Summer Heat (17 page)

Beyond the garden and
pond was a grassy area the size of half a football field. Knobby cypress trees
provided ample shade and the temperature cooled a few degrees as she stepped
out of the sun. There, decorated tables, balloons and streamers had been set up
along with a huge sign proclaiming Aidan’s thirtieth birthday. Tiki torches
surrounded the area, their flames already casting shadows on the near darkened
grass.

“This is lovely, Mrs.
Storm.”

Angelina turned dark
eyes to her and motioned her to one of the covered tables. “Thank you. And call
me Angelina.”

Melissa sat next to
Aidan’s mother. “How many people are coming today?”

“Probably fifty or so.
Some of our neighbors, family, and several of Aidan’s close friends will be
here.”

Aidan’s close friends?
Wryly she wondered how many of those were women. Knowing Aidan, probably all of
them. “It sounds wonderful. I’m sure he’ll be very surprised.”

Angelina grinned. “I
hope so. He doesn’t expect this, and usually he knows everything—hard to keep
secrets around him.”

“Tell me about it,” she
said, then realized what she’d let slip.

But Angelina only
laughed. “I take it you two have grown close.”

“Not really. We work
together, so we’ve spent a lot of time cooped up in the same room.”

“I think it’s more than
that.”

Yes, it was. But she
couldn’t, wouldn’t discuss it with his mother. “No, really, it’s not.”

“You’ve slept together,
yes?”

Her body flamed in
mortification and she was sure the heat on her cheeks was visible because
Angelina smiled.

“Don’t be embarrassed, 
cher
,”
Angelina said, patting her hand. “You and Aidan are healthy sexual beings. We
don’t sweep sex under the rug here. Between my background and Aidan’s father,
we embrace sexuality as a wonderful gift.”

She couldn’t imagine
ever having this conversation with her own mother. As far as her mother was
concerned, Melissa was still a virgin at twenty-seven. And if she wasn’t, Susan
Cross didn’t want to hear about it.

But discussing her sex
life with the mother of the man she’d slept with was a completely different
matter. She had no idea what to say in response.

Fortunately, Angelina
seemed quite comfortable. “Tell me about your feelings, Melissa, or should I
call you Lissa like Aidan does?”

She didn’t even want to
know how Angelina knew that. She’d just assume he’d told her. “I wouldn’t know
where to begin.”

Angelina nodded.
“Understandable. Do you have any questions about our family?

There was a loaded
question. How would she approach that one? “Not really.”

But Angelina was too
wise for her. “Are you certain the magic hasn’t left you a bit unsettled?”

Melissa finally
chuckled. “You don’t leave too many subjects taboo, do you?”

“Not really. The more
that is withheld the bigger the mystery. And, truly, there is no mystery about
our magic. I will tell you if you’d like to know.”

“Yes, I’d love to
know.”

“My family has
practiced voodoo for generations. But voodoo is not what many think it is. It
is not devil worship, nor the dark arts. We are of Catholic descent, as is
Galen, and we believe in the mystic and magic of the one supreme power. Voodoo,
or any type of magic, whether brought forth or inherent in one’s genetics, is
nothing more than being open to the possibilities that something special lives
inside all of us—that we all have powers that enable us to soar beyond the
ordinary. Some of us choose to open our eyes and embrace it, but many fear it
and keep themselves closed off.”

What Angelina said made
sense in a way. “I’ve thought about that, and wondered. When Aidan…when Aidan
and I were together, or whenever I think about him, things happen.”

“Weather related
things?” Angelina asked with a knowing smile.

“Yes.”

“It is our destiny.
Galen is a Storm, a controller of the elements. When he and I met, which was
our destiny, I had the magic in me. He was aware of odd happenings within his
own life but chose not to embrace them.”

“I take it he does
now?”

“To a certain extent.
But he gave to me what was his, as I gave to him what was mine. And our
children enjoy both.”

