“Did you have to pay all the money?”
“No. I offered an alternative.” Aiden pulled me back down beside him.
“What kind of alternative?” I asked curiously as I looked up at him.
“The penthouse. I signed ownership over to Kat.”
“What? She didn’t own it before?”
“No, I own the building, but Kat now owns her penthouse. She is no longer my tenant and no longer my wife.” He smiled tightly.
“But you have to live beside her.” I was sitting up again in protest. “You love that building.”
Aiden smiled at me as he tucked my hair behind my ear. “I love some things more.”
Oh my. “That was smooth,” I whispered. The smile hooked at his mouth as he pulled me down for a kiss that left me panting.
“I’ve missed you,” he said against my lips.
“Why didn’t you come for me?” I demanded as I pushed myself off him.
“Don’t you dare get indignant with me,” Aiden laughed. “I gave you four weeks, Jemma.”
“I didn’t know if you wanted me!” I exclaimed and then yelped when Aiden dragged my hand over his hardening length.
“Does that feel like I don’t want you?”
“That’s different; what if what we have is just physical?” I pulled my hand away.
“Bullshit. You know that, and so do I,” he scoffed as he sat up. “I guess we should get dressed.” He looked at his clothes regretfully.
“Who’s Raphe?”
“No one.”
“Aiden, don’t lie to me,” I scolded him. “Does he work for Kat’s family?”
“No, he doesn’t work for anyone. But if he did work for someone, it would be my father.” Aiden didn’t meet my eyes as he pulled his jeans on.
“Wow. That’s kind of scary,” I admitted.
“Yeah.” Aiden turned his face as he pulled on his boots. He was ashamed of his father? Or afraid? I wasn’t sure.
I got out of bed and went over to him and knocked his T-shirt out of his hand. “You aren’t your father, Aiden,” I said as I reached up to cup his face. He kissed me in answer, and I folded into his embrace.
“Mommy! Aunt Jem is naked in her bedroom with a man!”
Aiden thrust me behind his back as we both stared in horror at Livvy. We heard the feet running, and then Ollie, Jessica and Jacob were all there staring at us.
“Rachel!” I yelled. Jeremy! I was going to kill my brother.
“Good lord, I’m coming,” I heard her mutter, and then she too was in the doorway. “Oh good grief, Jemma. Could you please put some clothes on?” I saw her look Aiden over. “You can stay like that if you want.” She winked at him as she ushered her children out of the room. Aiden huffed out a laugh, and then we were both grinning at each other as he kissed me gently.
“Clothes,” I said and searched for my yoga pants. I needed to get cleaned up in the bathroom too. As I snatched my clothes up, I watched Aiden pull his T-shirt on. I made my way to the bathroom to get freshened up and squealed when Aiden pushed me lightly into the bathroom and followed me in, locking the door behind him.
He kissed me with a smile. “So I guess your brother’s idea of a few hours is different from mine.”
“He’s a dick, and I’m going to kill him,” I grumbled as I ran the shower.
“You need help in there, babe?” Aiden’s look was heated as he watched me soap up quickly.
“No, you have no idea what those little monsters are doing outside,” I said, laughing. “I wouldn’t put it past Livvy to be scaling the drainpipe as we speak!”
“She’s cute,” Aiden smiled.
I quickly rinsed myself off, trying to avoid looking at him and stopping myself from reacting to him. As I dried myself, I started to get nervous that he was so quiet. “What is it?”
“You need to eat more.”
I looked at him in surprise. “What?”
“You’re just skin and bone.” He shook his head. “You need to be healthy.”
“I am healthy,” I laughed. You’re really not, you do no exercise.
“We can talk about it later.” Aiden handed me my T-shirt, and as I took it from him, he pulled me towards him and kissed me softly. “We need to talk about living arrangements.”
“My apartment is up for sale, and Tim is demanding half the money,” I blurted. “I don’t have anywhere except here.” My hands wrung nervously. “And Richard fired me, so I have no job.”
