21. Aiden
AIDEN
Isla froze at his side, but from the sharp intake of breath, he understood exactly what she was thinking.
Fuck.
Davy raised a brow at Isla, then hid a smile and pulled out a key to her own room.
Kyle sauntered toward them, a wide grin on his face, while the rest of the members of the crew went in other directions. “Hey, Aiden, didn’t know you were coming to town. Today was the last day here.”
Aiden cleared his throat, his mind drawing a complete blank on how to respond. At last, he managed, “I had to?—”
Kyle cut him off with a laugh. “Listen, I’m not going to tell anyone. You heading to Quinn and Elle’s tomorrow too?”
Dammit. That would have been a decent excuse. “Yes, I actually came to pick Isla up.”
“I’m sure you did.” Kyle winked. “See you in Nashville.”
Kyle continued past them, his chuckle carrying in the wind. “Did I make that worse?” Aiden asked once Kyle slipped into his room.
Isla shook her head, not meeting his gaze. She hugged his jacket closer around her. “I’m not sure it can get any bloody worse.”
God, he wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her again.
That damn smoke alarm had ruined his foray into a lack of restraint that he’d desperately wanted—needed—with her. And she’d wanted it, too.
Now what were they supposed to do? Crawl into that bed together and act like it hadn’t happened? Pick up where they’d left off?
He felt like an inexperienced adolescent, questioning his every move.
The motel worker stepped back outside, holding the burned hair dryer in his hands. “Sorry about that, and I apologize about the mess. Probably need you to vacate the room, though, so we can get it all cleaned up.”
Isla lifted her brows. “Vacate? But there aren’t any other rooms?—”
“Sorry, ma’am. It’s just a motel policy after something like this. I’ll be back—gotta go get my manager.” The man shuffled off without a glance back.
Isla groaned and gave Aiden a helpless look. “I guess maybe I could ask Davy if I can crash with her. Maybe Kyle would let you sleep in his room?”
Aiden pinched the bridge of his nose. The last thing he wanted was to face Kyle right now. As much as he liked Elle’s younger brother, he was one more person, now, who knew something about him and Isla. This was starting to spiral out of his control.
“How far is Nashville from here?” Aiden asked.
Isla pulled out her mobile and opened Maps. “About seven hours.”
“So that would put us in around—what—six in the morning? If you want to come with me, of course.”
“You’re not seriously thinking of driving all night to Nashville, are you?”
Was he?
They could stop, of course, somewhere along the way. Get a proper hotel with separate rooms.
But the way he was feeling right now, he could see himself knocking on her door, unable to resist that temptation that had been choking him for the past week.
The temptation to fuck his best friend’s sister.
Goddammit.
Maybe that smoke alarm had been a blessing in disguise.
He released a slow breath and met Isla’s gaze.
“I think that might be the best idea, yes. Elle and Quinn will probably be awake. Tara gets up early.” And once they were in Nashville, it would be easier to stay away from Isla.
Quinn might be the only person as close to Callum as Aiden was.
Which meant Quinn was the last person Aiden would want to know about Isla.
The disappointment in Isla’s eyes was clear. Her fingers curled tighter around the lapels of his jacket like she was holding herself back from arguing. From demanding he stop overthinking. Stop ruining this before they even had the chance to begin.
She nodded, then looked away. “If you don’t mind me sleeping in the passenger seat, yeah, I guess that works.” She chewed on her lower lip, looking toward the door Davy had gone into. “I really should talk to Davy, though.”
“I wouldn’t mind a shower before we go. It’s been a long day, and now we’ve got a long drive ahead of us.”
“Why don’t you go ahead back into the room? I’ll go talk to Davy, come back and pack, and then we’ll head out.”
Within thirty minutes, they were in the rental car, pulling out of the inn, the silence between them tense and thick.
“You can put some music on if you’d like,” Aiden said quietly, desperate to lighten the atmosphere. A seven-hour drive would be interminable like this.
Isla picked up her mobile and connected it to the car stereo, then turned on a quiet, mournful song. She set her phone into the side pocket of the door. “Are we going to talk about what happened back there?”
Maybe I should have just let the silence continue.
“What do you want to talk about?”
Isla released a frustrated groan. “I don’t know, Aiden. We were making out, for goodness’ sake. We can’t just ignore the fact that we’re clearly attracted to each other because it’s inconvenient.”
“I think we can,” he said in a flat tone.
“No, we can’t.”
