Gemma backed into her doorway, disappointed that he had made an excuse not to come on their excursion.
“Mid morning I would think, but I’ll let you know at breakfast. I don’t suppose anyone is going to rush to get up.” She looked along the corridor as she heard a loud snore coming from William’s room.
His door stood wide open and the bedroom light shone out into the hallway as usual. He’d confessed during his first week at the château that he was scared to sleep alone in his dark room. He was afraid that if he woke and opened his eyes to darkness, it would mean he was totally blind. Although he knew that it was still a possibility, he couldn’t wrap his head around the thought of never seeing anything again. He might only just be able to see shapes and outlines, but even that was better than eternal darkness. He left his door open because he thought he’d go mad if he couldn’t find his way out of his room. Her heart had lurched in her chest when the young man expressed his fears and she promised that she would always make sure his door stayed open wide. She drew her eyes back to Aaron. “Will’s such a nice kid. Breaks my heart to see him stumbling about like that, but makes me proud too to see him struggling so bravely...” She waved her hand, indicating the rest of the rooms along the corridor. “All this...all this stuff going on here with everyone, all the destruction of their lives, their dreams, it’s wearing on the mind and the body.” Her tone was gentle but sorrowful too.
Aaron brushed his fingertips against her cheek.
“They still have dreams, Gemma. Maybe slightly different ones now, but they still have them. It’s people like you who help them realize that they still have something to live for.”
She shook her head and sighed.
“I’m the worst one to do that. Look at me earlier. A complete wreck over a flipping dress. I can’t even hold myself together over a little thing like a missing arm. Imagine what I would be like if I had been Jason and had both legs blown off or blinded like William and Paul. They are all so much stronger than me. I am pathetic.”
Aaron laughed softly as her lips turned downwards.
“You’re perfect. We all have faults, and you are allowed to cry on occasions. I bet the guys do often enough, though they probably wouldn’t ever let anyone know about it.”
Gemma huffed out a breath and shook her head.
“Me, perfect? You are crazier than I first thought, though you’re probably right about the guys. The biggest hearts shed most tears.” She tried to hold back a yawn but failed miserably. “And they would probably never admit to exhaustion either, but all that dancing will have tired them. I’m tired too, to be honest.” She reached behind her and opened the door before she slipped inside the darkened room. “Good night, Aaron,” she said softly as she peered out of the closing door at him.
Aaron stood and gazed back at her quietly for a moment longer. He let out a long breath and lifted his hand in a small wave.
“Night then, Gemma. See you in the morning.”
She closed her door while he stood there and then leaned back on it as she listened to him move off slowly along the corridor. Sighing, she pushed off the door and walked further into her room, flicking the light switch as she went. She slipped off the beautiful dress, hanging it up in the wardrobe before she tended to her arm and eventually slid between the cool sheets of her huge bed.
She lay staring up at the silk canopy and sumptuous drapes that cascaded around her bed and for a few moments she felt like princess. If only Aaron could be her prince. She leaned over and turned off the light before she closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. She could feel where his hands had touched her waist, her back. Heat flared through her and she fidgeted as she attempted to think of anything but the handsome airman. Her mind pondered over menus that they might devise for the next week’s cooking contest, but that led to her remembering his hands dipping in the pastry crumbles or the way his mouth moved when he ate his bread and cheese.
She opened her eyes again and rolled to her side as she dispelled the distracting thought and caught sight of a glimmer of scarlet silk where her wardrobe door stood open a fraction. She began thinking of the all the other lovely outfits hanging in her wardrobe and deliberately denied herself any thought of Aaron, but it was no good. She drifted off to sleep before she knew it and all she could dream about was herself trying on every single one of Geraldine’s fabulous dresses with Aaron taking very little time to tear them all off again.
Aaron sat on the edge of his bed and unclipped his plastic brace before he toed off his socks. He unbuttoned his shirt and eased it from his shoulders. Heat remained where Gemma had lain her hands as they danced and his own palm tingled where he had held her slender waist. He’d been able to feel the tight muscles that wrapped her sides and he remembered how she had affected him while he had been swimming. The sight of a pair of shapely buttocks as she slithered out of the pool had nearly undone him. His blood had raced south and he’d had to swim about for far longer than he had intended. Even then he’d needed a freezing cold shower to calm his errant body.
He couldn’t remember any woman ever affecting him so intensely, but it wasn’t only her beautiful body that held his attention. She had a lively mind and a quick wit that she used regularly on him and all the other guests. She clearly held Ben and Karl wrapped securely around her little finger and, as he felt his own heart rate pick up and at the thought of either of the two men being anywhere near her while she wore only a swimming costume, probably him as well. He’d only not minded William dancing with her because the lad was so much younger that the rest of them.
He removed his trousers carefully, holding the material wide to allow room for the spikes of metal sticking out of his ankle, and folded them over the back of the chair. He lay down on his back and dragged the quilt over him.
