Torn (29 page)

“
Lovely! Are you going to
go?” Gram clasped her hands together, swooning.

Katie nodded, studying the flowers.
They were bright and beautiful. She loved that he was thinking of
her while they were apart. “I think I will. Aren’t they
gorgeous?”

Katie finally decided on a turquoise
sundress and piled her loosely curled hair into a clip. As she was
adding some lip gloss, she heard Aidan at the front
door.

“
Hi.” She kissed him
sweetly on the cheek. “Thank you for the flowers, they’re
beautiful.”

“
I knew you would like
them. Ready to go?”

“
Just let me grab my
purse.”

“
I’ve had dinner delivered
to my place. I hope you don’t mind.”

Katie’s heart pounded as she
contemplated being alone with him. Was her nightmare prophetic, or
just her mind trying to trick her into remaining miserable? Trying
to erase the apprehension from her voice, she answered,
“Okay.”

Walking into the foyer, Katie
inspected her surroundings. The moon reflected on the ocean,
visible through the glass living room wall. “It’s
stunning.”

“
Thank you. Let me show
you around.” Aidan took her hand and led her through his home.
“This is the living room, kitchen, there’s a half bath through
there.”

Katie was surprised at how simple and
modern his taste was. The entire house was white, except for the
kitchen, which boasted sleek black cabinets, black granite
countertops, and stainless steel appliances. “It’s so . . .
clean.”

“
I like clean lines and a
clutter-free environment.” He led her down the hall and opened the
door. “And this is my room.”

His bedroom matched the rest of the
home—spotlessly clean and modern. Katie didn’t have time to look
around, only to notice his bedspread was black with a white fur
blanket draped over one corner at the end of the bed.

They sat down at the dining room table
and enjoyed Chinese takeout by candlelight with great conversation.
The more he talked, the more ridiculous her nightmare
seemed.

“
More wine?” Aidan asked,
refilling Katie’s glass of Pinot Grigio.

“
Thank you. Dinner was
delicious.” Katie smiled, feeling the effects of the wine relaxing
her.

Aidan got up from the table and
returned with two small white, oval dishes. He set one of them down
in front of Katie, waiting for her reaction.

“
Crème
brûlée
!” Katie beamed. “You
remembered.”

After dessert, Aidan took Katie’s
hand, waiting for her to steady herself. “Sorry, I haven’t drunk
that much in a long time.”

“
Follow me.”

Katie tensed, wondering what he had in
mind, but relaxed when he led her outside. She followed him
underneath the back deck to a large hammock. Aidan climbed in,
making room for Katie. She stood there, her body language
portraying her reluctance.

“
It’s okay. I thought
you’d like to listen to the waves.” He held up his hands in
surrender. “Only listening, and talking.”

Content with his pledge, she carefully
slid in next to him, balancing her weight so they didn’t topple off
onto the sand below. Aidan guided her head onto his chest and
wrapped an arm around her.

“
Relax,” he
commanded.

Katie obeyed, and felt her muscles
loosen. She could feel his strong chest and arms beneath her, and
was taken aback by how much she wanted to touch him. Instead, she
listened to the waves and let the rocking motion of the hammock
lull her to sleep.

“
Katie, wake up.” Aidan
stroked her hair and kissed her forehead. “We fell
asleep.”

“
What time is
it?”

“
It’s late, after two. We
should get you home.”

Gram was asleep when Katie came home,
so she slipped into bed—sundress and all—and drifted off to sleep,
the sound of the waves still rolling through her mind.

***

Wednesday afternoon, Katie drove to
the hospital to meet Aidan for a late lunch.

“
Can I help you?” A pretty
blond nurse in green scrubs asked.

“
Hi. I’m supposed to meet
Dr. Romero on the orthopedics floor.”

“
Sure, it’s on
the—actually, just follow me and I’ll take you up
there.”

Katie looked over the bubbly, petite
woman and instantly felt comfortable around her. She had an
addictive personality that reminded her of Maggie.

“
May I ask? Are you his
sister?”

“
No, we’re not related.
We’re—” Katie wasn’t sure what they were. Was he her boyfriend,
friend, heartbreak-curer? Before she could figure it out, the
elevator door opened and she saw him. Aidan was standing at the
nurses’ station writing in one of the charts. She could feel the
hormones raging inside of her as two nurses ogled him.

Katie nibbled on her sandwich as she
and Aidan talked. She listened to his words, but her mind was too
busy processing her newfound attraction to him. Whether it was
jealousy prodding her competitive streak, or something completely
different, she didn’t care. She was only focused on making sure his
attention was solely hers.

Thursday afternoon was spent shopping
with Gram. Katie found a new bathing suit and a pair of sunglasses,
while Gram tried on shoes. Katie cared less about shoes, she was
most comfortable in her bare feet, while Gram was obsessed—she
insisted every woman should have a pair of shoes to match every
outfit. As Katie sat on a bench outside of the third shoe store,
her phone dinged with a text from Aidan:

Hi beautiful! I have the weekend off.
Spend it with me?

Katie’s heart lurched in her chest.
She wasn’t sure what he meant by spending the weekend with him. It
could mean dinner, putt-putt, a movie . . . or could he actually be
asking her to spend the night?

What do you have in mind?

I have a house on Cape Hatteras. 2
other couples going. You will love it!

Katie contemplated the
idea.
I don’t know the other couples, but
I’m sure it will be fun. Jeez, I wish I could talk to Maggie about
it. I miss her so much. But I can’t talk to Maggie—without telling
her everything—I’ll just have to make my own decisions. I don’t
know what to do.

“
Hi, dear, wait until you
see these shoes—” Gram pulled a pair of brown leather sandals out
of a bag and flaunted them as if she were trying to get the best
price at an auction. “What are you so deep in thought
about?”

