After the chapel gave us our CD with our five photographs and paperwork, we headed back to the hotel in a dream-like state. At least for me it seemed like a dream. A weird, weird, weird dream that resembled more of an acid trip than reality. Neither one of us said much, but I was busy thinking about what we’d done, and knowing Aiden, he was thinking about his next preseason game.
We headed into our respective rooms, only exchanging a forced smile from me and a slightly pinched mouth from him. I must have sat on the edge of the bed for at least thirty minutes, simply getting my thoughts together. The walls seemed to close in on me, and I started to feel itchy and restless.
Married. I was freaking married. The woman at the chapel had called me Mrs. Graves.
I married Aiden.
There was no way I could have stayed in that room all night. I was too amped up to work or draw. Crawling out of my skin, I needed something else to keep my mind on. So I thought about all the things I used to imagine doing when Vegas came to mind, and there was really only one thing on the list: I wanted to see a show.
After making sure I had my ID and debit card, I got up and walked into the living area of the suite to find it empty. Peeking into Aiden’s room, I found him asleep on the bed, fully-clothed and completely passed out. One big palm was being used as a pillow and the other was tucked between his thighs, a super-soft, barely audible whistling sound coming out of his mouth.
I glanced at my watch and hesitated for a second. He probably wouldn’t want to go, would he?
Nah.
He didn’t seem like the type to get excited over acrobats and clowns in extravagant costumes, much less crowds. Grabbing the notepad on the nightstand next to the king-sized bed he was on, I jotted down a message.
Aiden—
Going for a walk around the Strip. I might try to catch a show if there are still tickets available. Be back later. I have my phone on me.
-V
I tippy-toed out of the room, slowly closed the hotel door behind me, and I was out of there.
Las Vegas wasn’t exactly the best place in the world for a single female traveler, but with all the people on the street walking around, I figured it could have been a lot worse. It was easy to blend in. I walked down the street and took my time going in and out of some of the shops. Tourists of all ages and nationalities filled the stores, and I didn’t feel as lonely as I thought I would have walking around this unknown city all by myself on the same day I’d married my ex-boss.
I was looking around the M&M store when my phone started vibrating in my pocket. When I pulled it out, Miranda P. flashed across the screen.
“Hello?”
“Where are you?” the raspy, sleepy voice asked.
I named the store with a frown as some asshole shoved me from behind to get to the display in front of me.
Aiden cursed, and I had to pull the phone away from my face to make sure it really was him calling and not his evil twin. “Wait there,” he demanded.
“For what?” I asked just as the line went dead.
Was he coming? And had he just cussed or was I imagining it?
I wasn’t sure. I browsed the store for a while and was barely walking out when I happened to glance in the direction I’d come from. Towering over everyone down the block, was what had to be Aiden’s big head. I couldn’t see his face because his hood was up, but I knew it was him just from the way he held his shoulders. I was too far away to see his eyes, but I could tell he was looking around.
It was a fact that even with his hood on, I could tell he was irritated. I stood off to the side by the doors and watched him make his way around the tourists oblivious to his presence. The second his gaze landed on me, I sensed it and waved.
His mouth went a little funny in a way that I recognized all too well.
What the hell was he mad about anyway?
“What are you doing?” he snapped the instant he was close enough to be heard.
I lifted my shoulders, shoving my glasses up the bridge of my nose in the process. “Walking around.”
“You could have woken me up to come with you,” he practically hissed, stopping a foot away from me.
First off, his attitude was getting on my nerves. Secondly, I wasn’t a fan of the tone of voice he was using. “Why would I wake you up?”
The few inches of his jaw that were visible were tight. “So I could come with you. Why else?”
He was giving me that look.
One, two, three, four, five.
I narrowed my eyes. “I didn’t know you’d want to come. I figured you would rather stay in the hotel room and rest.” After all, he’d been taking a nap when I looked for him.
The long line of his throat rippled. “I would’ve rather stayed in, but I also don’t need you getting kidnapped and being used as a drug mule.”
God help me. I looked around at the thousands of people making their way up and down along the Strip to make sure I wasn’t imagining them. “You really think someone’s going to kidnap me here? Really?”
Aiden’s nostrils flared. He stared down at me.
I stared back.
“You’re already giving me a headache and it’s been four hours.”
“I was trying to be nice and leave you alone, not give you a headache. Come on.” I huffed. “I’m just walking around. I have gone places without you.” A few. But not by myself. I wasn’t going to admit that out loud though, especially now when he was getting all bent out of shape for no reason.
He kept glaring at me, that look that got on my nerves taking over his features inch by inch. “That’s stupid. You’re—what? Five seven? Five eight? A hundred and forty pounds? You can’t walk around Las Vegas by yourself,” he stressed, his tone so tight I reeled back.
I blinked in confusion and surprise. “Aiden, it isn’t a big deal. I’m used to doing things by myself.”
