Missing (The Brannock Siblings Book 3) (14 page)

"Aiden is going to kill me when she sees you,
especially since you look like you had a rough day, so try to run a little
interference, okay?"

"Why didn't she want me to come?"

"Well, that depends on what you believe. The excuse she
gave me was because she knows you are stressed with work and she didn't want to
inconvenience you. Big fat lie. She's an idiot sometimes, Gus. Doesn't mean
anything but that she is overwhelmed. Just be patient. It doesn't help that I'm
always pushing her."

"Well, stop then. I care about her a lot, Lil. I just…
I need her to see it for herself."

"I know, sweetie." She patted my cheek once more
and gave me a weary smile. "I've been waiting a long time for her to see
herself. If she doesn't soon, she's going to lose you."

I shook my head, the decision already made the night I saw
Aiden running away from me in that green dress and ridiculously sexy pair of
heels. The memory of it was just as powerful as the actual experience.

"You know she'll never lose me, Lily. I'm here to
stay."

Lily's eyes started to tear up, but a tug on my leg brought
my attention down to Aidy. "Hey there, princess. You look really pretty
tonight."

She smiled and tried to wink but ended up just blinking
instead. We had been working on it and I didn't have the heart to tell her she
wasn't actually winking. "I know I'm pretty, Gus Gus."

The familiar nickname that Ash had always used since we were
kids made me pull in a sharp breath. No way this little girl didn't already
have a tight hold on my heart, just like her aunt.

I introduced Evan and Kristie and the two women immediately
started in on woman talk. Pregnancy, children, schedules for ovulation. Evan
and I nervously stepped off to the side and stared over the crowd.

I searched for a head of bright red hair, desperate to see
her even if she didn't want to see
me
.

"You're in love with her, aren't you?"

I certainly hadn't been reticent in my feelings about Aiden,
especially to Evan. He was the one always snapping me out of it when we were on
the job, so it didn't take much for him to figure it out. I looked down at my
feet, no response on my lips, but he didn't need one. He could see it all over
me. The same why I saw it all over Con with Emily and the same way Con and I
saw it all over Luke with Ash.

I was not just in love with her. I was utterly
gone
for her.

Her smile, her laugh, her terrible cooking and twisted sense
of humor. I was gone for all of it. She was who I saw each night I closed my
eyes and she was
all
I could see when I opened them. It was
her
arms I wanted to fall into every day when I found myself being pulled under by
the weight of my job. It was
her
I wanted to protect, to take care of,
to spend the rest of my life with.

And it was
her
that wouldn't let me in.

"Gus?"

That husky voice was like a fist clenched around my heart,
reminding me of how much I wanted her and how little I already had. I looked
over my shoulder where Lily and Kristie were now eagerly staring at us. Aiden
was standing there in her little black dress looking every bit the goddess she
was. Her red hair was curled and held by a loose clip so it draped over a
slender shoulder. Her legs were smooth and creamy and looked longer than normal
with the heels she was wearing. The same heels she had been wearing for our
date. I groaned as my eyes traveled back up over her curves to her soul searing
brown eyes.

She was furious, but I was ready for it.

"Red."

Her steely gaze zeroed in on my black and blue eye then down
to my bandaged hands. That beautiful face went from enraged to terrified in a
split second. "Oh my God, what happened?"

Evan was now back at his wife's side and Lily was slowly
backing away from our little group with Aidy in her arms. No one was going to
help me out.

"Just a little altercation. I'm just fine, babe."

She tangled her fingers together and shifted on her feet as
her face paled and her shallow breaths made her breasts strain against that
dress. It would have given me an immediate hard on if she didn't look like she
was going to burst into tears. "I've been worried."

"Hey, I'm okay," I said gently and reached for
her. She willingly stepped into my open arms and buried her face in my chest,
her anger temporarily forgotten. The warmth she radiated was like a balm to my
aching body. I wrapped my arms around her and rested my chin on the top of her head,
unwilling to let her go anytime soon. "It was nothing. Just part of the
job."

