Chapter 12
Aiden walked out of the shower after a busy day at work. As the weather warmed up, Grey Lake was starting to see a few more tourists, so there’d been a steady stream of customers from the second they opened for business. He loved working at the bakery with Iris and Jamie, but he was glad tomorrow was Monday since the bakery was closed on Monday and Tuesday of each week.
He pulled on a clean pair of jeans, a navy-colored Henley, and a pair of trail sneakers. He walked past Jamie’s bedroom and, seeing it empty, headed toward the living room. Jamie, also freshly showered, was wearing a dark gray hoodie, tan cargo pants, and hiking boots. He was sitting in one of Tessa’s well-worn armchairs with his head leaning back and his eyes closed. Shoot, was he sleeping? Aiden had slept really well last night and thought Jamie had, too. He flushed, remembering how he’d woken up with Jamie resting peacefully beside him. It just seemed right. It was as if something clicked into place having him right beside him in bed. He took a step closer, and Jamie’s eyes opened. He smiled brightly at Aiden.
Aiden returned the smile despite still being sore at him for risking his life in the cave. “Did you fall back asleep? Are you ready to head to Piper’s?”
Jamie leaned forward. “No and no. No, I was not sleeping; I was just resting my eyes. And no, I’m not ready to go to Piper’s because the plans have changed,” Jamie said.
Aiden sat down on the end of the sofa closest to where Jamie sat. “Oh yeah, who changed the plans? I need to speak to her.”
“She texted me a little bit ago. She wants us all to meet over at the Jensens’ place. Heath wants to speak to us all,” he said.
Aiden groaned. Heath was a bossy son of a gun, but he took good care of his wolf pack and the town. “Alright, I guess we have to go there then.” He let out a sigh. “When are we expected?”
Jamie winced. “About ten minutes ago.”
Aiden rolled his eyes and then stood up. “Well, we shouldn’t keep the ‘Wolf King’ waiting then, should we?”
Jamie chuckled and stood up. “No, we shouldn’t, but I would like to see his face when you call him the ‘Wolf King.’”
Aiden led the way to the truck. “Knowing Heath, he might like being referred to as a king.”
Jamie laughed.
As Aiden wove the truck through downtown Grey Lake, he asked, “By the way, how’d you sleep last night?”
“Pretty good. No nightmares at least. Why?”
“Well, I think there’s something to sharing a bed because I can’t remember the last time I slept so well.”
“Really?” Jamie asked.
“I think I even had a dream. I can’t remember it exactly, but I woke up in a good mood. I felt more settled.”
“Well, I did notice you weren’t as grumpy at work today as you were yesterday,” Jamie said.
Aiden parked the truck at the very end of the Jensens’ driveway and killed the engine. Jamie unlatched his seatbelt and placed a hand on his door to open it. Aiden grabbed Jamie’s left wrist. “Stop,” Aiden barked.
Aiden unlatched his belt and moved closer to Jamie. He leaned in so his face was inches from Jamie’s. Jamie’s eyes went wide, and Aiden could hear his mate’s heartbeat pick up. Yes, mate – the word seemed right all of a sudden.
“I was grumpy because I was afraid I’d lose you to phoenix fire. I won’t lose you. I can’t lose you. Not again.” He leaned closer so his mouth was just about touching Jamie’s lips.
“What’re you doing?”
“I’m thinking about kissing you,” Aiden murmured.
“I can’t believe I had no idea you felt this way,” Jamie stammered.
Aiden could scent the other man’s arousal, and he immediately hardened. “I’ve only felt this way about you. That’s it. When we were in Rhode Island, I hid it to protect you.”
“Protect me from what?” Jamie asked.
“Aside from the fact that my father is a raging homophobe, I knew that he wouldn’t like me getting distracted. He kept setting me up with these high society women that I had no interest in. I buried my feelings down deep to try to protect you, but he knew. He had to know. That’s got to be why he took you,” Aiden said. “Why he hurt you.”
“You have to stop blaming yourself,” Jamie said. “We can’t move forward with all of your guilt weighing us down.”
Aiden nodded, a tear slipping down his cheek. “I’m trying. I really am.” He wiped the wetness from his face and leaned closer. “Would it be OK if I kissed you?”
“Yes,” Jamie hissed. His eyes were all pupil.
Aiden bit Jamie’s lower lip and then kissed him deeply. Aiden ended the kiss and pulled back much sooner than he wanted. He held back a chuckle at Jamie’s dazed expression. “This will have to be enough for now. We’ve got to get inside, don’t we?”