Ayden's Secret

by Cara North

  Charlie scrutinized him some more but then he stood and walked to the wall pulling down two hats. He plopped one on her head and the other on his. He looked damn good, and she was really excited to get out to the barn and ride the horses.

  “Helps with the sun and keeps ticks out of your hair.” Ayden made a clicking noise as he winked and headed for the door.

  Ticks? Charlie was glad he was wearing those jeans today because otherwise, she may not have been able to follow that ass out the door, but it looked good and she did. Ticks, she hadn’t really considered where they would be riding these horses. She looked down at herself. He had insisted she wear a long sleeve shirt that could breathe. She imagined it was because of the sun, not the woods. Her heart thumped as they approached the barn.

  Chapter 20

  “Lady is the easiest and the oldest. She knows what to do and where she’s going, so even if you mess up, she won’t take off on you.” Ayden was glad Charlie seemed genuinely interested in the horses now they were at the barn. Her interrogation techniques were something he wasn’t aware of until today. Innocently enough she had probed into his life and found answers. Yet, he didn’t know much more about her now than he did when he met her over ten years ago.

  Charlie wished she and Ayden were the only ones taking the ride. Tom and Ben had saddled up other horses and were already mounted. Ben at least had on cowboy boots. Tom wore tennis shoes. What a disappointment, she thought. Nothing like she imagined it to be, all wild-west like. Ayden waited until she was in the saddle before leaving her to mount his own horse.

  Lady, a large brown Tennessee walking horse, followed Ayden’s horse Shadow, a massive black horse, out of the barn. Tom and Ben were already waiting for them discussing the path they would take. The horses clicked down the pavement and onto the road. Charlie was impressed with herself. Lady seemed to do exactly what she asked of her with the reins.

  “You all right?” Ayden rode alongside her. She looked so adorable in a hat and frumpy clothes. His T-shirt was too big on her, concealing some of her curves, but it was impossible to hide them all.

  “Yes, she’s magnificent.” Charlie smiled. She felt a sense of adventure and fun.

  “She’s a lady,” Ayden agreed.

  They pulled off the road and onto a trail. Charlie realized then there was more to it than sitting and holding reins. Lady had wonderful balance, and Charlie had to duck branches and lean to the left, right, forward, and back as they navigated the trail. She understood now why Ayden had her wear the long sleeved shirt. He didn’t flinch as tiny branches slashed against his arms, but Charlie knew they would have hurt if she hadn’t worn the shirt. They stung a little through it.

  Ayden was impressed that Charlie took to riding so easily, and though he would have chosen a well- worn path to take her on, Ben and Tom chose this one. It wasn’t too bad, and it was still an easy ride. Ben told them how he was trying to wear it down, so he could use it more often for trail rides. The ranch had belonged to Ben’s brother. When his brother passed, he left it to Ben. Ayden was glad his parents moved to the ranch. He loved it here. It kept him out of trouble as a kid and put a few bucks in his pocket.

  Charlie could see the barn up ahead. It was still far away, but she knew where she was. They were in the field next to the ranch. As Tom and Ben entered it, their horses took off. That made her nervous. Ayden looked back at her and pulled his hat off tucking it under his arm. Charlie didn’t get a chance to ask him why. Lady had already picked up the pace behind Shadow.

  Ayden wouldn’t let Shadow open up and run. He couldn’t leave Charlie, and Lady wouldn’t run any faster with the woman on her back now chanting “ohmygod”.

  Charlie held on, and the cowboy hat flew off and into the field. She felt bad, but she was too scared to do anything but try not to squeeze the horse because Ayden told her that meant she could go faster. After a few minutes Charlie relaxed and Lady picked up the pace a bit more. She had stopped yelling and started smiling. It was fun. The wind whipped her hair lashing it across her face. It was such a sense of freedom, of power. She was riding this great animal, and it was running. As they neared the barn, Ayden took off with Shadow. Charlie wasn’t worried. Lady didn’t seem to care.

  “Oh My God.” Charlie was beaming. “That was so much fun.”

