The Awakening: Aidan (16 page)

Yummy.

She grabbed her makeup bag and found two ponytail holders. After she put her hair in low pigtails that made the strands cascade down the front of her shoulders, she sashayed back into the kitchen, very aware of the way Aidan had stilled in pouring some liquor into a blender. The way he watched her, all predator-like, ready to jump, made her feel she had some control.

Stopping in the middle of the kitchen, she held her hands up and turned around, giving him a view from every angle. “You like?”

“Oh.” He cleared his throat. “I like. Very much.”

She gave him a saucy smile. “Good.”

As she sidled up next to him, she lifted her face. When he gave her lips a quick smack with his, she jerked back, shocked at what she’d done. She’d invited his kiss. Again, automatically. Like a couple. What in the world was happening to her?

He gave an affectionate tug on one of her pigtails, then handed her a picnic basket.

“I put some food in there, along with a blanket. There should be two chairs already set up on the beach. Go on without me. I’ll be down in a few minutes. Need to get our drinks ready and throw on my swim trunks.”

She didn’t argue, needing to get away from him and collect herself. Here she’d been so worried about Aidan losing control, and it seemed that she was the one doing the losing instead. The really frightening part was that she didn’t realize what she was doing until after she’d done it. What kind of signals was she sending Aidan?

It couldn’t be good. Was he silently tallying these small victories, believing she wouldn’t be able to leave him when they returned home?

After setting the picnic basket down, she sank into the mesh material of the beach chair.
Would
she be able to leave him? She enjoyed being in his arms so much, enjoyed just being with him. Somehow Aidan made her forget her troubles—forget the struggles at home that were still very much there and waiting for her return.

A failing practice, a best friend who stayed by her side regardless of how broke she was because of Jaylin’s decisions, and a mother who sat at home waiting for death.

How could he make her forget all of those things? Especially the last one.

That could be her in a few years if she let her emotions control her.

Just last week she’d stopped by to see her mom. She was cleaning. The woman was
always
cleaning. Her mother had never been so OCD about her floors until Jaylin’s father died. In the beginning, even as a teen, she’d known it was a way for her mom to cope, a way to not think. But after twenty years, the loss of her mate should’ve become easier, lessened some of the compulsive tendencies she’d acquired from his death.

A movement to her left broke into her thoughts. Aidan trudged across the beach toward her, balancing two coconut cups with tiny colorful paper umbrellas in the crook of one arm and a cooler in the other. The wind blew up his hair and her insides gave a funny jump of affection. Jaylin swallowed and glanced away. Lust she could deal with. Butterflies and roller-coaster dips in the stomach she couldn’t. And after reminding herself about her mother, how could she possibly still feel anything?

Her heart was becoming her worst enemy.

Aidan sat down beside her and handed her a drink. She took a sip, the wonderful coconut taste shocking her conflicting thoughts right out of her head. “Wow, Aidan. You missed your calling in life. You should’ve been a bartender.”

He chuckled. “Pretty damn good, right?”

“I’ve had plenty of piña coladas, but this is excellent.”

“It’s the secret ingredient.”

“Which is?”

“It wouldn’t be a secret if I told you, now would it? Besides, then you’d be able to make them yourself and I can’t have that.”

“It can’t be that hard to figure out.” She took another sip. She tasted the coconut and a hint of pineapple, but there was something else she couldn’t put her finger on. “What
is
that?”

“All I’m going to say is you can’t get a drink to taste like that by using premade bottle mixers. All fresh ingredients, baby, with a little added bonus.”

She swished another mouthful around and then gave up. “If you won’t tell me, you’ll unfortunately have to keep going back and making me more.”

He opened the cooler. “You can have as much as you want.”

The appearance of a full pitcher of the drink shocked a laugh out of her. “You’re always prepared, aren’t you?”

“Most of the time. I’ve been caught unprepared a few times and hated the outcome.”

Her smile faded, noticing the seriousness of the words under his carefree attitude. Their conversation from the night before came to mind. “Is that what happened with your career? You were caught unprepared?”

