Chapter Three
"GOOD...MORNING?" WHAT starts out as a cheerful greeting ends in an understandable note of concern, and I hastily muster up a smile when Bettina's gaze grows increasingly anxious as she watches me descend the last steps of the B&B's spiral staircase.
I can't blame her, really. I had hoped a long, relaxing shower would repair some of last night's damage, but my reflection on the mirror says otherwise.
Wyoming Keanu kept me up all night, and it totally shows. Think dark shadows under slightly puffy eyes, and a faintly red spot on the edge of my forehead that may or may not be the birth of a dreaded pimple. Honestly, I can't even remember the last time I've had acne problems. Maybe seven years ago? Or eight? Point is, that's how much he troubles me, and it's just...not...right!
I'm supposed to know better, but instead of making myself forget him I ended up doing the opposite, just tossing and turning in my bed while memories of our last moments together play endlessly in my mind.
When I showed him my ring last night, a part of me was expecting him to do either of two things: blow me off...or blow up in rage.
But instead he had said rather simply, "I'll see you tomorrow."
And that was it.
Four words that could've meant nothing or everything, and even though hours had already passed since I watched him drive away, those words still have me emotionally paralyzed.
I'm sure he knows what my ring means.
So why say those words?
I just don't get it. I just don't get him. And while I know I should simply leave it at that and get on with my life...
"Good morning, Bettina." I beam widely at the younger girl as soon as I reach the reception desk, and Bettina's worried expression turns into one of relief.
"I hope you had a pleasant sleep, Ms. Edison."
"I did, absolutely," I have no qualms about lying. "And I'm sorry again for checking in so late—-"
Bettina quickly shakes her head. "We always welcome guests," she says firmly, "no matter what."
"That's so sweet of you." I take a deep breath after this, knowing that the time has come to find a way to steer the conversation towards...
"I'm just glad Chief Blackwood found you the way he did last night."
That.
"You must've been awful frightened," Bettina says earnestly, "when you were stuck in the snow like that—-"
"I was terrified," I hear myself admit.
"Even though it was just a snowstorm."
"Uh..." What is it with these people about snowstorms and blizzards? Weren't they the same freaking thing?
"Chief Blackwood actually called earlier," Bettina goes on to say. "He wanted to make sure you're okay."
It's the cue I've been waiting for, and I clear my throat, saying, "Well, about that..."
Don't do it, Raffi.
It's the last bit of rationality I have remaining inside of me, and it's on its knees, begging me to reconsider even though I've yet to say anything definitive.
Don't. Do. It.
Just begging me not to be stupid and reminding me that I still have a chance to turn my back on temptation and hold on to my sanity.
One last chance. ..
But instead I hear myself say, "I was hoping to thank Wy—-I mean, Chief Blackwood in person for his help last night, so..."
Last chance, Raffi!
"Do you think you could give me directions to the police station?"
REDWOOD CAFE, Bettina told me earlier, was my best bet at finding the chief. It's part of his morning routine apparently, and since the place is a ten-minute walk from here, I take my phone out, intending to do some work except...
Riiiight .
I keep forgetting the whole of Hartland is just one giant dead spot, and I can only shake my head while tapping the Messages app. No point checking my emails, but maybe there are texts I can answer, and sure enough there's one unread message waiting for me...which happens to be from Jack.
You don't belong there . Your life is here. With me.
Jack and I have been going out for over two years now, and from the very start, he's been the one and only thing I want in a guy: someone I can trust not to dump me for the next pretty little thing that comes his way. I know I'm lucky to have someone like him, but... whoa.
My steps crash to a halt. I've finally reached Redwood Cafe, and the first thing I see through its windows is Wyoming Keanu—-
I mean, Aidan.
I really should start thinking of him as Aidan now, especially since there seems to be... another Aidan?
The third guy in their table notices me staring, and seeing him tap Aidan on the shoulder snaps me out of my shock. I look away quickly, but my mind goes blank just as I spin around and prepare to leave. Where exactly do I go from here—-
"Serafina?"
