by Jill Sanders
Her smile faded when she saw him, and then her eyes heated as she actually noticed him.
“Good evening.” He held the rose out for her.
“Hi.” She frowned. “Your sister”—she looked back up toward the stairs at the same moment his sister snapped a few pictures with her phone—“is going to die,” she said between gritted teeth.
“Don’t blame her.” He took her hand and started leading her to the limo. His sister continued snapping pictures of them even after he shot her a thank-you look behind Kristen’s back.
“After all, she’s just the puppet. I’m the one that talked her into it.”
Kristen turned toward him. “You?” She swayed in his arms. “You arranged all this?”
He nodded. “Where do you think Amber and Ashley learned it from?” He chuckled and then helped her into the back of the limo. When he walked around, the driver was holding his door open.
After climbing in beside her, he reached over and pulled her closer so they sat in the middle of the large backseat.
“I have something for you.” He pulled out a black package from his jacket pocket.
She blinked a few times as he opened the silk box. Her eyes grew big as she saw the perfect row of pearls that lay on the dark background.
“I . . .” She swallowed. “I can’t . . .” Her green eyes looked up to his.
He set the box on his lap, then reached down, took the string of pearls, and helped her fasten them around her neck.
“There, now everything is perfect.” He leaned down and placed his lips on the nape of her neck and felt her vibrate under his lips.
“Aiden.” It came out as a whisper. “I don’t know what to say.” She turned back to him. Her eyes looked damp.
“Say you’ll forgive me.” He took her hand. “I should have told you my plans the second our relationship changed. I shouldn’t have kept this from you. No matter what.”
“I should have known that with my luck . . .”
He stopped her by putting a finger over her lips. “Don’t . . . don’t blame this on luck.”
“No, I’ve learned to make my own.”
“Then your string of bad luck has ended? And you’ll forgive me?”
She nodded and he felt his heart leap.
He pulled her closer until she was almost in his lap. “We don’t have to show up to this party.”
“Oh no. Your sister didn’t twist my hair and put all this stuff on my face for nothing. I want to go show it all off.”
“At least tell me we can kiss all the way there.” He didn’t know if he could get enough alone time with her before they showed up and he’d have to share her with everyone else.
She leaned closer to him and placed her lips softly on his.
By the time they finally arrived at the party, he was having a hard time concentrating as he mingled with the crowd.
He’d attended several functions like this before but had never really enjoyed himself. Tonight was no exception.
He watched Kristen laugh at something Betty said to her. His mother’s friend Betty Garrison was rounding a hundred years old, but could still move like a fifty-year-old. The woman was half Kristen’s size, but she looked just as elegant as Kristen did. Well, maybe not quite as good.
He’d been pulled into a small group of men who were talking about building permits and what the score was for last night’s game. He wanted to be beside Kristen instead.
It took him almost ten minutes to finally pull himself away from the group. He looked over and saw Kristen stepping out onto one of the back patios of the old house where the party was being held. Mrs. Garrison was from one of Denver’s oldest and most elite families. The large stone house sat on one of the most famous, largest blocks in Cherry Hills.
When he stepped out onto the patio, he saw that she’d walked down the wide stone stairs and was strolling slowly in the moonlight in a small flower garden. There were a few other couples enjoying the night air, but for the most part, the garden was quiet as everyone enjoyed the drinks and music inside.
“Hi.” He walked up beside her and linked his arm with hers.
“Hi.” She smiled up at him. “I can just imagine what this place looked like a hundred years ago.” She glanced around and smiled. “Probably exactly as it does now.”
He nodded and felt a knot in his throat when he looked at her.
“I can almost imagine that we’re there now.” She sighed as he led her to a stone bench and sat next to her. “With this dress, I almost feel like it is nineteen hundred. All I need is a long pair of gloves and a corset.”
“I’d rather believe that you’re not wearing anything under that dress.” His eyes moved over her.
She smiled at him and leaned against his chest. “Your sister was very insistent that I not have any lines show through.”
He groaned. “I can’t decide if I’m going to kill her . . . or thank her.”
Kristen giggled. “That makes two of us. And to think that before you showed up in the limo, I had decided to trust her completely.”
“I learned long ago to always keep one eye open when I’m around those two,” he teased.
She gasped. “Do you think she lied about . . .” She bit her bottom lip. “Never mind.”
“Oh no, you can’t get out of something like that. Spill.” He took her arms in his hands.
She closed her eyes and rested back against his shoulder. “I’d better not say anything. Not until after I talk to her.”
He was about to insist that she tell him what she was talking about when she turned toward him. When he caught sight of the dreamy look in her eyes, he decided to drop the subject.
“Have I told you that you look beautiful tonight?”
She shook her head lightly. “I think we skipped that part.” It came out as a whisper.