Her fingers gripped my jacket, "That's the
problem."

Although her voice was muffled, I heard it loud and clear.

That's
the problem.

"Aiden." I pulled back slightly and tilted her
chin up, forcing her to look me in the eyes. "I'm not going
anywhere."

She didn't say anything, but she didn't need to. She didn't
believe me. I looked into her eyes, seeing the hurt, the worry, and finally
noticed how tired she looked.

"You haven't been sleeping?"

Her fingers loosened their hold and she started to pull out
of my arms, but I didn't let her. No way was she going to brush away my
concern. "Why haven't you been sleeping, baby?"

For a moment, her eyes darkened to such a rich chocolate swirl,
I could almost taste her desire. Then it was gone, her resolve set to being
guarded once more. "It's nothing," she snapped, throwing my words
back at me.

I knew what she was doing and it killed me to know there was
nothing I could do to stop her. "I deserve that."

Her face fell and her eyes glistened with tears. "Do
you?"

I nodded and pulled her back into my arms, letting her feel
how sorry I was that she had been so worried about me. It reminded me of the
tears Mom had shed for Dad whenever she didn't get the five o'clock phone call
he always promised her. She knew it meant something had happened, but bad or
good? None of us ever knew until he finally called.

All these years I thought she was the one who held it
together so easily. I didn't realize it had been pure torture every day.

"I promise you, Aiden. I won't let anything happen to
you, Lily, Aidy, or even me. I'll be careful because I can't stand the thought
of you hurting because of me."

She nodded against my chest and I felt her take a deep breath
as I buried my face in her hair. When I glanced over at Lily, she had her hand
over her mouth and tears in her eyes. She just wanted her sister to be happy
and this is what she couldn't tell me herself. Even if she had, it wouldn't
have made any sense. Not until I saw for myself how much Aiden felt for the
people closest to her. She gave everything to her family, so much that there
was hardly anything left for
her
.

Just like I had done with my own family.

"Ms. Murphy, is everything alright?"

I looked up to see an older woman staring at us with
apprehension. Aiden pulled away from me and wiped under her eyes with a nod. I
cupped her face in my hands and ran my thumbs over the tracks left on her
cheeks from her tears. "You good?" I whispered.

She smiled weakly and nodded once more. "Yes, just had
a moment. Sorry."

"Never be sorry for being you."

Her smile widened, "I need to get back out there."

I kissed her forehead, inhaling her sweet scent and
torturing myself a little more. The only sign that she was affected by me was
her sharp intake of breath before her hands dropped from my shirt. The
separation felt like a crack in my chest so I grasped her empty hand and lifted
it to my lips, brushing another kiss over the soft skin. "I'm coming with
you."

She didn't protest and pulled me along with her, reassuring
the older woman as we walked past.

"Everything is fine, but I'm only going to be staying
another hour, then I need to go home. This isn't really my thing."

"I completely understand, Ms. Murphy. We're just happy
to have you."

Aiden snagged a glass of champagne from a passing waiter and
guzzled it down before grinning at me. My girl was tough and even when her
sweetness and worry took over, she was still always my Red. Sassy to the core
with sweet softness woven throughout.

I stayed by her side over the next little while as she spoke
with random people who approached her. By the time the hour was up, she had
consumed four glasses of champagne and was leaning against me to try and stay
upright. I didn't feel any need to stop her, in fact, I'm pretty sure I was the
one who handed her the fourth glass. She needed it if she was going to get
through the rest of the night.

She spoke animatedly to one of the other artists attending
while I took a healthy glance around the room for the first time. I had only
seen two of her paintings so far. The same paintings that I had caught glimpses
of in her apartment already. One was a now finished piece with the blue and
gray swirls I saw that first night at dinner with her and Lily. The colors
moved so gracefully across the canvas with whites and blacks mixed in. You
couldn't help but be hypnotized by the movement. The other painting was a
sunset, one that I could never hope to see in a million years, at least not
from the city. The canvas was huge and full of oranges, reds, and violets.
Wherever she got this inspiration from, it was nowhere I had ever been before.
The landscape was nothing but mountains and country making the whole image
strangely peaceful.