My senses come wildly alive at the deep sound of his voice, and my stomach flips over as Aidan comes into my view a moment later. He's dressed in his uniform this time, and holy cowabunga, but he looks seriously hot in it. I've never been the type to dig men in uniform, but Aidan is definitely making me want to get arrested. Power and authority totally suits him, and...the glint in Chief Blackwood's eyes tells me he totally knows it.
I wrinkle my nose at him, knowing there's no point denying the undeniable. "I'm sorry for staring."
"Stare as long as you like, baby."
What did he just call me?
"You know I'm all yours."
My heart trips, and even though he's making me want to throw myself at him, I control myself and glower at Aidan instead. "Not funny."
But he only smiles at this and instead adds, "When my brother told me there was a girl outside the cafe staring at me—-"
Wonderful . Just absolutely wonderful .
"I was hoping it would be you."
"You mean, you knew it would be me."
He simply smiles at this, and it's finally dawning on me that this is Aidan's way of politely disregarding what he doesn't care to respond to.
Aidan suddenly steps towards me, and I have to fight against the urge to step back.
"You look like you've had a bad night," Aidan comments.
"You look great, too, thanks," I say sarcastically.
"Did thoughts of me keep you from sleeping?"
I sputter in shock, and his dark gaze gleams. "Happy to have kept you company."
Oh, for heaven's sake .
Since I'm totally unwilling to touch that even with a ten-foot pole, it's my turn to change the subject, and I ask Aidan about my car.
"It's already at the repair shop. You should have it back in a day or two."
I'm a little stunned. "That long?" I seem to recall him saying that snow tires were my only problem, but maybe something else was wrong with my rental. "Do I need to contact its owner?"
"The shop will handle it," Aidan assures me. "There's nothing for you to worry about."
"But—-"
" But if you need a ride in the meantime..."
I manage to pretend I'm irritated, but inside I'm just flailing like a headless chicken at the all-too-sexy sight of his smirk. "Thanks, but no—-"
Aidan gestures to the cafe, asking, "Would you like to join me and my brothers?"
I can't help glancing back at the cafe, and I'm startled to find said brothers watching us with interest. "Um—-"
"Come on."
Aidan reaches for my hand as he speaks, and my heart skips a beat as he twines his fingers with mine.
I know, God. I know.
What I'm doing isn't right, and the day will come when I'll pay for it. But when Aidan starts leading me inside the cafe, I still find myself walking meekly by his side.
The interior of Redwood Cafe is a picturesque mix of cozy and industrial, with its rustic brick walls and polished concrete flooring. There are also wreaths on every table in honor of the holidays as well as glittery gold and red snowflakes hanging from the ceiling.
Aidan's brothers swiftly come to their feet as we approach their table, and I'm struck once again by how closely they resemble each other.
"It's Serafina, isn't it?" The guy who spotted me earlier flashes a lazy grin. He's boyishly good-looking and just so irrepressibly charming I can't help grinning back. "I'm Ethan, the youngest Blackwood brother."
"And the most troublesome," the other Aidan drawls. His hair is slightly longish, and he's also sporting a five o'clock shadow that makes him look like he's primed to beat up punks at a moment's notice. Definitely a far cry from Aidan's air of chivalry, but the difference is immaterial. It's still quite obvious that—-
"Thornton's my twin," Aidan slots in, and I just can't help it.
I let out a stunned gasp as I exclaim rather dramatically, "For real?"
I only meant it as a private joke between us, but when the entire cafe actually falls silent, I immediately freeze up.
Uh oh.
But then another second passes, and everyone actually starts snickering, his brothers outright laugh, and surprisingly enough, even Aidan is grinning, and that is so...not...good!
A guy with a terrific sense of humor is one of my major weaknesses, and oh dear God, a little help here, please? The more time I spend with Aidan, the more closely he resembles the type of guy I used to dream of marrying, and that was so not a good thing. At all!
"Serafina's joining us for brunch." Aidan's words draw me out of my thoughts, and the next thing I know I'm already being seated between the twins while Ethan hands me a menu.
"Thank you," I say uncertainly. "But are you guys sure I'm not interrupting anything—-"
"Nothing as important as you," the youngest Blackwood says solemnly. "We've never had our big brother introduce a girl to us—-"
"Not true," Thornton surprises me by interrupting in a soft, gruff voice. "Remember Darcy from high school?"