A part of her couldn’t
believe she was having a conversation about manipulating the weather. And yet
she knew it to be true. But what did it all mean? More importantly, what was
she going to do about it?

“You and Aidan share a
destiny,” Angelina said. “What you two choose to do with that is entirely up to
you.”

Feeling closer to this
woman than she’d ever been to her own mother, Melissa asked, “Help me,
Angelina. Tell me what to do.”

With a mother’s
tenderness, Angelina stroked Melissa’s hair, her dark eyes softening. “
Ce n’est pas mon destin, le bel. Il est à
vous. 
“

Melissa sighed.
Angelina was right, of course. Whatever happened, it was her choice, no one
else’s.

For the next hour she
helped Angelina finish the decorations and set out the food. Pushing thoughts
of Aidan to the back of her mind, she relaxed enough to laugh with Shannon and
Kaitlyn, especially when they regaled her with memories of Aidan’s antics as a
child. She’d learned he was quite the hellion when he was small.

Not too different than
the way he was now. There was something wild and primitive about him, and she
wondered how much of that had to do with the magic that lived within him.

She had so many
questions about that, questions she wanted to get answers to from Aidan
himself. And yet they were barely on speaking terms, couldn’t seem to get to
the point where they could stop either arguing or having sex.

And what good would it
do her to get more involved anyway? In a week she’d be leaving. Her life was in
Boston. This wasn’t her family.

And Aidan wasn’t her
man. She may love him, but that didn’t make him hers.

“You ready?” Shannon
asked, leaning over Melissa’s shoulder.

Adding the finishing
touches to a vegetable tray, she nodded. “Is it time?”

“Almost. He should be
here shortly. He’s already called Mom to say he’s on his way.”

“How are you getting
him over here?” she asked.

“Family dinner for his
birthday. An annual tradition for all of us, so he wouldn’t be expecting
anything.”

Melissa surveyed the
crowd mingling under the trees. She’d met so many people in the past hour she’d
never remember who was whom. Uncles, aunts, cousins, school friends of Aidan’s,
all of whom seemed to think she was his girlfriend.

And all incredibly
friendly, warm, and inviting. She sighed, wishing she’d had friends and family
like this in Boston. Since neither of her parents had siblings, she had no
cousins, nor aunts or uncles. Family gatherings were her mother and father and
her. No frills, no excitement, no warmth.

She’d really miss all
this when she left.

Melissa turned to
Shannon, who looked gorgeous in an orange sundress. She looked down at her own
dress and wondered if it was too much, or maybe even too little.

“Quit worrying,”
Shannon said. “You look great. And red makes you look sexy as hell. Aidan’s
eyes will pop out of his sockets when he sees you.”

Melissa warmed, feeling
slightly embarrassed at being so transparent. The short dress hadn’t been her
first choice. After all, she’d been the one to run out on Aidan, she’d been the
one to keep her distance, afraid of her own feelings for him. Yet here she was,
dressed in a hot red dress that revealed just enough skin to entice him.

Was that what she
wanted? Hadn’t she made it clear to him, and to herself for that matter, that
what had been between them was over?

Could she be any more
confused? Poor Aidan, no wonder he didn’t know what to expect from her. She
didn’t even know herself.

“He’s coming!” Kaitlyn
announced.

Since there was no
place to hide in the expansive backyard, everyone assembled in a row to await
Aidan’s arrival through the back door. Angelina came through first, then Aidan.
His eyes widened when everyone shouted, “Surprise!”

He looked stunned, and
for a moment didn’t move, just looked mightily embarrassed. Then he cracked a
half-grin and ran his hand through his hair, stepped out into the yard and
headed toward the throng of people awaiting him.

Melissa maneuvered
herself into the back of the crowd, hoping he wouldn’t notice she was there.

She should have known
that wouldn’t happen. He’d no more greeted a couple of people when he stilled
for a second, turned his head slightly to each side and zeroed in on her. The
air stilled, and when he made eye contact with her the jolt of electricity
seared her blood to boiling.

