Page 1 of Walking the Bird

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Jordan stood alone in the dark kitchen, allowing the moon to reflect in the diamond Aiden placed on her left hand not a full week ago. She’d been adamant about not allowing a piece of paper define who she was or what Aiden and she shared. All that changed after a single heated conversation between a couple as Jordan served them drinks. Lifting her nearly empty cup of tea to her lips, Jordan smiled as she recalled with perfect clarity the look on the woman’s face as the man sitting opposite her delivered words which sank deeper into Jordan’s heart than they did the one they were intended for.

“Relationships are a give and take.”

“So? Give it up, already, Stephen. I’ve made my opinion on the subject perfectly clear.”

“You really don’t want to get married?”

“As I’ve said a million times, the divorce rate in America is fifty percent. Fifty percent.” The blonde with heavy boobs stated the latter loud enough to capture everyone’s attention. “Why spend all that money on a wedding just to spend more on a divorce when it all falls to shit?”

“But what if it doesn’t, Shelly?”

“Why mess with something that isn’t broken?”

“Because it’s what I want, Shelly,” the man slammed his hand on the table. “And in healthy relationships where the parties care about one another, they do things for the other. Not because they agree or disagree, they do it because it’s important to the one they love.”

Jordan’s knees had buckled, and she nearly fell to the wood floor below as Stephen tossed several bills to the table and stormed out the front door. She’d come back to the house, pulled one of Aiden’s shirts out of the closet, and cried until the sun came up the next morning. Later in the day, when Aiden returned from the job he’d done with Matthew, she’d attacked him as he came through the front door, begging him to ask her again. She’d searched his confused eyes for several agonizing moments until realization kicked in and he dropped to one knee, asking her to marry him. Aiden offered to take her to the courthouse, but she’d declined, asking him instead for a destination wedding.

Over the past few years, she and the other wives had formed a bond, supporting each other when the guys were away. About a year ago, she noticed a change in Eleni. Her face was a little puffier when they spoke online and her tone developed a bite to it, one she attributed to the new medication her doctor had prescribed. Jordan suspected it was something much deeper, and consulted with Elli who confirmed Alex had spent ten of the last twelve months away on one assignment after another. Elli swore her to secrecy, and while she would never betray her trust, she couldn’t help but use the information to devise a plan to get whatever was creating the wedge between her friends out of the way.

“What’s keeping you awake, beautiful?” Aiden’s voice, deep with sleep, startled her, his warmth enveloping her as he pressed his hardening cock against her ass cheeks.

Leaning into him, Jordan kept her eyes on the dark windows of her childhood home across the field. Another family lived there now, the new owners of the lumber mill. Jordan loved to see the two boys run around using their imaginations like she did as a little girl.

“Our invitations should arrive later today.”

“And?” Aiden prodded, running the tip of his nose along the shell of Jordan’s ear.

Ignoring the growing ache between her thighs, Jordan turned in his arms, her heart heavy from the thoughts running through her mind. “And what if no one can go?”

Aiden suspected by the way Jordan dropped her eyes to his bare chest she was lying to him. He’d overheard her talking to her father’s photograph, telling Coach how much she wished he were here to walk her down the aisle.

“Babe, the only thing you need to worry about is saying I do when the time comes.”

Laying the side of her face against the warm skin of Aiden’s chest, Jordan closed her eyes, “Aiden?”

“Hm?”

“Do you think people can change?”

Aiden’s breath hitched in his chest. Swallowing thickly, he stared out over the calm water of the pool in the backyard, concentrating on the reflection of the full moon.“Why do you ask?”

“No reason.”

Pulling back, Aiden lifted Jordan’s chin with his index finger, “Babe, where is this coming from?”

Stepping from his embrace, Jordon cast her gaze to the shadows of the room. “It’s nothing.” Shaking her head, “I’m being silly is all.” Jordan wished her words were true, the lie weighing heavy on her shoulders. It was no secret Aiden, and his team, had an extensive past, one with a laundry list of women they’d bedded. What if Eleni’s fears of Alex’s infidelity were justified? More importantly, what if he wasn’t the only one?

Reaching out, she laced her fingers with Aiden’s. “Come on, let’s practice some more for the wedding night.”

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