He felt the weight of her glare.
“Yes, we can. To begin with, I’m English. I’d rather ride strapped to the bonnet of this car naked than talk about this sort of thing. You should know this about us, even if you’re some strange, American mutant version of us now.”
His attempt at humor didn’t work. She didn’t even crack a smile.
Then he sighed. “Isla, you know this can’t go anywhere. Callum?—”
“I don’t give a shit about what Callum will think, Aiden.”
“Well, I do. It took him nearly ten years to tell Quinn and me about how Luca stabbed him in the back with his ex. The last thing I want him to think is that he’s been betrayed—in any way—by another close friend.”
“Being with me is not a betrayal. Will he be annoyed? Probably. But why shouldn’t we pursue something if we’re both interested? We’re two consenting adults. And frankly, his opinion doesn’t matter when it comes down to it. I’ve never known you to be a coward, Aiden.”
Oof.
Her words hit him hard.
“Isla, it’s not that simple.”
“It is that simple. Unless there’s another reason like...Lola? Are you still hung up on her? Because if that’s it, then fine. I understand. And I’d rather know that now. I know you had something intense?—”
“ No. ” His tone was hard. Forceful. “God, no. That’s not it at all. I told you. We’re completely, totally through.”
“But she answered your phone the other day. I’m not saying I don’t believe you, but that’s a massive overstep.”
“I left my mobile on the table for a few minutes while I was saying hello to a friend. She saw the call come through and—I don’t know what she said—but I wouldn’t put it past her to try to chase you away after what she witnessed in Vegas.
She was a controlling and jealous girlfriend, Isla. And she suspects that we’re together.”
“Actually, she didn’t say anything,” Isla admitted softly. “She just said you’d stepped away, and she’d give you the message. I filled in the blanks myself since she picked up the call.”
“Which is what she probably wanted.” He sighed, settling deeper into the soft leather of his seat. “Lola doesn’t hold a candle to you, Isla. You’re brilliant and beautiful and...”
She smiled, and his heart squeezed.
“And you’re all I can think about,” he choked out at last.
The soft strains of the song she’d put on filled the quiet space in the car.
Isla reached over and slid her hand onto his, letting the tips of her fingers brush against the sensitive skin between his fingers. Goose bumps rose up his arm.
“Isla—”
“Shhh...”
His eyes shifted toward her, and she held his gaze as she leaned over farther, sliding her hand onto his thigh, her hand tantalizingly close to his groin.
Fuck. He was already hardening at her touch.
“You know,” Isla said, her fingers brushing closer to the inside of his thigh. “Friends aren’t supposed to lust over each other the way I’ve been thinking about you.”
He nearly groaned. This side of her, the wild side, had always been appealing. But now that he knew that side was sexually adventurous, too? Not to mention the delicious taste of her lips and the softness of her skin.
He was a goner.
Then her hand slid onto his cock, the flat of her palm rubbing against him with firm but gentle pressure. A rasp of a breath left his throat. My God. She’s driving me insane.
“Here’s the thing. I’m not going to stop until you admit that you’ve been thinking about me, too. Until you get over that fear of my brother and stop pushing me away because it’s inconvenient.”
He didn’t want to admit it. He wanted to let her carry on and do whatever the hell she had in mind. Wanted to reach over and push those panties to the side, feel how wet she was. Maybe that was why she’d done it this way.
She leaned closer, fingers gently tugging his zipper, dangerously close to the hardness of his length.
His breath hitched. Christ.
“This is a dangerous game, Isla,” he growled, his grip tightening on the wheel.
She just smiled, that wicked little smile that made his blood heat. “Then admit it.”
He exhaled, staring at the road, his hands clenching on the wheel. A muscle ticked in his jaw. He wanted to resist. He wanted to stop this before it went too far.
But fuck, she felt good against him.
He should be fighting it. Fighting her.
And then he lost.
“What do you want me to admit? That I want to pull this car over, bend you over the bonnet, and fuck you until we’re both senseless?
” His rough voice was thick with need. “Fine. I admit it. I want you, Isla. If that smoke alarm hadn’t stopped us, I wouldn’t have wanted to stop.
But, maybe, thank God it did. Destroying my friendship with Callum worries me, and I don’t know how to navigate these new, unchartered waters with you. ”
He snuck a glance at her, taking his eyes off the road in time to see her grin, apparently satisfied.
Tricky little vixen.
“I’m going to have blue balls tomorrow, you know.”