Her Charming Secret

by Sam Ayers

  “Happy Birthday, Benny!” Jo called and hugged him after saying hi to Abby.

  “Thank you, kiddo! C’mon, let’s go in.” He smiled as they walked in. Jo sat next to Abigail, who was telling her about how Alex annoyed the hell out of Pierre, who ended up being so furious that he made his cat scratch Alex so bad that they actually had to go to the doctor.

  Jo smiled but didn’t say anything. She was still not ready to talk about Aiden or his family, including Alex. Just thinking about the Reids made her heart ache. After they placed their orders, Ben spoke. “Did you hear about Jake’s book launch event? It’s going to be big!”

  “Dude, I don’t care. It’s all the same! Those teen girls keep asking me if I’m still single and when I say no, they pout and run away.” Jacob sighed.

  “Wow! Someone is popular!” Abigail grinned. Jacob shrugged, an unwilling grin blooming on his face.

  Halfway through their lunch, Jo spoke. “I want to tell you guys something. It’s kinda important.”

  Jake smiled. “Go ahead, Joey.”

  “I’m . . . err . . . I’m moving to Vancouver,” she finally managed to say. While Abigail and Ben looked at her in surprise, Jacob’s face fell, his smile completely wiped off. He scowled, but didn’t say a word. He knew she needed space, but that didn’t mean he had to like it!

  “I have it all planned. I spoke to Seth and he’s helping me find a good place, and—” Jo stopped when she saw Abigail’s jaw drop in horror.

  “Seth?!” She looked away, not wanting anyone to see the pain in her eyes.

  Ben looked at Jo, his face filled with confusion. It took Jacob and him almost one month to convince Jo to step out and move on, but it looked like she had plans for herself. Jacob frowned as he took the napkin from his lap, placed it on the table and got up. The other three watched him walk away silently.

  “You should go after him,” Ben said to Jo. She nodded and walked out to see Jacob standing with his hands in his pocket. He gave a huge sigh when she touched his shoulder.

  “I was going to tell you about this, but I was scared that you would stop me,” Jo murmured.

  “No, I’m not gonna stop you. Not this time, because I’ve lost all the right to. Today you proved that you are Joseph’s daughter.”

  Jo frowned but didn’t reply, so he continued, “He did the same thing. He ran away! And you are just following his footsteps. C’mon, you broke up with Aiden. It’s been almost a month. If you really love him, you won’t run away. You’ll meet him and sort this out! You know what? Even if I ask you to stay, you won’t. So go, live your life the way you want.”

  With that, he walked away. Jo saw him get in the car and drive away, and she knew one thing: almost all her decisions hurt Jacob badly, but this . . . this might have hurt him more than the others, because he had just told her that even though he had brought her up, she had still followed in her father’s footsteps.

  Days passed as Aiden’s life finally got back on track. He loved his job, and it allowed him to spend more time with his family. It was a peaceful Saturday morning and he sat on the park bench watching Aubrey play with Nicholas. Pierre was trying out the seesaw, and he kept saying, “Thiz Zeezaw iz French!”

  Aiden knew why; it got its name from the French ‘ci-ça’, which literally meant ‘this-that’. He guessed it was because of the back-and-forth motion. Next, Pierre tried the swing, and when no one pushed him, he pushed it himself and jumped on it like Tarzan, only to fall on his back. He cried out in pain, but got up and ran towards the slide, not letting the kids fuss over him. “Herez I comez, Aiden!” he shouted at top of his voice as he went down the slide. Nicholas frowned at his antics, but turned around to give his little angel his complete attention. On the other side of the park, Ashton stood talking to a girl. It looked more like flirting, though; he had made Alex his role model and did everything he did. That now included a keen interest in cars and a bigger interest in girls.

  Feeling a presence behind him, Aiden turned around to see Alex grinning at Ashton. “I’m awesome enough to be his role model!” he stated and dropped onto the bench next to Aiden.

  “You’re an awful Cupid,” Aiden said with a chuckle. After all, Alex was the one who had introduced him to Jo, basically bringing her back into his life again.

