“Don’t mistake me giving you space as me not being interested. It’s not every woman I let into my bed, much less into my life, and even more into Amos’s life. Before you, it’d been nobody. So just because I don’t know what your mouth tastes like yet doesn’t mean I haven’t thought about it. Doesn’t mean I’m not going to. But Sofie would tell you I’ve got a big, fragile heart, and I think I do, so I need you to know what you want for my sake too, Buddy. Does that make it clear?”
I was having a heart attack. Maybe even melting. As tired as I was, I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to sleep next to that all night. He might as well have pinned me down and licked down my body, because I’d never heard anything more erotic or amazing in my life.
And I was sure he knew something was going on within me because I was panting and all I could get out was a breathy “Okay.” Real eloquent. Me who couldn’t shut up ever, who had basically asked for this, had no idea what to say other than “okay.”
Because… I knew how I felt too. And I might be more than a little halfway in love with him, I was pretty sure, but… he was right. It didn’t feel right yet. Some part of it. Maybe it was all just the physical aspect, but maybe I needed to be certain too. A part of me needed to tread with some caution. I didn’t want to get my heart broken again.
The truth was, I liked him even more for saying those words. For thinking that deeply. I liked him so much in so many ways.
And if we were both on the same page, then that was more important than anything else.
One day I’d know how his lips felt, but it didn’t have to be right at that moment, and that filled me with so much joy and playfulness I couldn’t help but smile, inside and outside. It renewed a need inside of me to win him over. To make him more than my friend.
I wasn’t sure if he could see my face or not, but I still raised my eyebrows and told him in a voice that was way too cheery for how tired I was—and turned on, “Well, if you want to sleep naked, I’m okay with it.”
The burst of his laughter surprised the shit out of me, and I couldn’t help but laugh too.
This was so right, there was no reason to rush anything.
“No thanks,” he said once his laugh slowed.
I’d made a lot of people laugh in my life, but I wasn’t sure I’d ever felt this triumphant. “If you change your mind, go for it,” I told him, totally serious. “My body is too tired, but my eyeballs aren’t.”
He laughed some more, the sounds slow and subtle and raspy. If I could’ve bottled it up, I would have, because all I could do when I heard it was smile.
“I don’t sleep naked either, if you’re wondering,” I told him, wanting to lighten the mood.
He laughed again, but it was totally different. Husky. Loaded. Nice.
Take it easy. We were both tired, and we were going to sleep. Right.
I pulled the sheets up to my chin and rolled over, facing the door as Rhodes headed into the bathroom, flipping on the light but leaving the door open. The tap ran briefly; then I heard him brushing his teeth. The water ran again, there was some splashing, and just as I started to get sleepy once more, tucking the pillow in close under my neck, I made sure I wasn’t too far over in either direction.
The light flipped off, and I didn’t bother pretending like I was asleep, but I tried to steady my breathing, thinking of just how sexy my tank top and baggy pajama pants with reindeers on them were.
The bed dipped and there were more sounds of something heavy being set on the nightstand before the familiar beep of his phone being plugged in.
“‘Night, Rhodes,” I said.
The bed dipped a little more as the covers were pulled taut at my back, and after a moment, I felt him settle in.
He stretched. He sighed so deeply, I felt bad for how tired he had to be. He’d been gone a lot longer than I’d bet he’d expected.
“Goodnight, Aurora,” I muttered to myself when he didn’t reply.
His chuckle made me smile right before he whispered right back, “Goodnight.”
I rolled over.
He was lying facing me. I strained to see his features. His eyes were already drooping, but there was the faintest little hint of a smile on his incredible mouth.
“Can I ask you something and you won’t get mad?”
His “yes” came a lot faster than I would have expected.
But I braced myself anyway. “It’s kind of personal.”
“Ask.”
“Why doesn’t anyone call you Tobias other than your dad?”
He let out a soft, soft breath. “My mom called me that.”
Could I have asked a worse question? I doubted it. “I’m sorry I brought it up. I was just curious. It’s a nice name.”
“It’s all right,” he replied softly.
I had to fix this. “Just so you know… I really like you. More than I probably should too.”
He said one thing and one thing only, “Good.”
I bit my lip again. “Hey, can I ask you one last thing?”
I was pretty sure I hadn’t ruined the night when I heard a lazy grunt. “Yes.”
“Were you being serious about there being a bat or…?”
His sleepy chuckle made me smile. “’Night, angel face.”
Chapter 26
I woke up warm.
Very, very warm.
Mostly because I was cuddled up against Rhodes’s back. My arms were crossed, my forehead was tucked between his shoulder blades, and my toes were hiding under his calves. Rhodes, thankfully, was oblivious.
The memory of our conversation last night had me eyeing the smooth skin in front of my eyes. The urge to stroke those sleek muscles was right there. But I kept my hands to myself. Because he was right. I wanted more time. For all my big talk last night, I didn’t want to rush into anything yet. I wasn’t going anywhere, and from what he had said, he wasn’t either.
Not that I wouldn’t mind seeing him naked. Because I would sign up for that in a heartbeat.