Sighing, he slumped back against the chair. “Already? Really?”

“I can’t help that your ‘unprepared’ comment made me think of last night. I’d like to know what happened.”

“There’s really not much to say. I took my dad’s obsession and magnified it. Little business takeovers didn’t appeal to me. Large corporations did. The harder and more complicated the takeover, the more satisfaction I got.”

“Is that how you got a reputation as a bad guy?”

“Businesses feared me. Knew if I got my sights on them, willingly or not, I would one day own them. I ate that up, thrived off it.”

“What changed?”

“My last takeover. Funny enough it wasn’t a huge corporate invasion. It wasn’t even an actual takeover. I saw a little homemade product that promised a fortune, and went after it in a way I’m ashamed of today.”

“What in the world did you do?”

“I sold out morals for money.”

She wished she was surprised by the admission, but after having a small taste of the other Aidan O’Connell, she knew he was capable of almost anything when something he really wanted was denied him. “I need more details here. Give it to me from the top.”

He winced. “I’m not sure if I want to tell you, Jaylin. You’ll hear what a slimeball I was.”

“I saw firsthand what a jerk you can be, Aidan, and I’m still here. Why? Because I know that isn’t who you want to be anymore. I promise not to judge you for past mistakes. Okay?”

Surprisingly, she realized she meant it. As much as she could use what he said to make it easier to walk away, she wouldn’t. Whatever he’d done hadn’t been done by the man sitting beside her now.

He stayed silent, his expression tense, lips pressed together.

“You can tell me.”

He looked at her, finally nodding. “I used to be a cold son of a bitch, Jaylin. I embraced it, feeling it was exactly what I had to be to succeed. All it took was one tiny woman to open my eyes to the monster I’d become.”

“A woman?” She shoved back the flare of jealousy that ignited in her chest. Now—or even ever—was not the time for such emotion.

“Tracy Platt. She was the manager of a family-owned general store out in Podunk, America. Population one thousand eighty. I was on my way to a business meeting on an especially difficult takeover. I’d taken the car for a change, instead of flying. I love the mountains, the winding roads, the scenery. It clears my head. If I’d flown, who knows where I’d be today. Probably still getting my kicks from stealing businesses out from other hard-working people.”

The self-disgust in his voice turned her stomach. She reached over and squeezed his hand.

He slid his palm over hers, squeezing back. “Anyway, I needed to stretch my legs, and this little store appeared around the next bend. I told the driver to stop. As I walked around, I noticed these mason jars filled with yellow liquid. A home-packaged sort of deal, where frilly lace decorated the screw cap and a simple sticker that had ‘Gleam’ written in black Magic Marker placed on front. The young lady behind the counter said it was her homemade cleaning agent, a recipe passed down from generation to generation that was really popular with the locals. Out of curiosity, I bought one and went on about my day. I didn’t think about it again until I got back home. It was an
amazing
product.”

“And you had to have it?”

“Oh, yeah. I saw a gold mine. Like I needed more of those. I was already extremely wealthy, but that didn’t stop me. So I drove back up, believing I’d make an offer and she’d jump right on it. These were backwood folks. They didn’t have a lot and I was offering her the world.”

“But she didn’t want to sell?”

“Adamantly refused, stating it was a family recipe that had been passed down from her great-grandmother, to her grandmother, to her mother, and then on to her. And she would one day pass it along to her daughter, and a price tag couldn’t be put on tradition. To say the least, I was stunned. Someone would willingly give up a fortune because of a tradition? How stupid—and I wasn’t above showing her how stupid it was. So I pretended to graciously accept her refusal of my offer and left. Over the next couple of weeks, I made a few trips out there. Never once bringing up the offer, just flattering her, telling her how she’d caught my eye the moment I walked into the store, being the rich city slicker who swooped in and courted the country mouse.”

“Aidan, you didn’t.”