  Alex smiled and pulled something out from his jacket and handed it to Aiden.

  “What’s this?” Aiden asked before opening the cover. He opened to see the novel title: The Summer of Dreams. What surprised him, though, was the author’s name: Jo Winters.

  “She told me to give you that,” said Alex. “It’s the first copy, and it’s signed, too.”

  Aiden flipped to the next page. There was a small message written there with the dedication.

  To Aiden, with love.

  You’re a storm in the sea, my Gale. Don’t stop being yourself.

  Your memories clamor for my attention, but still, in my heart, I’m learning to live again. Every word I’ve written has been in your memory . . . Thoughts of you found me, and this novel is proof that you will never be forgotten.

  Forever is longer than the time we meet again.

  Until then, remember me.

  “She dedicated it to me,” Aiden whispered to Alex.

  “She said there’s a letter inside for you; you might wanna check it out,” Alex replied.

  Aiden flipped the pages and finally found the letter. He placed the novel aside and opened it. He recognized her handwriting immediately.

  Dear Aiden,

  How are you? I hope everything is good at your end. I’m writing this letter as a final goodbye. That day when you walked away I wanted to stop you and tell you that I didn’t lie. Talking about my father and Richard always hurt me. I didn’t want anyone to interfere in our lives, and as at that point they weren’t really a part of my life and every second with you was breathtaking, I didn’t want anything coming between that.

  That day at Paris, when they took me away to London, I begged them to let me speak to you just once, but they didn’t listen to me. I came back, Aiden. I came back searching for you, but you were gone. After all, when I finally forgot Gale and moved on, you came back into my life, making it better. Aiden, I fell in love with you all over again.

  All the things I didn’t even know I wished for, you made them come true. I walk alone now, but I always feel your presence. Aiden, the day you left, you took away my reason to live.

  We are bound to run into each other one day because of Abigail and Alex. I wonder what will happen that day. What if you don’t acknowledge my presence? I’m moving away, Aiden. I’m going to Vancouver. I’m not sure when you’ll read this letter, but I guess I would have gone away by that time.

  Aiden, I love you, and I’ll always remember you.

  Love,

  Jo

  “Alex, she’s leaving!” Aiden panicked as he placed the letter back in the novel and picked it up.

  “Her flight doesn’t leave till noon; you can still stop her!”

  “Yes! I have to stop her. I’ll regret it all my life if I let her go now. I still love her. I love Jo,” he said as he stood up and looked around. “But there’s one problem!”

  Alex asked in surprise, “What is it?”

  “My car! It’s broken down!” Aiden groaned. Alex raised his eyebrow asking how and Aiden just said one word: Ashton.

  “Hey, guys!” Ashton called as he walked towards them.

  “Speak of the devil,” Alex muttered. “How many times do I tell you not to give your car to this brat?”

  “Oh, wait! Al, your car! Let’s take yours!” Aiden said hopefully.

  “Oh, yeah, my baby will take us! I forgot about it, let’s go,” Alex exclaimed before heading towards his car.

  “Where are you going, bro?” Ashton followed Aiden.

  “To the airport, to stop Jo!”

  “Whoop! I’m coming along!” Ash yelled in excitement as they reached the car. Pierre was already seated in the back seat a
nd he grinned widely.

  “I lovez ze aéroport! I comez zere!” he declared happily. Knowing there was no time left, they sat and Alex started driving, accelerating quickly.

  “Fazter! Fazter!” Pierre kept yelling at him.

  “Be quiet, old man! I’m trying to concentrate,” Alex yelled right back at him.

  “Eyes on the road, Alex!” Aiden shouted, but Alex expertly guided his car without running a red light.

  “I zing a zong pour vous!” Pierre called again. “We goinz toh ze aéroport . . . becuz we lovez itz zere andz Jo willz be waitzing pour mi grandzon! Andz zen zhey go toh France and zen Alex bouys Auby et moi en ize creamz!” he sang to the tune of ‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’. While Aiden sat there tensed and not exactly listening to his song, Ashton burst out laughing. He clutched his stomach as he laughed, causing Pierre to sing much louder.

