Aidan had a son dropped into his lap out of nowhere and he’d recovered beautifully. She got the feeling that going through her pregnancy with him would’ve been different, as well. Would he have rubbed her swollen ankles and gone out in search of her latest food craving? Probably so. Because he seemed to care about the people in his life. To Violet, that was more important than all the other things Beau supposedly had to offer her but Aidan didn’t.
Knox nodded off in his father’s arms. She watched as Aidan gently stood up, walked his son over to his crib and got him settled in.
“He’s out cold,” Aidan whispered when he turned and saw her watching him from the doorway. “How did I do, Mama? Did I pass the bedtime test?”
Violet smiled. She hadn’t been watching him with that in mind, but she appreciated that he was trying to do everything right. “With flying colors.”
“Do I get a reward for a job well done?” he asked with a devious arch of his brow.
“I think that could be arranged.” Violet took his hand and led him across the hallway to her bedroom. Once inside, she shut her door and then pushed Aidan backward until he was sitting on the edge of the bed. With her gaze fixed on his, she slowly lowered herself down to her knees in front of him.
“Are you ready for your reward?” she asked with a coy smile.
“Oh, yeah.”
Violet took her time, running her hands up and down his legs and stroking his thighs through his jeans before moving to his fly. She unbuttoned it and ran down the zipper, feeling his body tense beneath her touch. He helped her tug his jeans and black boxer briefs over his hips and down his legs. They went into a pile along with his shoes and the rest of his unnecessary clothes.
She’d barely touched Aidan and yet once he was naked, she realized he was already primed and ready for her. As she reached for his exposed desire, she heard his sharp intake of breath. He continued to hold his breath as she wrapped her fingers around his firm heat and gently stroked him until he let out a ragged burst of air from his lungs.
“Violet,” he whispered with his eyes squeezed shut.
Feeling emboldened by his response, she brought him to her lips and enveloped him in the moist warmth. Aidan groaned aloud as she moved up and down the length of him, teasing at him with her tongue. He buried his fingers in her dark hair and bit at his bottom lip in an apparent effort to stay quiet.
Violet was determined to make that difficult for him. It was a reward, after all.
Working him over with her hands and mouth, she increased the pace until he was gritting his teeth. “Okay,” he said, reaching out to grasp her wrist and still the torturous movements. “That...is about all I can take of that unless you want Tara to know way too much about us.”
Violet giggled, but relinquished her hold on him. “I’m sorry,” she said in a pouty voice that proved she was anything but sorry.
“I bet you are.” With one quick tug, he pulled her up off the floor, and she landed in a sprawled position on top of him. He held her tight to him even as she wiggled and tried to right herself. “Oh, no. You’ve had plenty of fun. It’s your turn to shout,” he said.
Rolling across the bed, Violet found herself on her back with Aidan pinning her arms to the mattress. He shifted his grip until he was holding both wrists in one of his massive hands over her head. He straddled her hips, using his free hand to push up her shirt. He shimmied it over her head and shoulders, leaving it tangled around her wrists. He unsnapped the front clasp of her bra and pushed the lacy blue cups out of his way to expose her tight, rosy nipples.
Violet gasped silently as he cupped her left breast in his hand and drew her into the warmth of his mouth. He sucked hard on her nipple until she squirmed and arched her back toward him. She was completely at his mercy now and not being able to move her arms made her feel even more vulnerable to him.
She liked it.
When he did finally let go, it was so he could slide her jeans and panties down her hips. With those gone, she used her newfound freedom to pull his face back down to her so she could kiss him at last. His lips collided hard with hers, matching the intensity that was building between them both. It had been less than a day since they’d shared a bed and yet it suddenly felt like weeks. Like Violet would be consumed by her need for him if she didn’t have him right now.
Aidan seemed less inclined to rush tonight. Even as he kissed her, one hand roamed over her skin, eventually seeking out the heat between her thighs. He stroked her, dipping his fingers inside and rubbing the heel of his palm against her sensitive flesh. His mouth on hers muffled her cries as he made slow circles guaranteed to make her climax.
And climax she did. Her whole body was shaken with the pleasure that radiated through her. She’d never come so fast and so intensely before, but it was as though Aidan had mastered her body. She tore her mouth away from his to suck in a cool lungful of air and gasp with the force of her orgasm.
As she lay there, nearly incapable of moving, Aidan sought out a condom and returned to her side. As they came together, she felt her body responding to him again and Violet noticed a difference in their lovemaking. It had only been a week since they’d first come together at his apartment, and yet the newness had given way to the familiar and easy. Not that it was boring by any stretch, but that there was experience behind every touch and taste of each other’s bodies. He knew exactly how to move and how to touch her to make her respond.
Violet had never been with a lover who focused on her pleasure the way he did. Even tonight, he had taken his reward and twisted it into an experience to satisfy them both. He didn’t just give lip service to her needs, he genuinely prioritized them, just as he prioritized her in every aspect of his life.
Even as he groaned her name into her neck and held her body tight to his, she couldn’t help but think of how special he made her feel. Like she and Knox were a priority in his life. Not his business or his money, his reputation or even himself. She’d never been loved like that before.
