CHAPTER 6
AIDEN
Four days. It’s been four days since I left a note on Greylin’s windshield the day after our date. I doubt anyone else noticed it or took it. I’d be surprised if she didn’t get it.
It’s not like it was a sonnet or anything, but it was honest. I told her how much fun I had with her and how I wanted to do it again, without any bargaining beforehand. What I made sure to include was my phone number.
Because I wasn’t bright enough to get her number before she slipped away that night.
I swear I can still feel the tingle on my cheek from her lips.
She has no idea how close she came to being manhandled and kissed until we were both gasping for air. The look in her eyes told me she wanted me to do it. But she also wasn’t sure. And that hesitation is what allowed me to hold back.
Because the very last thing I want is for Greylin to run from me. Or think I’m anything like my dad.
Our date was the best one I’ve ever had. The conversation flowed easily. We joked, told stories, listened, and laughed.
I loved watching her face. She’s so expressive and it’s beautiful to see. There’s nothing fake about her and it’s refreshing as hell.
Or maybe I’ve gotten used to my dad and brother, where everything is image and appearance.
I could barely sleep after she left my place and when I did, I dreamed about her. Kissing her. Holding her. The note under her wiper was the best way to reach out, I thought.
But I haven’t heard anything from her, and I can’t take it anymore.
Which is why I flip my lights on when I see her, while practically tossing my lunch onto the seat next to me. I shouldn’t be doing it, but I swear the woman has been avoiding me because I haven’t even caught a glimpse of her.
It’s possible I could be paranoid, but I don’t think so.
Greylin pulls over, the stretch of road fairly empty and I’m glad we’re between storms and that the road isn’t lined with snowbanks. Another will come through again. Soon, I’m sure.
I damn near leap out of my vehicle the moment I come to a stop, barely managing to turn my lights off first. While I approach her car, I make sure to turn the sound on my radio down because there’s no way I’m allowing anyone to interrupt us.
We had an amazing time the other night. And now I haven’t heard from her.
Hopefully, I don’t come off too unhinged by doing this. It sure as fuck is how I feel.
It’s how she always makes me feel.
When I reach her window, she’s glaring at me with everything she has in her. It has my lips twitching even though I try to hide it. From the way her eyes go from threatening to nuclear bomb level with surprising speed and ease, I should tread carefully.
I swallow hard as she spits out, “I can’t believe you pulled me over. What is it this time?”
While I’m not surprised, she’s never been so curt with me while I’m wearing my uniform. It should deter me, the way her lip is curled, and all the signs pointing to danger, but it doesn’t. I fucking love her fire and my cock twitches in response.
Now is not the time for him to get involved in the conversation.
“Step out of the car please, Greylin,” my voice is edged with something wild which has her calming down slightly and studying my face.
I have no idea what she sees in my expression, but she opens the door, her movements hesitant. When I step back enough, she slides out of the car. Looking at the road, even though there’s no one on it right now, makes me realize just how close we are to the edge of the lane and I don’t like it.
With a grip on her elbow, I lead her away from the road and toward my vehicle. It’s large enough to shield us from view since I take her to the passenger side. There’s no way I’ll put her in danger on the side of the road. I’m already concerned enough about the temperature and eye her coat warily.
It doesn’t look warm enough.
But her comfort and warmth are clearly the last thing on Greylin’s mind as she rounds on me. “What are you doing, Aiden? Why did you pull me out of my car? You haven’t even told me why you pulled me over,” she practically stomps her foot in exasperation.
It’s adorable, but I keep my mouth closed. I’m not an idiot.
When I don’t say anything, she scrubs her hands over her face a few times and then levels me with a look that threatens to remove my balls from my body. I swear I feel them shrivel up a little at the thought. Poor guys. I feel for them.
Because Greylin is looking at me like she’s considering if she can get away with bodily harm without any consequences. Between her and her three best friends, I think the odds are probably stacked in her favor.
I’m positive there’s nothing they couldn’t do together. I doubt it would even be an issue for them to take the secret to their graves.
“I can not believe you,” she starts to rant, her face filled with exasperation.
“I can not believe that you would pull me over again. Why?” Her voice goes up an octave with the question, but she doesn’t give me a chance to say anything.
“I mean, I thought we had a good time the other night on our date?”
She presses her hands to her chest and scoffs, “At least I had a good time.” She peers up at me, her crystal blue eyes full of accusations.
“Did you not have a good time? You certainly acted like you did.” She throws her hands up.
“We talked about all sorts of things. Honestly, I’ve never had a better first date. ”
When she realizes what she just said, her mouth slams shut and her eyes widen with a horror I find both endearing and amusing. She might have lost some of her steam, but anger is still written all over her face.
“You didn’t call me.”
It’s not exactly what I was planning on saying, but it’s what came out. What can I say? My sense of self-preservation has failed me.
Greylin rears back from me slightly and gasps, “What?”
I step closer to her, erasing the last of the distance between us. I can’t help it. I’ve been trying to convince myself that we can’t be together for a long time.
Now, I’ve had a taste of her and seen a glimpse of how we could be together. I want more. I need it.
And that need has caused me to sound desperate and more than a little feral. I’m okay with it. She has that effect on me.
