Chapter 10
ten
AIDAN
What the hell was I thinking back there?
Flirting.
The word leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
I’m no lovesick kid, but the way she smiles at me, like there’s something worth seeing beneath the surface, disarms me.
And her voice, so soft and calm while she looked at my daughter with the same adoration I do?
Damn it, she’s practically angelic. All innocence and dark hair that I know would feel smooth as silk between my fingers.
The way I could ruin her, leave her trembling, undone… fuck.
It’s been too damn long, and my mind is spiraling.
Attraction like this is a dangerous game for someone like me.
It’s been four years since I’ve been with anyone.
Four years of cold showers and falling asleep to the company of my own right hand.
Now my mind’s conjuring images I have no business entertaining—Lucy beneath me, her hair splayed across my pillow, those innocent eyes clouding with pleasure as I—
“Do you think she’ll make some extra scones for us?” Isla pipes up from the backseat, cutting through my inappropriate thoughts like a bucket of ice water.
Thank Christ.
“Maybe.”
Or maybe I’ll just steer clear of the café altogether and save myself the trouble.
Mum can take her instead. I don’t need to get tangled up in anything, and I’ve got more than enough on my plate between the long weeks offshore and raising Isla.
It’s predictable. Controlled. Safe. Just the way I like it.
But the image of Lucy’s smile lighting up her face like a damn sunrise won’t leave my thoughts.
The way her cheeks flushed under my gaze, like she was unsure how to handle my attention but didn’t mind having it at all.
It made me want to…smile? Say something that could keep her talking just a bit longer?
Ridiculous.
I rub my hand over my face, scowling at the notion. I can’t let her sweetness get under my skin. It’s like stepping too close to a fire just to feel its heat. She could burn me down without even trying. My life, my focus, my very self, all at risk of being consumed.
And yet, every fiber of my being wants to step closer, anyway.