Felicity chuckled. “I thought you’re an expert already.”
“Blame Google. I thought it was a good teacher.”
“Shall I take over?” Sophie asked, sounding amused.
“Please,” Aidan said with relief. He smothered a smile as he handed the nail clipper to Sophie. What would this cop say if she found out that, using certain IR devices, he’d be able to open coded doors and supposedly secure safes? But there was no way Sophie would ever get to know that. Or Felicity, for that matter—which was a damned shame.
“There,” Sophie said after spending about five seconds in each lock.
“Care to teach us?” Aidan asked jokingly.
Sophie laughed. “Just persist with the Google instructions.”
He turned to Felicity. “Well, I wasn’t any help at all with that. Is there anything else I might be able to do for you?”
“We’ve probably taken up too much of your time already,” Felicity said with a beautiful smile.
“Not at all. I don’t have anything else to do this afternoon.” That was only a half-truth. He had plenty to do. Always. But nothing was urgent right now.
Frankly, he was reluctant to leave. He didn’t know when he’d see Felicity again, and the hold she had on him was preventing him from saying goodbye already. A big part of him wanted to enjoy being around her for a little while longer, even if he couldn’t—wouldn’t—do anything beyond being friendly.
“Well…” Felicity said hesitantly, “if you do have time, maybe you could check out a hot glue gun that’s been donated to us and see if you can figure out what’s wrong with it? Nothing’s coming out, so I’m not sure if it’s just clogged or what.”
“Sure. Let me have a look.”
“I’ll wait for the others outside,” Sophie said. “Felicity, give us a call when Aidan’s finished. See you, Aidan. Nice to meet you.”
“You, too,” he responded.
“Let me get the glue gun,” Felicity said.
While Felicity took out the tool from the cabinet and laid it on the table, Aidan unfolded a couple of chairs. They sat close to each other as he checked out the glue gun. “Looks like a jammed glue stick.” He proceeded to unclog it, then showed Felicity how to clean and maintain the tool, step by step.
He found himself leaning closer to her as he did so. With Felicity also doing the same, their heads slightly touched.
And, for the life of him, he didn’t want to move away.
“That’s…not…hard,” Felicity said breathlessly.
Aidan inhaled sharply. No doubt Felicity was talking about how easy it was to clean a hot glue gun. But, fuck, the way the word hard came out of Felicity’s mouth tickled his cock.
Honestly? Get a grip!
He put some distance between them by straightening in his seat. “Yep, it’s easy. And you just need to make sure you use the right glue stick so it won’t jam again.”
“Okay. My fault for using what we already have. I should have known to check first.”
“Not your fault at all. You didn’t know the sticks you had didn’t go with this type of gun.”
Felicity sent him a sweet, grateful smile, as if touched by his words.
Damn, how he wanted to kiss her and erase any blame she still felt for whatever happened to her in the past. He wanted to tell her that he understood how difficult it had been for her, how courageous she was for continuing to push forward, and how inspiring he found her, especially with what she was accomplishing with the New Again circle.
She’s not an IR, he reminded himself.
His spirits deflated. “I guess I better go. You’ll be starting soon, right?” He stood from his seat.
Felicity checked her watch. “Oh, yes. I should get the girls. They must be in the kitchen with Sophie. We’re allowed to help ourselves to the council’s coffee and tea.”
They walked out of the room together.
“Anytime you need any help…” Aidan shut his mouth. Did he really want to continue offering his services just to see Felicity? For what, when he couldn’t even ask her out? Stupid idiot.
“Thanks. I’ll take you up on that. And I really appreciate your help today—” Felicity’s expression turned to shock as she looked up ahead.
Aidan followed her line of sight and saw a blond woman with a nervous smile approaching them.
“Hi, Fel!” the newcomer said.
“Lydia, what are you doing here?” Felicity asked.
Aidan’s forehead creased. The wariness in Felicity’s tone told him that she wasn’t friendly with this woman.
