Chapter 21
CHAPTER
TWENTY-ONE
ARI
Aiden’s dick fills the screen of my phone.
Yelping, I darken the screen and look around to make sure no one can see, wanting to take my fill of it without it being too obvious.
Waiting outside, tucked up against the corner of the arena, should give me enough privacy.
Thank fuck Tony decided that it wasn’t important for him to come to the game since Gage would be in the vicinity.
He claimed some “urgent meeting” but really I think he just wanted an excuse to kneel at Anthony’s feet.
I know I theoretically shouldn’t be alone but fucking gag me with some of this overprotective behavior. I know how to take care of myself. Plus, Gage and Aiden will be out soon enough. For fuck’s sake, I am not an invalid.
The deep V of his torso is highlighted in the image; his cut stomach—still a little sweaty from the game—makes my mouth water.
The thick veins of his cock are easily visible, and I imagine kneeling in front of him, taking my time to lick each one up to the tip, tasting the precum that drips out from his cock.
My thighs clench together as I feel the need start to build between them. An emptiness that I’m finding only Aiden can fill. Tucking my phone back into my purse, I lean against the brick and shut my eyes.
I try to envision Brodie. He is still clear in my mind with his curly blond locks that frame his face and the devious smirk just begging for trouble.
His tall frame would wrap around my body perfectly.
Brodie would hold me close and rest his chin on my head when we were alone.
Just breathing me in. If I concentrate hard enough, I can almost smell his woodsy cologne.
But it’s not really just him I imagine anymore. Because if I’m honest with myself, there’s someone at my back, wrapping their arms around both of us. Aiden doesn’t feel like something extra.
He feels like a missing piece that has been found.
A completion of us.
My heart cracks at the thought because it will never come to fruition. At this point, we will always be a pair. With an empty space next to us. His memory is still so fresh, and thinking of him tears at me like a stab wound that never heals over.
Forgetting him completely, though, would hurt more. It would be sudden death.
And I don’t think I would survive that.
But we can keep his memory alive. Aiden doesn’t seem to mind that Brodie is still with us in some small way.
Even in the bedroom, when I call out his name.
Sort of makes me wonder what went on between them that I don’t know about, but that’s not what is important now.
Aiden seems to enjoy the memory of Brodie.
And maybe that will be enough for us. We can bond over our connection with him. Our mutual history and desire for him.
Maybe most people wouldn’t understand that, having a dead person as such a vital part of a relationship.
And maybe other people would make comments if they knew about it.
Judgments about something they can’t understand or don’t want to.
But that’s the thing: as long as it’s not in their bedroom, directly affecting them, then it’s no one’s goddamn business.
Too many people try to police what is going on in someone else’s private life.
Deriving satisfaction from other people’s shame.
But to hell with those miserable cunts. Learn to embrace your darkest desires and revel in that.
Brodie was our person, each in a different way, but ours, nonetheless. And if Aiden’s soul matches mine, a fractured, irreparable piece, then maybe together we could mend them and create something that’s just for us. Twisted and fucked up as it may be.
Boots stomping on the ground break the peace around me, the thumps increasing in tempo the closer they get.
Someone running from the arena toward me, if the increasing loudness is anything to go by.
Lifting my eyes, I barely have a moment to register what I am looking at before the man, now in front of me, has his hands around my neck.
Who is this guy? I kick my legs wildly as he lifts me off the ground like I weigh nothing.
I try to scream, but he only increases his hold around my neck to cut off my sound.
Without the ability to make a scene, I spit in his face.
I need to act fast. I only have precious seconds before this could go really sideways.
The man’s face is pouring with sweat, and his eyes harden as he reaches into his back pocket, bringing up a black piece of fabric.
This man is planning on putting a hood over my face, blinding me.
He is going to kidnap me.
My hands around his wrist scratch violently, deep enough to cause bleeding. If I can get away from this shitstain, at least I will have some DNA for Ashton. I have to get out of this and find Aiden. Whoever this person is, I cannot let him take me to whoever he is working for.
