His to Cherish (25 page)

Aidan cleared his throat. “No, can't say I've stayed here.”

“I like it.” I crossed the space from where I was standing by the hot tub to where he was by the bed. “I like it a lot.”

“Good.”

He leaned down, wrapped his arms around my waist, and pulled me against his chest. “What would you like to do first?”

My hands went to his shoulders, up to the back of his neck, and I tugged him down closer to me, brushing my lips over his.

“I can think of a few things,” I whispered.

Aidan's quiet laugh vibrated in his chest and against mine. His arms tightened. “Later, I promise. I want to see the city with you.”

I feigned a pout before letting go. “Fine,” I huffed. “If you insist.”

“Come on. Let's go to Michigan Avenue and then we'll head to Gino's.”

Shopping and then pizza? The man definitely knew me.

“Aidan,” I whispered against his neck. I could barely speak.

The feel of him inside of me, hitting me in that perfect spot as he thrusted into me over and over again, had my body tightening.

Water splashed over the edges of the tub as I rocked into him again. Our angle, me straddling Aidan as he leaned against the back of the tub, was perfect. Heavenly.

“Come on, Chelsea,” he groaned, grabbing my hips and pressing me to him.

It was all I needed. My teeth clamped down on his neck as my orgasm shattered me from the inside out.

His grip on my hips tightened as his hips rocked toward me, against me, pulling every remaining wave of my orgasm from me before he released his own groaned pleasure, finishing inside of me.

We were panting, and the room was hot and humid from the steam of the tub and the heat seeping from us.

He clung to me, holding me tight against him as if I would disappear if he let me go.

Droplets of water fell down my forehead and into my eyes, but I was trembling so much as I came down from my own intense orgasm that I couldn't bother to wipe them away.

“Amazing,” he whispered, turning his head and pressing his lips to my temple. “You're always amazing and feel so damn good.”

As if his dick agreed, I felt it twitch inside of me. My hips shifted, loving the feel of him. He was so large and thick he filled me completely.

I loved Aidan, period. I just couldn't bring myself to say it out loud, but after the day we'd had in Chicago, I had no doubt both of us would be expressing it soon.

At least with words.

We'd done it with our bodies for the last hour, and every time Aidan took me, it got better and better. More intense.

“We should dry off.”

His fingers digging into my hips belied his words.

He was hardening inside of me and I laughed, loving the way I tightened around him inside of me when I did.

“Damn, Chelsea, what are you doing to me?” He moaned and dropped his head to the back of the tub.

I leaned forward, smiling, and brushed his hair away from his eyes and off his forehead. He rolled my hips into him and groaned.

“You have me feeling like some randy teenager.”

I laughed at his description and trailed my lips down the column of his throat. His pulse beat at the base and my tongue darted out, licking the area between his collarbones. “I think there's a compliment in there somewhere.”

“Hell yes. But I want out of this water.”

Instead of letting go, though, he rose to his knees, supporting my butt with his hands and keeping us connected.

“Wrap your legs around me.”

I listened to his command and wrapped my arms tighter around his neck. The shifting of his weight had his erection pressing harder into me.

“Oh hell,” I moaned, dropping my head to his shoulder. “You're so sexy.”

His quiet laugh rumbled through him as he took me to the bed.

“I'm going to set you on your feet, and I want you to turn around.”

I nodded my compliance and he moved slowly, my body tensing as he slid out of me.

Turning around, I found myself at the edge of the bed.

“Bend over, hands on the bed.”

The longer Aidan and I were together, the more I learned he liked having this control. He liked to command and I liked to follow him. He hadn't let me down yet, and as I waited for him to touch me, I doubted he ever would.

His hand began slowly running from my neck down my spine until he hit the swell of my cheeks. My body trembled as he ran his hands over my backside, squeezing it and massaging me.

“You're beautiful,” he whispered, leaning over me. My hands were braced on the bed and I twisted my head to look at him over my shoulder. When I saw him, he took my breath away. He looked enamored with me, completely lost in me. My body gave another pleasurable shiver.

I was turning this strong, incredibly sexy man on. There could be no greater aphrodisiac than knowing that.

I gasped as he dropped to his knees behind me, his lips pressing against my ass. It was different and shocking, yet as he continued kissing me, his wet tongue and warm lips laving my skin, my already well-used body began to respond to his gentle ministrations.