Aiden watched me. “Okay.” He looked me over and then opened the door. “You ready?” He didn’t wait and headed down the stairs with me not far behind him.
Four little innocent faces looked up from the floor at Aiden curiously, and I saw him falter before he carried on into the room.
“Hi, I’m Aiden,” he told them as he held his hand out to Rachel.
“Oh, Aunt Jem doesn’t like you!” Livvy frowned. “You make her cry.”
Aiden winced at the revelation as my face flamed. “Livvy,” I whisper hissed.
“Well, you know, Aunt Jem makes me cry too,” Aiden said as he squatted down beside her.
Livvy’s mouth dropped open, and all four of them turned to me. “What did she do?” Livvy asked in wonder.
“She left me all alone,” Aiden whispered to them with a wicked gleam in his eye.
“Why did you leave, Aunt Jem?” Jacob asked me with an accusing glare.
“Um…I…” I had no words. “I didn’t,” I floundered.
“You’ve been here for ages, Aunt Jem. Mr Aiden has been all alone that whole time.” Ollie looked like I had just told him I ate puppies for lunch.
I heard Rachel snort laugh, and when I glared at her, she turned her head away. “Are you going to help me?” I demanded of her.
“Oh no, I think you’re doing fine.”
“Aiden, tell them you’re messing with them,” I demanded.
“But I’m not, Jem, I have been alone for ages.” He stood up and sat on the sofa, and immediately Livvy and Jessica were beside him.
“You’re pretty,” Jessica told him, and he smiled at her.
“Well, thank you, you’re pretty too.” He flicked her flower hair ties. “Those are awesome, where did you get them?”
My mouth hung open as he charmed the girls and spoke to the boys like he had known them their whole life. I felt a tug on my arm and looked at Rachel. She inclined her head to the kitchen, and I followed her as Aiden listened to the children tell him about the tree house.
“A tree house? I design buildings, can I see the tree house?”
As Rachel and I stood in the kitchen, we watched as he was shown the tree house—which wasn’t in a tree—and as he inspected it all, listening intently.
“Well, he’s definitely a keeper.”
“I don’t know who that is out there,” I admitted as I watched him. Livvy was on his shoulders as she reached for the branches of the lowest hanging tree. I noticed Aiden kept moving so she never actually got hold of them. Keeping her safe.
“You get everything worked out, or did you forget to speak while he was here?” Rachel gave me a knowing look.
“We spoke first.”
“Of course you did.” She poured three coffees and then pushed open the window. “Aiden, coffee!” She turned back to the coffee as she poured milk into mine before turning and holding my coffee out to me. “So what’s happening?”
“Jemma will come home with me tonight,” Aiden told her as he came through the door.
“I will?”
“Course you will, you’ve had your time.” He took a drink of his coffee that Rachel handed him. “Thank you.”
“I don’t want to go to the penthouse.”
“And you won’t.” He watched me watch him.
“You have more than one house?” I joked.
“Yes.”
“Oh.” I wasn’t expecting that as the answer.
“I have a property on Clayton at Cherry Creek.” Aiden shifted his feet as h
e looked at me. “I’ve been renovating it, but it’s finished now. I had a lot of time to focus on it over the last few weeks.”
“You have a house in Cherry Creek?” One of the most affluent parts of Denver? Was he kidding me?
“I’m very good at what I do, Jemma.” His old arrogance was showing, and I smiled despite myself.
“I don’t doubt it.”
“You’ll live with me there.” He took a drink of his coffee.
“I will?” I huffed out a disbelieving laugh.
“Or we can go somewhere else.” Aiden shrugged. “I don’t care as long as you’re with me.”
“Aww.” Rachel was beaming at him when I turned to her in astonishment.
“Aiden, is this how you ask someone to move in with you?” I gaped at him, trying desperately to think of a reason why this wasn’t exactly what I wanted.
“No, this is how I ask the woman I love to marry me.”