Aidan headed straight
for her, parting the crowd like Moses did the Red Sea.

Melissa swallowed, her
throat gone completely dry. Her heart pounded against her ribs and her entire
body felt alive. What would he say when he made his way to her?

She was almost too
afraid to imagine. The urge to bolt surged through her and she actually
considered it for a moment. Maybe he’d ask her to leave, considering the way
she’d run from the hotel a few days ago and the way she’d avoided him.

He stopped in front of
her. His expression gave nothing away. Curious, maybe? Or astounded that she
had the nerve to show up?

For the life of her she
couldn’t think of a thing to say to him, and yet there were so many things she
wanted to tell him. At the moment, she could think of only one thing.

“Happy Birthday,
Aidan.”

First, a surprise
party, and to top it all off, Melissa? Talk about the unexpected. He certainly
hadn’t anticipated a party and all these people, and sure as hell hadn’t
counted on Lissa taking part.

“Thanks,” he said in
reply to her birthday wish. Nice answer, but he was still too dumbfounded at
seeing her to have a chance to interpret what her presence here tonight meant.

“You don’t look any
older.”

“Good to know.”

She rocked on both
feet, seemingly nervous and uncertain of whether she should even be there or
not. God, she was so beautiful she took his breath away. Red looked good on
her. Short dresses looked great on her.

“You’re gonna have to
get a better vocabulary now that you’re nearly over the hill, little brother.”

He smiled at Logan’s
taunt. “Just emulating my big brother’s speech patterns.”

“Asshole,” Logan
whispered in his ear.

“Dickhead.”

Melissa chuckled.
“Brotherly love?”

“It’s always this way,”
Aidan explained. “What can I say? He adores me.”

“You’re a pain in the
ass, Aidan,” Logan replied, then hugged him. “Happy birthday.”

His mother came up and
kissed him. “I know all you want to do is spend time with this lovely woman
here, but you have guests to greet.”

“Besides,” Shannon
piped up after she kissed Aidan’s cheek, “I need help in the kitchen so I’m
stealing your woman.”

His
 woman. Was she? He sure didn’t think so,
not after the other night when she’d run like hell out of his hotel room. She
glanced at him with wide-eyed reluctance as Shannon dragged her away.

“You can talk to her
later,” his mother said. “Go, say hello to all the wonderful people here to
celebrate your day.”

He nodded and did his
duty as host and celebrity for the day, laughing at all the potshots about his
advancing age and ticking biological clock. The evening passed in a whirlwind
of activity. There wasn’t a moment that someone wasn’t pressing a drink into
his hand, and he’d hugged and kissed so many people by the time dinner was
ready that he’d claimed chapped lips.

Truth was, he was
having a wonderful time, pleased as hell that so many people had come to share
his birthday.

The only thing he had
to complain about was he hadn’t spent any time with Melissa. She’d been
commandeered by his entire family and seemed to enjoy serving drinks,
appetizers and laughing with all the guys.

That part pissed him
off. Didn’t all his buddies know she was off limits?

As he downed yet
another drink, he almost laughed out loud. It wasn’t like a sign that
said 
Property of Aidan
 was plastered to her butt. Although the
idea had merit.

“You look like you want
Melissa for dessert.”

Aidan turned and
grinned at Logan. “Maybe I do.”

Logan shook his head.
“You’re hopeless. Didn’t we talk about this?”

“Yeah. I ignored you.
Can’t help it. She’s something special.”

Logan arched a dark
brow. “Special, huh? Special like all the other girls you sleep with?”

“No. Not like that at
all.”

“Come on, Aidan, she’s
just another piece of ass. As soon as the new wears off, you’ll be on to
another conquest.”

Irritation sparked a
flame inside him, and the temperature rose considerably outside. “I think you
need to watch what you say about her.”

With a barely visible
twitch of his hand, Logan lowered the temperature before anyone noticed. He
smirked. “Got your magic all riled up, did I?”