“So beautiful, everywhere.”

“Aidan,” I groaned, dropping my head.

My arms were already shaking and he hadn't really done anything.

“I need you,” I whispered huskily, shifting my hips.

“I know you do.” His fingers begin running up the inside of my thighs. My legs quivered and my clit began to pulse as he teased the sensitive area.

“How can I be so turned on all the time around you?”

I stayed quiet, unable to answer. I couldn't think as I felt him stand up until his thighs pressed against me and he ran the head of his dick along the wetness seeping out of me.

“God, Chelsea,” he moaned, pushing in. It was slow but powerful and I dropped to my elbows. “Always. Every minute of every damn day I want to be inside of you. What are you doing to me?”

He continued talking as he began pulling out of me and pressing in again. My only responses were gasps of pleasure and moans of ecstasy.

His fingers dug into my hips as his speed increased, and every time his dick hit that perfect spot inside of me, I cried out.

My arms were shaking so hard I dropped my head to the bed, my fingers digging into the sheets.

“So good,” I gasped. “Aidan!”

My heated blood swirled inside of me, and my vision went hazy as he continued to move in and out, quick and fast and hard, over and over again, until I felt like my heart might explode out of my chest.

“Hell,” he groaned, pulling me back. His fingers moved to my front and began massaging my clit with forceful pressure as he dove into me, his hips pumping at an unrelenting speed.

It took seconds before my fingers were grasping the sheets. My orgasm barreled down my spine and out to my arms. My back arched and I threw my head back as he pulled my release from me.

I screamed his name, shouting it loud enough for the city twenty stories below us to hear me as my entire body tightened from the top of my head to the tips of my toes.

“Fuck!” He roared and pounded into me several more times until the tightening and clenching of my core clamped down around him. He buried himself balls-deep inside me, releasing. Collapsing over me, his hands gripped my shoulders as he pressed me back into him.

His chest shuddered over my back as his hips pulsed, and he spent himself deep inside of me.

Sweat dripped down my forehead onto the sheets, and it took what felt like forever until either of us calmed our racing hearts.

But I didn't complain. I loved having Aidan's weight on me, so strong and powerful and protective. I loved the way his coarse chest and leg hair tickled my sensitive skin. And above all, I loved the way he constantly whispered my name as if he adored me.

“Bed,” he grumbled, and slowly pulled out of me.

“Can't move,” I grumbled back, my legs still weak and rubbery.

He gave my butt a light tap that made me jump. “Come on, let's get cleaned up and sleep.”

I nodded slowly, feeling like I was in a hazy dream, before I moved to the bathroom, cleaned up, and brushed my teeth.

Through the glass, I watched as Aidan pulled up his boxers and climbed into the far side of the bed. When he did, he turned to me and watched as I finished brushing my teeth and rinsed my mouth out with water.

“That's really weird,” I told him as I walked out of the bathroom. “To not have privacy.”

“I've seen every inch of your skin, and I think I know you use the toilet,” he said, laughing softly and pulling my body to his.

“Still, it's weird to see everything.”

The lack of privacy felt strange. It built an intimacy that I didn't know we had reached until the first time I had to use the bathroom and Aidan could see me. I'd almost had performance anxiety until Aidan turned his back to me.

He silenced me with a slow kiss, his tongue instantly sweeping inside my mouth and tangling with mine.

“Thank you for the great day,” he murmured against my lips.

“Thank
you,
” I stressed, and shifted my body so I was lying on my side, my head on his shoulder, and my arm thrown over his stomach. “I had a lot of fun.”

And it had been fun.

We'd window-shopped on Michigan Avenue all afternoon. I hadn't bought a single thing, but still loved walking in and out of every store I wanted to, with Aidan patiently trailing behind. We walked to Millennium Park and had the obligatory photo taken in front of The Bean.

Then we took a cab to the beach that runs along Lake Shore Drive and walked through the sand, holding our sandals, and watched thousands of people sunbathing and playing beach volleyball.

I felt lighter and younger and freer than I had in years as the day went by, even when Aidan grew silent. He told me stories about Derrick and the things they had liked to do when they visited Chicago, and I saw some sadness and stress leave his body as well.

It had been a tough day for him. I knew that.

But at the same time, it seemed to be healing him, too, offering him some sort of closure he hadn't yet gotten.

I was honored that I'd been able to be a part of it.