Carefully, so that I wouldn’t wake him, I scooted away slowly and exhaled. Then I rolled out of bed and peeked at the sleeping figure some more. On his side, that smooth skin of his peeked out from where the heavy comforter lay tucked right beneath his armpits. He was breathing deeply.
You know… I was pretty sure I was in love with him.
And I was pretty sure he might be a little in love with me too.
I opened the door as quietly as possible and snuck out of the room, closing it behind me with the softest click. Creeping down the stairs, I stopped right at the bottom.
Amos was in his pajamas, sitting at the table eating a bowl of cereal. He gave me a sleepy look. I lifted my hand and tipped up my head.
“Your dad told me to sleep up there,” I muttered as I made my way to get a glass for some water.
The kid gave me a sleepy but funny look as he muttered, “Uh-huh,” just as my phone started vibrating. “It’s done that like three times in the last ten minutes.” He sighed, sounding disgruntled.
Picking it up from where I’d left it charging on the counter last night, I peeked at the unknown number calling. It was seven in the morning. Who could it be? Only about twenty people had my number, and I had every person’s contact information stored on it. The area code was local too.
I answered. “Hello?”
“Aurora?” the familiar voice replied.
My whole body jerked in place. “Mrs. Jones?”
The Antichrist barreled on like she went through everything in her life: with no regard for anyone but herself and her children. “Look here, I know how stubborn you’re being about all this—”
“What?” It was too early for this shit. It was way too early. What was she doing contacting me? “How the hell did you get my number? Why are you calling?” I spat in sheer disbelief this was happening.
Her pause was too short. “I really need to speak to you if you won’t respond to Kaden.”
I remembered then. I remembered right i
n that moment that I didn’t need to take her bullshit anymore. So I hung up.
And I smirked.
And Amos asked in his sleepy voice, “Why do you look like that?”
“I forgot how much I like hanging up on people,” I answered him, feeling pretty damn pleased with myself as I processed what I’d done. Damn, did that feel good.
He frowned like he thought I was nuts just as my phone started vibrating again. The same number flashed on the screen. I hit ignore.
“Who is that?”
“Did you know the devil is really a woman?” I asked.
My phone started vibrating again, and I cursed. She wasn’t going to let this go. Why would I expect otherwise from someone who thought we were all around to serve her? The urge to keep playing this game—ignoring her calls—pulsed deeply in my chest… but the urge to never have this shit happen again was even stronger once I thought about it. That surprised me a lot.
I didn’t actually want to keep doing this with her. With any of them, really. I didn’t even want to waste my time thinking about them anymore.
I knew damn well I needed to end this once and for all, and there was only one way to do that.
I answered the call and went right into it. “Mrs. Jones, it’s seven in the morning, and this is—”
“I’m in town, Aurora. Please meet me.”
And that’s why the number was local. Son of a bitch. I was still tired enough I hadn’t put two and two together. I was lucky I didn’t have anything in my mouth because I would’ve spit it out. “You’re in town where?” I pretty much demanded.
“In this… town. At the resort with the springs,” she replied, sounding totally put out by the nicest hotel in town. “I need to speak to you. Clear some things up that I think may have gotten… out of hand,” she said way too carefully compared to how she used to speak to me.
I glanced at Amos to find him staring blearily at his phone, but I knew this sneaky kid was listening.
“Please,” the older woman said, “for old times’ sake.”
“The ‘old times’ sake’ thing won’t work on me, ma’am,” I told her honestly.
Yeah, I knew that was going to go down real well with her. She was probably shooting me the middle finger in her head because she thought she was way too classy to actually do it. And to me, that just made it a hell of a lot worse.
“Please,” she insisted. “I will never contact you again if you don’t want me to.”
Liar.
The urge to hang up was still there, pulsing and pounding and telling me to move on with my life. There was nothing I wanted to hear from her mouth. But… there were things I wanted to tell her. Specific things that needed to be said so I would never have to go through this again. Speaking to them, I meant. Because ultimately, that was what I needed more than anything now. To fucking move on. To not have the Joneses hanging over my head anymore.
What I wanted was my current life. The man in bed upstairs. And I couldn’t have those things with these damn ghosts still haunting me when they felt like it.
I thought about what I knew about this woman, which was just about everything, and cursed. “Fine. There’s a restaurant on the main street that’s in walking distance. I’ll meet you there in an hour.”
“Which restaurant?”
“There’s only one open this early. The front desk can give you directions.” And it was usually busy with tourists and retired locals, so I figured it was the best place for us to meet so that she wouldn’t throw a fit. I hadn’t eaten breakfast there yet, but I drove by it every morning and knew what kind of traffic they got. It would be perfect.
“I’ll meet you there,” she said after a moment, her voice strained, and I knew this was costing her.
I rolled my eyes so well, Amos would have been proud. And the fact that he snickered cheered me up even though I didn’t look at him. He didn’t need to know I knew what he was doing.
“See you in an hour,” I said before hanging up, not bothering to wait for her to make another comment. I let out a deep breath to release the tension in my stomach. Once and for all, I told myself.
“You okay?” Amos asked.
“Yeah,” I told him. “My old mother-in-law is in town and wants to meet up.”
He yawned.
