Instead of faded jeans and the usual flannel, Aiden wore sweatpants, a wrinkled T-shirt and two days’ growth of beard. A wooden checkerboard, stacks of DVDs and a plate of chocolate chip cookies on the coffee table provided evidence that Aiden’s family had been trying to make his forced convalescence more bearable.
“Maddie.” Aiden started to push to his feet, and then sank back into the cushions when pain from the sudden movement apparently pushed back. “What are you doing here?”
“I...” She glanced down at the dog. The bristles on its back quivered like the quills on an irritated porcupine. If the animal could speak, Maddie had no doubt it would echo Aiden’s question.
“You found something already?” Aiden gripped the arm of the couch and he leaned forward, his eyes locked on her face.
Maddie mentally kicked herself. Four days had passed since he’d given her a few clues into his family history. Of course Aiden would assume she’d come with news about his sister.
“Not yet, but I’ve been compiling a list of adoption agencies in Michigan.” There were a lot more than Maddie had expected to find, but she wasn’t going to mention that yet. Or that her initial search for information regarding closed adoptions hadn’t been encouraging.
“I’m actually here—” deep breath, Maddie “—to drop off a registration form.”
Aiden frowned. “Registration form?”
“For River Quest.”
* * *
Aiden couldn’t have heard Maddie right.
His gaze swept over her slim frame. A strand of pearls glowed against Maddie’s black velvet—velvet—dress, and the shoes on her feet reminded him of something a ballerina might wear.
She was absolutely enchanting. Absolutely out of her mind.
Or maybe Aiden was experiencing some strange, residual injury from the accident that had affected his hearing.
“Did you...” He cleared his throat. “Say River Quest?”
Maddie’s brisk nod set a tendril of tawny hair free from its captivity. “Yes.”
Aiden would have laughed out loud if the serious look in those wide green eyes hadn’t told him that she was, well, completely serious.
“It isn’t a leisurely paddle down the river, Maddie,” he felt obligated to remind her, although the article in the newspaper had made that pretty clear. “It’s an obstacle course.”
A challenging obstacle course, mentally and physically, that tested both strength and endurance. Aiden had designed it that way. He’d led multiple excursions for New Life Fellowship’s young singles group over the past few years and couldn’t remember Maddie Montgomery joining in on any of them.
“I realize that.” As if she’d read his mind, Maddie’s spine straightened. “I’m not actually going to be part of the team, though,” she continued. “I’m the...sponsor.”
“Okay.” Aiden’s relief distilled into curiosity. “Who is on the team, then?”
Maddie’s gaze slid away from him, and Aiden grew suspicious when she parried his question with one of her own.
“What’s your dog’s name?”
“Dodger.”
“Ah.” Maddie smiled. “A baseball fan.”
Aiden didn’t correct her, even though the name had nothing to do with baseball. It did, however, perfectly fit an animal that could barely walk and yet somehow managed to collect things—stray socks and paper napkins and occasionally the TV remote—and stash them behind the rocking chair in the corner.
“It’s nice to meet you, Dodger.” Maddie reached down to pet the dog, and Aiden almost strangled himself on his next breath.
“Maddie, don’t—”
Too late. She smoothed a hand over Dodger’s rough fur, her fingers gently tracing a path between the squares of white bandages that covered the dog’s side like a patchwork quilt.
Dodger made a sound deep in his throat, and his top lip curled back.
Aiden had been on the receiving end of more than a few snarls since Sunni had forced them into becoming roommates, so he knew what one looked like. But this baring of the teeth looked more like a...smile. And Dodger’s whiplike tail? Definitely wagging.
Go figure.
Maddie gave the dog one more pat before she straightened and looked at Aiden again.
“Was Dodger in the truck with you when it happened?”
It took a moment for Aiden to realize Maddie was referring to the accident.
“No.” But now that he thought about it, they’d both been injured because someone was too cowardly to step forward and own up to what they’d done. “And technically he isn’t my dog. Sunni is taking care of him until his incision heals, and then he’s going up for adoption.”
“So you’re keeping each other company.”
“That’s one way of putting it.” In reality, it was more like a self-imposed exile. He and Dodger had holed up together in the sunroom for the better part of the week, growling at each other and everyone who walked through the door.
Before the accident, Brendan and Liam would have tossed Aiden into his canoe and told him that he could come back when he stopped acting like a jerk. Now they smiled patiently and fluffed his pillow instead of smothering him with it.
Aiden didn’t want to take out his frustration on his family, but at his appointment on Tuesday, his doctor had refused to give him the green light to resume his normal activities.
“We both know you’ll go pedal to the metal if I drop the flag, son,” he’d told Aiden. “So it’s my recommendation you spend a few more weeks in the pit.”
Not only was Dr. Wallis a die-hard car racing fan, he’d been the Kanes’ family physician since Aiden was ten years old. Aiden had been in his office so many times, the doctor had laughingly told Sunni that Aiden should have his own examination room.
The doctor’s orders had snuffed out the flicker of hope Aiden had been tending that he could be more involved in River Quest.