As I continued replaying the day in my head—the smiles, the laughter, the joking, and scarfing down Gino's Chicago-style pizza—sleep began pulling me under.

My eyes closed as I listened to Aidan's breathing even out beneath me.

I thought he was asleep just as I felt my own body begin to go heavy.

So when he whispered, “Love you,” and brushed his lips against my forehead, I was too drowsy to flinch from the surprise or say anything.

Instead, I fell asleep, knowing that by the way he had whispered the words hesitantly, as if he was testing them out loud for the first time, he truly did.

“I don't think I can ever eat another hot dog again.” I groaned and wrapped my hands around my stomach.

Next to me, Aidan guided me out of Wrigley Field with a hand on my back and a laugh escaping his lips. We'd just watched the Chicago Cubs beat the New York Yankees six to one. The game was an upset, and even though I wasn't a baseball fan, I couldn't help but get swept up in the energy from the fans from both teams packing the stadium. At the seventh-inning stretch, when I excused myself to go use the restroom, I surprised Aidan by coming back sporting my very own Cubs T-shirt and visor to block the afternoon sun from my eyes.

His wide grin and loud, full-stomach laugh when he threw his head back was all the thanks I needed. The scorching kiss he gave me in front of hundreds of people while they cheered us on and our kiss was plastered on the Jumbotron above center field was icing on the cake.

Now we were leaving, with hoarse voices from shouting for the last three hours and stomachs so full I didn't think I could eat until at least dinnertime.

Unusual for me.

I groaned again as Aidan hailed us a cab on the jam-packed Addison Street outside the field.

“David used to live right down here,” Aidan said as the cab headed toward Navy Pier, our next stop.

“Really? Where?”

He pointed west down Addison Street. “Just a half mile down the road there.”

“Wow.” I sat back in the seat and closed my eyes. “That must have been fun for him to be so close to everything in Chicago.”

“I'm sure it was. Derrick and I stayed with him a few times when we'd come to visit and catch a game. The yards on this street get packed with tailgaters on game days.”

“I bet,” I murmured, my eyes beginning to droop from the sun and the excitement and the food from the day. I fought a yawn and lost.

“We don't have to go to the pier.” Aidan tugged me toward his shoulder and draped his arm over me. “If you need a nap we can go later.”

I shook my head. “No, I'll be good when we get there. I just need coffee.”

“You got it, babe.”

We were silent for the short cab ride as I fought to keep my eyes open, and it wasn't long before Aidan was ushering me out of the taxi and handing the driver a twenty-dollar bill, telling him to keep the change.

The first thing I noticed about Navy Pier, besides the loudness from thousands of chattering voices, was that the atmosphere was different here from anywhere else we'd been so far in Chicago.

It was definitely a family tourist spot. Aidan and I dodged strollers and small children as we made our way down the pier, skirting past the Children's Museum and watching kids on the smaller rides as we headed back toward the large Ferris wheel.

“It's huge,” I said, looking up at the large structure. My stomach began to tighten and I feared the loss of the hot dogs and massive amounts of other food I'd consumed earlier.

The line was long, and it was pretty much guaranteed that by the time we waited in line for thirty minutes I could psyche myself out of going on this ride. I always had before.

Aidan cursed under his breath and turned to me, tilting my chin to look up at him. He must have noticed my slightly green appearance, because he scowled and his brows pulled together.

“Shit, Chelsea. Are you afraid of heights?”

I puffed out my cheeks and blew out a breath, unable to take my eyes off the massive wheel in front of us. “Did you and Derrick really go on this ride?”

“You don't have to do this.”

“I want to,” I said firmly. “If this is something you did with Derrick and want to share with me, I'll do it.”

He shook his head, grasped my hand firmly in his, and went to tug me out of the line. “I don't want to scare you.”

“I can do this.” I pulled him back into the line and gazed at his bright green, concern-lined, eyes. “Keep my mind off it, though, or I'll talk myself out of it. Tell me about Derrick.”

He hesitated, but I was determined. Eventually, he nodded and relaxed next to me.

“Just talk to me,” I repeated when he remained silent.

For the next thirty minutes, he told me all about Derrick. Some of the things I already knew, like how much the kid loved sports, and how smart he was. He had a great sense of humor and was kind to everyone. He never had any problems in school and had a ton of friends, from kids in band to jocks to loners. Several times I wrapped my arm around Aidan, hugging him from the side as his chin began to tremble and he had to stop his story to collect himself.