“Can we talk?” Lydia asked.
“How did you find me here?” Felicity asked rather coldly.
Lydia’s cheeks reddened. “Well, I actually went to your apartment to see you. But I saw you drive away just as I got there. So, I thought I’d see you another time and go to the shops instead. Then, as I was driving, I realised you were headed the same way. When you turned to park here, I decided to follow. I’m…uh…I was too nervous to say hello straight away. That’s why I’ve only shown myself now. Anyway, how are you?”
“Good, thank you. You?”
“I’m okay.” Lydia looked at Aidan. “Hi.”
“Hi,” he answered flatly, taking Felicity’s cue to not be welcoming.
“Felicity!” Sophie called, walking towards them.
The relief in Felicity’s face was obvious. “I have to go,” she said to Lydia in a dismissive tone.
Lydia nodded, giving Sophie a side-eye. “Okay. But I’d really love to talk to you sometime…when you’re ready.”
“Sure. Bye.”
“Bye. Chat soon, okay?” Lydia said before walking away.
“Who was that?” Aidan whispered.
Felicity shook her head. “Someone I don’t want to talk to. Anyway, thanks again.”
“No worries. You okay?”
“Yes.”
The tight smile Felicity gave him proved she hadn’t relaxed yet, but he also knew he was being asked not to ask any more questions. “Okay. I’ll see you again soon. Good luck again in getting the headboard.”
Felicity chuckled, her expression lightening. “Thanks. See ya.”
Aidan kept himself from leaning in to kiss Felicity on the cheek. Instead, he waved goodbye to her and Sophie before heading towards the street. He took out his phone to call an Uber.
It didn’t take long before a car came to pick him up. As he settled in the back seat, his thoughts went back to Felicity’s reaction to Lydia. Why had someone so sweet and considerate as Felicity been so unwelcoming towards that woman?
And how did Lydia know Sophie? Lydia had appeared terribly displeased at seeing the detective.
Ah, he was so intrigued. He’d bet Lydia had something to do with Fel’s ex. But whatever was going on, it was none of his business.
All through the journey home, his unease didn’t disappear, particularly regarding Lydia.
Argh, damn his Indie Rebel instincts. Or was he simply being overprotective of the captivating woman he should be forgetting?
Chapter 4
Felicity led the clapping as the New Again members celebrated their efforts in today’s workshop. Unfortunately, she hadn't gotten the headboard, but she was happy enough with the bookcase she’d ended up with. She had a lot of surface area to work on, and she couldn’t wait to continue making the item a special accent piece for a young girl’s room. She’d already decided to paint a field of flowers on it, and she knew of previous buyers who might be interested in the finished product.
With the workshop having ended, they started to clean up the room. Sophie helped Felicity return the tools and equipment back into the cabinets.
“Sure you’re okay?” Sophie whispered. “You were great today, but I noticed you were deep in thought when you weren’t facilitating.”
Felicity hid a sigh. “I’m fine. Still just thinking of Lydia coming here. She indicated in a text last week that she wanted to discuss the assets that Nolan us
ed to manage for Shannon—their dad—before he went to jail. I already answered that I never had anything to do with it, so there’s nothing for us to discuss.”
“How’s their dad?”
“His dementia’s gone worse, according to Lydia’s text. He’s still in the same nursing home but, apparently, he doesn’t recognise her anymore and can’t answer any of her questions. She’s taken over management of Shannon’s assets.”
“And Nolan’s not cooperating with her, I assume.”
Felicity scoffed. “I wouldn’t be surprised. Anyway, I don’t have any answers for her. And, seriously, I can’t stand her. When she found out that Nolan set fire to my car, she said to my face I must have deserved it. As if she was close to Nolan, when they actually hated each other.”
“I totally understand, but it might help if you have a quick chat just to get her out of your hair. If you like, I can be there when it happens.”
“Thanks, but I really just prefer to not see her.”
“Okay. If you change your mind, just give me a call.”
