Hate at First Sight (10 page)

The day before the wedding was crazy. People were running around the house, losing and trying to find things, again and again. The bride and the groom seemed to be really tired of everything, and I was sure they wanted Saturday morning to come as soon as possible. And so did I….

I had a whole night to think about tomorrow. I didn’t know what made me tell Megan about the other man she could be happy with, because I wanted to be that man for her. And tomorrow I was going to finally say that aloud. I wasn’t sure about Megan’s reaction, but I really hoped she wouldn’t blow me off before my speech ended.

I didn’t have a chance to talk to her today, as Mary needed her help with every little thing, just like Owen needed my help. But the moment I saw Megan heading for her room, I excused myself saying that I needed to change clothes, and followed her upstairs.

“May I come in?” I asked, knocking.

“You have already let yourself in,” Megan said.  She was standing in front of the mirror, looking glumly at the dress she was wearing.

“Is everything okay?”

“I hate lavender,” she muttered, grimacing at her reflection. “Mary has obviously lost her mind. This dress barely covers anything.”

I smirked, watching her. She looked really funny in that dress. Like a sexy, birthday cake for some eighteen-year-old guy.

“This is … nice,” I said, standing next to her.

She rolled her eyes. “Shut up, Aiden. You don’t like it, and neither do I. I need a new dress, and even though I know that Mary will kill me for changing it, I can’t be wearing this tomorrow.”

“Do you need my help?”

“Actually I don’t, but if you want to give me a lift to the bridal shop, I won’t mind.”

“I’m all yours for the rest of the day. I don’t think I can stand any more of Owen’s orders. Everything’s ready for tomorrow, but he still wants me to make sure that we haven’t missed anything.”

“It’s not surprising.” Megan laughed. “I’m sure you will be as nervous as he is when the time for your own wedding comes.”

And just like that I got a very painful slap in the face. Did she feel the same when I told her about the other man last night?

“I’ll be ready in a minute,” she said, hiding behind the bathroom door.

I nodded absently and stared at my reflection in the mirror. Nothing had changed about my appearance, but my life was crashing down right before my eyes. I sighed.

Megan didn’t say a word about last night. Did she think I was right, and that she could be happy with anyone, but me? What did she think would happen tomorrow? I didn’t have a damn clue about what was going on in her head. And I was sure she wasn’t going to make my life easier.

“Okay, we can go now,” she said a few minutes later. “Are you sure Owen will be fine without your help?”

“I’m sure there’s nothing else I can do for him today.”

The bridal shop wasn’t far away from Owen’s, so it took us no more than ten minutes to get there. Mrs. Hughson, the owner, was a very nice woman around sixty. She immediately realized that Mary’s choice of a bridesmaid’s dress wasn’t good enough for Megan.

“I told her that not every girl would like this dress, but she assured me that her friend would approve of her choice.”

“Plans have changed, and now I’m replacing the girl,” Megan said, following the lady to the fitting-room.

“Choose something turquoise,” I said after her.

She turned around, looking at me surprised. “How did you know I wanted a turquoise dress?”

“It’s your favorite color.”

“Hmm … right.”

No more comments followed. And once again I thought that Megan’s behavior was strange. Or maybe she simply wanted to seem indifferent?...

I sat on a couch and started looking through one of the wedding magazines I found on a coffee table. There was one thing that immediately caught my eye — a floor-length ivory dress. It looked very simple: strapless, with lacy patterns and a ribbon at the waist. The model wearing it reminded me of Megan, and I thought the dress would be perfect for the wedding that she once described as her dream. I looked around to make sure that no one could see me, tore off the page with the dress and put it into my back pocket. Well, just in case….

“What do you think about this one?” Megan asked, coming out in a very cute outfit. The dress was long and trained, with a vent that ran up to her hip.

“Nice,” I said, nodding approvingly.

“You said the same about Mary’s choice.”

“This time I mean it.”

“Good. I’ll take this one.”

“Don’t you think that Mary should know about you changing the dress?”

“I think she has enough to worry about at the moment. No need to give her more reasons to freak out.”

I chuckled. “Yeah, right. It’s better to save the news for the ceremony.”

“She will be too focused on the words of her vow to pay any attention to me.” Megan looked at her choice one last time, and went back to the fitting-room.

On our way home, I suggested having lunch, and we stopped at one of the local bakeries, known for its chocolate muffins with strawberry jam.