I gave him the time he needed before he continued to talk about all the stupid crap Shane and Derrick used to do, like the time Derrick tried to scale the shed in their backyard by standing on a glass aquarium. His foot had slipped through, breaking the glass and slicing up his leg.

Fortunately, he hadn't needed stitches.

I was still laughing at how dangerous and dumb boys could be when we were suddenly at the front of the line and Aidan was holding the tickets out to the attendant. He ushered us into the car, which I was sure was completely safe, just scary as hell.

My pulse was suddenly thundering inside my throat and my ears. If Aidan hadn't been holding on to me, I was certain I would have run and jump off the side of the pier. It didn't matter that I wanted to do this for him, I was scared shitless.

“We don't have to,” he said again with a caring smile on his face.

“It's okay,” I muttered, and stepped inside.

Across from us, an older couple took their seats, smiling and talking with each other.

I hated that I was terrified like a kid in front of other people.

“Just look at me,” Aidan whispered into my ear, making me jump. The chair rocked and one of my hands grabbed onto the side, the nails of my other hand dug into Aidan's thigh.

“Holy crap,” I gasped.

“Hey.” He reached out, and with his thumb, he turned my chin until I was facing him, looking directly into his eyes. “Talk to me. There's going to be some stopping and starting while other people get on, and it's going to rock a little bit, but you're safe.”

I gulped down a golf ball–size lump in my throat.

Slowly, I nodded, trusting Aidan.

It was silly to be afraid of heights. Nothing bad was going to happen, but even as I thought it, our car stopped and rocked. I inhaled a quick breath as my skin chilled.

“Damn it,” I muttered, and did the dumbest thing. I turned away from Aidan and looked down. Blood rushed from my face and my palms went clammy.

We were probably only twenty feet high. It felt like miles.

The sour taste of an already eaten hot dog began to claw its way up my throat.

“Oh my God.”

“Chelsea.” His breath brushed against my ear. I couldn't stop staring over the ledge.

Which was stupid.

Never look down. Never, ever, ever. I knew this, but I couldn't move—until Aidan began whispering in my ear.

“When we get back to the hotel, I'm going to make you come until you're screaming my name. I'm going to twist you into so many different positions and make you feel so good you're going to be feeling me for the next week.”

I gulped and felt my blood start pumping again. This time it went to my lower stomach.

A soft chuckle escaped my tightened lips and I was finally able to look at him.

All I saw were darkened eyes and a salacious, delicious grin.

“Did that help?”

“Yeah,” I whispered, avoiding the people across from us. If they had heard him, I didn't want to know. “It did.”

“Good. Now keep looking at me.”

I nodded, still thinking about all the things he wanted to do to me. How many more positions could we try? We'd already done all the ones I knew about, plus a half dozen more.

Aidan was wild in bed. Hard and fast and slow and tender, and in the last few weeks I'd experienced all the sides of him. If there were other ways he knew how to rock my world, I couldn't wait.

“I'd love to know what you're thinking right now,” he said, his eyes on mine.

Heat bloomed on my cheeks and neck.

“I'll tell you later.”

He laughed and pulled me forward, his palms cupping my cheeks as he pressed his lips to mine. This was one of the things I loved about him. When he wanted to touch me or kiss me, he did it. He never seemed to care if there were other people watching or what anyone thought of him, he just followed his heart.

When he pulled back, I slid my eyes to the couple across from us, who were pretending not to pay attention to the sexual foreplay they'd just witnessed.

“Don't mind us,” the woman said, dismissing us with a wave of her hand. “We've been married thirty years, but I still remember those early days of being in love. We couldn't keep our hands off each other, either.”

My jaw dropped and Aidan's hands fell from my cheeks, leaving me cooled until I turned to him and saw such a loving, heated expression in his eyes that I knew he wasn't embarrassed at all by what the woman had said.

“Yes,” I said, and gave her a wink. I reached over and squeezed Aidan's hand, bringing it to my lips and brushing my mouth over the back of it. “New love
is
exciting.”

I might not have been so brave if I hadn't heard him whisper the words in my ear last night, but that admission, coupled with his promise weeks ago, made me confident.

It wasn't until Aidan pulled his hand out of mine and pointed to the Chicago skyline in front of us that I realized we were at the very top of the Ferris wheel.