“What’s your point
here?”

“You care about her.”

“Of course I do.” As it
was he could barely focus on Logan while trying to follow Lissa’s every
movement.

“More than the others.”

“I’m not having this
conversation with you.”

“You’d better have it
with someone, because if you’re leading her down the garden path and then
planning to dump her on her ass, then you’re not only fucking with the girl,
you’re fucking with our business. Don’t do it.”

“It’s not always about
business, Logan.”

Logan cast an icy glare
at him. “To me, it is.”

“I’ve got it covered.
Let me handle it.”

Logan shook his head
and patted him on the shoulder. “Famous last words. You have no idea what
you’re doing, but I hope you get it straightened out before we end up with a
train wreck that costs us the casino.”

His brother’s words
stayed with him as he watched Melissa surrounded by a throng of his friends.
Did he have it under control? He could barely control the elements when he was
around her, let alone the situation between them.

Whatever the hell that
was. Her presence here tonight made him curious, especially since she’d been
avoiding him like a virus the past week. Why was she here? Did it mean she’d
gotten over her fear of him, of his magic, of their relationship?

And what of their
relationship? How did he feel about it? Where was it going?

Shit. Too many
questions and he hadn’t had a free minute to talk with her to find out any
answers.

But she 
was
 here,
and that had to mean something. Sooner or later he’d get her alone, and then
they’d figure out where they were headed.

After all the fussing
over him, the dinner, the cake, the gag gifts and well wishers hovering nearby,
the evening began to wane. Guests said their goodbyes and left, until finally
it was just Aidan and his family.

And Melissa.

She’d stayed to help
clean up, carrying trays into the house, laughing and talking alongside his
mother and sisters as if she were part of them.

Aidan slumped down onto
a bench as the reality hit. The thought of her actually being part of their
family didn’t send him running in the opposite direction.

Holy hell, what did
that mean? Was he in love with her? He shuddered at the thought. He 
never
 fell
in love. Love was permanent—it meant settling down with one woman. He swore he
could never do that, he enjoyed women too damn much to spend the rest of his
life with just one.

It had to be that she’d
been so elusive. He still wanted her. His cock twitched whenever she was
nearby. Oh hell, for that matter, it twitched whenever he thought of her.
Walking around half-hard all the time wasn’t comfortable. He needed to be
inside her, needed to feel her hot pussy squeezing him until he pumped his come
deep within her.

That had to be the only
thing he was feeling. Unbridled lust, not love.

So he waited for time
alone with her. Waited while his family hovered as if they didn’t have anything
better to do with their time. He itched to get his hands on Melissa and grew
more irritated with every passing minute that the rest of them lingered.

Finally, they began
their trek toward the house. Shannon and Kaitlyn claimed an early shopping
excursion the next day and kissed him goodbye. Logan was headed back to work,
and his parents said they’d be in the house.

He was alone with
Melissa, who sat on one of the opposite picnic benches and smiled hesitantly.

“Alone at last?” he
asked, testing the waters.

“I suppose so.”

The waters were a
little chilly, but already he could feel them warming.

“I’m glad you came
tonight.”

Her eyes widened a bit.
“You are?”

“Yes.”

“Kaitlyn asked me to
come.”

As if that was some
excuse for her being here? “Nice of her to do that.”

“Yes, it was.”

She studied her hands,
her fingers laced together, thumbs sliding over each other. Melissa was
nervous, but why? And too damn much space distanced them. He rose and walked
over to her side, then straddled the bench next to her. She turned to him, eyes
widening at his close proximity.

Her hair shined in the
darkness. He reached out and grasped a tendril, instantly hardening at the
sensuous slide of the silken strand over his hand.

“I’ve missed you,” he
admitted, wanting to see where honesty would lead.

“You have?”

“Yes.”

She didn’t say
anything. Maybe he was way off base on his assumptions of how she felt about
him. Maybe she’d come tonight out of kindness to his sister.