Is that what it was? Love?
If that was what she was feeling, Violet had never truly been loved by any man she’d been with in the past. At least not loved body and soul the way Aidan seemed to. He hadn’t shared his feelings with her and she hadn’t shared hers with him, but he certainly made her feel cherished and appreciated in a way that made her want to give a voice to her feelings.
She was in love with him.
It wasn’t something she’d really thought about before tonight, but the truth of it was clear. Their time together had been brief, but her heart and mind both knew what they wanted. They both wanted him.
She was absolutely, totally in love with Aidan.
The warm feeling in the center of her chest spread through her whole body. Like some kind of emotional floodgate opening, she felt the heat build up into an unexpected second release. When it exploded inside of her moments later and Aidan gave in to his own pleasure, she found herself on the verge of happy tears. She wanted to hold him, to hang on to this moment and cherish it forever.
A part of her wanted to tell him how she felt right then, but her logical side overrode it. It was one thing to fall in love quickly, another to announce it and have the timing be bad. Aidan might not be as in tune with his emotions. He might need more time to realize that what they had together was special and rare.
As he collapsed off to her side, the cool air danced across her damp, exposed skin, bringing a chill. She rolled against Aidan’s side and snuggled into the nook of his arm. She felt safe and protected there, like everything outside of her apartment couldn’t get to them. Things like her parents’ disapproval.
Violet knew that was a discussion that needed to be had, and soon. But not tonight. Her parents were still in Eastern Europe somewhere and she wanted to enjoy this moment with Aidan. An unexpected sinking feeling in her stomach followed that thought, making her cling more tight
ly to him.
As though the moment wouldn’t last much longer.
* * *
The following morning, Aidan went back to his apartment to get ready for work. He wasn’t opening today, but he wanted to head out to his mom’s house to grab something before his shift was supposed to start.
Last night with Violet had made him start thinking about things he hadn’t really considered before. They hadn’t been together as a couple long, but getting up in the morning to return to his place was a painful reminder that their cohabitation had been a temporary thing. With her kitchen fixed, Violet was back home. That meant everything he’d gotten used to so quickly was over. Yes, he had a standing Sunday afternoon date to see Knox, but there was nothing to say that he had a standing date with Violet.
Yes, he was happy to be Knox’s father, and involved in his life, but he wanted more. As impractical as it might seem, he wanted them to be a real family. One that woke up together and shared breakfast before starting their day. One that went on trips to the park and the ball field. Who cheered together for Knox’s T-ball team. Who went on family vacations and took cheesy photos together that they would frame and hang on the wall of their home.
Walking up the front steps of his mother’s house was a cold reminder that they didn’t share a home. Not in the same way his parents did. Their marriage had been anything but perfect, but his mother had loved and cared for his father until the end. They had built a home and family together in a way that Aidan longed for.
But would Violet ever consider something like that? A real family? A marriage? Marriage hadn’t even come up when he found out about the baby, and for good reason. If she did agree to marry him, it would be because she wanted to, not because she felt obligated to because of Knox and the societal pressure to marry his father.
That was both encouraging and frightening because he didn’t know which way it would go. He wanted Violet to say yes. His feelings for her were still new and uncertain in his mind, but his feelings about the three of them were clear. No matter what she might say, he felt compelled to give it his best shot.
Inside the house, he stopped at the bottom of the stairs. Aidan had avoided going upstairs. More specifically, he’d avoided cleaning out his mother’s bedroom. Right after she’d succumbed to her pancreatic cancer, it had been too painful to go through her things and give them away. Really, there wasn’t a rush. It hadn’t mattered until now if they sat and collected dust or got boxed up.
But with the money from the foundation and the charity event coming up, his administrator and first round of tenants would soon be moving in and Molly’s House would become a reality. That would require a good bit of work on Aidan’s part.
Most of the clothes and miscellaneous items would be donated to a shelter or charity. Probably to St. Vincent de Paul. The furniture that was good enough to stay would be used for the new residents along with items for the kitchen. Most of the people who would be moving in wouldn’t have anything but a bag of personal effects for the temporary stay.
Anything that fell in the bucket of a family heirloom would go to his apartment. There wasn’t much, but he knew there were a few things his mother took special care of. Knox would inherit plenty from his mother’s family he was sure, but Aidan wanted him to have some things from his side, too. It would be hard to compete with a couple million or so dollars in a trust fund, but a silver pocket watch that belonged to Knox’s great grandfather might be a special keepsake for him to have one day.
He forced himself up the stairs to the bedroom his parents had shared for his entire life. Everything was just as he remembered it, only covered in a light layer of dust and neglect. The room still held the faint scent of his mother’s favorite rose perfume. Just catching a whiff of it in the department store was enough to bring tears to his eyes. Here was no different.
Looking around, he realized there was a lot to go through, but today, there was only one thing he was concerned about finding—one thing he didn’t dare lose in the shuffle.
