He didn’t want to wake her, so Aaron eased into the bed next to her, and as if she sensed him, she turned into him and wrapped her arms around his chest. She murmured she loved him and then she was sleeping again.
Just having her in his arms helped him relax and feel like everything would be okay. Bethany gave his life meaning, and he felt more focused on everything. For the first time in his life, he felt like his life was going somewhere. As soon as all the shit was over Aaron would ask Bethany the question he never got to ask her thirteen years ago.
Aaron woke up to something warm sliding down his stomach and slipping into his boxers. He smiled as a hand wrapped around his hardening cock, and he moaned at the slow stroking.
“This is an amazing way to wake up.” Aaron opened his eyes and turned his head toward Bethany’s smiling face.
“I have to agree.” Bethany lifted her head and pressed her lips against his chest while she slowly stroked him.
“That feels so damn good.” Aaron thrust his hips up in time with her strokes.
Aaron rolled onto his side and grinned when he noticed she was completely naked next to him. Aaron slipped his boxers down over his hips and kicked them off as best he could without pulling his dick away from the pleasure of her hand stroking him.
“I love waking up with you next to me.” Aaron kissed his way across her jaw and down the side of her neck.
“Especially when you wake up with my hand around your little friend.” Bethany giggled.
“That’s a bonus, but the best part is my heart feels alive again.” Aaron pulled her hand from his cock and pressed it against his chest. “You have always owned my heart. I could never give it to anyone else.”
“Aaron, I love you so much. I can’t wait until that guy gets caught and we can move on together.” Bethany brushed her lips across his.
“And it will be together. I promise you that.” With those words, he rolled her over on her back and covered her mouth with his.
He plunged his tongue into her mouth as he moved above her. The urgency to make love to her was overpowering, and he used his knee to separate her legs while Bethany’s hand caressed his body. She met his kiss with a passion that matched his own.
Aaron pressed his throbbing erection between her wet folds and pushed inside. It took him less than a second to realize he’d forgotten something.
“Damn, Bethany. Fuck… Condom.” Aaron moaned as he tried to stay still.
“I’m on the pill, remember.” Bethany wrapped her legs around his hips and used her feet to push him deeper.
“I’m clean. I swear.” Aaron was still afraid to move.
Being inside her with nothing between them put him in a state of euphoria he never felt before. He hadn’t even come, and he already felt like he was having an out-of-body experience. The heat of pussy surrounding his dick felt intensified, and her wetness surrounded it.
“This feels so fucking good.” Aaron groaned as he pulled his hips back and slowly slid back inside.
“Aaron, don’t stop.” Bethany panted as he increased his thrusts.
“Baby, I couldn’t even if I tried.” Aaron groaned as he felt her tighten around his dick and she trembled under him as an erotic moan escaped her lips.
It was enough to drive him over the edge, and he pumped into her once more. The pressure in the tip of his dick was almost painful as he slammed into her and exploded. Aaron didn’t know if it was that he was completely bare inside her or if it was because it was Bethany, but the intensity of the orgasm caused every muscle in his body to contract, and he shook with pleasure.
“Baby, yeah.” Aaron roared as he tried to hold himself up and keep himself from dropping his weight on top of her.
Aaron managed to muster the strength to roll over on his back and pull her on top of him. She was as boneless as he was and he chuckled when she let out a huge sigh.
“That’s a satisfied sigh.” Aaron kissed the top of her head.
“Uh huh.” Bethany lifted her head, and the smile on her face probably mirrored his own.
“Can I tell you something?” Aaron grinned.
“You can tell me anything.” She rested her cheek against his chest.
“I’ve been looking at a house on Beach Street. The one that’s right on the beach.” Her smile disappeared, and he faltered.
“That’s your parents’ house.” Bethany’s confusion made his anxiety ease a little.
“No, the one on the end of the beach up above our spot.” Aaron grinned.
“That one’s been abandoned since we were in high school?” Bethany wrinkled her nose.
