something to do, she said, "How about some breakfast? I wouldn't mind another one of your scrambles. I bought all the ingredients yesterday."

"Uh, sure. I could cook something up."

"Good." She checked the clock, realizing it was after nine. "Oh, my goodness. I didn't realize it was so late."

"It's not that late."

"It is in New York. It's noon. And I am not at work." She was never late and she never took a day off unless she had a fever or was throwing up. People would be wondering where she was. "I need to call in."

"And say what?" he asked curiously. "If you need to get to an airport, I can take you, Sara. I don't want you to feel like you're stranded here."

"I don't feel that way." In fact, she really wasn't in any hurry to leave Redding. She felt relaxed for the first time in a long time. Logically, she knew it was a momentary escape, but that didn't matter. She was going to enjoy it for as long as she could. "I'm entitled to some days off. I'll just tell them I'm taking the time now."

Memories of their night together flashed through her head, and the sexy, intimate look in Aiden's eyes told her he was taking the same trip. There was no way she was saying goodbye to Aiden – not yet anyway.

"What's another day?" she added. "I was thinking you could show me around. We could even go on a hike. It looks like a nice day outside."

"I thought you didn't like nature."

"I said I'd never had the chance to see much of nature," she corrected. "Unless there's something else you need to do."

"I don't think there is. Jeanne seems to be on top of everything. Maybe I'll throw a tent and some sleeping bags into the truck. It's past time for a city girl like you to see some stars."

"I saw a few stars last night."

He grinned. "Baby, you ain't seen nothing yet. I'm going to grab a shower. Then I'll make you breakfast after you make your call."

Sara picked up her phone and punched in her boss's number. Garrett Robbins was in charge of the third-year attorneys, as they were called, and while he'd always been supportive of her career goals, Garrett was a tough taskmaster. He put in long weeks and expected the same from the people who worked for him.

"Sara, where are you?" he asked without bothering with a greeting.

"My father is in the hospital. There was an accident. I need to stay in San Francisco a while longer."

"How much longer?" he asked. "We just took on a big client, and I need you here."

"A week," she said. "At least."

"A week?" he asked, an incredulous note in his voice. "Are you serious?"

"My father is hurt, Garrett." She was annoyed that he hadn't asked her how her dad was doing.

"What happened to him?"

"He broke his leg. He needs help."

"Well, it doesn't sound like he's dying. Hire a nurse."

"That's a little heartless."

"Sorry, Sara, I'm just swamped. I didn't think you were even close to your father."

"That's not the point. I have time coming, Garrett. I'm going to take it."

"If you're not back by Thursday, I'll have no choice but to give this case to Mark."

Mark was her biggest competitor, and Garrett knew that. In fact, he often pitted them against each other.

"Thursday," he repeated. "Don't be late."

He hung up before she could say a word. She stared at the phone for a long minute. She hated the idea of Mark getting a big case over her but it was difficult to drum up her usual indignation. Did it even matter if he got this case? There would always be another one, always another competition. That's the way the firm worked. The partners didn't want anyone to be comfortable. Comfortable equated lazy in their mind. Everyone had to be at the top of their game at all times.

She was exhausted just thinking about it. She needed the time off – for a lot of reasons, most of which had nothing to do with her father.

She set down the phone and stood up. As she moved toward the hall, she could hear Aiden's voice. He was singing in the shower. She listened to him belting out really bad lyrics in a very sexy voice. He was off key, but who the hell cared? Work was suddenly the farthest thing from her mind. If she was finally going to take some time off, she was going to make the most of it.

She turned the knob on the bathroom door, stripped off the robe, and surprised Aiden in mid-note.

"I want to sing, too," she told him, as she slipped inside the stall.

His soapy hands slid over her breasts, and he leaned in to kiss her, the hot water running over their heads as their bodies sang together in perfect harmony.

* * *

Two hours later, Sara and Aiden made it out of the apartment. After a long, steamy shower, they'd dressed, eaten breakfast and then packed an overnight bag. Aiden threw some camping gear in the back of the truck, just in case they decided to make a night of it. She hoped they would. Sleeping under the stars with Aiden sounded like something she definitely wanted to experience.

"You never told me what your boss said," Aiden commented as he drove down the highway.

"He gave me three days. If I'm not back by Thursday, he'll start giving my important cases away."

Aiden shot her a thoughtful look. "Are you sure you want to spend one of those three days hiking in the woods?"

"That's pretty much all I'm sure about right now." She turned her gaze out the window. "I can't believe this weather. It feels like summer."

"Nice day for a hike," he agreed.

"Where are we going?"

"To those hills over there. Kyle and I found a great spot to camp a couple of years ago." He let out a sigh. "I can't go anywhere around here without thinking about him."

"So let yourself think about him. You don't have to cut him out of your thoughts. I always hated that I had no one to talk to about my mom after she died. My dad had nothing to say. And after the funeral I was away at college, so most people I was with didn't even know my mom had died."

"That must have been rough. You were very alone, weren't you?"

"Yes, but I was used to it by then." She paused. "When I was talking to Lynda the other day, she mentioned how much she liked Valerie, and I thought it was the first time in a long time that someone actually said my mother's name out loud. It seems wrong that such a vibrant person could just disappear. I feel guilty that I don't talk more about her. I don't want the same thing to happen to you. Tell me about Kyle. You knew him the best of anyone."

"A month ago I would have agreed with you. Now I don’t know."

"Don't let the doubts take over. Tell me something funny about him. You must have some great stories."

Aiden thought for a moment and then laughed. He glanced over at her. "Kyle got drunk one night and got a tattoo. It was supposed to be for his girlfriend, Lexy, but he was slurring his words so badly that when he came out of the tattoo parlor he had the word
Sexy
across his biceps. He took a hell of a lot of ribbing over that. We actually called him
Sexy
when we were on the job."

She smiled. "And how did he react?"

"He laughed. Kyle didn't take himself that seriously. At first he thought he'd try to get the tattoo changed, but eventually he got used to being
Sexy
. In fact, he thought it was a good icebreaker with the ladies."

"I'll bet it was. I always liked Kyle."

"But not as much as you liked me," he said with a cocky, sexy grin that reminded her of just how much she'd "liked" him earlier that morning.

"I'm never going to live my crush down, am I?" She tilted her head, giving him a thoughtful look. "Did you ever have a crush on a girl who didn't know you were alive?"

"Andrea Mills," he said immediately.

"Wow, you didn't have to think very long." A pang of foolish jealousy swept through her. She needed to get over that fast. She and Aiden were just having some fun. She could not start feeling like he was her boyfriend.

"I fell for Andrea in the sixth grade," he said. "I sat behind her in class, and most of the day I just stared at her long, blonde hair and daydreamed about her."

"You were all about blondes, even from the beginning."

"Brunettes aren't so bad," he said lightly. "But you'll be happy to know that Andrea thought I was an idiot. I asked her to a dance, and she looked down her nose at me and said, 'Are you crazy?' And then she walked away, taking my busted ego with her."