Aidan (Devil's Stepbrothers MC)(19)

"It's in the works. How are you treating my cousin? There is a lot of  speculation about what you're doing and now it's you that's been marked.  I'm hoping that you are far enough out of town not to be spotted, but  I'm also wondering why you don't just let Lorna go." Lucca hadn't been  anything but helpful with this whole situation, and that was a feat.  Aidan didn't know if he'd be this pleasant with someone in the same  situation. That the man had questions was understandable. Lorna and  Lucca had a strong bond, and as much as she cared for him, it was  apparent that he felt the same way about her. He'd not told Lucca about  the phone that Lorna had. They didn't need to be in such constant  contact until they could all be cleared. It wasn't like he didn't trust  him, but … . Fuck that, he didn't trust him.



"It's not that I'm keeping her here out of duress or holding her against  her will." That would be a concern of his if someone were holding his  cousin in a cabin far away from her family and friends.



"Oh, I know that. If I thought that it wouldn't matter where you were  I'd find you and end your days here on earth. That's not what I was  asking. The fact of the matter is there is now a price on your head, and  it would be lessened if not vanished if you just let Lorna go and be on  your merry way. So why don't you do that and save your ass the  trouble?" Lucca didn't pull punches when it came to his question, and  Aidan liked that no bullshit directness the man had, but he wasn't sure  what to say that wouldn't make him sound like a love sick puppy.



"That would be the best thing to do and don't think I've not thought  about it, but the fact of the matter remains that there would still be a  marker for your death, and I wouldn't want to leave like that for both  Lorna and my sake." He gave the man a direct truth back even if he  omitted a few things about his feelings for the woman in the mix.



"What you're saying is you've let the pussy pull you under its spell,  and you're not ready to let it go." Lucca didn't seem like he would be  talking about his precious cousin like this, but Aidan wasn't opposed to  his way of talking. It also seemed like Lucca was good at reading  situations or at least reading between the lines.         

     



 



"That's not how it is, man, and I don't like you talking about Lorna  like that. I know that's your cousin, but show some respect. Yes. I am  enjoying the time I'm spending with Lorna, and I'm not ready to let her  go yet, but there is a reason why she is still here with me, and that  reason is her own." Aidan didn't really want to talk to this man about  his cousin because he didn't really think their relationship was any of  his business, and he just needed him to keep himself alive so he  wouldn't have to face what being a part of Lorna losing her cousin would  mean for him.



"I'd like to talk to her if she's available, and I didn't mean any  disrespect to Lorna. I just wanted to see where your head was at." Lucca  seemed to be changing his tune a bit or maybe he just wanted to hear  from her that she wasn't being kidnapped and used as a sex toy, but  Aidan didn't know if he was just using the time to get a grasp of their  location. No honor among thieves was the saying that was coming to  Aidan.



"She is asleep, but I'll have her call you soon. I've got to get going,  but you need to find out what's going on with Leon since he's not the  big boss, but he's the one that put the call for your head in the  works." Aidan waited for the man on the other end of the line to say  something, but there was a large silence that filled the space.



"Leon?" Lucca sounded really puzzled about that one, but he didn't go  into detail about why. "I'll see what I can do about that guy. In the  meantime, you need to figure out what your escape plan is going to be. I  know in my heart that Lorna wants to be there with you, but you can't  keep her. She's a high maintenance broad, and you are low on the totem  pole potatoes. Think about what her living her life with you will man  for her. No woman wants to leave paradise for greasy diners no matter  how well you're laying the pipe."



Aidan had already thought about that, and he didn't have an answer or  response for the man's concerns. "Whatever, dude. I'll tell her you want  to talk to her when she gets up, and you keep me up to date on the  status with Leon."



When he disconnected the phone, it was all he could do not to hit  something. He'd seen her home and the fancy items she always had with  her. Hell, she went to the bank and withdrew sixty thousand dollars the  morning before they left, and the teller didn't even blink an eye when  she said she wanted that in manageable bills. That was more than a lot  of people made in a year, and she had it in her fun fund for easy  access. Was that the kind of woman who would be happy with his hand to  mouth way of life? Why was he even thinking about this any way? This was  going to be a short term affair, and when he got himself out of this he  wanted her to have fond memories of the hood rat she hooked up with for  a while. To ask for anything more was dangerous because it couldn't  happen. She probably thought of this as a vacation from her regularly  scheduled life …  well minus the people after them and her precious cousin  Lucca.



He heard the balcony door open and hoped that she hadn't heard any of  the conversation he'd just had with her cousin. It wasn't something he  wanted to worry her about even though she had a lot riding on what was  going on as well. As far as he was concerned, they were going to treat  this like a private getaway and just have fun. She didn't need to be  concerned about whether or not he was going to live or die because it  looked like there was going to be too much mess to just allow him to  fade into the sunset.



"Who were you talking to?" Lorna sounded sexy as her sleep husky voice  made him rethink answering her question. It would be better if they just  remained in bed or some other horizontal position where they wouldn't  have to go into this. He put on his most charming look and moved closer  to her.



"Let's not talk about that now." He tried to see if his plan would work  as he pulled her into his arms and kissed her warm neck. Was it the fact  that they'd been together for the last few weeks with them being  inseparable the last week that let him know that she wasn't going to put  up with this or maybe it was the way her body tightened up? Either way,  he wasn't surprised that she pushed him away.



"I'm not a child, Aidan. I appreciate the way you make me feel and I  like that you take charge sometimes, but I have been handling myself for  a good long while, and I won't tolerate you treating me like I can't  handle grown up information." She was spectacular when she was in a huff  but damned if he would tell her that now. That one would put him on the  couch or worse, and with him not knowing how much time they actually  had together that wasn't the best plan of action.         

     



 



"I know you aren't, but there is nothing that can be done by hashing out  what I'm trying to do. There are a lot of pieces involved, and my main  concern is keeping you safe."



She looked into his eyes, and he knew she was trying to figure out if  she should trust him or keep up the questions. Moving entirely out of  his embrace, he didn't know what she was going to do next, but he knew  she wasn't done.



"Who were you talking to?" she asked again as she sat on the lounge chair in the middle of the balcony.



There was no way he was going to be able to leave her totally out of it,  so maybe if he gave her some information it would be enough. "I was  talking to Lucca."



Her wide eyes let him know that was not the answer she was expecting,  and he watched her put that piece of information away like she was going  to use it later. Sitting next to her on the edge of her chair, he  watched her and could almost see the questions whizzing through her  mind. She had a peaceful way about her, and he'd learned so much about  her in the week they'd spent together. When they weren't fucking on  every flat surface, they'd talked about a lot of things.



"Lucca? Why? What was he saying? Are they looking for me? How is  everyone?" She looked like she was starved for information about her  family, and he wished he had a bit of family that would be worried about  him. All he had was a group of guys that were getting impatient that  he'd not done his job yet. He'd try to answer all of her questions to  the best of his ability, but in all honesty there wasn't really anything  he and Lucca had talked about regarding her family or even if they were  overly worried about her. This wasn't a tea and crumpet conversation  the two men were having, but she didn't look like she realized that.



"Lucca wants to talk to you to make sure you're alright and not being  held here against your will." He thought he would give her some  information that she could deal with without going into what he did or  didn't know about her family.