“I’m going to get ready in your bathroom and then head out,” I said. “Need anything? Why are you awake this early?”
“After Dad woke us up, I stayed up and haven’t gone to sleep yet.” He paused. “What does she want?”
“The Antichrist? I’m not sure. Either to get me to go back to work for them or….” I shrugged, not willing to say it out loud, not even thinking about what I’d admitted. That I had worked for my ex. Of all the things we’d talked about, neither father nor son had asked about what I used to do for a living. I’d told them I’d been an assistant when we’d first met, but they’d never asked for more information.
And he either didn’t care or was too tired to notice or pay attention because all he did was nod, his gaze bleary.
I cursed under my breath at what the hell I was about to do. “I won’t take too long in the bathroom, Mini Eric Clapton. If you fall asleep before I get out, I’ll see you later. Tell your dad I’ll be back.”
* * *
I got to the diner early. It was a cute, very small restaurant wedged between a retail store that had been around for over a hundred years and a real estate company. It was tourist central, even though the only people visiting this time of year were hunters from Texas and California mostly.
But I knew that everything with Mrs. Jones was a power play, and that would include getting to the diner ahead of time and picking out her seat.
Fortunately, I managed to snag a table—waving at a couple I recognized who frequented The Outdoor Experience—and picked my seat facing the door. Sure enough, five minutes after sitting down and ten minutes before we were supposed to meet, I spotted her by the door—thin, tan, and slimmer than ever. Then I noticed the way she was clinging to her thirty-five-thousand-dollar purse like if it brushed against something in the diner, she’d get cooties.
I knew for a fact she’d worked at a Waffle House back in the day.
God, help me with this family.
The best thing I ever did was get kicked out of it. And that knowledge made me straighten my spine. I was happy. Healthy. I had my whole future ahead of me. I had friends and loved ones. Maybe I still had no clue what I was going to be doing a year from now, much less five or ten, but I was happy. Happier and more secure than I’d been in a long, long time.
And that was why I was smiling as I stood up and caught Mrs. Jones’s attention. She frowned, upset at being got, and made her way over as I sat back down. Just as she took the seat across from me, I held my hand out to her.
Did I want to be the bigger person? No. Would it irritate her if I was? Yes. And that’s why I did it.
She looked at it with surprise. She sniffed as she shook it, her hand cool and almost clammy. Either somebody was nervous or irritated. I hoped both.
“Hello, Aurora,” she said.
“Hi, Mrs. Jones.” I felt some more of that lingering bitterness slip away. I opened my menu, regretting leaving my overnight oatmeal in the fridge at Rhodes’s so I’d have time to get ready.
I had thought about not putting makeup on or doing my hair but decided against it. I wanted her to see with her own eyes that I was kicking ass and taking names. Kind of.
You know what? I was kicking ass. I was fine. Better than ever, and that was the absolute truth. My hair was healthy since it was totally grown out after a decade of frying it to get it the pale blonde it had been. I was tan from all the time I still managed to spend outside, and I was better mentally and physically than I had been in forever.
And I felt like I wore my sense of peace over me like a cloak.
Life didn’t have to be perfect for you to be happy. Because what was perfect really, anyway?
“How are you?�
�� I asked her, my attention still on the menu.
Ooh, French toast. I hadn’t had that in… months, not since before I’d gotten here.
“Well, I’d be doing better if I was home, Aurora,” the older woman bitched.
I let it go in one ear and out the other. Maybe I’d just have coffee, actually, and go back to Rhodes’s and eat breakfast with them. This honestly wouldn’t last too long by the way it was looking. And I only had enough cash to pay for a coffee and leave a tip, so that I wouldn’t have to be awkward and wait around for a waitress to take my debit card if I decided to bounce quickly.
Actually, that sounded like a plan. Breakfast with people who made me happy or with a demon? Like that was even a choice.
With that settled, I closed my menu and focused back on the woman who hadn’t even opened hers, confirming maybe this wasn’t going to be a long conversation. Perfect. Well, that and Mrs. Jones wouldn’t lower herself to eating at a diner. My God. No eggs benedict? A mango power smoothie? God forbid. That shit was delicious, but the way she demanded things made them obnoxious.
With a deep breath, I leaned back and watched her sitting there, her beautiful green purse sitting on her lap, manicured fingers resting on the strap.
“You look well,” I told her honestly.
“You look… tan” was the nicest thing she managed to get out of her mouth.
I laughed and shrugged. Like that was an insult.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, pinching her lips together.
I didn’t know what to do with my hands, so I set them on top of the table, tapping the plastic-covered menu with my fingernails. “I live here,” I told her, hopefully with a “duh” tone in my voice.
Her nostrils flared a little. “It took us a long time to find you. We had to hire a few private investigators.”
I lifted a shoulder. “I wasn’t hiding, and it wasn’t like Kaden didn’t know I grew up here.” He’d just forgotten or never processed it enough in the first place.
What a fucker, now that I thought about it.
Mrs. Jones’s nostrils flared again, and I could tell it was taking everything in her not to make a smart-ass comment. “You know how busy he is; he always has so many things going on in his head.”
All Rhodes Lead Here Page 39