The lids over those big, brown eyes lowered slowly, a deep breath blowing from pursed lips, as if we were the only people on the Strip when that absolutely wasn’t anywhere close to the truth. “Maybe you’re used to doing things by yourself, but don’t be an idiot.” He started off calmly, totally in control. “I didn’t know where you were. There’s crime here—don’t give me that face. I know there’s crime everywhere. We might not be doing this for the reasons most people do, but I made a vow, Van. And I promised you we would try to be friends. Friends don’t let friends wander around alone.” He pinned me with a glare. “You aren’t the only one who takes their promises seriously.”
Uh. What was happening?
Those dark eyes were the steadiest thing I’d ever seen as he said, “I can’t do this without you.”
Well, shit. I wasn’t sure I even knew how to talk after that.
Our marriage—vomit, hurl, and diarrhea—wasn’t real, but he had a point. We had made vows I couldn’t seem to remember because I hadn’t been listening. But the point was, we had made promises to each other even before that, and I didn’t ever want to be the type of person who backed out on their word.
“I won’t go anywhere until you’re a resident, big guy. I promise.”
His gaze swept over my face for the longest second of my life, and eventually, eventually, he cleared his throat. “What is it you want to do?” he grumbled suddenly, as if he hadn’t just said the most meaningful words I’d ever heard come out of his mouth.
To give him credit, he didn’t complain once after I told him the name of the production I wanted to go watch. But I was also clasping my hands together in front of my chest like I was a little kid begging for something. “It’s all I want to go see.”
And I was going to do it regardless of whether he tagged along or not, but he didn’t need to know that yet.
He simply looked back up at the non-existent Nevada stars and sighed. “Fine, but I need to get something to eat afterward.”
I might have bounced up to my toes. “Really?”
“Yes.”
“Really-really?” I swear
I might have been beaming.
Aiden gave me the most pained nod in the history of the world. “Yes. Sure. Let’s go buy the tickets.”
I’d never in my life wanted to pull a Dorothy and click my heels together, but the idea of not walking around Vegas by myself, and with this gigantaur who could have passed for a bodyguard, I found myself grinning at him and clapping. “Okay, let’s go.”
For the sake of his life, I decided to ignore the grimace on his face.
Off we went. The hotel was on the opposite side of the Strip, but we made it with time to spare, snagging the two best tickets possible, which I paid for since I felt guilty he’d been paying for everything, and they were third row seats, so I figured it would be worth every penny spent dipping into my savings.
As we got in line at the concession stand, I could feel myself shaking for the second time in the same day, but this time it was with excitement. Cirque du Lune had come to Dallas in the past, but I’d always talked myself out of shelling out the cash to go. Now that I wasn’t paying rent and business was steady, spending the money didn’t send me into heart palpitations, or falling over with guilt over the extravagance. Plus, I was so pumped, I even signed the receipt with a smile on my face.
“Do you want to share a popcorn?” I asked after we got into the super-long line at the concession stand, so overjoyed I didn’t care that the popcorn was going to cost an arm and a leg.
He started to dip his chin just as I spotted a finger reaching up to tap his arm from behind. Aiden hesitantly turned to come face-to-face with a woman in her forties and a man in the same age range. They were both smiling.
“Could we take a picture with you?” the woman blurted out, her cheeks coloring.
“We’re huge fans,” the man added, his face more red than pink.
“We’ve been following your career since Michigan,” the woman continued on in a rush.
Aiden did that tiny little half-assed smile he conjured up for fans as he nodded. “Thank you. I appreciate it.” That big head turned to face me. “Take the picture?”
The woman smiled sheepishly at me before handing over her phone. I got the camera in focus as the older couple sandwiched Aiden between them—they looked so small in comparison!—and was taking a step back when I caught movement in the sliver of space between Aiden and the female fan. He never put his arm around people in pictures, I’d noticed from the beginning, but always kept his hands at his sides. It was because of that, that I almost missed the small hand motion, but I didn’t, and when Aiden scowled almost immediately, it took everything inside of me not to burst out laughing as I took the shot.
By the time I handed the phone over, we were next in line, and I left Aiden to finish listening to his handsy fans as I ordered popcorn with no butter, a medium soda, and a bottle of water.
“It was so nice meeting you!” the woman called out as Aiden headed toward me once I was out of line.
I barely managed to raise the bag of popcorn to face level when I lost it, peeking at him when I wasn’t blinking away tears.
The fact that Aiden’s ears turned red as he watched me crack up, said he knew what I was dying over. “Don’t say a word,” he gritted.
“Did she grab a handful?” I choked out.
The look he gave me was a mix of ‘you’re an idiot’ and ‘fuck off,’ which only made me laugh harder.
He’d gotten molested. By a fan. Right in front of me.
That split second look of surprise on his face when he got fondled would probably stay with me for the rest of my life.
“Shut up, Vanessa.”
I was dying. He usually just ignored me, but this was so much better. “I’m not saying anything!” I wheezed from behind the bag of popcorn.
Aiden narrowed his eyes, waiting patiently. “Are you done?” he asked after a few more seconds of me cracking up.
I had to wipe at the tears in my eyes with the back of my hand, shaking my head. “I—I—”
He gestured me toward the doors to the theater. “Get inside before they close the doors.” His tone was exasperated and maybe even a little embarrassed. Maybe. Why would getting his butt cheek squeezed rile him up?