Black spots start to cloud my vision as I struggle for air.
Do not pass out.
Placing one foot on the wall, I pretend to use it for leverage while still kicking this man with my other foot. With one arm, I reach down and finger the edge of my shoe, hoping I can reach the knife I have stored in the heel.
Breathing through my nose, I fill my lungs, making sure I don’t pass out as the man squeezes harder and tries to incapacitate me.
Get to Aiden. Get to Aiden. If I could just reach a little farther…
Focusing on the task at hand, I stop kicking, and the man gets a smile on his face as if he has somehow won this round.
Like he is going to get away with me. But I use my newfound stillness to take advantage of him slackening his hold to reach my hand further into my shoe.
Gripping the edge of the handle, I take one last gulp of air and move quickly.
With precision Aiden would be proud of, I stab the man in the neck.
He looks momentarily stunned, his pupils dilating as he releases me and covers the knife with his hand, blood beginning to spurt out like a faucet.
Taking a chance while I have one, I give him one final kick, this time aiming for his knee. He’s on the ground in seconds, and I run.
What the hell.
The Order has a lot of enemies who would want to kidnap me or even get rid of me completely, which is why Gage taught me self-defense.
Given the recent power struggle, I can imagine I am a highly valued target.
Running must look like a sight to the few people still lingering around the arena.
My hair is messy, I’m sweaty, and the closer I get to the main doors, the more erratic I become.
Tripping over the doorstop has me brought to my knees—hard.
That will for sure bruise by tomorrow. When I get up again, I can’t put weight on my ankle without my body wanting to give out.
But I don’t have time to stop. I have to keep going in case the man has a team working with him.
The closer I get to the locker room, the louder my screams for Aiden seem to become as I limp-run down the halls.
People give me a wide berth, probably assuming I am crazy.
As I near the doors, Aiden bursts out, having clearly heard me screaming through the halls, a wild look on his face.
Only half-clothed, with just shorts and shoes, he crushes me against him.
Gage follows closely behind him, gun drawn.
“What happened?” His tone is crisp and deadly. Lifting my hands, he eyes the blood under my fingernails. Gasping, I reassure him, “It’s not mine, it’s not mine.”
Aiden gives a brief nod to Gage, signaling him to leave and find out what just happened.
Trying to catch my breath, I manage to get out, “Around the corner, visitor’s entrance.” With that little information, he turns and takes off.
My body is shaking, and I increase my hold on Aiden to ground myself. Aiden, for his part, doesn’t say anything. I know he’ll ask me what happened, but right now, with Gage already on the hunt, he is giving me a minute to calm down.
Slowly, I start coming back to myself as my adrenaline begins to crash.
Tears well up in my eyes knowing that I am in Aiden’s arms, relief assaulting all my senses.
I notice Aiden’s hand playing with my hair, his other softly rubbing my back.
Soft murmurs of ‘it’s okay’ and ‘you’re safe now’ are said against my ear.
Burying myself in his embrace, I realize that I do feel safe in his arms. Something I haven’t really felt since Brodie died.
Peace and contentment fill me despite the tense situation around me.
With a soft kiss to my head, Aiden releases me and puts a little distance between us so that he can study my face. Seeing what I am sure is a mess of wild hair, blotchy skin, and tear streaks.
Aiden leans down and plants a soft kiss on my lips. Without words, he says exactly what I am feeling. We can find a softness in each other while the cold, hard world tries to break us.
The sound of boots running causes me to tense up again. Aiden turns me around and encircles me from behind, resting his head on mine. Gage appears around the corner holding my knife. He eyes the two of us and shakes his head. The man got away and left the knife as the only evidence.
“Don’t worry, little venom. I will take care of this.” Sinking back into his hold, I embrace the rush of calm that fills me with his words. Because if I know anything, Aiden won’t let anyone take what is his.