Chapter 26 Annalise
Chapter twenty-six
Annalise
We get ready in quiet peace after, whatever that just was.
I dress casually for the store, knowing we’ll have time to come back and change before we leave for Tara’s.
I wish I could say that I don’t know what came over me, but walking in and seeing him stroking himself, saying my name, was more than I could take.
I don’t even have a thing for voyeurism, but in that moment, I could have had an orgasm from watching him alone.
But then I needed to taste him, hear him, unravel him.
“So, I was thinking we should get Tara a nice bottle of wine or a bouquet; what do you think?” I break the silence; we are here for work after all.
“I feel like she has plenty of wine,” he says, “but a big bouquet would be nice. I was thinking of maybe picking up a few cigars, too. Maybe get Greg smoking outside to loosen him up.”
“That’s perfect, actually. I was trying to think of a good distraction so one of us could sneak off and snoop around.”
“Smart,” he replies.
Something in his tone shifts, subtle, but I notice. “Something on your mind?”
“Running through the plan is all,” he answers, a little too quickly. “We’ll have to make some answers up on the fly, so I’m sure the name of the game today will be ‘just go with it.’ You handle Tara, and I’ll work on Greg.”
“Anything you say, Mr. Carter,” I tease as I walk past him to get my shoes.
I really should take acting classes from Aiden.
The way he has slipped into the role of loving newlywed is beyond impressive.
He’s opened every door for me, held my hand through the store as he carried a basket in the other, and even actively helped me pick out the perfect bouquet for Tara.
He refuses to let me carry any of the grocery bags, and only because I won’t relent does he allow me to hold the flowers.
Once he shuts my car door and climbs in on his side, I can’t help but ask, “Is this how you are in real life when you date?”
“What do you mean? Which part?”
“Opening all the doors, the protective hand on my back, even when there’s nothing to protect me from…”
He shrugs, “I don’t know, actually. I haven’t dated much.”
Of course, he’s the noncommittal type.
“How about you?” he asks in response.
“What about me? What do I do?”
“I don’t know, you always seem like you have a fortress built around you at Scion, nothing phases you. But here, you’re—softer.”
I scoff.
Maybe my acting isn’t too terrible if he thinks all the aftermath of Lucas and his stunts hasn’t affected me. And soft is not a word that has ever been used to describe me, even by Matt, who sees the weakest parts of me.
“You are, not in a bad way, but I can’t tell which side is the real you and which is the act.”
I feel too exposed. The truth is, I know which version of me I want to be real, but I’m not the girl a guy picks for forever, and if I become a Ghost Walker, forever won’t exist anyway.
I shouldn’t care what he thinks. I shouldn’t want to explain myself, but I still do. “I’m not really sure either,” I finally admit.
The silence that follows makes my chest feel tight, so I do what I do best: avoid.
“Hey, when we get home, I mean, back to the house, I need to change into my dress and heels, and probably fix my makeup. I promise it won’t take long, though.”
Reaching over, he smiles at me and tucks a strand of hair behind my ear that’s blowing in the wind, and I lean into it until he opens his mouth. “No offense, but you might want to check your hair, too. The wind messed it up a bit.” He’s gentle, but funny.
He greatly downplayed the disaster that was my hair. Once I’m changed and my makeup and hair don’t look like I’ve survived a small tornado, I walk out into the bedroom to find Aiden sitting on the edge of the bed, waiting patiently.
“Ready to go?" I ask, like he hasn’t been waiting on me the whole time.
“Yeah,” he says, a ghost of a smile curving his mouth, “but I think you’re forgetting something, Mrs. Carter.”
“And what’s that?”
“Come here.”
He spreads his legs slightly, motioning me closer. When I step between them, he takes my hand, rubbing his thumb across the top before sliding my wedding ring back onto my finger.
“You look perfect,” he murmurs, as he unabashedly checks me out.
I glance down at his casual button-up shirt and golf shorts, paired with a watch that probably costs more than I’ve made in my busiest month of work.
“You look pretty good yourself,” I reply.
“I was thinking about a few things for today…” His expression shifts to something more serious.
“We know there’s a chance other people from Scion could be there to try to sabotage us, so I think it’s fair to assume they’ll do something to throw us off our game.
We’ve already gone over basic stuff, but I need to know, are there any hard boundaries you don’t want me to cross? ”
My mind jumps to all of the actual hard boundaries I have that could send me into a dark place.
“Obviously, we’re not having sex at brunch or anything, but are you ok with more PDA? I need to know if there’s a line for you.”
I laugh, shaking my head. “We’re newlyweds, Ace. I think PDA is basically part of the deal.”
He raises an eyebrow, a playful glint in his eyes. “Right. Maybe we should practice?”
I smirk, crossing my arms. “Practice kissing? We’re a little past that, don’t you think?”
“Ha. Ha. Very funny, but no. We’ve kissed in the moment, and in private, but we need to be able to casually kiss in public like it’s as normal as breathing, like we’ve been doing it for years. And preferably without you flinching when I reach for you like you sometimes do.”
My breath catches. I flinch?
Fuck, I hadn’t even realized I did that.
“Oh,” I mutter, feeling heat rise to my cheeks. “That’s a good idea. Maybe we should record it, so we can see if it looks natural? And you should get off the bed.”
He chuckles, “Worried you’ll be too tempted, Sweetheart?”
“Shut up and start recording. We have a house to search.”