Megan looked at the menu and ordered two cups of latte, with cream and caramel. “You know, I always wanted to learn how to bake cakes and pastries. But I’m afraid of experimenting in my kitchen. Don’t want to burn it down.”

“Why don’t you ask your mom to help you. I know she’s a great cook.”

“That’s exactly why I never ask her to help me with cooking. She always criticizes me.”

“What if we try a few experiments together? When the wedding’s over?”

Megan’s cup froze in her hands. “I … don’t think I’ll have time for baking tomorrow. I need to pack my bags, as I have an early-morning flight to London on Sunday.”

I frowned. A very bad feeling formed inside me. “So … tomorrow is the last day we will spend together?”

She looked at me, taking a deep breath before she said, “So
that was the deal, remember? Three days.”

“And what will happen after your return to London?”

“Well … I will probably go to the graduation ball, then take a week off and go to some resort to prepare myself for my new life and work. If my boss allows me to go on holidays of course. Last time I saw her she wanted me to start my work on Monday.”

“And what about us?” I didn’t think it was a good time to ask that question, but I couldn’t help myself.

“What about us? You will lose the bet, I will make you do something funny, and then you will go back to Bristol.” She smiled slightly. “I’m sure your life wasn’t going to stop after the wedding.”

“True. But … somehow I thought it would change.”

“You know, no matter how hard I try to persuade myself that I didn’t like this week at home, I did like it. A lot. And maybe if it wasn’t for you, I would have ran away again even before the wedding day. But you did your best to show me that life isn’t just about black and white as I used to think it was. So thank you for that, Aiden. Those three days we spent together were the best days of my life. But it’s time to move on, to get back to our normal lives, where not everything is a fairy tale.”

“But the third day of the bet is not over yet.”

“Aiden….”

“Are you giving up?” I knew I wasn’t playing fair, but it looked like it was my last chance to change the situation.

“No, I’m not.”

“Good. I have something for you, but first, we need to check on your family. I hope they haven’t killed each other while we were out.”

I tried really hard not to let Megan see my nerves. And I was so not ready to say good-bye; I needed to come up with a new plan on how to make her stay. I lied about the surprise. In fact, I didn’t know what to do….

Thank God, no one noticed our brief absence, and Megan and I got back to our duties without any trouble. Owen and I checked and re-checked everything that should be done for tonight’s rehearsal dinner, and when he realized I was barely able to stand on my feet, he let me go. Finally!

I went to my room to take a shower and get changed. I was so exhausted that nothing, but a good sleep was on my mind. Until I saw Megan at the threshold of my bedroom.

“Sorry for bothering you, Aiden, but I needed someone’s help with the fastening, and your room was the closest.”

“Sure, turn around,” I said, touching the silky dress. “It’s my pleasure to help you with anything that includes your clothes.”

“Thanks.” She smiled and went back to her room.

Uh, why on earth did everything she was wearing look so damn sexy? She obviously knew how to attract attention.

The dinner started with the groom thanking his and Mary’s parents for everything they had done for the wedding. Then the bride gave small presents to the guests, and when the formal part was over, we finally relaxed and started enjoying the meal and the talks.

Megan was sitting right in front of me, together with her parents. Over and over again our eyes met, sending thousands of silent messages. Sometimes Megan’s eyes flashed, and a cute blush covered her cheeks, as if she remembered something too embarrassing to share with the rest of us. But only I knew that tonight she was going to feel the full force of those embarrassing things, overwhelming her thoughts….

“Aiden? Why don’t you tell us something about your work with Owen?” one of the guests asked.

“Oh, well, there’s nothing interesting to tell. For me, and for the rest of the company, he’s a hard-to-stand and smart-ass lawyer.”

The guests laughed.

“What about you, Megan? Do you remember any cute incidents from Owen’s past?”

“My brother hates when I give out his dirty secrets, Aunt Betty. But I’m sure Mary can tell us something interesting about their romance.”

“Sure,” the bride said. “Once Owen took me horseback riding. It was at the beginning of November, and the weather wasn’t good enough for the walks. But Owen said it was okay, and half an hour later we were caught by the rain, right in the middle of the forest. The next morning, after being drenched to our skins, Owen and I were dying from fever and frequent coughing spells. When I asked him what was the point in going for that ride, he said he wanted to show me the old mill, somewhere near the river. And as it turned out later, he was going to propose there, but he had to do it with a thermometer in his mouth instead of a ring in his hand.” We all laughed. “He was so upset about the ruined surprise, but he said he couldn’t wait any longer. So he kneeled near my bed and asked if I would agree to spend the rest of my life with him.”