  “Lost your hat, darlin’?” Ayden smiled as he reached for the bridal and hooked Lady in the stall. He held a hand out for Charlie and helped her down. “Careful now.”

  “Little wobbly.” Charlie stood in front of him, close to him. She had been itching to touch the jeans he wore to see if they felt as soft as they looked. With a lick of her lips, she reached behind him and patted his butt.

  Ayden wasn’t expecting her to cop a feel. It threw him off. “Uh.”

  Charlie whispered in his ear, “You promised to bring me down here and make me scream remember?”

  Good Lord, his dad and brother-in-law were still removing the gear from their horses, and she was trying to lure him into a haystack. “We may have to rain check on that, Charlie. I have to get this tack off these horses.”

  “Tack?” Charlie kissed his neck.

  “The riding gear.” Ayden leveled his eyes to hers. Little seductress, this was how she kept him sidetracked. Not today. He pinched her butt.

  “Oww.” Charlie jumped then blushed as Ben and Tom looked toward them. She wanted to share a moment with Ayden not the whole barn.

  “Help me get this unbuckled.” Ayden nodded toward Lady and the saddle strap.

  Charlie turned and began working with the gear as he explained how to take everything off, just as he had explained how to put everything on. Ayden seemed to know a lot about horses, and he let her know the difference in the Tennessee Walkers they had ridden and the Arabians Tom and Ben had ridden. He made his preference clear, and based on his size it made sense to want a large horse with a trail reputation.

  Unfortunately, Charlie could only hear part of it because she was getting lost in his haze. He smelled delicious, and his warm chest brushed against her shoulders as he helped with the gear. She was still high from the excitement of her first horseback ride. Still charged from the feeling of flying across the field. It was a great turn on, and Ayden looked every bit a cowboy on top of a horse. She didn’t notice the difference of his footwear once he was in the saddle.

  “What ya’ll got planned for the rest of the day?” Ben leaned against the barn as Ayden and Charlie walked out of it. “Your momma and I will be heading out in a half hour to catch a matinee and grab something to eat. You’re welcome to come along, but she wants to see some girly movie, and I’m only going along for the grub.”

  “Charlie?” Ayden wiped his forehead and looked at her.

  “I’d like to stay here.” She would like to drag Ayden’s hot and sweaty body back in the barn and make good on his threats.

  “Suit yourself.” Ben winked at her and headed back up the driveway to the house.

  “Ayden.” Charlie grabbed his arm. “Let’s take a walk or something.”

  “All right.” He had questions and hopefully a walk would get him some answers.

  Ayden followed her back toward the field. He hoped she wasn’t looking for that hat because it was long gone, and he doubted they could find it now. The walk gave him an opportunity to question her though. He could start out slow and work his way up to the big stuff.

  Charlie was surprised when he started asking her questions. Aside from when they first met and he needed information to help track down her sister’s killer, he hadn’t asked more than polite conversation would require. Now he asked all sorts of odd things. Things she had asked him, like her favorite color and food. The worst part was she lived such a routine life that nothing was really her favorite anything except when it came to Ayden. He was her favorite everything.

  “Are you telling me you don’t know what your favorite food is?” Ayden shook his head. Charlie was giving him a headache. He was asking very simple questions, the sam
e ones she had asked of him, and stupid or not he answered. She was holding out on him. “You know you’re kinda pissing me off here.”

  “What?” Charlie stopped dead in her tracks. He must be out of his mind to talk to me like that.

  “I’m asking you simple questions, and you refuse to answer. How am I supposed to know anything about you if you won’t tell me something as simple as what you like to eat?” Ayden slapped his hat against his thigh and looked off into the distant field.

  “I told you I don’t know.” Charlie put her hands on her hips. “Ayden, I haven’t had the luxury of a real life the last eleven years. I worked every day, and when I wasn’t at work, I was in my apartment. You know I hate crowds. So what, do you want me to tell you that microwave lasagna’s my favorite food? It’s what I ate the most. Does that mean it’s a favorite?”