I heard Rachel sniff behind me, but I couldn’t move. My brain stuttered. I swallowed. “What?”
“We can talk about it later,” he said offhandedly.
What? No! “Did you or did you not just propose?” I demanded as I marched up to him.
“I did.” His eyes twinkled with humour.
“Did you think this was the best time, and did you think saying ‘talk about it later’ was appropriate?” I poked his chest.
“Well, you seem to be in a disagreeing mood; I thought you may need time.” The glint in his eye and that smirk made me poke him in the chest again.
“You will propose to me properly or not at all.” I realised I sounded ridiculous when Rachel tittered behind me.
“Okay,” Aiden agreed. “As I said, later.”
Just then, the children came running in and ran past us. “Jeremy’s home,” Rachel told us as she got another mug ready for coffee.
We heard their squeals of delight, along with naked, Aunt Jem, tree house and shoulders. I groaned as my brother came into the kitchen with his four children hanging onto him.
“So you’re him?” he greeted Aiden.
“I am.”
“Good to finally meet you.” Jeremy held out a hand, and Aiden shook it. “When you taking her?”
“Soon,” Aiden replied with a smile.
“I’m not a bag of groceries à la curbside pickup!” I exclaimed as I looked between the two of them.
Aiden laughed at me, and Jeremy joined in. “Go pack, sis, time to go back to reality.” Jeremy clasped my shoulder as he passed me.
“You’re throwing me out?” I couldn’t believe it.
“I love you, little sis, I do. And you were in a mess, but, your man’s here to fix you.” Jeremy drank his coffee. “Honestly, if she wasn’t so pig-headed, this could have been resolved weeks ago,” Jeremy told Aiden. “She’s as stubborn as a mule, that one.”
“Jeremy.” My voice was pained.
“Scoot, go get packing.” Jeremy winked at me and then offered to sit with Aiden, who in turn mentioned the tree house, and then both men and all the children were in the backyard.
“What happened?” I asked Rachel in bewilderment.
“Come on, I’ll help you pack, and we can discuss your wedding.”
“Did he seriously ask?” I asked her as we climbed the stairs.
“He did. I think you may get a better proposal later, but my, I would not be turning him down.” She squeezed my arm as she pulled my bag out from under the bed. “Now what do you want to take?”
“Why is everyone assuming I’m just going to go with him?” Was I really so predictable?
“Because you’re head over heels in love with him, and he you. What good does it do to fight it?” Rachel asked me seriously. “You’re just making yourself miserable, and him too. Why?”
“I had reasons…” Didn’t I?
“Jemma, you’re being a mule.”
“I know.” I nodded. “He never asks,” I protested as I looked out the window to watch them outside. “He just assumes.”
“Or maybe he knows you so well he knows what you’ll say.” Rachel was folding my clothes. The message was loud, and I was receiving it clearly—I was not staying here tonight.
Aiden didn’t have a “house” on Clayton. Aiden had a sprawling residence with room for three cars in the garage alone on Clayton.
“Oh my God, this is beautiful.” I walked through the ground floor and took in all the space. It was stunning. The whole floor was open-plan, with two sitting areas and even a small mini bar. “Aiden, this is amazing. The amount of light this house has, it’s incredible.”
“You should see it in daylight. Come, I’ll show you upstairs.” He took my hand, and we went up the curved staircase. The house had four bedrooms including the master bedroom. Each room was furnished tastefully and beautifully. The master bedroom made my jaw drop. Not because of the size, the décor or anything, but because my stuff was in it. My chair, my pictures from the apartment, my knickknacks all tastefully incorporated into the room. My heart was going to burst. “Come,” Aiden said quietly as he led me through the biggest dressing area I had ever seen, where my clothes hung, and into the adjoining bathroom. The stand-alone curved bath had me drop his hand and rush over to it.
“You did this for me?” I knew I was going to cry. How could he do this? He was the most amazing man I had ever met.
“Yes,” he said softly. “I know this is where you unwind and relax, and I know how much you loved the bath at your apartment.”