“What a beautiful story!” one of the bridesmaids said. “But why did you say there was no ring?” she asked, puzzled.

“Because the ring was hidden at the mill,” Owen replied. “So I had to go back there to get the ring and repeat the proposal twice.”

“Though I had already said yes, even without the ring,” Mary added, kissing his cheek.

Megan and I shared a glance, and I was surprised to see a few tears glistening in the corners of her eyes. She excused herself and went to the house. Something told me to follow her, so I rose to my feet, said a few words to the bride and the groom and went to find Megan.

I didn’t want to go back to dinner. I thought I was strong enough to stand so much sweet talk and words about
love, but apparently I had overestimated my powers.

I was trying to look normal. Maybe even a little indifferent, but every time I saw Aiden, my heart started beating faster. And I knew what it meant….

I was falling for that arrogant and impossible in every sense of the word, Mr. Handsome. And even though I realized that there wasn’t anything bad about it, it felt like losing the biggest battle ever — the battle with myself.

I went to my bedroom and shut the door behind me, leaning against it. I needed to get out of that house as soon as possible, and I was seriously thinking about missing Owen’s wedding, when someone knocked.

“Megan, I know you are there. Open the door, please,” Aiden said.

Shoot … he was the last person I wanted to see at the moment.

“What do you want?”

“We need to talk.”

“Do we?”

“Let me in!” he replied harshly.

I took a deep breath, before I opened the door.

“What happened? Why did you leave?”

“I needed some space.”

“What for?”

I ignored his question. “Why are you here, Aiden?”

He looked like he was evaluating something, his jaw was tightened and the usual brightness of his eyes was gone. Was he angry at me?

“I’m ready to give up,” he finally said, making a helpless gesture.

“You what?” I didn’t immediately understand what he was talking about.

“I lost the bet, Megan. I thought I would be able to leave when everything’s over, but I can’t.” He took a step closer and cupped my face, closing his eyes. “I thought I was wrong about my feelings for you, but … I love you, Megan,” he said, looking at me. “More than anything in the world.”

Oh, no … no, no, no! I cried mentally.

“Why … why are you telling me this?”

“Because I want you to know that now you have a reason to stay.”

“You must be out of your mind, Aiden.” I chuckled nervously, turning away from him. “I can’t stay. London is my life. I can’t forget about my dreams just because of a few romantic words.”

“What about this?” Aiden asked softly, wrapping his arms around my waist. “Don’t you feel the electricity?”

“Don’t do this,” I said, swallowing hard. Of course I felt it. It was impossible not to feel it when Aiden and I were so close to each other.

“Don’t go, Megan,” he said, touching my ear with his lips. “Stay with me.”

I turned to face him, trying really hard to stop the tears burning my eyes. “I can’t.”

“Yes, you can,” he whispered inches from my lips. “And I’ll do anything to make you stay,” he added, before his lips found mine.

Oh, my God … how could I think about running away when everything I wanted was Aiden? And now he was kissing me so fiercely and desperately, that I couldn’t do anything, but respond.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and leaned closer, enjoying the sensual dance of our tongues mingling. His palms slid down my back, and I didn’t even notice the moment when my dress fell to the floor, revealing my black lingerie.

“Don’t take off the heels,” Aiden said, breathless. Then he swept me in his arms and put me on the bed leaning over me, with his eyes burning passionately.

I didn’t know what happened to my rational thinking, but when I saw Aiden unbuttoning his shirt and exposing his perfect chest and tanned skin, I stopped breathing. He was so gorgeous, like a statue I was too afraid to touch, so as not to ruin the beautiful lines. He took off his trousers and joined me on the sheets, covering his body with mine.

“You are one of those women that make angels fall,” he said, kissing me softly and sweetly. His hands brushed down my body, over my stomach and up to my breasts that he kissed through the lace.

Looking down at me, he whispered, “Be mine.”

His deep gray-blue eyes softened the moment I said, “I’m already yours.” Did he actually think I would say
no
?

Aiden’s lips curled into a satisfied smile, and I squeezed his shoulders trying to pull him closer. His palm slid to my back, and he unfastened the bra.
He took it off with his teeth, and I gasped quietly when his lips touched the soft skin of my breast; Aiden’s muscles tensed the moment his lower body pressed to mine.

“I would sell my soul to
the devil for just one chance to feel you like this again,” he said, trailing kisses up to my collarbone, and then to my neck, chin and lips. His hand rested on my breast, and then traced down to my side and hip.