“Thanks,” she said with a grateful smile.
As they resumed tidying up the room, Felicity’s thoughts kept going back to her ex’s sister.
She’d never gotten along well with Lydia, who’d believed she was as entitled as her brother to live in their father’s house after Shannon had moved into a nursing home. With Nolan having been tasked to manage their dad’s finances, Nolan had negotiated to live in the house rent-free, but he’d refused to let Lydia live there, too.
Then, Felicity had moved in after only four months of dating Nolan.
It had been a crazy time, those first few months living together. From the start, Lydia had tried to make Felicity’s life miserable, which had masked Nolan’s true colours. Nolan had been constantly angry at his sister, and, due to guilt that she was the cause of it, Felicity had tried to get Nolan to work things out with Lydia. Despite Felicity’s efforts, Lydia had continued to accuse her of taking advantage of their father’s wealth.
Felicity had appreciated that Nolan had initially defended her against his sister’s unfounded accusations. Having been orphaned at the age of eight and raised by a stepfather who’d made it clear she wasn’t as favoured as her half-sister, Felicity had felt cared for by Nolan. That had been a big thing as, in her life, only Isla had truly been there for her.
But Nolan had been too intense. He’d always shown jealousy every time Felicity had caught up with Isla, and he’d organise something for the two of them just so Felicity wouldn’t be available to see her best friend. She hadn’t been happy with Nolan then, but, at the time, she hadn’t wanted to be such a needy friend to Isla, who’d been so busy helping her mother grow a fledgling law practice. Before she knew it, Felicity had been stuck in Nolan’s web, unable to free herself.
Felicity inhaled deeply as she remembered exactly when Nolan had started drinking. It had been that day he’d lost his high-paying job. And as weeks had gone by without him finding work, Nolan had gotten drunker more often.
When her life suddenly turned into a nightmare, Felicity had refused to believe it would be ongoing. But the man she’d thought she knew well had turned into a monster and had stayed a monster. When he’d first hurt her, she’d believed it was a one-off, like Nolan had promised. Unbeknownst to her at the time, Nolan had had issues with violence and anger well before she’d met him.
She took deep breaths and deliberately cast her gaze at the bookcase she’d just sanded. She wasn’t with Nolan anymore. She was here, having just finished a workshop with other women who’d chosen to take their power back. Nolan was in the past—and in jail, thank God.
As for Lydia, Felicity just wanted that woman to stay away from her.
Thankfully, Lydia had appeared to recognise Sophie earlier—being the police officer who’d interviewed her after Nolan had been arrested. No matter what Lydia’s purpose was for wanting to see her, Felicity hoped she’d think twice about it after seeing Sophie here today.
“Hey, guys,” said Tessa, a sweet lady who’d been a New Again member since the group’s inception, “I was reading the news this morning about that man who kept two women imprisoned in his basement for years. So glad he’s been caught.”
“I read that, too,” Felicity said. “Scary.”
“I know,” Tessa said. “Apparently, the Indie Rebels were responsible for discovering what this guy had been doing, and they caught him and called the police to pick him up. I have to say, it’s not the first time I’ve read something about those Indie Rebels. Have you dealt with them before, Sophie?”
Sophie scoffed. “No, and frankly, I hope they stop. If they want to help, then they should call the police straight away instead of taking matters into their own hands. They’re simply endangering lives with what they’re doing. To be honest, I don’t like them. I don’t like them at all.”
Felicity nodded. “I agree. Every time I read something about them, I think to myself, why don’t they just leave everything to the police? Why act all heroic and risk messing things up? I think that what they do is just as dangerous to the community as the criminals they try to catch.”
“Absolutely,” Sophie said emphatically. “We all need to do our bit for our community and country, but vigilantism is not the answer.”
The other girls expressed their agreement.
“Do you know any Indie Rebels?” Felicity asked Sophie.
“No. No one seems to know who they are. Which is why it baffles me why some people would want to call on them for help.”