“Yes, I’ve asked Keith and Billie’s brother to have a look at it,” Aaron explained. “I’ve been eyeing it for years, but when I’d think about taking that step, I’d back out because it was too hard to be that close to our cove.”
“Aaron.” Bethan cupped his cheek.
“Anyway, Keith said the house has a great foundation, and all I have to do is tear down the structure and rebuild.” Aaron tried not to get excited about the prospect.
“You want to build a house there?” Bethany’s voice didn’t show any hint of her emotions.
“I want to build a house there. I want us to build a home there together” Aaron emphasized the word us.
“Me and you?” He could sense the slight tremor in her voice.
“Yes, you and me.” Aaron smiled.
Bethany jumped out of bed and quickly pulled on the clothes she’d been sleeping in when he’d crawled into bed a few hours earlier. It was a little after six in the morning and his words caught in his throat as she practically ran out of the room.
Aaron sat up in the bed and dropped his head into his hands. It was too soon, or maybe she wasn’t ready to take that step with him. Perhaps she wasn’t even planning to stay in Hopedale.
“Fuck.” Aaron blew out a breath.
“Aaron?” He lifted his head.
Bethany stood at the foot of the bed with her laptop and a bunch of papers in her arms. She walked around and crawled on the bed, and she was wearing a grin from ear to ear.
“What are you…” Aaron stopped speaking when she turned her laptop toward him.
The screen showed a picture of the run-down house on the beach and Aaron glanced at Bethany in confusion. She handed him the pile of papers she’d brought into the room as well. Aaron started to shuffle through them and realized what it was she was telling him.
“You were looking at the house too?” He lifted his eyes to meet hers.
“I fell in love with that area years ago. Almost as much as I loved you. As much as I still love you. I asked my dad to have a look to see if it was still there and what he thought about it.” Bethany linked her arm into his. “He said it was a piece of shit and needed a complete renovation.”
“Pretty much what Keith said too.” Aaron laughed.
“I told him I didn’t care and that I wanted him to look into who owned it and if they’d been willing to sell it. Dad said the town owned it because it was abandoned years ago. They’d be willing to sell it as long as the old house was torn down…” Aaron interrupted her rambling because he’d done the same thing.
“And a new house put there.” Aaron finished.
“Yeah, they told me someone else asked about the property as well.” Bethany laughed.
“Yeah, me.” Aaron shook his head.
“Apparently.” Bethany sighed.
“You’d really like to live there?” Aaron gazed into her eyes.
“I would.” Bethany ran her thumb across his lower lip.
“I’ll get Mike to look into getting this started and have Billie help him out with the real estate shit. She has her license now, and her friend Abbie can probably help us get this on the ball.” Aaron jumped up on his knees and tossed the papers on the floor.
“I want our bedroom to have lots of windows so that we can look out at the ocean.” Bethany jumped up to her knees as well.
“You can have whatev
er you want.” Aaron pulled her into his arms.
“Can we call Billie’s brother now? He’s the architect, right?” Bethany grinned.
Her excitement was contagious, and he laughed as she excitedly clapped her hands. He’d waited thirteen years to be with the woman he loved, and it was better than he could ever imagine.
“I think it’s a little early, but I’ve got a great idea to kill a little time until it’s an acceptable time to call,” Aaron smirked as he eased her back on the bed and stripped her out of the thin sleep shirt and shorts.
“I like your ideas.” Bethany giggled as she pulled him down and killed some time.
Chapter 27
Bethany almost felt guilty about being so excited. She’d been so shocked that Aaron had been on her same train of thought with the house. That house had been rundown years ago, but she remembered imagining it as a place where she and Aaron would live.
Funny how that dream could become a reality. That was if the police could get Slash behind bars and find Quintin. Even in her excitement, she was sick with worry for the kid. She’d prayed that he was okay and would contact someone to let them know where he was.