  Uh-Oh. “No, of course not. Why didn’t you just tell me that?” Ayden looked at her and realized she was now the one pissed off. Charlie had her hands propped on her hips and a scowl on her face. She may have looked intimidating if she didn’t look so damn cute like that.

  “You want me to tell you about the last ten years?” Charlie double dog dared him to say yes. If he wanted to hear it, she was ready to throw it at him.

  “Yes.” Ayden nodded.

  “Fine. Let’s start when you left Vegas.” Charlie started walking again but at a quick pace. He followed along without any hesitation. “Let’s see. I went back to the Casino, auditioned, got my job back, and then started the rehearsals. From there it became an endless cycle. Show after show, night after night. Dance all night, sleep in all morning, go to rehearsal, and then dance all night. See the pattern there?”

  “Yep.” Ayden knew she was being sarcastic, and he understood how hard life could be. Just because he had a family didn’t mean he wasn’t alone most of the time.

  “So. When I didn’t work, I saw my therapist, once a month. She told me to get out there and experience the world.” Charlie shook her head. “I told her the world had eaten my family. If I stepped out into it, then I would be eaten alive, too.”

  That was a hell of a statement, and he didn’t know what to say in response. Of course, Charlie didn’t give him a chance to respond. She kept right on, and as she spoke, her breath grew more labored. Of course, she was holding a ground eating pace that wasn’t a challenge for him but seemed to be working up to one for her.

  “I had two panic attacks at the supermarket, so I started getting my groceries delivered. I also shopped online. That way I didn’t have to deal with anyone.” Charlie found the hat she was looking for. It was right at the edge of the woods, as she’d suspected. Picking it up, she inspected it, dusted it off, and put it on her head.

  Ayden couldn’t believe she found that hat. She wanted it, and she hunted it down, just like she had done to him. Charlie started back toward the barn again.

  “The casino was a safe place to be. I knew the girls, enjoyed the dancing and performing. But what kind of life is that to lead?” Charlie stopped. “You lived and I loved hearing about the outside world. I could go to that coffee shop and sit there with you because I knew I would be safe there.”

  “But I didn’t show up this year.” Ayden nodded and felt his chest ache. He wanted to ask a real question now but was afraid to. Fear wasn’t something he had felt since he was a child. After his dad left, he vowed not to be afraid of anything. “Did something happen that day?”

  “Yeah. You never showed up. You left me in a coffee shop in Las Vegas for hours. No phone call, no post card. Nothing.” Charlie started walking again. “I called your cell, but the line was disconnected.”

  Shit. Shit. Shit. Ayden forgot the only number she had was the FBI issued cell phone. Hell it was the number he could be reached at twenty-four seven for years. The best number to have, but they took the phone when he left the field. As a part-time training agent, he didn’t need that kind of access. “I had to turn the phone in.”

  “Whatever. It’s in the past now.” Charlie hadn’t brought it up because it was in the past. She was mad, scared, and hurt. She thought she’d let it go, but he pulled it all back to the surface. “As I was saying, I don’t know the answers to some of your questions, so I’m sorry if that pisses you off.” She made quotation marks in the air. She really was pissed off at him now. They were back at the barn, and she had half a mind to take off running just like Lady had. Instead, she stormed on. “But it pisses me off that you think I’m holding out on you. Don’t you think when I asked your favorites I would have told you mine if I had any? Or when you would tell me about family dinners or your mother nagging you over the years I would have related? I have nothing to relate to.”

  Damn. Damn. Damn. He wanted to kick his own ass now. What an insensitive jerk. That wasn’t a new development either. No, he had been a real ass to her over the years. Never once did he think she wasn’t out living her life. He always thought she just downplayed it and felt sorry for him enough that she dragged information out of him. Shit!

  “I really am a son of a bitch.” Ayden grabbed her by the arm, his tone solemn and low. “I’m sorry, darlin’.”

  Charlie frowned at him until she realized he was sincere. He wasn’t a son of a bitch. She could have told him several times when he tried to ask her questions. She didn’t want him to think she was afraid anymore. She thought he would find her more attractive if she were brave and strong, like his sisters. “I don’t want to talk about it anymore.”