“I’ve missed you too,
Aidan.”

He let out a breath he
hadn’t been aware he’d been holding. Reaching out, he slid his fingertips over
her bare shoulders, the shock of contact rumbling the ground beneath them.

“I’ve missed touching
you,” he whispered, feeling her shiver in response. “I’ve missed breathing in
your scent.” He inhaled her fragrance, a mixture of woman and sweet flowers.

She shivered.

“I’ve missed the feel
of your lips on mine.” Her gaze stayed on his face as he leaned forward and
lightly brushed his lips against hers. She jumped, and he knew she felt the
jolt, too. “You’re like electricity, Lissa. Heat burns through me when we
touch.”

“I feel it,” she
murmured, slipping her fingers into his hair and pulling his head down toward
her mouth.

Every nerve ending in
his body tuned in to her as she licked his lower lip, then touched the tip of
her tongue to his. Rock hard already, he wanted nothing more than to sink deep
into her warm core until he was buried so far inside her he’d feel whole again.

He wound his arms
around her waist and pulled her sideways onto his lap, the heat of her bare
thighs burning through his skin. Her ass made contact with his erection and her
eyes widened.

“You’re hard,” she
whispered, then offered a sultry smile that he’d missed more than he wanted to admit.

He nodded. “Have been
for more than a week. Told you I missed you.”

“I suppose we’ll have
to take care of that tonight,” she said, rimming his lips with her tongue.

“Damn straight we
will.” He pulled her against him and crushed his mouth to hers, needing to feel
the absolute contact of her body. He plunged his tongue inside her warm mouth,
rewarded when she met it eagerly with her own. Her heart pounded out a rapid
beat against his chest, and he reached for her breast, cupping it in his hands
and flicking the already erect nipple with his thumb. Damn, he wanted her
naked, wanted to feel her skin under his palms. Not this flimsy material she
wore, but her sweet body.

“Aidan,” she whimpered.
“Please.”

“I love it when you
beg, 
cher.
” With a quick tug he pulled the straps of her dress
down, baring her breasts.

She reached up and
covered them with her hands, struggling to sit up. “Aidan, we can’t out here.
Your parents are right inside.”

His parents wouldn’t
venture anywhere near the back of the house, knowing he’d want to be alone with
Melissa. But he wanted her comfortable and without distractions. “Come with me.
I know a more private place.”

He helped her right her
dress, disappointed he wouldn’t be able to feast on her creamy breasts just
yet. Adjusting his painful erection, he led her through a thickly wooded path
toward the back of the property.

Melissa followed behind
Aidan, noticing how he held tight to her hand. She loved his possession of her.
When they came to a clearing, she gasped at the huge cruiser tied up to the
dock. “Oh, this is lovely.”

“Thanks. It’s my
parents’.”

He led her down the
dock and jumped onto the cruiser first, then easily lifted her over the side
and onto the deck, holding on until she found her balance.

“Are we going for a ride?”
she asked, holding on to the side rail.

“Yeah. I know a cove
that will give us all the privacy we need.”

Melissa was floored by
the magnificent boat she’d just been deposited upon. Memories of tooling around
in her best friend’s family cruiser in the summers in Boston made her eager to
feel the wind and water spray on her face again.

She followed Aidan to
the controls and sat in one of the gray captain’s chairs, the thick leather
cool and welcoming.

“This is beautiful,”
she said.

Aidan turned to her and
smiled, the pride on his face evident. “Thanks. Logan and I picked it out for
our parents. They go cruising in it all the time.”

He started the engine,
the low hum of the motor vibrating the chair. She watched, eager with
anticipation as he untied the ropes and shifted into gear, maneuvering the boat
out of the slip and into the dark night. He flipped on a searchlight and hit
the throttle once they got into open water.

She held on, thrilled
with the wind rushing through her hair. More thrilling was watching Aidan pilot
the boat. His legs were spread, both hands on the wheel and he stared straight
ahead, oblivious to her wandering eyes.