“Wrap your legs around me,” he said, kissing my earlobe. “Uh, I always wanted to feel these heels of yours scratching me.”

I did what he said, tightening the embrace around his hips. “Like this?”

“Oh, yes, Baby. Y
ou know exactly what I want.”

Every part of me ached, feeling Aiden’s lips all over my upper body. Every second with him was filled with passion. But he wasn’t rough. His every touch was so tender and sensual, I thought I would die right then and there. A moan escaped his throat, and I raised my hips, meeting his identical move.

“I want to kiss you … there.” I gasped when Aiden’s palm slid to my thong. I didn’t think I was ready to let him do that, but he didn’t give me a chance to stop him. He caressed my thighs, brushing his lips over my belly, and I closed my eyes waiting for his lips to touch more of me.

He took off my thong and smiled, looking at my high- heeled shoes — the only thing I was still wearing. “Now, that’s exactly what I wanted you to look like in my bed.”

“Technically, it’s my bed,” I said, returning the smile.

“Who cares?” He bowed his head, and his lips touched my thighs. I dug my fingers into his shoulders, almost ready to beg him to stop the torture.

“Mmm … so sweet … everywhere,” he growled, stroking my hips.

I think I cried out his name, because Aiden stopped teasing me, and leaned over me, asking, “What do you want me to do, Megan?”

I hesitated for a second. “I want to feel you inside me.”

“I’ll do that with pleasure.”

“Don’t worry, I’m on the pill,” I said, as he reached for his trousers.

With his lips kissing me hungrily, his palms holding my hips and our breasts rubbing, Aiden entered me in one fast thrust, making me groan loudly. He shut his eyes for a second, and then started moving, speeding up and slowing down, as if his previous tortures were not enough to drive me totally crazy.

I was aware of every pulsation running under my skin. My hips rocked and rose to catch up with his movements, and when I thought I would explode, Aiden stopped abruptly, breathing heavily.

“What are you doing?” I asked, looking up at him.

“I can barely control myself with you.”

I smiled, touching his cheek. “Don’t worry about that. Stop controlling yourself.”

“I’m losing my mind when I’m with you,” he breathed into my lips.

“I love you, Aiden,” I said, feeling him moving slowly inside me. I couldn’t hold it back any longer. I wanted him to know that our feelings were mutual.

“What did you say?” He stared at me, as if he was shocked to hear my word.

“You heard me. I love you,” I repeated, watching the waterfalls of emotions crossing his face.

“I thought I would never hear it from you,” he said, kissing me again.

And this new kiss was nothing, but pure love. If only I could find the words to describe what I felt at the moment. My hips rose upwards, and Aiden’s movements quickened until we both let out one final groan, taking each other to the heaven of our love.

Aiden kept whispering my name, car
essing my sides, arms and belly, until we fell asleep, both exhausted, but happy.

The sounds of running water woke me up. I turned on my left side, looking for Aiden, but he was nowhere around. Then I got up and went to the bathroom. And there he was, standing under the shower in his full glory. The water drops mixed with the shampoo, were running down his body, making every inch of my own body scream.

“Wanna join me, Beautiful?”

I looked up at him, only now realizing that my attention had been focused not on his face. Smiling, I stepped into the shower and flinched at how hot the water felt against my skin.

Aiden laughed quietly. “You are freezing.”

“Maybe you shouldn’t have left me alone in the bed?”

“My mistake,” he said, kissing my lips. “I will never let it happen again.”

We took a shower that I was sure lasted no less than an hour, and then we went back to the bed, where I curled up in his warm embrace, enjoying every breath I took next to him.

“Remember the day when you said you would never make love to me in this house?” Only now I realized that he broke his own promise.

“No, I didn’t say that. I said I thought making love with you couldn’t be a quiet moment.”

“So you are not afraid of my father kicking you out of the house anymore?”

“I think he will understand my motives.”

“You’d better be right, because I don’t want Owen’s wedding to become another family fight.”

“Don’t worry, Sweetheart; your dad is a very wise man.”

“I know. But we still have another problem to solve?”

“What problem?”

“My job. I can’t quit it. I need to work there for at least six more months before they let me go.”

“I’m sure we will think of something. And now … how about a rest?”

“A rest? I thought you had something more interesting on your mind.”

“Just tell me what to do, and I’ll obey.”

I smiled, running my fingertips over his lower lip. “Surprise me.”