A burst of laughter drifted from the kitchen, and Aiden frowned. Sunni’s kitchen was always open, but she hadn’t mentioned there were people coming over.
Unless...
He glanced at Maddie. A smile played at the corners of her lips, and Aiden realized that Sunni wasn’t feeding company. She was feeding Maddie’s mystery team.
“You mentioned you’re the sponsor...but who is actually going to attempt the course?” He chose the word attempt on purpose.
“Some high school seniors I’ve been meeting with,” Maddie said, triggering the strong sense of foreboding that usually preceded a flashback of Aiden’s accident. “They aren’t in sports or any extracurricular activities, and the only time I’ve ever seen them look interested in anything was when you talked about your senior presentation...and River Quest. So I put two and two together, and here we are.”
“Hold on.” An image of the boys in the library conference room flashed in Aiden’s mind. One surly, one silent. Both with spaghetti arms. Attitude. “You aren’t talking about The Outsiders, are you?”
“Aiden!” Maddie choked out—and then confirmed his suspicions with a quick glance at the door. “Their names are Tyler and Justin.”
“It’s a great idea—” Not. “But the deadline to register was today.”
“That’s why I wanted to make sure I dropped it off right away this morning. I called and talked to Lily, and she said that technically the cutoff would be midnight tonight.”
Thank you, Lily.
Aiden tried another approach. “Aren’t you supposed to be helping them with their senior projects?”
“Yes, but that’s the best part. This will help them. The high school guidance counselor said they’re barely passing their classes.” Maddie’s voice had dropped a notch. “They need something to boost their confidence.”
And she’d chosen River Quest?
Aiden tried to figure out a way to l
et Maddie down gently. When nothing came to mind, he figured he would have to come up with a plan that would save Maddie from acute disappointment, and two teenage boys from public humiliation.
“Okay, I’ll meet you outside the Trading Post in five minutes,” Aiden said. “It’s in the pole building next to Liam’s workshop. You’ll see the sign on the door.”
“Five minutes.” Maddie’s dimple made an appearance, and Aiden felt a stab of guilt.
The moment she was out of sight, Dodger whined.
“I know, I know,” Aiden shot back. “But I don’t remember asking for your opinion.” He grabbed his denim shirt and tried to shake the wrinkles out. Nope. Not happening. They’d settled into the fabric and refused to budge. Kind of like the way Aiden had stubbornly refused to move from the couch the past few days. If Dr. Wallis wanted him to hang around the pit for a few more weeks...
Aiden suddenly noticed the area surrounding the couch was a pit.
“Do you think she noticed?”
Dodger’s straggly eyebrows lifted.
“Yeah. Me, too.” Aiden slipped the shirt on and tugged the sleeve over his cast. “Don’t steal the remote when I’m gone.”
To his astonishment, instead of ignoring him, Dodger staggered to his feet. And then the dog, who hadn’t shown the least bit of interest in doing anything other than eating and sleeping and snapping at Aiden since they’d brought it home from the vet, followed him out the door.
The late-afternoon sunlight that filtered through the trees lacked power, but Aiden, who’d spent the entire day inside with shades pulled down, still had to adjust to its brightness.
He’d expected to see the two boys, but Maddie had brought along the girl with the purple stripes in her hair, too. The teenagers stood in a loose knot outside the door of the Trading Post, avoiding eye contact with Aiden and each other as Maddie stepped forward to make the formal introductions.
“Aiden, this is Skye Robinson.”
He smiled even though he wasn’t sure where the girl fit in. The teams for River Quest were limited to two people. “It’s nice to meet you, Skye.”
She mumbled a response, arms crossed, already shivering in a thin T-shirt, skinny jeans and high-heel suede boots.
“Tyler Olsen.” Maddie gestured at the boy who’d been openly skeptical that Aiden had been allowed to “talk about camping” for his senior project. “And Justin Wagner.”
Aiden nodded and extended his hand. After a moment’s hesitation, each one of the boys reached out and shook it.
Uh-huh. Just as Aiden suspected. No upper-body strength whatsoever. And if they looked like they’d get winded climbing up a flight of stairs, the chances of them scaling Eagle Rock were pretty slim.
But they had to know it, too, which just might work in Aiden’s favor.
Chapter Eight
Maddie’s misgivings melted away when Tyler and Justin shook Aiden’s hand.
So far, things were definitely working in her favor.
Aiden opened the door and waited for them to file inside the building he’d referred to as the Trading Post.
Maddie hadn’t expected it to actually look like one.
Stacks of colorful wool trapper blankets filled a birch bark canoe in the corner, and old maps of the area decorated the walls above rough-hewn wooden shelves lined with souvenirs. The atmosphere was rustic and charming all at the same time.
“I didn’t know you’d opened a store.”
“I didn’t,” Aiden said. “The women in the family get the credit for that. When we decided to expand the business, Sunni and Lily took the word literally. Some of us were fine with asking people to sign in on a clipboard when they booked a day-trip or checked out equipment, but apparently this adds ‘depth’—” he put air quotes around the word “—to the whole experience.”
“I think the women in your family are right.” Maddie paused to look at the tiny metal charms that filled each compartment of an old wooden type case. “Anna sells her jewelry here, too?”