“I love it, I love everything,” I said as I walked over to him and wrapped my arms around him. “I love you.”
“Love you back, Jemma.” He kissed me, and then I was losing myself in him as we made use of the new bed that Aiden hadn’t slept in. He had been waiting to spend the first night in it with me. And if I ever doubted him, Aiden showed me how much he loved me back that night in our bed.
When we were sated and I lay in his arms, I wiggled out of his hold until I was raised up and looking down on him. “When did you and Jeremy meet?”
Aiden gave a light laugh. “We hadn’t met. I phoned him when I realised you had to have made contact with someone. I realised the paper was from my study, and I dialled the last number. It was Jeremy. He hung up on me.” Aiden grinned.
“But you being you, would have called him back?” I guessed.
“Well, yes, I did.” Aiden winked at me. “This time he listened. Then I phoned him again to make sure you were okay.”
“You were checking up on me?” I stared at him in wonder.
“I needed to know you were alright.” Aiden played with the end of my hair.
“But you didn’t come for me?”
“No.” He sighed. “I was waiting for you to come to your senses.”
“Oh.” Jeremy was right, I was a stubborn mule.
“But then I realised you have absolutely no sense.” Aiden teased me. I laughed as he tackled me, and I lay looking up at him. He dropped a kiss on my lips before he lay back and closed his eyes.
“What if I’m only with you for your money?” I asked with a mischievous smile.
He smiled wide as his eyes remained closed. “You fell in love with me when you thought I was a site manager.”
Presumptuous. “I don’t have a job,” I reminded him as I propped myself up to look at him again. “Richard fired me,” I added on quietly.
“I met him once before the renovation work started. He took care of my part of the prenup. Kat’s family likes to keep things ‘in-house,’ and I didn’t want to use their guy. Of course, I didn’t go that far from the family, but my father assured me that Richard knew what he was doing. Other than that, I don’t really know him,” Aiden told me as he opened his eyes to look at me. “He and Karen stay away from her family; he doesn’t like to get involved, and as you know, I like to stay away from all of them.” Aiden reached up and tucked my hair behind my ear. “I spoke to him a few weeks ago when you told me you were suspended. I genuinely do think he was doing his
best to keep you away from it all by not telling you his involvement, but Kat went crying to her sister, and Karen had to act. Karen didn’t know you were involved as Richard had kept it quiet.”
I nodded sadly. “So, he was my friend, he just has shitty relations?” I sighed. “Thank you for telling me.” Aiden kissed the back of my hand as he closed his eyes again. “Of course, that doesn’t help with the fact I still don’t have a job,” I said wryly.
“You start at Ashford Architect & Construction Company on Monday. I need a PA.”
“What if I don’t want to work for you?”
“You won’t work for me. You’ll work with me.” His eyes remained closed with the smile still on his face.
Aww. “You’re bossy,” I said instead, but I knew he could hear my smile.
“You love it.” Aiden opened one eye and looked at me. “You done?”
“Did you really propose to me?” I asked softly, suddenly feeling shy.
“No.”
“Oh.” I screamed as I was flipped onto my back, and Aiden grinned down at me. He produced a velvet box. “Jemma Leighton, lying naked in our bed like a sex goddess, you ruin me and drive me crazy.” His head dipped as he kissed me chastely on the lips. “Will you please put me out of my misery and promise to drive me crazy for the rest of our lives?”
“Hmm, I dunno. What are you asking me exactly?”
“Will you marry me, Jem?”
My hand trailed over his face as I looked up at him and saw the love in his eyes. “You were the greatest mistake I ever made,” I told him quietly as I kissed his palm. “So yes, Aiden Ashford, I think I will marry you.” I kissed him softly. “And I promise I will drive you crazy for as long as you let me.”
“Always,” he whispered as he kissed along my jawline. “I’ll let you always.”
“That works,” I agreed as his hands skimmed my body. “Yes, Aiden, always works.”
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