Page 71 of Townshipped
They step out into the hallway, leaving me, Aiden, and a peacefully sleeping Poppy alone in the room together. The door opens and they sneak in, all smiles. Only their smiles look like two people on the end of the barrel of a loaded gun. They know Aiden well, and this distraught version seems to make them extra wary.
“We’re just gonna’ …” Lexi’s voice trails off as Aiden’s head snaps toward her.
Trevor takes over. “Yeah. We’re grabbing Poppy. We’ll leave you two so you can talk.”
He emphasizes the wordtalk.Probably as a warning to his brother to keep the volume down below that of the entire marching band sharing our floor.
While Trevor and Lexi take opposing sides of the crib and hoist it, Aiden looks at me with wild eyes. I’ve never seen him so unhinged.
He’s still gorgeous. Maybe even more so, with an unrestrained display of emotion replacing his usual tucked-in and self-controlled temperament. I wonder what kissing him would feel like when he’s like this. Would he channel all that passion into something we shared?
I fan myself with my hand.
What is it with us and the middle of the night?
Note to self: See Aiden in the daytime hours only.
Or not.
For now, though, I have to be the one ensuring we maintain a safe distance between us. He’s about to adopt two children. I don’t even know how he feels about me outside of something a step above pity and occasional physical attraction.
Trevor returns to grab the diaper bag.
“You okay?” he asks his brother.
Aiden gives him that man nod—the one where a guy almost imperceptibly juts his chin out and slightly raises his brows at the same time. The movement’s so filled with testosterone it’s almost like he’s shifting into a wolf.
I giggle.
Aiden turns to me with another scowl—this one less in my favor.
“What’s funny?”
It’s not really a question. More of an accusation.
The door snicks shut as Trevor makes his narrow escape from his brother’s middle-of-the-night unraveling.
“You turning into a wolf.”
“What?”
“Never mind,” I say, schooling my features to hide my amusement and to show him the compassion I honestly feel for him.
My sympathy seems inadequate. Aiden’s like a man in a rowboat on the ocean mid-storm. He boarded too many passengers and he’s the only one taking a turn at the oars. No wonder he looks weary with a side of deranged.
“You were saying?” I prompt him, knowing I’m poking the bear—or the wolf.
He seems to need to vent. If that’s what he needs, I’m here for it.
He shakes his head. Then he plops down on the bed. I think I catch air this time. Not much—an inch or two—but I’m definitely airborne. I land closer to him.
He flinches for a moment when I partially bump into him and then he looks at me, his eyes full of questions and responsibilities. “What happened tonight?”
He reaches out and runs his hand down my upper arm. It’s an innocent gesture of comfort, one shared between friends, but I feel his touch skitter across my skin and my thoughts momentarily stall.
He leaves me breathless and longing for more of him. It’s how it always is when we’re this close to one another. At least for me it is. I don’t know what Aiden feels right now.
“I don’t know what the scream was about. Lexi and I were talking. We fell asleep sometime after the whistle in the hallway. Next thing I remember, I was being shaken awake by her.”