He wasn’t comfortable, but then he never would be with the pins sticking out of his leg. He had the limited choice of lying on his back or front and he disliked both positions, but if he lay on his side the spikes constantly rucked the bedclothes or caught the skin on his other leg and if he attempted any other position he had to twist his body to accommodate them. He’d almost wished they had given him the option of a plaster cast, though having to use a crutch all the time didn’t appeal to him either.
He tried to stop thinking about his limbs, but lying on his back was giving him even more trouble tonight as it had done every night since he’d arrived, and lying on his front was going to be downright impossible. Thoughts of Gemma lying naked, lithe, warm and beautiful only a few doors away exploded into his brain. He took some deep breaths as he tried to calm his spiralling heart rate and take control of his raging libido.
He glanced at the clock on the bedside cabinet. It was way past midnight. Only a few more hours of this self induced torture and he could see the distracting woman again.
His mind drifted back to seeing her in the rich, jade coloured dress. He didn’t think she had worn a bra beneath it. He certainly hadn’t felt one as his hand slid up her back while they danced. He groaned as he visualised the sight of her tight nipples rubbing against the silk lining. All he could think about was catching hold of the scooped neckline between his shaking hands and ripping it down the middle, releasing her breasts from the confining material and spilling them into his welcoming palms.
He gave up trying to sleep, threw back the covers and walked into the shower room. He rolled his eyes as his glass hard erection slapped relentlessly against his flat stomach and he groaned at the prospective agony he was about to endure. He stuck both his hand and leg into protective bags before he turned the water temperature down to its coolest setting and hissed in a breath as he stepped beneath the icy spray.
Five minutes later and he wasn’t even sure if cold water treatment would work. He looked down at himself and gritted his teeth as he groaned in frustration. He was still as hard as granite and he had the unsettling feeling that he was going to be in for a very long night.
Chapter Five
Aaron yawned as he watched the group from his bedroom window. Gemma was back in her usual baggy trousers and t-shirt ensemble again, but it didn’t stop him imagining that he had x-ray vision and could see right through her outer garments to her skimpy underwear beneath.
She had been right. None of the men had risen early. He’d only just awoken after eventually dropping off to sleep at somewhere around daybreak and it was now nearly eleven.
He laughed as Gemma put her hands on her hips and faced down the gigantic Jason who stood nearly a foot taller than her. Her curly hair bobbed as she made her point while Joe stood alongside her. A heated discussion appeared to be taking place.
Aaron opened his window a crack and listened to the conversation. They were too far away to catch all of their words but it appeared that Gemma was exasperated with the big man who was now clearly affronted by something Joe had said. She rolled her beautiful brown eyes as they slugged it out verbally before Jason obviously gave in, threw up his hands in defeat and stomped off along the driveway.
Joe shook his head and held up three fingers at Gemma who nodded before he made his way back to the Range Rover that stood on the drive. He took the keys out of the ignition and marched back into the château. Aaron could read the situation immediately. Joe was obviously meeting them with the car in three hours time and Jason felt that his stamina was being called into question.
He snorted as he admired the guy’s stubborn pluck. There was no way it was going to be easy clambering over rocks with two prosthetic legs. Aaron wondered if it was even possible. He leaned down from his chair and scratched the skin around the pins in his ankle and lower leg. He couldn’t wait to be rid of them but knew it would take a few more weeks before his bones would heal completely. Seeing what Jason and his friends were going through, he made his mind up never to complain about his ankle again.
He lifted his head at the sound of an incoming email on his laptop and, as he stared at the name of the sender, he wondered if he had the courage to open it. He took a deep breath and hit the download attachment icon.
It only took a few seconds to discover everything he needed to know and his heart sank as he opened the attachment that had come along with the email. It was all there in front of him in black and white and every shade between. There had only been five helicopter crashes approximately eight to ten years previously. Gemma hadn’t given specific dates as to the crash in which she had been involved, but she had said that she was two years into her service. Given that he knew she had left the forces nearly two years previously and had served ten years, he’d given a whole three years as his time scale for investigation. Four of the five crashes had been in the right general area, three of them had one hundred percent fatalities. He leaned back in his chair as he wondered what to do.
Nothing! Was his first thought, but he knew he couldn’t leave it. His own pride and sense of justice wouldn’t let him. He would have to take it further if he ever wanted his job back, though he wasn’t even sure that any new evidence was even enough for that. He had to see if he could discover anything new. It might be a risky move. He was loath to ask too many questions for fear of having the case shut down in his face, as it had been once before.
He shoved his chair back and stood up. He needed something to eat, something to take his mind off the thoughts clouding his brains. He glanced back out of the window as he heard another vehicle crunch along the driveway and instantly recognized the man behind the steering wheel. Patrick Reeves had given them their pastry lesson, but now he sat hunched in the driver’s seat of a car that, though large, still looked far too small for his massive frame. Aaron moved quickly back from the window. He stood in the shadow of his curtains and glanced down onto the driveway.
Patrick parked his car beside Joe’s Range Rover and stepped out quickly, but not so quickly that Aaron didn’t notice a hint of metal limb above his shoe. As he stood straight, the man’s trouser leg dipped and covered his prosthetic limb again.