  “Shut up, old man! Just shut up,” Alex said furiously as he hit the steering wheel. They were almost at the airport entrance when he saw all the cars held up. A car had broken down ahead, causing a traffic jam.

  “Aiden, it’s gonna take time for them to clear this; you better run, buddy!”

  Aiden looked at him in shock. “Run?”

  “Yeah, run, like you used to when we played soccer. Go, get your girl!” Alex grinned. Not wasting another minute, Aiden jumped out of the car and ran towards the airport. One thing he learnt about love was that it made sane people do insane things. It lands you in trouble; it makes you do weird stuff. It also makes you the victim and gets its job done any way it wants to. Like now, for instance, he was running like a madman, but no one chased him and no one was ahead of him. Yet, he ran. Towards her, towards his life.

  Aiden reached the entrance and saw Jo and Abigail walk in. “Jo, stop!” he shouted.

  He got her attention, alright. Poor Jo was shocked to see him there, a little tired from his run.

  Panting, he walked towards her, saying, “People fall in love at the most unexpected time. When it happens, you can’t stop it even if you want to. But Jo, think why we met once and parted ways, even though we didn’t want to. We met again, and you are going away? Destiny brought us together again, gave us another chance. Why waste that?”

  “But you don’t love me!” she muttered.

  Aiden stood in front of her, unaware of all the weird looks people were giving them. He cupped her cheek and said, “Did I ever tell you that I didn’t love you?”

  “You love me?” she asked in a mere whisper. He nodded.

  “Wait, I must be dreaming again,” Jo said. “Pinch me!”

  Aiden chuckled. “I can do better!” He smiled before brushing his lips against hers. He kissed her soft lips as she sighed lightly, her hands going around his neck, pulling him deeper into the kiss.

  When he pulled away, she opened her eyes and muttered, “Definitely a dream!”

  Aiden chuckled as he pinched her cheeks lightly and pulled her into a big hug.

  “Oh! You are real! I’m so sorry, Aiden. I should have told you about them.”

  “Yeah, would have been better if you had, but I don’t care now. You are here with me, and I’m never letting you go. You are the best thing that ever happened to me, Jo.”

  When they heard someone sob, they turned around to see Pierre wiping his tears. “Thiz iz wonzerful, but mi propozal toh mi dear Danielle iz ze bezt!”

  Ashton was there, too. He smiled at his brother and hugged Jo. “We are gonna be best buddies, Jo!”

  She hugged him back and smiled at Alex and Abigail. She mouthed a ‘thank you’ to them.

  “You’re welcome!” Abby grinned and hugged her.

  “Jo, I hope you won’t go to Vancouver now. I found my dream job here, and moving would be a little inconvenient.” Aiden grinned, raking his hand through his hair.

  “Nah! I’m gonna be here for as long as you want!”

  “Okay, sounds good. But, you know, forever is a really long time.” He winked. “It’s a good thing I stopped you before you checked-in, or it would have been a clichéd airport scene like the ones in the novels these days.”

  Jo burst out laughing, “Right! As though this isn’t a clichéd airport scene! Since when did you get interest in romantic novels?” She raised her eyebrow.

  “Since the time I read the dedication in your novel.” He smirked. “So, I was your secret all along?”

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his lips lightly before saying, “No, you weren’t my secret. You are my charming secret!”

  Alex chuckled as he put his arm around Abigail’s shoulder. “You hear that, baby? Aiden is her charming secret.”

  Abigail grinned and replied, “Hey, player, you are a great Cupid, but turn around and see what’s going on with your baby!”

  “What?” He turned around to see his car being towed. “Blast it!” He ran towards it, yelling, “Hey! Leave my baby alone! Come back here! HEY, WAIT!!”

  “Before he met Abby, he used to chase girls,” Ashton said with a grin.

  Aiden held Jo tightly as he said, “And after meeting Abigail, he chases after cars!”

  “Thatz why I zaid to bouy a limouzine!” Pierre puffed proudly. “You Canadianz havez no cluez about how greatz ze French are! We arez ze bezt and you are notz!”