  “Okay, baby.” Ayden removed his hat and hers. He pressed his forehead to hers and looked her eye to eye. “So. What can I do to get out of the dog house here?” “Well.” Charlie pulled her head back and looked around. “We are alone for a few hours. You did promise.”

  Ayden smiled. Making up with Charlie was such a sweet affair. He dropped the hats and pulled her by her hand inside the barn. He hadn’t had a roll in the hay since he was a teenager. What fun.

  Chapter 21

  Charlie sat on the porch watching the sunset. Ayden stepped outside with two glasses of peach tea and stood in front of her. He handed her a glass then pushed at one knee motioning for her to spread her legs. Sitting on the step between them, he leaned back settling himself against her.

  Charlie could feel his soft hair on her neck and his forehead next to her jaw. His huge arms draped over either leg, and his massive back crushed her breasts. There was no way she could navigate the iced tea to her lips though he seemed to enjoy his just fine. She set the glass down and looped an arm around him. “Ask me about my favorite sunset.”

  Ayden smiled. “Tell me about your favorite sunset.”

  “Well, I was sitting on a porch in Tennessee with this enormous man leaning back on me. I felt exhausted and satisfied from the inside out. Of course we had grabbed a blanket and played in the barn that afternoon.” Charlie kissed his temple. “Then we showered, had a wonderful dinner and he promised to introduce me to peach flavored ice tea. We sat on the porch and watched the sunset. It became my favorite that instant.”

  “Sounds like you found yourself a real winner. Porches, barns and tea,” Ayden teased. “If you’re lucky, he may even take you down by the lake and park for a while.”

  “No. We have an early start in the morning. Graceland, baby!” Charlie pushed him up with a renewed energy and excitement. “Now get up those stairs and hit the rack.”

  “Where did you get that from?” Ayden stood and looked at her curiously, as he pulled her up from the stairs.

  “You. You said that’s what they called the bed in the Navy, right?” Charlie dusted off her shorts and finally tasted the tea. “This is really good. Can you make this at home?”

  “Yes.” Ayden nodded.

  Finally, finally she had him on the end of a double conversation. “Yes, that’s what you called it in the Navy or yes you can make this at home?”

  “Yes.” Ayden shrugged and headed inside.

  Damn it! Charlie followed him in. He had one answer for both
questions.

  “How many women have you taken to Graceland?” Charlie couldn’t help herself.

  “None.” Ayden fisted his shirt and pulled it over his head.

  “Not even your mom or Noel?” Charlie pulled her pajamas on as she talked.

  “No.” Stripped down to just boxers Ayden climbed into the queen size bed.

  “So I’m the first woman you have taken to Graceland?” Charlie climbed into bed next to him cuddling close in their usual fashion. She was settling into a comfort zone with Ayden.

  “Yes.” Ayden was no longer going to expand on answers for Charlie. If she wanted to probe him for information, she would now be working for it. He closed his eyes and settled into a nice relaxed state of mind.

  “We have to be back here by seven, I promised.” Charlie was still awake and looking at his face. The windows were open and a nice breeze had drifted over them. “Do you think it’s going to rain tomorrow?”

  “Charlie, darlin’, you need to sleep.” Ayden pulled her even closer in hopes of settling her down.

  Charlie exhaled deeply and closed her eyes. Her head was swimming with questions as it normally was. She could talk him to death and just might. He never seemed agitated by her questioning before and now he had become the one word wonder. Ayden’s breathing grew heavy and he even snored. He must really be tired. After a few moments, Charlie pulled away from him and faced the window, so she could enjoy the view of the night sky, open land, and the silver light from the moon illuminating it all.

  * * *

  He took the stairs slowly, cautiously, his weapon at the ready. The house was dark and confusing, but he knew where she would be, the same place he found the others. He opened the bathroom door, and there she was. In the bathtub, in a pool of blood and water. All of her hair was shaved from her head. He did that because he collected the hair. Sick son of a bitch.