Falling for Aiden

by Allie Everhart

  I call Sophie.

  "Hey, good timing. I'm on break."

  "Yeah, Tom told me. That's why I called."

  "You talked to Tom?" she asks, sounding surprised.

  "Just now. He was calling to share some good news."

  "What's the news?"

  "He's selling me the inn."

  "What? Sorry, the reception here isn't very good. It sounded like you said he's selling you the inn."

  "I did," I say with a laugh. "I'm buying the inn."

  "How is that possible? How do you have that kind of money?"

  "I don't, but I've saved enough for the down payment and the rest I'm paying off by giving Tom a percent of the profits."

  She doesn't say anything. I check the phone to make sure she's still there.

  "Sophie, say something."

  "I don't understand. Why would you buy the inn?"

  "Because I love it, and I didn't want it being torn down."

  I wish I could tell her all this in person but I can't, so I just say it.

  "Sophie, I don't want you to go. I want you to stay there and help me run the inn. I have so many ideas for it, one of which involves you."

  "What do you mean?"

  "I want you to be the event planner. I want the inn to become a place where people come to celebrate. Weddings. Birthdays. Baby showers. I want it to be a place people go to make memories. I've already talked to Tom about adding an addition that would give us event space. Then out back we'd create another area for outdoor events. These are all just ideas. You can decide how you want it to look. I'm sure you'd do better than me." I'm talking so fast I'm out of breath. I pause a moment. "What do you think? Will you do this with me?"

  The phone is silent. She doesn't want to do it.

  "I know it's a lot to ask," I tell her. "You have a job and you've already planned to move back. I'm just asking you to consider this. To stay in Vermont and help me keep the place going, and hopefully expand it. The event planning would be all yours. You could make it whatever you want. As for running the inn, I'd love your help but if you only want to do the events, I'll handle the other stuff on my own."

  The phone gets silent again, then I finally hear her voice. "Where would I live?"

  "I was thinking we'd stay at the inn."

  "We? So we'd live together?"

  "We wouldn't have to. It's up to you."

  She's making me nervous. I can't tell if she wants this or not.

  "Would we get to stay in our room?" she asks.

  "You mean the one we've stayed in before," I confirm.

  "Yes."

  "I'm the owner, so yeah."

  I just called myself the owner. Of an inn. I can't believe this is happening.

  "So let me clarify," she says. "I get to run my own event business, live in a beautiful country inn, with the guy that I love? Hmmm. I might need some time to think about that."

  "Take all the time you need." I'm smiling now because I know her answer.

  We're really doing this.

  "Okay, I've made my decision," she says.

  "That was fast. So what'd you decide?"

  "Yes!" she squeals. "Are you kidding? This is amazing! I can't believe you did this! You're really buying the inn?"

  "Just need Tom to sign the deal. He wants this, Sophie. So does Lois. But they didn't want just me. They wanted you too. They think we'll make a good team. So do I. I just wasn't sure you'd agree to it, especially since you'd already taken a job."

  "I never wanted to move back there. I took that job because I thought it was my only option. But this... this is better than anything I could even imagine. I'm so happy right now, Aiden. I wish you were here so we could celebrate."

  "How about I drive up right now?"

  "Don't you have to be at work tomorrow? You said you gave them two weeks."

  "I'll call in sick. I have a week of sick days to use. Maybe I'll be sick all week." I go to the hall closet and grab my suitcase. "I'm packing right now. I'll see you tonight."

  "It'll be late. Why don't you wait until the morning?"

  "I've waited long enough to be with you. Longer than I should have, and I'm sorry for that. All the time we spent apart here in New York was time we should've been together. I'll leave in a few minutes. I'll text when I'm heading out."

  "Aiden?"

  "Yeah?"

  "I love you."

  "I love you too. I'll see you soon."

  As I hurry to pack, I keep thinking how crazy this is, buying an inn and moving to Vermont. But I'm also in love, and love makes you do crazy things.

  Sophie awakened a part of me I'd hidden away because it wasn't practical or logical. It was the part of me that dreams of doing something that doesn't fit with what others expect me to do. The part of me that was alive when I was a child, but died when I got older.

  It'd still be dead if Sophie hadn't come into my life. She makes me see my life in a different way. The way it was meant to be all along. The only thing missing is a partner to share it with, which I'm hoping will be her.

  If she says yes.

  26

  Six Months Later

  Sophie

  It's the first day of spring, and the day we break ground on the new addition. It's going to be a simple space that's just one big room with lots of windows. The open space will allow me to transform it all different ways, depending on the event. The contractor assured us it'd be done by June, but just to be safe I've decided not to schedule anything in there until early September.

  The first event is going to be a wedding reception. Since it's in the fall, the room will be decorated with deep oranges and reds, with pops of yellow.

