The Secret Affair(25)
Once the door closed behind them she looked around and was surprised at how tidy the place was. Definitely not what she’d expected. It was a one-room cabin with an iron bed. The colorful bedspread matched the curtains and coordinated with the huge area rug.
She turned to Aidan. “This is nice. Who keeps this place up?”
“Gemma promised Bane that she would and of course she had to put her signature on it. Now that she’s getting married and moving to Australia, Bailey will take over. This place is important to Bane. He spends time here whenever he comes home.”
Jillian nodded. “How’s he doing?”
Aidan shrugged. “Okay now. It was hard for him to buckle down and follow authority, but he has no other choice if he wants to be a SEAL.”
She’d heard that was Bane Westmoreland’s goal. “So no one usually comes out this way?” She needed to know. There would be no turning back after today and she needed to make sure they didn’t get caught.
“Rarely, although Ramsey uses this land on occasion for his sheep. But you don’t have to worry about anyone showing up if that’s what you’re worried about.”
She turned to face him. “I don’t know why I’m doing this.”
He touched her chin and tilted her head back to meet his gaze. “Do you want me to tell you?”
“Think you got it all figured out?”
He nodded. “Yes, I think I do.”
“Okay then, let’s hear it,” she said, backing up to sit on the edge of the bed.
He moved to sit down on a nearby stool. “We’re attracted to each other.”
She chuckled slightly. “Tell me something I don’t know, Aidan.”
“What if I say that we’ve sort of gotten obsessed with each other?”
She frowned. “Obsessed is too strong a word, I think. We’ve only kissed twice.”
“Actually three times. And I’m dying for the fourth. Aren’t you?”
She knew she had to be honest with him and stop denying the obvious. “Yes, but I don’t understand why.”
He got up from the stool and stood. “Maybe it’s not for us to understand, Jillian.”
“How can you say that? How do you think our family would react if they knew we were carrying on like this behind their backs?”
He slowly crossed the room to stand in front of where she sat. “We won’t know how they’d react because you’re determined to keep this a secret, aren’t you?”
She tilted her head to look up at him. “Yes. I couldn’t hurt Pam that way. She expects me to stay focused on school. And if I did get involved with a guy, I’m sure she wouldn’t want that guy to be you.”
He frowned. “And what is so bad about getting involved with me?”
“I think you know the answer to that. She thinks of us as one big family. And there’s your reputation. But, like you said, we’ll be leaving tomorrow and going our separate ways. What’s happening between us is curiosity taking its toll on our common sense.”