He wanted to give her more than just words, but with the party roaring just a few yards away from them, words would have to do for now. He turned her toward him a little until he could look down into her eyes.
“Your beauty is beyond words. It takes my breath away.” He reached out and ran a finger over her chin. “Your eyes are like emeralds. Your lips like candy.” He leaned down and brushed his mouth lightly over hers.
“Aiden,” she said against his skin. “I . . . I never thought . . .”
“Neither did I. I never thought I could fall so hopelessly and madly in love with someone. I never dreamed they would be as wonderful as you are.” He leaned down and kissed her again, this time allowing enough passion behind his lips that he felt her heartbeat jump.
“What do you say we make our excuses and get out of here?” she said when she finally pulled away.
“I thought you’d never ask.” He placed another kiss on her lips quickly and pulled her up off the bench.
They said the fastest good-byes in history and left. He didn’t mind what people thought or said about them. He had plans for the night that were more important than other people’s opinions.
As the limo drove them to their next destination, he kept her busy in the backseat by kissing her until he felt like they had melted the leather interior.
When the car finally stopped, she glanced out the window and frowned. “Where are we?”
“I have another surprise for you.”
She looked over at him just as the driver opened her door. Aiden jumped out first and then helped her out of the back himself.
“If all went well, you’ll have a bag with a change of clothes already inside.” He nodded to the large log cabin.
“Where are we?” She turned to him.
“Do you like it?” He stood back and motioned for her to get a better look.
“Yes, it’s wonderful, but . . .”
“It’s all ours for the rest of the weekend.” He took her hand and st
arted to pull her up a large circular staircase.
Kristen was in shock. Her feet wouldn’t move. She could have sworn she’d heard Aiden say they were going to spend the rest of the weekend in this giant, gorgeous mansion of a log cabin.
From what she could see—and she could see a lot since the place was lit up like a Christmas tree with white lights—the cabin was three stories tall and probably spanned over six thousand square feet.
She hadn’t been paying attention to where the driver had been going, but she could tell they were somewhere in the foothills. They walked up a large spiral staircase and stopped in front of two very big front doors.
“How did you—?” she started to ask, but he just shook his head.
“Let’s just say that a friend owed me.” He leaned down and pulled out a shiny key from under the mat. “Right where I told her to put it.”
“Who?” She frowned as he opened the front door.
He glanced at her from over his shoulder. “My sister.” He smiled and opened the door wide.
Warm air hit her shoulders and she realized that it was quite chilly out, especially since she hadn’t brought a jacket. She stepped inside the brightly lit cabin.
It was beyond anything she’d ever imagined. The entryway was stunning. There was a three-story stone, double-faced fireplace that ran along the entrance wall. She could see through the large firebox into a sunken living room. When he pulled her around the stone wall, the room opened up.
Long hallways ran on either side of the second-floor balconies; from those, doorways led to rooms on both sides. The top floor looked completely open, like it was a loft that ran the entire length of the building. Everything was held up with large, round logs that were stained and shined like new.
Her eyes moved back down to the main floor, which had hardwood floors covered with beautiful area rugs.
The furniture was a little rustic for her taste, but it certainly matched the house. He took her hand and led her into the living room. She could see a large kitchen near the back of the main floor alongside a beautiful dining room that held one of the biggest tables she’d ever seen.
“This is some spread.” She turned toward him.
“Yeah, I’ve always told Tom his family was just showing off when they built the place.”
“Tom?” She shook her head and laughed. “How much does that man owe you for going out with your sister?”
He frowned. “They’re not going out.”
“Oh right.” She tried to hold back her laughter. From the look on Aiden’s face, she got the impression that Tom wouldn’t make it to next year if she continued to talk about it.
“Amber should have stocked the fridge for us.” He walked over and pulled open the door. “Yup. Looks like we’re all set until Sunday night.”
“I can’t stay here that long.” She followed him into the room.
“Why not?” He turned toward her.
“I don’t have . . .” She looked down at the dress. Although it was beyond lovely, there was no way she was going to spend a weekend in the mountains wearing only an evening gown.
“I did mention that Amber packed a bag for you. It’s probably upstairs with my own bag.” He tugged her hand and she followed him up the large three-story staircase.
She thought that he would stop on the second floor, but he continued to the top level. She gasped at the room as they stopped at the top of the stairs.
Instead of a loft, it was a huge master suite, which had large windows on every side. A huge four-poster log bed sat in the middle of the big space. The stone fireplace already had a small fire burning.
“Amber probably started this for us,” he said as he tossed a few more logs on the fire.
“If you want, you can check to see if she packed everything you will need.” He nodded toward two double doors.
She opened the doors wide and walked into the biggest bathroom she’d ever seen. There was an enormous jet tub that sat right in front of a huge window. The glass shower was bigger than her entire bathroom.