He strode across the room to the old oak dresser and the jewelry box standing on top of it. In it, he knew he would find his grandfather’s watch, his mother’s good pearls, a medal he’d earned in Boy Scouts and a couple other little pieces she’d cherished over the years. That included her engagement ring.
Aidan hadn’t wanted to take it from her. He was just as happy to bury her with her jewelry, but she had insisted on it. Her wedding ring was enough, but the engagement ring was special. It had belonged to his great-grandmother on his father’s side and was given to his dad when he wanted to propose. It was family and history and she’d wanted Aidan to give it to his future bride, not to let it rot with her corpse under the earth.
He’d finally relented, bringing it upstairs and putting it in her jewelry box for safekeeping. He’d still held on to the hope that she would recover, come home and want to put her ring back on. That, of course, hadn’t happened. So the ring had sat there with everything else over the last year.
He found the old satin-covered box just as he’d left it. It was the original container, worn and fragile, easily eighty years old. As he opened the tarnished hinge, his gaze fell upon the familiar ring he’d seen on his mother’s finger nearly every day of her life.
Aidan didn’t know much about rings or diamonds, but his mother had told him it was an art deco ballerina-style setting. He supposed that was a fancy way of saying it was a center stone surrounded by smaller diamonds radiating out around it like a sun or a ballerina and her tutu. All he knew was that it was beautiful and his mother had cherished it.
If it hadn’t been an heirloom, he doubted his father would’ve ever been able to afford a ring like this. Aidan probably couldn’t afford to buy one in this style, either. He couldn’t stroll into Tiffany & Co. and drop six figures on an engagement ring like Violet probably expected to receive one day. Like Beau had probably already given her last year. But he could offer her this.
If she’d accept it.
He wasn’t certain how she felt about him. Or even how he felt about her. But he knew he wanted to be around her and Knox every day of the year. Not just Sunday afternoons and alternating holidays. He wanted to wake up to Violet in his bed and he felt like if he didn’t step up now he would miss his chance. Violet was easily one of the most eligible women in Manhattan. Even if Beau was out of the picture, and it didn’t seem like he was ready to go quietly, someone else might come along.
If he wanted Violet, he needed to let her know before she found someone who would fit more easily into her life and her family.
The idea of someone else taking his place made his blood boil. He wasn’t that great with feelings, but he knew that meant something. And if that something meant he needed to ask her to marry him, then he would ask her to marry him and hope for the best.
Holding the ring up to the light, he twirled it between his fingertips to watch the colors dance. It would look beautiful on Violet’s hand.
Taking a deep breath, he put the ring back in its box and headed downstairs. Soon, he told himself. Soon.
Ten
“The turnout for the event is amazing.”
Violet stood at the edge of the ballroom with her assistant, Betsy, as they admired the crowd. She was right. Betsy had worked for the Niarchos Foundation long before Violet was in charge and knew a successful event when she saw one. They’d had one of their highest RSVPs ever for the charity gala and she was pleased to know it was all going to benefit Aidan and Molly’s House. The band was great, the dance floor was filled with people, and more in their finery and masks were showing up every second.
“I do have a question for you, though,” Betsy added.
“What’s that?” Violet eyed the crowd, looking for Aidan, but she hadn’t spotted him yet. She was anxious to see him in his new tuxedo. He looked damn sexy in his snug jeans and tight-fitting T-shirts, but there was something
about a man in a great tux that brought all her James Bond fantasies to life.
“Your parents. I noticed they aren’t on the guest list for tonight.”
She pulled her attention back to her assistant, curious as to her line of questioning. “And?”
“And,” Betsy said, “this is their foundation. We usually invite them to all the events.”
“I think they’re in Romania,” Violet said dismissively. “What’s the point in sending them an invitation when it’s just going to stack up with the rest of their mail? We’re trying to raise money, not spend it unnecessarily.”
Betsy was a woman in her late fifties who rarely took nonsense from anyone. As she looked over her tortoiseshell glasses at Violet, her pointed expression made Violet think that perhaps she’d protested too much. Yes, they typically invited her parents. But typically, her lover and father of her child was not also at the event. There was no way they could look at Aidan and Violet together and not at least suspect that he was Knox’s father. Even with a mask on, his hair would give him away.
That would open up a can of worms best left sealed for now. She hadn’t told them about Aidan yet and she wasn’t ready to. He had enough on his plate at the moment without being subjected to the scrutiny of the lovely Mr. and Mrs. Niarchos. They certainly didn’t need the truth blowing up at a black-tie fundraiser with every important person in Manhattan watching with interest lighting their bloodthirsty gazes.
“Well, I hope you’re telling me the truth, because your parents got home from Romania yesterday afternoon.”
Violet stiffened and began nervously fidgeting with her Cartier diamond bracelet. “Oh, did they? They’re not that great at keeping me up to date with their itineraries.”
“Yes, your father came into the foundation yesterday after you’d left for the day. When I mentioned the gala, he seemed surprised to hear about it and that’s when I realized they weren’t on the guest list.”
One Unforgettable Weekend (Millionaires 0f Manhattan Book 6) Page 11