“
Aidan asked me to spend
the weekend with him and two other couples on Cape Hatteras. I
don’t think—”

“
Take a risk for a
change,” Gram interrupted. “Try something new.”

“
Who are you and what’ve
you done with my conservative grandmother?”

“
I didn’t say go and act
like a floozy! You’re an adult with a good head on your
shoulders.”

Katie typed her answer and
hit
send
.

Sounds fun!

***

Katie shaved her legs—twice—and made
sure to pack her new black bikini. Before opening the front door,
she gathered her bag and took a deep breath. “Hi, come
in.”

“
I’m so glad you agreed to
go this weekend. We’re going to have a great time.”

Katie was full of questions on the
drive. “Tell me about the other couples.”

“
I’ve known Brad and Ryan
for three years. Brad works in advertising and has been married to
Sarah for almost two years. Ryan is a plastic surgeon and he’s been
dating Penelope—we all call her Penny—for four years. The girls are
nice, and they’ll love you.”

“
Have you rented this
place before?”

“
Brad and I own it. We
originally bought it as an investment to rent out, but decided we
liked using it personally. It was unsettling to have strangers in
our beds.”

Katie focused on those last words and
wondered if there was a hidden meaning. If he didn’t like having
strangers in his bed, was he a relationship kind of guy? She
wondered how many women he had brought to this place, and if the
other couples would assume she was just another woman for him to
conquer. Aidan pulled in the driveway to the large four-story
home.

“
Looks like we’re the
first to arrive,” he said, helping Katie out of the car. He
unlocked the front door and set their bags down. “Let me show you
around.”

The vast living room and kitchen were
bright as the light shone through the glass wall that overlooked
the ocean. “Wow, it’s just beautiful,” Katie said. “I can’t wait to
get on that beach!”

“
Let’s pick our rooms
before the others get here, and then we’ll hit the
beach.”

Katie hung on his
words.
He said “rooms,” he has no
intention of sharing a bed with me.
She
exhaled a breath of—was it disappointment or relief?

Aiden picked up the bags and led Katie
up a spiral staircase to the second floor. “We have six bedrooms,
one with bunk beds and—”

“
Yes! Let’s take the bunk
beds. We can stay up late laughing and making prank calls.” Katie
laughed.

“
If you’re sharing a room
with me, I think you’ll find this one much more appealing.” Aidan
opened the door to the first room. Rich caramel walls surrounded a
large king-sized bed, and glass sliders led to a balcony
overlooking the beach. Aidan set the bags down and took Katie’s
hand.

“
Wait—”

“
Katie,” he interrupted.
“I’m just going to show you the bathroom.”

She followed him into a large bathroom
with a deep tub. “Nice. I could enjoy a glass of wine and a soak in
that tub.”

“
I hope you will.” Aidan
took Katie out onto the balcony. There were two Adirondack chairs
with a small round table between them.

Katie stood there watching the sea
roll in, wondering if she had made the right choice, joining Aidan
for the weekend. She was confused, knowing she should share a room
with him, but she wasn’t ready. She searched her mind for something
safe. “Maybe you could join me for coffee out here in the
morning.”

“
Sure. Let me show you the
rest of the house.” Aidan took Katie’s hand and led her to the room
next to hers. “I’ll stay in this room. The room across the hall is
the one with bunk beds, and the rest of the rooms are on the other
side of the house.”

He’d made the decision not to share a
room with her, and now she felt even more conflicted. All of the
signals informed her that he wanted her, but now he didn’t? Katie
looked around the room while Aidan set his bag on the bed. It
wasn’t nearly as regal as the room she would be sleeping in.
“Aidan, we really need to switch rooms. Although, the floral
pattern does wonders for your skin tone,” Katie laughed.

Aidan laughed along, happy to see her
relax a bit. “There’s the smart mouth your grandmother spoke of.”
He took her by the waist and whirled her around to face him before
winking. “I like it.”

She found herself against the wall as
Aidan’s hands gripped her waist. His intense black eyes bored into
hers, drawing her in like an unexplained force, convincing her to
taste the delicious poison.

The heat from Aidan’s
breath on her neck, and the gentle kiss that barely touched her
skin behind her ear made it hard for her to maintain balance. She
heard him whisper
“Me Estoy enamorando de
ti.”

Katie wasn’t sure what he had just
said, but the accent mixed with his mysterious darkness was causing
her to quickly spin out of control. As the familiar stir swirled
through her body, she slid her hands over the soft fabric of his
blue shirt, gliding over each muscle in his chest and arms. He did
want her.

Aidan’s breath hitched as his body
tensed under her touch. The way she was melting under his gaze sent
a jolt right through him. Her eyes were a stunning shade of green
against her flushed cheeks, giving him a glimpse of who she might
have been before that bastard shattered her heart.

Not taking his eyes off hers, he
slowly leaned in and claimed her lips. A quiet moan escaped Katie.
Her fingers knotted in his hair as the kiss became more ardent, and
he wanted more. He pinned her arms above her head and slipped his
hand under her shirt, skimming over her ribs until he reached her
breast. The feel of her leg wrapping around him to pull him closer
had him fully aroused.

The distant sound of chimes
immediately broke the gripping intoxication. “Was that the
doorbell?” Katie asked, trying to catch her breath.

Aidan released her arms and rested his
hands on the wall behind her, his eyes still burning with desire.
“Yes,” he exhaled. “They have a key, I think that was just a polite
alert.” He rubbed his thumb gently across Katie’s cheek.

Katie ran her fingers
through her hair and straightened her top. “Hey,” she took Aidan’s
hand, flashing him a mischievous grin, “what
exactly
did you say
earlier?”