My attention was torn away from the painting when the older
woman, Marjorie, the manager of the gallery, stepped in front of us.

"Ms. Murphy, you have sold every piece except one and I
was wondering if you were willing to drop your price. We have some interest in
it, but…"

Aiden shook her head, obviously not needing to clarify which
piece hadn't sold yet and the determination in her eyes told me whatever it was
had been something important. Something she wouldn't let go to just anyone.

Marjorie sighed and nodded her head before turning away.

I wrapped my arm around Aiden's waist and pulled her close,
my lips brushing over the shell of her ear. "I'll be right back."

She couldn't hide the goose bumps that appeared on her arms,
but she just grinned shyly, as if nothing was amiss, and turned back to the
woman who hadn't stopped talking in the last few minutes.

I hurried followed Marjorie, keeping one eye on Aiden in
case she needed me. When she stopped at a desk in the back of the gallery, she
looked upset and stressed.

"Marjorie, can I see the piece that hasn't sold
yet?"

She addressed me with a tentative smile, "Of course. I
don't know why it's not selling. It's her best work and it isn't even a
painting. That girl has a good eye for photography."

I followed her past a partition to another corner of the
room where there was only one piece displayed. My breath left me when I caught
the first glimpse of the photograph in a simple solid black frame. There was no
question as to who was going to purchase the picture.

Me.

Only me.

How she captured the image so perfectly, I couldn't figure
out. It was taken on the roof of our building, looking out towards Lake St.
Clair. The sun was barely peeking over the horizon and the flare of light made
the other colors in the picture seem muted. All of them except the red I had
become so infatuated with. Anyone who hadn't memorized the curve of her neck
from her chin to her collar bone, or the shape of her lips when she wasn't
looking directly at you, would never guess that the woman in the picture was
her
.
Aiden's profile was silhouetted against the morning light, but her red hair,
curled into countless messy ringlets, was spread out behind her. Clothed in the
white sundress that made her body all the more elegant, she was sitting on the
edge of the building, looking out towards the sunrise. It didn't have to be
clear in the picture to know the expression on her face. I saw it whenever we
were together. Content, but aware that something was missing and making such an
effort to ignore it.

She was breath taking in a way no words could fully
describe.

"It's beautiful, no?" Marjorie whispered.

I tried to swallow past the lump that had formed in my
throat, but it was no use, so I nodded.

"She has set the price where she wants it, but my gallery
isn't known for being pricey and all the interest has ended with her number.
I've offered to purchase it for permanent display, but Ms. Murphy has
refused."

I was right. She wasn't going to sell such an intimate view
of her to just anyone.

"I'll take it."

Marjorie gasped, "But…"

"I don't care how much it is, it's mine."

"Sir, I don't know if-"

"Here." I pulled out my wallet and handed her my
credit card and my license. "Go fill out whatever you need to ensure I'm
the buyer and if anyone ends up offering you more, raise my payment as
well."

Her wrinkled hand slowly reached out and took the cards from
me. I felt her eyes on my face, but I still couldn't look away from the
picture.

"Yes, sir. Um, since you are close to her, would you
like me to keep the purchase anonymous?"

"No. If she asks, tell her. She's going to see it
hanging up on a wall for the rest of her life anyway."

With that, she smiled and quickly walked back to her desk.

Aiden was probably going to protest. In fact, I knew for a
fact she was going to argue with me about this and the thought made me smile
like a fool.

I couldn't wait.

***

"Alright, babe. You can do this. Just a few more
stairs."

Aiden giggled as she clung to my arm and tried to steady
herself on the landing. It had already taken double the time to climb up one
set of stairs since the champagne still hadn't left her system.