“They’d be the last group I’d think of calling for help,” Felicity said with a shudder. “Imagine asking masked people in all-black outfits for assistance. Terrifying! I’ve experienced enough chaos in my life not to even consider getting involved with people who won’t show their faces to me.”
“Precisely,” Sophie said.
Felicity smiled. She was truly grateful for Sophie’s support and presence. She’d never need the likes of those scary Indie Rebels with Sophie for a friend. Thank goodness for that.
Soon, they were all ready to go home. Felicity said goodbye to the women taking the bus, leaving her and Sophie to walk back to their cars.
“Is Aidan coming back next week to help with something?” Sophie asked.
“Not next week, no.”
“He likes you,” Sophie said teasingly.
Felicity couldn’t help her smile. “You don’t mind?”
Sophie laughed. “Of course not. You can have him.”
She grinned, relieved. “I don’t think anyone can have him. He’s anti-commitment, remember?”
“Oh, yeah. I forgot.”
“But you know what?” Felicity bit her lip.
“What?”
“I’m tempted to do something about our mutual attraction. I’m not ready for a new relationship, but why not enjoy myself in the meantime, right?”
“Yes, why not?”
Felicity was quiet for a long moment. “Because I’m scared. I feel so attracted to him it’s not funny. I could end up getting really hurt, and I’m not ready to get hurt again.”
“Tough decision,” Sophie said sympathetically.
“Yeah.”
Her chemistry with Aidan was undeniable, but would she be able to keep her heart safe if she allowed herself to listen to her body?
Then again, who was to say she’d fall head over heels for him? Physical chemistry didn’t mean love, right?
Perhaps she was being too cautious. Maybe it was time to let her hair down a little bit more.
Hm.
Chapter 5
A week and a half later…
Aidan sat back in his chair at the ten-seater round table in the big dining room of the Indie Rebels’ Control Centre—a gated mansion in the affluent Sydney suburb of Point Piper.
He always loved having meetings with fellow agents here and ensured food and drinks were plentiful, as he was literally also entertaining friends at his place of residen
ce. The property wasn’t his. It was owned by a company, which in turn was owned by another company, and so forth. The chiefs knew how to hide ownership of IR assets.
In his roles as a team leader and Control Supervisor, all he had to do was go down to the basement—called the Main Office—which was set up with the most high-tech of devices and surveillance equipment. From down there, he could supervise any operation happening anywhere via hacked CCTVs.
Several experts in IT and data analysis came every day to work at the Main Office, too, but Aidan was the only one currently calling this house home. He didn’t have any living family members, so no one would need to visit him in a place that was supposed to be a secret.
He didn’t mind that he lived in the hub of the Indie Rebels’ operations, which also acted as one of their safe houses, albeit seldom used as such. Even though his parents had left him three properties in their wills, he’d chosen to stay here as it made the most sense. That enabled him to rent out his two houses and one apartment, giving him a good source of investment income.
As a full-time Indie Rebel, he got “paid” for his “IT work.” He even lodged tax returns as an IT consultant and had a business website. Of course, it was all a front. He had no time for any other career.
In reality, he wasn’t getting a salary. Being an Indie Rebel wasn’t a job. It was an unpaid vocation. Having said that, most of his expenses like food, car, and utilities were charged to his IR-issued credit card, and he didn’t have to pay a cent for staying in this beautiful house. Financially, he was more than comfortable. He was grateful for their billionaire founder and their chiefs—most of whom were millionaires—who ensured that all Indie Rebels had everything they needed and more.
The laughter around the table brought a smile to his face, and he was so damned proud of the eight IRs having dinner with him. He would have liked to say he’d trained and mentored them well to take a bit of credit for them solving one of their biggest cases in half the expected time, but that wouldn’t be fair. Simply, these guys had worked together so seamlessly that he hadn’t needed to help them out much. He’d been able to spend more time training a couple of new initiates.
Aidan: The Rescue (Indie Rebels Book 5) Page 4