“You heard me,” my voice drops an octave and is rough with how much control it’s taking to hold myself back from her. “You didn’t call me.”
I repeat the words, as if she didn’t hear them the first time.
Greylin blinks a few times, her eyebrows furrowed together. You would think I’m talking another language with the way she’s looking at me. But I know she understands me.
Our eyes lock and hold. The cold disappears. Hell, the entire world around us disappears.
She blows out a breath when my hands come up and I cup her face. Her eyes turn glassy and I swear her plump lips are begging to be kissed.
I don’t know who leans in first and it doesn’t matter.
One moment we’re staring at each other and then she’s in my arms and my lips are pressed against hers. She melts into me and I tighten my hold.
The kiss is tentative at first as we learn the feel of each other. Her lips are soft and they mold against mine. When her lips part and she lets out a little sigh filled with contentment, something breaks inside of me.
My tongue slides into her mouth and twists with hers. We explore each other and I already know this is going to be the last first kiss of my life. Greylin is the only woman I want to kiss until my dying day.
As much as I want to shout it from the rooftops, that this woman is mine, I’m afraid she’s not ready to hear it yet. Will she ever be ready?
I’m going to do everything in my power to guarantee it happens. Because now that I’ve tasted her, I’ll never get enough.
I slow the kiss down even though it’s the last thing I want. No, I want to kiss her until our lips are numb and the only things she can think about is me and the feel of my lips against hers.
But we’re also on the side of the road.
And anyone could drive by at any moment.
As much as I want to make this woman mine, to make my claim on her absolute, I have to tread carefully. The last thing I want is to aggravate my father to the point that he does something he can’t take back.
But he’s going to learn quickly that I don’t care about what he thinks anymore. Why should I? He barely shows up for me, and it’s been that way my entire life.
I’m not York, and he’s never allowed me to forget it.
It would be so much easier on me if I hated my brother, but I don’t. It’s not his fault that our dad put so many expectations on his shoulders. Sure, he could push back against it, but maybe he thinks there’s too much to lose if he does.
Like our family, small and broken as it is.
I pull back just enough to allow us to breathe, but I don’t let go of her. I can’t; the way she feels in my arms is just too good.
“I didn’t pull you over, Greylin,” I murmur against her mouth.
She jerks in my arms, and I hate the way it puts a little bit of distance between us. Her crystal blue eyes are wide and round as she looks up at me. The satisfaction I feel at the way her lips are swollen and pink from kissing me is impossible to put into words.
“What are you talking about?” She gestures toward my car. “It certainly looks like you pulled me over, Aiden,” the sass in her voice makes my cock throb with the need to be buried inside of her.
I’ll wait, but I fucking hate it.
But I’ll wait. I’ll always wait for her.
“I’m on my lunch break,” I explain to her. “It’s not official at all, I’m technically off duty at the moment, but I saw you and needed to talk to you.”
Her chin drops to her chest and she deadpans, “And you decided to flip your lights on to do that?”
I shoot her a look filled with exasperation and huff, “I wouldn’t have needed to if you had called me.” My shoulders drop and it’s not easy to keep the whine out of my voice, “Darlin’, why didn’t you call me?”
Her cheeks, already pink in the cold, darken as she glances away. She tucks a few strands of her hair behind her ear and gnaws on her bottom lip.
She can try to avoid the question as much as she wants, but it’s not going away.
“Because you were right, Greylin, we did have a good time the other night. It was the best date I’ve ever been on, first date or any date, which is why I didn’t even pretend to wait to reach out to you. You did get my note, didn’t you?”
I realize I didn’t even ask and I look at her intently, hoping I didn’t just fuck up and she never got it. But I have a feeling she did.
“Yeah,” her voice is small, “I got your note.”
“Did you not want to call me?” I sound like a hurt little boy, but the sting of knowing for sure that she got my note and still didn’t call me or text me or anything hurts.
“I did,” she breathes out and swallows hard. “I just don’t know what the point is. It’s not like anything can happen, not with your dad and his hatred of GMH. I’m not going to put you in the middle of it. It’s not fair.”
“Maybe you let me decide if I want to be in the middle of it,” my voice is husky and we get lost in each other’s eyes for a moment.
I want this woman fiercely. And I see no reason to hold back; not anymore.
Walking away from her is impossible. I should have known it would be this way before I came up with my whole bargain for a date plan. Now I’ll never get enough of her.
Just as I’m about to kiss her again, the alarm goes off on my phone to let me know my break is up.
“Fuck,” I mutter and shake my head.
The giggle that comes from Greylin has me taking a chance and swooping in for a quick, chaste kiss. It’s not enough, but it’ll have to do.
For now.
“I have to get back to work,” I tell her as I gently release her from my hold.
With my hand on her lower back, I lead her back to her car and open her door. Just before she can slide behind the wheel, I grip her hand. She looks up at me with so many questions in her eyes.
I wish I could answer them all and put her fears to rest. But I can’t, not right now; there’s not enough time.
“Use my number, darlin’,” I drawl and she swallows hard before nodding.
“Okay, Aiden.”
After I make sure that she’s safely back in her car, I go and climb back into mine. As I watch her drive off, I already miss her.
Resolve fills me and I know what I have to do. Dad is going to have to get over it, I’m going to make Greylin mine.