  The wedding itself will be outdoors. Aiden and I finalized the plans for the outdoor event area last month. The work is scheduled to begin in April and be completed by June. The wedding will take place in the new gazebo, which will be decorated with fall flowers and little twinkling lights. The guests will be seated in white foldout chairs lined up on the tiled patio, which can also be used as a dance floor for outdoor receptions or other events.

  The rest of the outdoor space will be devoted to flower gardens, benches, and winding paths, giving guests a place to relax and take in the views of the mountains and trees.

  "What are you doing out here?" Aiden comes up behind me, wrapping his arms around me.

  "Imagining it." I'm standing where the new addition will be, realizing the importance of this room and what it'll mean to us. It signifies the start of our new life, and our new business. A place we created. The place we'll celebrate our marriage.

  The September wedding I'm planning? It's ours. Aiden and I will be getting married on the one year anniversary of the day we met. The day we both got ticketed for littering. I was so angry at Aiden that day. But I got over it, then realized how much I liked him.

  Three months later, he asked me to marry him. Without even the slightest hesitation, I told him yes. All my friends thought I was crazy. They said it was too soon to get engaged. But I knew in my heart that Aiden was the one. I knew it long before he asked.

  "It's going to be beautiful," he says, kissing my head. "And so are you. I can't wait to see you walking down the aisle. I wish it wasn't so far away."

  I turn to face him. "It'll go fast. I can't believe it's almost April. It seems like just a few weeks ago we moved here."

  "Best decision I ever made." He pauses. "Well, other than asking you to marry me."

  "When did you know?"

  "Know what?"

  "That you were going to ask?"

  "The day I asked you to stay here and help me run the inn."

  "You knew that soon? We'd just started dating."

  "We were friends before we were anything more. And during that time, I got to know you. It wasn't long before I fell in love with you. I would've asked you to marry me that week you moved here but I assumed you'd tell me it was too soon."

  I think back to that week. It started out being the worst week of my
life. Losing my job, and then my apartment. Monday morning I packed up all my things and moved into the inn. I'd planned to stay a few weeks, finish up my community service, and move back to Kansas. But then everything changed. Aiden told me about his plans, and by the time he arrived that night, I'd quit my job in Kansas and decided to run the inn with him.

  My parents couldn't believe it. They thought I was having some kind of breakdown or early midlife crisis. They even flew out here to make sure I was okay. But as soon as they saw the small town, country inn and the beauty of Vermont, they understood why I wanted to stay. They understood even more after meeting Aiden. They both liked him right away. How could they not? He's smart, funny, charming, and treats their daughter better than any other guy ever could. My mom's been out here twice to help me pick out things for the wedding. She's almost as excited as I am.

  "I might've told you yes," I say, smiling up at Aiden.

  "I doubt it. You were a wreck that week. So much had happened, and I know you still didn't trust me."

  "That's not true. I trusted you." I think back to all the lies Celine told me, and how I believed them. "Okay, maybe I needed more time."

  "It's better I waited. There was too much other stuff going on."

  He means the deal to buy the inn. Roger was furious when he found out. He threatened to sue Aiden for stealing his client, even though Aiden's the one who found Tom. Fighting a lawsuit would've cost a fortune. Aiden's money would've gone to pay for lawyers instead of buying the inn. Aiden pleaded with Roger to just let it go but he wouldn't, so Aiden went to the only person he knew could change Roger's mind. Celine.

  Aiden talked to me before he went to see her. I told him it was a waste of time but he insisted. He drove to New York, took her to lunch, and by the time he got back to Vermont, Roger had dropped the lawsuit. Aiden was shocked. We both were. He said he left New York feeling like the lunch didn't go well. He said Celine listened to him talk but didn't say much, which is totally unlike her. Maybe she finally decided to let Aiden go, or maybe she decided we deserved a break after all she put us through.

  The next day, Aiden signed the deal with Tom. It was a stressful week of ups and downs so yes, I'm glad Aiden didn't propose that week.

  "Let's go inside," Aiden says, taking my hand. "It's chilly out here."

  As we walk inside the inn, we're greeted by the sweet aroma of cinnamon rolls and buttermilk pancakes.

  "I'm starving," I say to Aiden. "Do you have time to have breakfast with me?"

  "Always," he says, giving me a kiss.

  "What are you lovebirds up to this morning?" Tom asks, a mug of coffee in his hand.

  "We're going to have breakfast," Aiden says, "and then get to work on the new brochures."

  "I thought you were doing those," I say.

  "I'd like your help if you have the time."

  I smile. "I'd love to help."

  Aiden includes me in every decision, the big and the small. I keep reminding him it's his place, not mine, but he still wants my input, which I think is sweet. I love him so much. I can't wait to marry him.

  "How's Lois doing today?" I ask Tom.

  Lois' cancer treatment ended two months ago. The doctors say her prognosis is good but Tom doesn't want her coming back to work, at least not full time. They've been working their whole lives and now he just wants to enjoy retirement with her.

  "She's good," he says. "She wants to stop in later and spend some time in her kitchen."

  "Are you sure she's ready for that?" I ask.

