47. Jude
After hours of “team bonding” activities, we finally had a free evening.
Cruz and Bryce were at the dining room table, having a rematch for the game of chess they played on the plane.
Quentin sat in the living room, reading a book from one of the shelves, and Aaric was out snowshoeing the property before it got too dark.
Simon was upstairs resting, which meant Aleyna was alone.
I showered in my bedroom, putting on cologne, sweats that slung low on my hips, and a shirt that showed my toned arms. Then I padded down the hallway and up the stairs toward the upper level where Aleyna and Simon were staying.
Passing by one room, I heard Simon snoring deeply.
The door to the next room was open. Aleyna lay in bed, a silk bonnet over her hair, and a mask painting her face in red light.
Blankets and pillows were tucked around her in a nest while a movie played on the TV. Something violent from the sound of it.
I knocked softly on the doorframe and leaned against it, waiting for her response.
She looked over at me, then quickly tugged off her mask and bonnet. “Jude... I wasn’t expecting you.”
Without the mask, her face was bare, and I realized it was the first time I’d seen her without makeup. Without the glamour and designer clothes, she looked smaller somehow.
“Care for some company?” I asked with a charming smile.
She shrugged and scooted over, patting the bed beside her. I slid in next to her, getting close enough to feel her warmth without touching her. “What show is this?” I asked, nodding toward the TV.
“Alien Invaders,” she said. “Don’t tell anyone I watch this.”
“Why wouldn’t you want me to?” I deadpanned, just as a green guy’s head exploded in a fountain of blue goo. I chuckled, and she shoved my shoulder.
“I’m sure you watch terrible TV sometimes too,” she said.
I shook my head, looking at the screen. “I get too bored.”
“Bored?” she asked just as another guy exploded. “You’ve clearly never watched this show. See, that guy who just blew up had come to Earth with a mission to seduce the president’s daughter, but he didn’t know that the chief secret service agent was actually in love with her daughter all along.”
My lips pressed together as I stifled another laugh.
“Oh shush and watch.”
I nodded, keeping my face forward. In my periphery, I caught her glancing at me. Once, then twice.
The third time, I slid my hand under the covers and brushed my pinky over her thigh.
Her breath hitched, and she stilled. I stayed still too. “Tell me about the secret service guy. What’s his deal?”
She seemed to relax a bit. “So he’s been best friends with the president since they were in high school, but the secret service guy has friends on the other side who believe the aliens should be free to live on Earth and have seats in government without sharing their technology advancements.”
“Ah, so he’s a bad guy?”
She shrugged and looked at me a little too long. “Only time will tell.”
I bit my bottom lip. “You like him, don’t you?”
Her cheeks heated. “Who doesn’t love Walsh? He’s a very talented actor.”
“No, the character. You like them a little bad, don’t you?” My voice grew softer, rougher on the last few words, and my finger trailed higher up her bare thigh to play with the lacy trim of her skimpy sleep shorts.
“Jude, we can’t. My dad’s in the other room,” she whispered. “Everyone’s right downstairs.” But the blanket had fallen down her chest just enough for me to see her nipples peaking under her pink satin tank top.
“We can be quiet,” I promised, bringing my lips closer to her ear. Kissing her neck just underneath.
She let out a harsh breath. “I can, but what about you?”
My lips curled into a salacious smile before I nipped at the skin of her neck, making her whimper.
“Quiet,” I growled. “We both know this is why you came here.”
“Why I came here?” she asked, chest arching.
I kissed down to her collarbone. “So you and I can revisit what happened in LA.”
She stilled. “I didn’t come here for this. I came to help my dad.”
“You don’t have to keep up the good daughter act around me,” I said, kissing just above her top.
But she pushed me back, her eyes narrowed and a frown tugged at her lips. “Stop. I didn’t come here to sleep with you.”
My gaze hardened. “Then why are you here, Aleyna? What are you doing?”
She got up from her bed and pointed at the door. “I think you should go.”
Disappointment sliced through me, mingled with relief. I wanted to know what Aleyna was up to, but if I was being honest... my heart just wasn’t in it. Not anymore.