"She doesn't count," Ethan dismisses. "We already knew her even before Aidan brought her home."
Brought who home?
I turn to Aidan, and he says right away, "Ignore them. You're the only girl for me from now on."
His brothers choke...and so do I...along with everyone else in the cafe.
Oh my God.
A helpless laugh escapes me when I realize practically the entire town's been eavesdropping on our conversation. "This is so crazy."
"That's why I told you to ignore them," Aidan says sensibly.
"Am I really the first girl you've introduced to your brothers?"
"You can also be the last if you like," Aidan offers.
I glare at him. "Will you please stop—-"
Hearing this, Ethan looks at me in feigned shock. "Don't say you don't like our big brother?"
"It's not that—-"
"How can you not like Aidan?" Thornton questions. "That would mean not liking me as well, and my wife tells me every day I'm perfect."
Thornton's grave tone has me torn between laughing and crying. I might be wrong about this, but I've a feeling it's uncommon for Aidan's twin to even notice a near-stranger like me. He's just so self-contained that I actually feel honored he's even making a decided effort to back Ethan up in teasing me.
Really honored and yet...
"I'm engaged."
I end up mumbling the words under my breath, but the way the entire cafe abruptly falls into silence tells me everyone's heard it all the same. The usual additional second passes, and then the noise levels pick back up with a vengeance. It's as if everyone's determined to give us a semblance of privacy, and I find their response cute, funny, and painfully sweet all at the same time.
"Well..." Ethan's drawl has all of us in the table glancing up. "That was awkward."
It's exactly what we all needed to hear, and the words effectively break the tense silence between us as Thornton grimaces, Aidan rolls his eyes, and I choke back a laugh.
"I'm sorry for putting you on the spot."
The gentleness in Thornton's tone catches me off guard, and I'm secretly mortified at the way it suddenly makes my eyes sting. "It's not your fault at all. It's my fault for not making things clear—-"
"There wasn't anything for you to clear up." Aidan's tone is firm. "Engagements get broken all the time—-"
I can only sputter and choke while Aidan's brothers actually exchange contemplative looks, like they're already thinking up ways to make that happen.
"I gotta say though..." Thornton gives his twin a thoughtful look. "I did not see this coming at all."
"True," Ethan agrees. "Great Saint Aidan, falling off his pedestal because of a girl."
"I never asked to be on one," Aidan retorts, "so it's no big loss."
Even though we talk of other things after that, Ethan's last words continue to bother me, and it's only when his brothers have left that I find the courage to look at Aidan—-
"You're wrong."
"I haven't said anything yet," I protest.
"You don't have to," he says mildly. "I know exactly what you're thinking."
He does?
"Those beautiful gray eyes of yours show your every thought."
Did he...did he just say my eyes are gray?
It's so rare for a guy to notice that about me, and even rarer for a guy like him...no, actually, it's the first time for a near-perfect man like Aidan Blackwood to notice the color of my eyes, and for him to also think they're beautiful—-
"You're looking rather smitten all of a sudden."
Aidan's unusually sly tone sends me crashing back to reality, and the way his lips curve ever so slowly into a smirk only makes things worse.
"You're getting an awfully huge kick out of this," I say accusingly.
Aidan's smirk turns into a smile, and by now I already know what this means. He's going to change the subject again—-
"Please don't let my brothers concern you."
And I'm right...unfortunately.
"Your brothers ," I say gloomily, "probably think I'm a huge tease."
"They don't."
"Yes they do—-"
"No they don't—-"
"And you're sure of this because?"
"Because they know me."
I stare at him blankly. "And?"
"And I always get what I want," he answers simply.
Yeargh.
I normally hate cockiness in a guy, but when it's Aidan doing it...
"You're blushing."
"Am! Not!" I even end up growling the words out in my frustration, but this only seems to amuse him, and I feel even more helpless. "Please stop doing this—-"
"Why should I? We both know—-"
I shake my head vehemently at this. "No, we actually don't. We barely know each other while Jack—-"
"—-was with another woman last night."