  "No, but she thinks she is, and once she gets here, she'll want to stay. It's impossible to keep that woman out of the kitchen."

  "Tell her she's welcome to come in and cook any time," Aiden says.

  "Speaking of that, she wondered if you two would like to come over for dinner next week."

  "You really have to ask?" I say, smiling.

  "Just tell us what day," Aiden says.

  "I'll ask her and let you know. I better get back to the desk." He walks off.

  Tom works here one or two days a week. It gets him out of the house and lets him still feel connected to the inn. I can tell Tom misses it, but he said he couldn't imagine anyone better to take his place than Aiden. I agree. Aiden loves this inn. It's like this was what he was meant to do.

  "I think I ate too many pancakes," I say as we get up from breakfast. "Where do you want to meet about the brochures?"

  "Let's go to our room."

  "Our room?" I look at him, confused, because our tiny room is not a good place for a meeting. "It doesn't even have a table."

  "We don't need a table." He takes my hand as we leave the dining room and go up the stairs.

  "Aiden, let's just meet in your office."

  He stops at our room. "It's going to be your office too. We're going to remodel it."

  "I don't need an office. I can just work in the dining room."

  "You need an office." He opens the door and we go in the room.

  Aiden keeps saying we need to buy a house. He says this room is too small to keep living here, which it is, but it's the room where we spent our first night together, so I kind of like that we're still here. Maybe after we're married we can look for houses.

  "Where are the brochures?" I ask.

  "Downstairs," he says, opening the top drawer of the dresser.

  "Then why are we up here?"

  "I want to show you something." He walks to the bed, holding a folder. "Come sit down."

  I sit beside him on the bed. "What's that?"

  He hands me the folder. "Open it."

  I pull out a piece of paper. It's some kind of document. "What is this?"

  "It's paperwork listing the owners of the inn."

  "Owners?" I look at him. "Did you get a partner?"

  He smiles. "Just read it."

  Looking back at the document, I see my name listed. "Aiden, you didn't."

  "I did."

  My eyes slowly rise to his. "You made me an owner?"

  "It was going to happen anyway when we got married. I just didn't want to wait. You've been in this with me from the start, and you love this place as much as I do." He takes the paper from me and sets it down, taking my hands in his as he turns to me. "You always say this is my inn. But it's ours. It doesn't matter who bought it. It's our inn, and I want you to stop thinking of it as mine."

  "I don't know what to say." I pick up the piece of paper, looking down at my name. "This is a big deal. Are you sure about this? You put your life savings into this place."

  He lifts my face up to his. "And now you're my life. I am absolutely, one hundred percent sure about this. Unless you don't want to be my partner."

  I toss the paper aside and hug him. "I would love to be your partner."

  He pulls back enough to kiss me, then glances at the bed. "I know we have work to do, but as long as we're here." He looks at me, his brows raised.

  "As one of the owners, I say we take a break." I fall back on the bed, pulling Aiden down to kiss me.

  We make love, in our room, our inn. I own an inn. I can't believe Aiden did that. It's more proof of how much he loves me, and how committed he is to us, and our life here.

  "I have one more surprise for you," Aiden says when we get downstairs. "Tom," he says to him. "Get the box."

  "Sure thing." Tom goes to the office behind the check-in desk.

  "What box?" I say, looking at Aiden.

  "I thought it'd be good to remind people to respect the environment."

  "What are you talking about?"

  He points to the wall behind the check-in desk. "We're going to hang it right there."

  "Here you go." Tom appears, handing Aiden a small shadow box.

  "To always remind us what brought us together," Aiden says, handing me the box.

  Inside it is a sign that says, "Enjoy Your Stay! And Please Don't Litter."

  Under the sign are some crumpled up pieces of paper and an empty water bottle.

  "What do you
think?" Aiden says.

  I hold the box up, laughing. "It's perfect."

  From the Author

  Thanks for reading Falling For Aiden! If you enjoyed it, please recommend it to a friend and leave a review!

  Want to read another angst-filled romance about an ex who won’t let go? Get Lucky Star, available now!

  Here’s the description!

  I've never had good luck. Until the day I was hit by a car.

  It was the worst day of my life. But also the best. Because it's the day I met Corbin.

  Dating a hot rich doctor is something I've only dreamed about and yet it happened. To me! It seemed my luck was finally starting to change.

  But then my bad luck returned. First it was Corbin's family, who doesn't think I'm good enough. Then his ex, who wants him back. And then? Something I never saw coming.

  Was it all too good to be true? Or will luck find me again?

  Lucky Star is available now!

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  Books by Allie Everhart

  THE JADE SERIES

  (New Adult Romantic Suspense)

  Choosing You

  Knowing You

  Loving You

  Promising You

  Forever You

  Finding Us

  Becoming Us

  Always Us

  Garret: A Jade Series Companion Novel

  THE KENSINGTON SERIES

  (Romantic Suspense)

  Needing Her

  Keeping Her

  Protecting Her