  Everyone stopped in their tracks and glared at him.

  “Whatz? I zpeak the truthz!” He shot back at them. Ashton placed his hand over Pierre’s mouth before he could insult even more people.

  Suddenly, they heard a loud noise again and turned around to see Alex. He looked completely out of breath, and the tow truck driver seemed to be playing with him, going all around the terminal with Alex running right behind him.

  “WAIT! DON’T TAKE MY BABY AWAY!” he shouted, still running after his car.

  “Thank goodness I’m not him!” Aiden grinned.

  “I’m glad that you’re you! And Aiden, I love you.” Jo grinned and pulled his head down to kiss him passionately, forgetting about everyone, not caring if people were watching or about Pierre’s comment that the French are the most romantic people on earth.

  She sighed in content; this is exactly where she wanted to be. Pulling him closer, she rested her head on his chest, happy just to hear his heartbeat.

  “As I love you,” he replied, running his hand over her back and holding her tight in his arms.

  She knew one thing for sure. When it came to having an epic romance, no one could beat them. Sighing contentedly, she pulled away.

  “I love you more!” She childishly poked her tongue out.

  Aiden smiled before replying, “And I will love you until infinity runs out.”

  He placed his forehead against hers and smiled happily. This was where he belonged.

  With her, forever.

  - Epilogue -

  A week after finally getting back together with Jo, Aiden was staying at his parents’ place as Adele was remodeling his own. His twin had decided that as she had nothing else to do, fixing Aiden’s home would be a fun project. It had been a while since she had taken up any work because of the wedding, and she thought it would be cool to brush up her skills by redoing Aiden’s place.

  He didn’t share the sentiment, as, according to him, there was nothing to fix, but he agreed anyways. Seeing as Jo was moving in along with him, they decided to make some changes to include her things. Aiden suggested an extra bookshelf to house the various books that Jo possessed, but Adele had shown Jo a few ideas and now a single bookshelf had turned into a piece of art with various pieces of wood placed at different angles all over the wall to make it one huge rack of books.

  From then on, it was like Jo had been given complete freedom in the remodeling; Adele, his sister and interior designer, had basically started asking Jo for the final say in everything – like colors to wall patterns. Not that it mattered, because Jo knew him well. But he still found it funny that in a span of a few days, he had somehow gone from having no life, no girlfriend, nothing, to havi
ng a girlfriend, and having said girlfriend moving in with him and his sister asking his girlfriend rather than him about fixing his own place.

  It was the weekend, but Aiden had to go to work to get some statistics on his latest project. He was really excited about it, and couldn’t wait to fill Jo in about the details. Since it was the weekend, and was actually supposed to be his day off, he had opted for a rather casual look with dark blue jeans, a t-shirt and a hoodie; the formals could stay in his closet till Monday, he decided. He rushed downstairs, only to stop short when he saw his dad hugging his momma from behind and whispering things in her ear that were making her blush. Deciding that he was better off not interrupting that scene, he slowly made his way out without making a noise. Seeing as his car was still getting fixed and it was a beautiful day, he decided to walk to the research institute, which was pretty close. Halfway through, he glanced at the time. Groaning, he began to run, files in hand; he was late.

  Fifteen minutes later, he reached the institute and ran upstairs to his office to check the files on his project. As he opened it, something weird caught his eye. It was a red paper, and there were two words written on it in white ink: Marry Me?

  Shocked, he pushed the paper away, wondering if someone was playing a prank on him. Standing near the window, he was considering all the people who would play such a prank. But deciding that it could wait for later, he started going over his files. He was meeting Adele for coffee later as she needed help with planning Ashton’s birthday. He smiled as he thought of how Alex’s brat had grown up. Sighing, he looked out of the window, wondering when they had all grown up.

  When he looked out of the window again, something weird caught his eye. On the building opposite to the institute, the glass panels were changing, a white sheet slipped on one, and another. It went on till eight characters appeared on the white: MARRY ME?

  He sighed deeply, thinking someone was trying to propose to somebody from this institute. He picked up his files and phone and walked out, waving goodbye to his colleagues.