Aaron took a deep breath. Another wounded soldier, far more wounded than he was himself. He felt such a fraud. He was wasting these peoples’ time and money being there, taking up the space of a truly injured soldier, but the crash, his ruined hand and his smashed ankle were keeping him grounded, and while the military carried out the latest investigation, his CO wanted him well out of the way. He knew exactly what they were doing even if it was dressed rather differently. This rehabilitation centre was his temporary prison.
He peered down at the drive again.
Paul had come out of the office. He held his white cane beneath his arm and was shaking Patrick’s hand in greeting. Patrick glanced up towards Aaron’s window and then took hold of Paul about the shoulder before guiding him onto the walkway that led around the château to the gardens and newly commissioned swimming pool. Aaron continued to watch them as they began talking seriously, only turning away when they turned the corner of the château and were lost to sight.
He wasn’t comfortable with Reeves being there and desperately wanted to know what he and Paul were discussing. From the wary glance Patrick had made up at his window he was pretty sure it was him.
He shut down his emails, re-set his password as he did after every interaction on the internet and then closed the machine down. He grabbed a pen and paper and headed out of his room and down towards the kitchen. He’d seen some recipe books on a shelf and hoped to gather some ideas while Gemma was out, or that’s what he was going to tell everyone he was doing, if he was discovered.
Patrick and Paul took a slow walk along the path around the château, towards the orchard. The estate was looking good and all signs of restoration had been landscaped away. He asked how the centre and everyone in it, was faring.
Paul pulled his cane out from beneath his arm and tapped it against the wall, making sure of his bearings before he replied.
“No problems at all as far as I know. Joe’s been a massive help, but Gemma is doing a great job with all the guys. She has them eating out of her hand. They’ve really taken to her and her softer side has come out too. The dance was a brilliant idea. I think everyone is gaining from this experience.”
They stopped beneath an apple tree as they came to the end of the walled garden.
“That’s great. I knew you would make this work. There are three more guys coming in at the end of the month so you are going to have your hands full, though Aaron Thomas might be leaving fairly quickly as he’s not down for an unlimited stay.” Patrick picked two apples from the tree beside the path and touched Paul’s hand before he gave one to his friend. He took a big bite from his own and listened to Paul while he chewed the delicious fruit.
Paul’s first words were wary.
“I heard what happened in the kitchen the day after he arrived.” He paused and waited to see if Patrick would comment, but he didn’t. “He’s seems like an alright guy actually. Amy says that his hand injury looks nasty, but Amy’s looked at it a couple of times and she thinks he’ll be fine. They want him home in three weeks to continue his treatment.” Paul crunched his own apple.
Patrick took another bite of the fruit before he replied.
“I confess that when he walked into your kitchen I was convinced that he was one of the guys from my old team. I nearly passed out when I saw him. The similarities are incredible. Not many people have a jaw that square or eyes that shade. If Gemma hadn’t got in my face I’m not sure what I would have done.” Patrick breathed in deeply. He stared into the orchard for a long moment before he spoke again. “Our teams were getting picked off one at a time with monotonous regularity. There had to be a leak, but we didn’t know where and for a time a pilot called Ryan Taylor was under suspicion. He had access to all our co-ordinates in case we needed a quick out, but I set up a trap and proved that it couldn’t have been him who had sold our secrets because I’d only decided to take that particular route the day before. He’d never had my co-ordinates or plans in time to reach anyone to sell them. I’d done the recon on the area
myself. Obviously not well enough, but you’ll never hear one of my men say that. Taylor picked us all up even while we were still being fired upon. Took a hell of a risk getting us out of there but we would have all died without him. When I saw Aaron walk through that kitchen door I thought...I could have sworn...All the doubts came up again and I just reacted.” He cursed under his breath, clearly unhappy. “I checked him out as soon as I arrived back at home. Aaron Thomas is a legit name and a good guy, apparently. This helicopter accident is a bit of a blip on his record, but before that, he’s clean. I just have to accept that I was wrong. Unfortunately Ryan Taylor really did die in that damned helicopter crash. I think it was just wishful thinking on my part that he was still alive.”
Paul let out a deep sigh.
“So it was only because you thought he might have sold you out that you drew that knife?” He could hear Patrick grinding his teeth.
“I don’t know what I thought. He was just there in front of me and I knew that he shouldn’t be, couldn’t be. He’d died. It was impossible.”
Paul nodded.
“It was pretty bad from what I read of the accident, but what with Gemma being here, maybe it’s just as well that Aaron isn’t your mate, Ryan. I can’t imagine that she’d be best pleased to find out that the guy who was flying the helicopter when she lost her arm was dancing with her last night. If it were true I wouldn’t want to be around when she found that kind of information out. She’d go mad. I know she covers it up, but she hated losing her arm. We’d end up having to conceal a possible murder!” He paused as he finished his apple before launching the core into the orchard. “There aren’t going to be any repercussions or rumours spread that he might be Taylor, are there? I don’t want any ill founded gossip going around. Have you shut down your investigation?”
Scarred Survival (Scarred Series Book 5) Page 8