If he’d been a typical teenager, they could have tracked him by his cell phone. Unfortunately, the family couldn’t afford it. She’d called Denise earlier that day and told her if she needed anything to let Bethany know. It was hard to believe that one of the girls who used to make her miserable was in such a terrible situation.
Aaron sat with Sandy at the kitchen table while Bethany shuffled through some papers that Craig had sent her. They were more invoices that he’d found in Randy’s office once the police allowed him to go in and clear it out.
With the news of what happened, Craig’s business was in a tailspin, and he’d lost most of his customers. He’d basically given up and was in the process of dissolving the company. Bethany wasn’t worried about finding another job, but she was concerned about his well-being.
“This guy had Levi fooled completely.” Bethany heard Sandy say.
She’d been looking through Larry’s computer all morning and most of the afternoon. There were more than a hundred emails between Larry and Levi talking about how the young man was doing a public service by bringing the drug dealers to justice and that he’d make sure he got into the right programs at the university.
“If this guy weren’t dead, I’d want to kick the fucking shit out of him.” Sandy was pissed that he’d put a kid in danger that was only trying to better himself by helping get criminals off the street.
They’d found out the money Levi had given his sister was the payment he got for being a secure informant. Larry told Levi only specific people attained the position. Of course, no such position in the police department existed, and when Aaron told Jordan what Larry did, Jordan had turned completely red with anger.
“I think you’d have to beat Jordan to that.” Aaron snorted.
“I haven’t known him that long, but he doesn’t seem like the kind to lose his cool very often,” Sandy said as she continued to click away on her laptop.
“He’s not, but I think I’d be thrown for a loop if I found out one my cousins did something like this.” Aaron raised an eyebrow.
“Me too,” Sandy agreed.
Bethany glanced down at that invoices on her lap and stopped. She saw a name scrawled at the bottom of the page that didn’t belong on the document. It was terrible writing, and she lifted it closer to see if she could see it better.
“Aaron, I think I have something here.” She jumped up when she realized what she was reading.
“What?” He met her halfway across the room.
“Remember I said that woman called Slash by the name Melvin?” She glanced up.
“Yeah,” Aaron looked down to where she was pointing.
“That says Melvin Archer. I’m pretty sure.” Aaron took the paper from her and studied it.
“Sandy, look up this name.” Aaron and Bethany stood behind his sister-in-law as she searched.
While they waited, Bethany and Aaron discussed what they wanted in their future home. Aaron’s phone vibrated in his pocket, interrupting their conversation. From Aaron’s expression, he didn’t recognize the number but tapped the screen and put it to his ear.
“Hello?” Aaron put his finger in the other ear as if it was hard to hear the caller. “Can you speak up? I can’t hear you.”
Aaron listened for a moment and then his eyes widened. He put his hand on Sandy’s hands to get her to stop typing as he tapped the speaker on his phone.
“Quintin, where are you?” Aaron spoke into the phone.
“I’m hiding behind Slash’s hideout. He’s on the phone talking to someone. Mr. O’Connor, he’s going after your girlfriend’s nephew to get her to come out of hiding. He said he was going to grab him at school.” The whispered voice caused Bethany’s blood to run cold.
“Quintin, how are you calling me?” Aaron asked.
“I can’t tell you. You’ll get mad.” Quintin sighed.
“Buddy, I need you to tell me how to get in touch with you.” Aaron’s voice was calm, but his expression was showing anything but ease.
“I stole some money out of that bag and bought a prepaid phone.” Quintin sounded so guilty.
“That’s okay, pal. Text me the number and where you are. I’m coming to get you.” Aaron wrote something on a piece of paper and handed it to Sandy, and she started to click on the computer keys frantically.
“I’m safe. Just get to Mia’s friend. He’s a good kid, and this asshole will hurt him until he gets his way.” Quintin sounded too overconfident.
“Quintin, this is dangerous. Let the police handle this and get out of there.” Aaron’s jaw clenched.
“No. This guy killed my brother.” Quintin raised his voice a little.