Then she noticed the black bag she’d borrowed from Aiden during their trip to Vail and peeked inside. She had to admit, Amber was very thorough.
“Do you have everything?” he asked from the doorway. When she turned and looked at him, he was leaning against the doorjamb. He’d removed his jacket and had rolled up the sleeves of his shirt. James Bond had nothing on him.
She slowly walked to him. “Have I told you how handsome you look tonight?” She ran her fingers down the buttons of his shirt and watched him swallow and shake his head no. “Better than James Bond.”
“Which one?” he joked.
“All of them rolled together,” she purred next to his lips. “Take me to bed, Mr. Scott.” She laughed when he swung her up in his arms and walked across the room to the large bed.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
It was the hardest thing he’d ever had to do, waiting all night at the charity gala until he could finally have her back in his arms. Even though it had only been a week since he’d held her there, it had felt like a lifetime.
As he peeled off the sexy, tight dress she wore, his hands shook and desire raged inside him. Something deep and primitive called him to take what he wanted, hard and fast. Yet another part of him urged him to go slow and show her romance instead.
When her teeth scraped up his neck, he almost lost his control.
“Why are you fighting it?” she moaned as her hands pushed his shirt off his shoulders.
He tried to clear his thoughts, to go slow so she would enjoy it more. But then her nails raked over his skin and he lost the last strings of his control.
She laughed as he quickly flipped her over onto her stomach. His hands spread her thighs wide as he found her heat and ran a finger over her softness there.
When his finger dipped inside her quickly, she gasped into the bedspread. Her knees shook as he kneeled between them, then in one quick motion, he embedded himself deep within her.
“Mine,” he said against the base of her neck. “Say it,” he growled and then ran his tongue up the sweet column of her neck.
“Yes,” she moaned and flexed her hips into him.
“Say it, Kristen.”
“Yours.” She sighed and fisted the bedspread in her hands. “I’m yours.” No, that was not what he wanted to hear. He pulled back, and she cried out when he left her.
“Easy.” He smiled as she rolled over and tried to tug him back toward her. He nudged her shoulders until she turned and lay in front of him. “I want to hear you say it.” He looked down into her sea-green eyes.
“I’m yours,” she said, just before nibbling on her bottom lip.
He leaned down and kissed her lips until he felt her relax again. “No.” He pulled back and ran a finger over her chin. “I love you.”
He watched her eyes clear a little. When she shook her head lightly, he tried not to frown.
“Aiden.”
“You know it’s there,” he said, sliding into her more slowly this time. “You must feel it,” he whispered and watched her eyes close and her head fall back. “Feel it here.” He pushed deeper inside her and held himself still. “Feel it here.” He placed a soft kiss on her lips until she moaned and moved under him.
“Yes,” she whispered as she pulled him closer.
“Yes?” He looked back down at her.
She looked up at him and nodded. “Yes, I love you.”
He smiled and then started to move with her. Her nails dug into his hips as she held on to him. He said those three words over and over as they spent the entire night pleasing one another. He felt like he could spend a lifetime pleasing her, being with her. He was so thankful that she’d forgiven him, given him a second chance.
When the sun came up, the whole house was lit with brightness. They couldn’t escape the light
if they tried since there were no blinds or curtains on any of the windows.
“I guess there is something to be said for having dark curtains,” he said as he threw the blankets over their heads.
“I bet they would spoil the view.” She peeked her head out and sighed. “How am I supposed to stay in bed when it’s so beautiful out?” She sat up and looked out the windows.
“I know how,” he said from under the covers as he ran his hands over her naked body. He heard her moan and then felt her scoot farther down until he had complete access.
An hour later, they were showered and dressed and in the kitchen.
“I’m only here because you promised me waffles.” She frowned as she sat on a barstool.
He laughed. “You’re so easy.”
“Easy? You call making waffles easy?” She motioned toward the kitchen. “Prove it.”
Less than fifteen minutes later, he set a plate of huge waffles smothered with strawberries in front of her. “Easy.” He poured himself another cup of coffee.
“Who’s the easy one? All it took was me challenging you to get you to make me breakfast.”
He sat down next to her to eat his own waffles. “How about a hike today?”
“Seriously? With my luck I’d slide down the mountain or something.”
“There are no mountains. We’re only five minutes into the foothills.”
“Where?” she asked.
“Actually, about ten minutes from your folks’ place.”
“Seriously?” She blinked a few times. “I didn’t know anything like this was around.”
“The cabin is only four years old.”
She shook her head and took another bite of her waffle.
“In that case, I’d be happy to go for a stroll. After all, nothing bad can happen to me if I’m on my home turf.”
Kristen helped Aiden through the doorway.
“I just didn’t see the hole,” he said again. She tried not to laugh. She felt bad for him, especially since she’d seen how swollen his ankle was already.
“I’m not carrying you up all those stairs.” She nodded to the huge staircase.