“Oh, I did. I didn’t rush it, either. She was guarded around me, leery, with good cause, but I knew I could win her over. I was patient, letting her get used to seeing me, anticipating when I’d happen to stop in, waiting for that moment I went from being the man who wanted her family secret to the man she couldn’t wait to see. The day she welcomed me with a shy smile and eyes that wouldn’t quite reach mine, I knew I had her, and that was when I asked her out. I didn’t feel an ounce of guilt, Jaylin. Not one iota of remorse. I had a goal. Get the secret. I showered her with the finest things money could buy to do so. I believed if I showed her everything she’d missed by living in a small town, fed her fine dining, bought her fancy clothes, she’d never be able to pass up the opportunity to have it for herself.”

“What happened?”

He shook his head, as he exhaled harshly. “I had degrees, had dealt with some of the savviest businessmen in our country, and had taken them all down. It never occurred to me that a high school dropout, who had no dealings with the wolves of the world, would be so damn smart. But she was, and she became suspicious. She ended up hearing a conversation with one of my business partners. I’ll never forget the day she confronted me. It changed my life. She showed up in my office. Gone were the lavish outfits I’d bought her, the expensive jewelry. The woman who stood before me was the woman I’d met that first day at the general store.”

“Oh, wow.”

“She placed two suitcases on the floor. I later found out it was every piece of clothing and jewelry I’d ever bought her. She thanked me for reminding her who she never wanted to be. It was the first time in a long time I’d felt awful for going to any lengths to get what I wanted. I tried to apologize, but she simply said she wasn’t angry, that she only pitied me, and that I apparently held nothing sacred. Right before she walked away, she added that anyone who traded family for material things had somehow lost their way in life, and she only hoped I could one day find the path back to mine.”

“Ouch.”

“Definitely, but her parting words made me take a long hard look at myself, and I found I no longer liked who I saw. In fact, I hated who I’d become. Money was the only thing that was important to me, and I’d steamroll anything or anyone who stood in my way, including an innocent woman. I started selling my companies, one by one. The day I signed the last company away, I bought the cabin and started getting acquainted with the new me. And you know what? I like him.”

Jaylin smiled. “I like him too.” She tilted her head to the side. “What happened to the woman?”

“A couple of months after she’d left, I went back to the general store. This time I thanked
her
for reminding me who I didn’t want to be. She said she was glad I’d found my path. I always make sure to stop in when I’m up that way and check in on her.”

“And you work as a consultant for failing businesses now?”

“Yep. I decided to use my evil for good. Who wouldn’t want a reformed bad guy working on their side to help keep other bad guys from poaching them?”

“Yeah, I can see how there is a market for that,” she said, laughing.

The skin between his brows folded. “You really don’t think less of me?”

“Aidan, I know you’re not that man anymore. If you hadn’t pulled the kidnapping stunt, I would’ve never known you could be like that.”

“I hated being him again—especially with you. He’s gone for good, Jaylin. I promise.”

“I believed you when you said it last night and I still believe you. This story didn’t change that, it just helped me understand you better.”

“It’s a scary thought to think that if that hadn’t happened I’d have never met you.”

She forced a smile. That was what he thought was scary?

What scared
her
was him one day wishing he’d never laid eyes on her. That one day she’d bump into Aidan on the sidewalk and he’d look at her with nothing but detest in his eyes.

Her heart twisted at the thought. As much as she hated to admit this to herself, she’d never regret meeting Aidan, even if letting him go would be one of the hardest things she’d ever do.

And if a cold reception was her possible future, she needed to grab what time she had left with him and make the most of it.

She hopped up from the chair. “Walk along the beach with me.”

He smiled, not even hesitating to stand. It made her feel awful. He never wavered, knew without a shadow of a doubt they were meant to be together, and a part of her wished she could have the same certainty.

As they started off down the sand, Aidan grasped her hand. The feel of his warm palm against hers tugged at another piece of her. For now, he was hers. The wind whipped a strand of hair that had worked its way out of her pigtails into her face and she tucked it behind her ear, leaning her body closer to Aidan, just absorbing his strength, his presence. It was so easy to do, as if he was supposed to help keep her anchored, help her through the whipping winds of life.