The events of the last week had turned everything upside down, but that meant she was out from under the menacing cloud, the one that had followed her for more than a year. Even more remarkable, the saddest thing she could imagine, Oliver losing his mother and Sarah losing her friend, had brought happiness. She could see a life with Aiden. She could imagine becoming Oliver’s mom if that was where she and Aiden chose to take things. They could be a family.
There were still obstacles to overcome and the most pressing was no small thing—saying those three little words. But after last night with Aiden, riding out the aftereffects of a secret he’d feared his entire life, they’d cemented their bond. So as frightening as it was, she would take the leap of telling him her true feelings. When she’d sworn to never say it first again, she’d had no way of knowing that a man as extraordinary as Aiden would come into her life. He was different. They had a foundation. Synergy. There would be no sad ending after I love you.
Aiden shifted in the bed, scrunching up his face and groaning quietly. He snaked his arm around Sarah’s waist and pulled her against him. “You’re so far away.”
She smiled as her eyes drifted shut and she inhaled his heady smell. “I’m right here.”
He smoothed his hand over her bare bottom, gently squeezing. “So you are. My mistake.” He nuzzled his way into her neck and she granted him access, even though it usually brought a fit of squealing. He peppered her skin with kisses that started soft and tentative but were now deeper and longer as their bodies pressed together.
“I usually don’t like it if someone kisses my neck. After last night, you can kiss me wherever you want.”
“It wasn’t just last night. Earlier this morning was noteworthy, too.”
She laughed quietly, but arched her back and hitched her leg up over his hip. Just thinking about it made her want him again. “It was wonderful.”
He clasped her face and planted a kiss on her lips. “Thank you for everything last night.”
“It’s a little weird to say thank you for sex.”
He shook his head and nudged at her nose with his own—such a sweet and tender gesture, it left her breathless. “No. I mean everything before we ended up in bed. You’re just...”
She didn’t want to be holding her breath, but she couldn’t help it. Was he about to confess his feelings? Would he take her worry away and impart those three little words first?
He scanned her face, his eyes searching for something. “You’re a miracle. I don’t know how I got so lucky to have you and Oliver walk into my life, but I’m thankful. You’ve been there for me and I’m so appreciative.”
She smiled wide, even though he hadn’t relieved her of her greatest fear. “I like being there for you.”
“I mean it, Sarah. I don’t even want to think about the dark places my mind could have gone last night after everything with my mom. I’ve wasted so much time dreading that moment, worrying about what the truth would mean, but your presence made it all okay. You’re like a magician.”
A magician. A miracle. Both wonderful things to be called, but not quite what she was hoping for. It was hard to blame him. He’d been through so much with his family. It was no wonder that he was closed off, that he’d shored up his defenses so solidly that no woman had managed to make her way inside. She had to appreciate that he’d come so far since she’d met him. Maybe he needed a nudge. Maybe he needed to know that she wouldn’t hurt him, that she would give her heart to him just as freely as she’d given her body.
Just do it. Just say it and let it come out. Open your heart. “I love you, Aiden.” A warm wave hit her—contentment, satisfaction, accomplishment all rolled into one. This time she’d finally gotten it. She smiled and gazed into his eyes, but it became clear—within a few heartbeats—that something was wrong. His eyes weren’t indifferent or angry...they were hurt. It wasn’t at all what she’d expected. Of the many things she could’ve seen, that was not on the list of possible reactions to I love you.
Sixteen
I love you? No. This isn’t happening.
Aiden had never before wanted so badly to be able to rattle off a string of words, but he couldn’t. I love you was forever, and he wasn’t ready for that. He was ready to ask if he could see her after their ten days were up, but the words she’d just said had ruined that possibility. There was only one good response, and he couldn’t go there. “I don’t take love lightly.” In truth, he didn’t take—or give—romantic love at all. He’d never told a woman he loved her. He’d never felt it. His relationship with Sarah was different, but they’d been caught in extraordinary circumstances and his feelings for Oliver were intertwined with his perception of her. Could it be love? His gut wasn’t answering.