“Don’t fuck up your life by doing something stupid. Send me the address, and we’ll get this guy.” Bethany could see the muscles in Aaron’s arms flexing as he tried to stay calm.
“I’ll send you the address. Wait.” Quintin was quiet for what seemed like a long time.
“Quintin?” Aaron placed his hand on the top of his head and fisted his hair.
“Get to the school. He’s on the way to get the kid.” With that statement, the call ended.
“Fuck, fuck Fuck.” Aaron tapped frantically into his phone and put it to his ear.
“I think I got his location narrowed down. He’s somewhere near Pleasantville.” Sandy glanced up at Aaron.
“I need you to find Cameron Sullivan and make sure he doesn’t leave the school until a police officer shows there to escort him home.” Aaron practically shouted into the phone.
“I’ll call Ally.” Bethany’s hand shook as she tapped her sister’s phone number.
After several rings, the phone went to voicemail, and Bethany realized her sister was probably still at work. She didn’t answer her phone when she was in with patients.
“Thanks, Joey.” Aaron sighed and made another call.
“Why would Joey be at Cameron’s school?” Bethany had her arms wrapped around herself.
“He coaches kids’ basketball, and he’s there every day by two.” Aaron was pulling on his jacket when his phone beeped.
“Aaron?” Bethany didn’t like the look on Aaron’s face.
“Joey just saw Cameron and Mia Watts getting into a car with a man,” Aaron growled.
“Oh God.” Bethany started to shake.
“Baby, I’ll find him.” Aaron pulled her into his arms and kissed the top of her head.
“Let’s go.” Sandy was next to the door.
“Where are you going?” Bethany asked.
“I’m a cop too, remember?” Sandy smiled. “And I really want to see this prick brought to his knees.”
“Be careful, Aaron. Both of you.” Bethany glanced at Sandy.
Crunch was walking into the house with Hulk behind him. They’d obviously been filled in because they didn’t even question wh
ere Sandy and Aaron were running off too in such a hurry.
“Crash is gone to get your sister and Trunk is gone to get your dad. They’re bringing them here.” Hulk led her over to the armchair and helped her sit.
“He has Mia too.” Bethany glanced up at Hulk.
“I know, Rick has someone going over with the family.” Hulk crouched in front of her.
“They’re just kids.” Bethany couldn’t stop the tears.
“I promise you, A.J. and the rest of the guys won’t let anything happen to Cameron.” Crunch handed her a box of tissues.
“He killed Levi and Randy without blinking an eye.” Bethany sobbed.
“And A.J. and the police will make sure he gets what’s coming to him.” Hulk patted her knee.
Bethany leaned forward and wrapped her arms around her waist as she tried to stay positive and prayed that Aaron would bring Cameron and Mia back safe.
Twenty minutes later, she sat on the couch with her sister and father, waiting to hear from Aaron. It seemed like hours since he left and Bethany was sure Allyson would snap if anything happened to Cameron. Bethany wasn’t sure she’d be able to handle it herself. The only way she knew to help her was to beg for his guardian angel.
Trent, your son is in danger. Please keep watch over him and the girl until Aaron gets to them.
As if her sister could read her mind she grabbed Bethany’s hand and said her own prayer to her late husband.
“Trent, please help him be brave. He’s got so much of your courage inside. Help him dig down and keep himself strong until the police get to him. Please, baby, help our son.” Allyson’s tears streamed down her cheeks, and it wasn’t hard to see that her sister was not only tearing Bethany’s heart out but Crash’s as well.
Chapter 28
Aaron stood across the table from Darryl Lambe with rage flowing through his body. Quintin hadn’t gotten back to Aaron with the address, and all they knew was Sandy was able to narrow it down to the old military base in St. John’s, but Pleasantville was still a big area. So Aaron was working on the weakest link of the gang while Sandy tried to track Quintin.
Dangerous Witness (O'Connor Brothers Book 7) Page 20