I had to swallow raggedly as I wiped at my face one more time, picturing that epic look of shock once more. I lost it again. “Does that kind of thing happen often?”
“No. Would you stop laughing?”
* * *
It was almost two in the morning by the time we made it back to the hotel. I felt happier than I had in forever. The show had been amazing, and dinner at the restaurant in the same hotel as Cirque du Lune after the show had been great. The host had recognized Aiden and gave us the best and most secluded table so Aiden could be left in peace. It had seriously been nice, even if Aiden hadn’t talked much while we ate. I didn’t go out often, but deciding to explore instead of staying in to work that night seemed like one of the best ideas I’d had in forever.
So when we got inside the living area to the suite and started going in opposite directions toward our rooms, I stopped at the doorway to mine and turned to look at the man I’d signed papers with hours ago. He was visibly tired, after all, he usually went to bed by nine at the latest, and he looked beyond exhausted.
Why wouldn’t he though? He’d played a preseason game twelve hours ago and only managed to nap twice since then. Damn it. This sense of unwanted affection seeped its way into the place between my breasts.
“Thank you so much for staying up and coming with me,” I said, squeezing my hands at my sides as I smiled at him. “I had a really good time.”
Aiden nodded, one corner of his mouth moved a millimeter, but it was a millimeter that could have moved a mountain. “Me too.”
I was too soft to be excited by that sliver of a smile. “Good night.”
“Night.”
It wasn’t until after I showered and had snuggled under the covers that I finally let myself sink into reality. I was a married woman.
Chapter Eleven
“Where are you going?”
With one hand on the staircase handrail, I finished thrusting my heel into my tennis shoe and glanced up at the man standing in front of me with a wary look on his lightly bearded face. “I’m going for a run. Why?”
The big guy glanced down at the overpriced accessory on his wrist, an expensive workout watch I know he’d gotten for free because I’d been the one to open the box when he got it. “It’s five o’clock,” he said, as if I didn’t know how to read time.
I did, and I’d learned how to a long, long time ago.
He’d gotten home about an hour ago while I was upstairs going over the fifth draft of a paperback cover for an author I’d decided never to work with again. The guy was driving me nuts, changing his mind from one revision to the next, and if it wasn’t for my motto—never leave a client unhappy because they’ll tell everyone you suck—I would have told him to shove his money down his throat and find someone else.
Yeah, I was feeling on edge, and I knew I needed to get out of the house for a little while, even if it was already later than I normally would have liked to go for a run. So I’d been surprised when I first heard Aiden make his way from the kitchen into the foyer where I was trying to finish getting ready to leave.
We hadn’t seen each other much since we’d gotten back from Las Vegas a little over a week ago, but things had been fine. It was kind of weird how the trip had sort of relaxed me around him, and it seemed like the sentiment was mutual. Aiden had even started knocking on my doorframe when he walked by my room when he got home. He didn’t say much more than, “Hey,” loud enough to be heard over the music I liked to play while I worked, but it was something, I thought.
“I’m only doing five miles,” I let him know right then, grabbing my other shoe off the floor and balancing on one foot to slip it on like I had the other one. It was a lot harder than it should have been, mainly because I was too aware he was watching me, probably expecting me to fall.
�
�It’s going to get dark soon,” he said, as I struggled to get my heel into my tennis shoe.
“I’ll—damn it—I’ll be fine.” I started to fall over, flailing an arm out for balance, and instead, getting a big hand catching my elbow to keep me steady. I flashed him a sheepish look and let some of my weight lean on him as I finally got my heel in. “Thanks.” I took as step away. “Anyway, it shouldn’t take me more than a little over an hour. I’m still running a little slow, but I won’t be gone long.”
Aiden blinked those great, dark eyelashes at me before reaching up to scratch at his chin, those lean cheeks puffing just slightly. Resignation, that clear, clear emotion that seemed to melt its way down from his hairline and over that perpetual wrinkle between his eyebrows and the sides of his mouth, had me blinking.
“Give me a minute,” he sighed as he moved around me and jogged up the stairs, two at a time, the house shaking in response. Briefly, I feared for the life of the stairs. Then I realized what he was doing.
Was he…?
“You don’t have to come with me,” I shouted, taking a moment to absorb those perfect glutes and rock solid calves defying gravity as they made their way up the stairs. Why would he even want to come along, anyway? The memory of what he’d said in Las Vegas when I took off on my own suddenly came back to me. You aren’t the only one who takes their promises seriously.
“I’m not asking,” he yelled back just as he reached the clearing.
Torn between thinking it was nice and cute that he didn’t want me going out for a jog alone at dusk, I remembered how important it was for him—for big guys in his position in general—to keep their cardio to a minimum. They couldn’t afford to lose weight when they needed to keep their size, especially someone with a diet like Aiden’s, who had to consume more physical food than someone who ate meat to get an appropriate amount of calories and not go hungry. It was why Aiden worked out so hard during the day and made a severe effort to rest as much as he could during his off time.
Then I wondered, could he even run five miles?
The Wall of Winnipeg and Me Page 17