2020, July 22nd
(Location Undisclosed)
AIDEN
I pulled her to a halt and put my hands on her arms. How did I fix this for her? There were no easy answers. I wasn't afraid, but that hardly mattered because she was. That was the only reason I didn't shut Nathan down the moment he showed up.
"I'm with you. If you want to go and look for Kate, I'll help you look. When it's over, I'll be your getaway driver, just like last time. I'll surround us with an army if that's what you want. If you want to just disappear again, I'll take you anywhere you want to go. I'll hide out anywhere you want, for as long as you want. The only thing I can't give you is leaving you behind," I declared, seeking to comfort her.
KEIRA
Well shit, what was I supposed to say to that? First the engagement ring, now this stupid speech on the sidewalk of a street I didn't even know the name of. Things were moving really fast.
I recalled the day I found Ethan's body. The memory of him lying there, a bullet in his head, was burned into my brain. I couldn't do that again. Not with Aiden.
What wouldn't I do to save him? Was I about to give up every bit of my soul that being with him got back for her by reentering life as a Dormer, as an assassin? Did that mean giving him up too?
We walked back to our suite in silence and promptly switched hotels at my insistence.
"Tell me about Jane and John," I said, sitting down on the bed of the new hotel room with my hands folded in my lap.
"What's there to tell? You already know the broad strokes. Arranged marriage to appease our fathers and stop civil war from breaking out in Caspira. I loved her. She loved…" here the silver tongued Condron trailed off.
This was unexpected. I didn't know where I was going with this. Only that my shit kept hitting the fan. Maybe I was looking to make him as vulnerable as I felt. Nothing seemed to faze him. It pissed me off.
"She loved what?" I probed, finding that I was curious after all.
What he said mattered to me. I knew how things went down. It was a Dormer's to know everyone else's. That wasn't what I wanted to know.
Where are the chinks in your armor? You keep finding mine.
"The man I presented her with. I couldn't tell her about Elena or thinking John was dead for five years. She didn't even know John was my half brother for most of our engagement. Eventually she figured out I was hiding things from her," he said with a small sigh.
"So the answer was making out with Elena on the night of your engagement?" I asked with a grimace.
He offered me a small smile. I wasn't judging. I was looking to understand. Somehow he knew that and decided to forge on.
"I thought she'd chicken out. Refuse to marry me. There was all this pressure to get married so I could be crown prince. Everything back then was about being crown prince. I just snapped. Elena was there. Jane wasn't," he said with a shrug. "The rest you know. John married Jane when he found out about me kissing Elena. Mary felt my crown wasn't secure, so she tried to go to war with John. I did everything I could to stop it. Even letting my father lock my mother up and throw away the key. I just couldn't lose my brother a second time."
"The same brother I almost killed. I'm sorry. I know this doesn't mean much, but it wasn't personal. I did what needed to be done to get to Dean. I was a different person back then, Aiden. You're right. I'm better with you," I said, genuinely remorse coursing through me.
He took my hand in his, gave it a little squeeze and said, "I know. You're not my brother's would be assassin anymore, Killshot. You're my…" He hesitated, eyes drowning in anguish.
Would he say girlfriend, despite me saying I wasn't his?
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought up painful memories just to—" I rambled, clinging to his hand, terrified he'd decide to let go after all.
"You make me feel normal," he said, handing me the flowers he got me earlier that day.
Had he been holding onto them this whole time?
"Want to talk about Avory and Ethan, too?" he asked in a small voice.
"Why?" I asked, instantly defensive.
Talking about the Moores couldn't but upset me. Avory Moore, his former fiancée. Did he still think of her? Or was the woman on his mind her cousin, Elena Moore? Then there was the topic of Ethan. Every time Aiden said his name, rage consumed me.
"Not all of us can lay it all on the line like the past doesn't matter, Aiden," I said softly when my response made him sigh.
"When I'm with you, it doesn't. I'm not in pain anymore, Keira. I'm letting go, bit by bit, because of you. I'm healing. Heal with me," he implored.
I wanted to slam him with a scathing retort. To push him away. He couldn't heal at a fucking assassin's side. The expectation in eyes mirrored what was blooming in my bosom. Just couldn't do it. Wouldn't let go.
Instead I threw my arms around his neck and kissed him. My mouth was wanton, urgent. The need to connect was humbling. That pesky, insatiable hunger for him took over. Rushed movements as I undressed him and then myself.
He just sat there and watched me do it.
"No more talking. Whatever needs to be decided, we'll do it tomorrow. Together," I said, my voice sounding like a stranger's as I threw caution to the wind.
Whispers of fantasies of us and what we could become made their way into my heart. By lowering his walls, he made me feels perhaps the most dangerous thing anyone ever had. Safe. He gave more than he took. So why did this man terrify me so?
"Tomorrow then. Together," he echoed, eyes sparkling with contentment. Hope. Peace.
When our lips met again, the kiss was delicate and tender, just the way he knew I secretly liked it. He lowered me down onto my back, his naked form towering over mine.
Heal with me.
The words went round and round in my head on a loop as he slid into me.
"I must be a really good fuck," I muttered, giving him a reproachful look as we both sighed, relief and pleasure collating in my core while he filled me with dick.
"You're the best I've ever had," he said, laying his lips on mine one more time as he withdrew to start thrusting.
Something wet slid down my cheek. A lump formed in my throat as we stared at each other. The hunger I felt for him was wrapped in unbearable need. He kissed the tear away.
I knew I could only offer him hardship, but he brought out a naivete in me. Vulnerable but safe. Naked but protected. I wanted to be taken care of.
Heal with me, Aiden.