“She calls them memory charms, but Brendan calls it strategic marketing because repeat guests can buy a new one every time they visit.” Aiden grinned, and Maddie felt a strange little flutter in her chest.
Given her medical history, anything outside the ordinary, predictable rhythm of Maddie’s heart would have been cause for alarm... Oh, who was she kidding? If Aiden was the reason that particular organ was skipping every other beat, it was still cause for alarm.
She wouldn’t be one of the many women who’d succumbed to Aiden Kane’s roughish smile.
Couldn’t be.
Maddie picked up a silver charm shaped like an otter. “I think it’s great that Anna is able to contribute something so special to the business.”
The shadows Maddie had seen in his eyes when she’d come into the room returned even as he nodded in agreement. “She designed a special pin for River Quest, too.”
Tyler gave the jewelry display a dismissive glance. “I’d rather have a T-shirt.”
“You don’t get a pin by signing up for the course. It’s for the people who finish it.” Aiden shuffled behind the counter and propped his crutch against the wall. “It starts out easy and gets more difficult as you go along. Some of the teams have been practicing for a month already. If you aren’t in top physical shape, you’ll be starting out with a disadvantage.”
Justin glanced over his shoulder at the door as if he was planning a quick exit, and Maddie felt a stab of panic.
What was Aiden doing? If Maddie didn’t know better, she’d think he was trying to discourage them from entering the competition.
“Well, we have a month to prepare, too.” Almost. “And determination is a strength, too, isn’t it, Aiden?”
“Determination,” Aiden echoed under his breath. “There are challenges in the water and on land.” He yanked open a drawer and pulled out a folder. “Each team is made up of two people, but there are times when you’ll have to separate during the course, so knowing how to communicate is as important as knowing the fastest way to climb Eagle Rock.”
Tyler and Justin exchanged a skeptical look, which only fed into the doubts Maddie had been battling since they’d followed Aiden into the Trading Post. From what she’d witnessed, Tyler’s preferred method of communication was a sneer or an eye roll, while Justin preferred not to communicate at all.
“We’ve got plenty of time to work on that, too,” Maddie said brightly.
Aiden winced, and she wondered if he was in pain again.
“If you’re under eighteen, your parents have to give their permission for you to take part in the event.” He pulled a stack of waivers from the drawer and fanned them out on the counter.
No one took one.
Aiden’s eyebrows shot up. “Change your mind already?”
“I’m eighteen,” Tyler muttered.
Aiden turned to Justin. “What about you?”
The boy glanced at the door again, and Maddie waited. She’d brought Justin here, but now that Aiden had explained what they were getting into—in vivid detail—it was up to him to make a commitment.
“Dude.” Tyler clapped Justin on the shoulder. “What are you waiting for?”
Justin hesitated a fraction of a second before grabbing the permission slip off the counter.
“So all we need now is a sponsorship form,” Maddie told Aiden.
It seemed to take him an inordinately long time to locate the paperwork, but he finally handed her a sheet of paper.
“The entry fee is fifty dollars. Cash or check, no credit cards.”
Maddie reached for her purse. “Okay.”
“And no refunds.”
“I can’t think of a reason we’d need one!” Maddie signed her name on the line and handed the form back to Aiden. “There. We’re all set.”
But she’d lost t
hem again. Tyler had his phone out again and Justin was tracing a knothole in the plank floor with the scuffed toe of his tennis shoe.
Skye was the only one looking at Maddie, although glaring would have been a better description.
“I don’t know why I’m here,” she said. “The rules say there can only be two people on a team.”
Tyler abandoned his game long enough to smirk at her. “You can be our cheerleader.”
Skye’s chin jutted forward. “Do I look like a cheerleader?”
“No,” Tyler shot back. “You—”
“Could design the team flag,” Maddie said before Tyler could tell Skye what she did look like.
The girl’s chin lifted another notch. “Flag?”
“Aiden mentioned we needed one for the first challenge,” Maddie reminded her. If Anna Leighton had found a way to use her creativity, she hoped Skye would take advantage of the opportunity, too.
Everyone looked at Aiden for confirmation, and he nodded. “After you find your way through the tunnel...the dark, narrow tunnel...the flags will be in the cave.”
Honestly. Maddie thought he could have left out the “dark and narrow” part.
“I don’t see why we can’t just draw a skull and crossbones on a towel and call it good,” Tyler grumbled.
Skye deflated right in front of Maddie’s eyes. Two sections of tinted hair merged together, concealing her expression as her gaze dropped to the floor.
“You could,” Aiden said slowly. “But the team with the most creative flag gets ten minutes cut off their total time.”
Tyler and Justin exchanged a quick look, and Maddie wanted to point at them and shout, Did you see that? Communication!
“Ten minutes is ten minutes,” Justin finally said, a not-so-subtle hint they needed all the help they could get.
Now they were thinking like a team.
“That’s about how long it will take for me to design one,” Skye said. “What am I supposed to do the rest of the time?”
Tyler flexed his biceps. “Follow us around and record our awesomeness?”
The Bachelor's Perfect Match Page 7