My jaw dropped in amazement as I scanned the skyline to the lake. I twisted my body around carefully inside the car to avoid rocking it as much as possible, but in that moment, I wasn't afraid of being so high up in the air.

I inhaled the beauty of the city surrounding me. I could imagine what Derrick used to feel as a small kid and young teenager when he would see the same thing.

I turned to Aidan, tears in my eyes, and whispered, “I bet Derrick loved this.”

I watched him swallow slowly, knowing he was thinking of those memories, those times when he used to be with his son and watch his eyes fill with joyful wonder.

“Yeah, this was his favorite thing.” His voice was full of emotion and his eyes went sad, the outer edges of his eyes tipping down like they usually did when he thought about Derrick.

My heart hurt.

Leaning forward, unable to help myself, I wrapped my arms around Aidan and buried my head in his neck. “Thank you for bringing me here.”

With the waves from Lake Michigan bouncing the boat, my fingers curled around the railing where Aidan and I were standing near the back, a quiet corner with a semblance of privacy.

Aidan was behind me, trying to keep me warm from the chilling breeze and the cold water that occasionally splashed up and over the sides of the boat. He had one hand covering mine on the railing, and his other hand was playing with my hair at the back of my neck.

His slow movements along my skin made goosebumps flare all over my skin. I was wearing only my spring jacket over my Cubs T-shirt and skinny jeans, and the setting sun and quickly cooling air wasn't helping anything.

I shivered, moving back into the wall of warmth behind me, and laughed as Aidan nuzzled my neck with his nose.

“You're beautiful,” he whispered. He'd been quieter since we left the Ferris wheel and got on one of the boat tours. I let him have his time with his memories, not minding that while he was thinking of Derrick, he was keeping them to himself. We all needed that personal space. “After Mandy, I never knew if I could really trust a woman again.” His chin dropped to my shoulder, pinning me in place when all I wanted to do was turn around and look at him while he talked to me.

Instead, I kept my eyes on the water in front of us, knowing somehow that he needed this slight space between us to say whatever he was thinking.

“I know I told you that I didn't date much and it's true. Between trying to finish college, taking care of Derrick, and trying to take over my dad's company after he died, I had too much on my shoulders and not a lot of time for fun. It doesn't mean I haven't been with women over the years, but it wasn't frequent, either. I want you to know how sorry I am that I took advantage of you at the beginning…those first few weeks when I showed up at your house.”

My breath lodged in my throat, remembering the first time we'd had sex after Derrick's birthday, and Aidan's drunkenness the night before. I had known then that at least a part of Aidan was using me.

“But I'm so damn thankful you gave me that time, Chelsea. I needed it. I needed to be around someone who didn't need anything from me, or wasn't expecting me to move on. The guys have been great, don't get me wrong. They know me better than anyone, they knew Derrick almost as well as I did, but being around them is hard. I think…I know this has all happened fast, and I know sometimes you have to wonder if what I feel for you is real—”

“I don't,” I croaked, needing to reassure him. Not anymore, I didn't.

“Regardless,” Aidan continued. “I think because you understand in a small way what I'm going through, what I'll always grieve and miss, being around you is helping me in a way no one else could.”

“Aidan,” I started, but he shushed me and pressed his lips against my jaw.

“Don't. Just let me finish this.”

I nodded, and then I twisted in his arms so the railing was at my back. Aidan's hand that was in my hair dropped to my hip and he gave me a slight smile.

“God, I love you.” His eyebrows twitched and his eyes widened as if he had surprised himself with his admission.

I couldn't help but grin and I reached out, stroking his cheek and his jaw with the palm of my hand. He had started keeping his jaw a bit scratchy and scruffy when I told him how much I liked running my fingernails across it. Somehow it was relaxing.

“I know,” I finally said in a whisper. “I heard you last night.”

His lips twitched, fighting a smile, and I fell even more in love with him when his cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

“And you need to know that I love you, too. I've never been more in love with anyone in my entire life, and I don't care how slow we need to go. I want to be with you, for whatever you need. I want to be there with you when you need to laugh and when you need to cry. I want to stand silently next to you while you remember Derrick even if you don't tell me what you're thinking.”

His forehead brushed against mine and his breath fell from his lips in a harsh exhale.

“God, you're perfect and beautiful and I want you, Chelsea. Stay with me and let me love you.”

“Of course. There's nowhere else I'd rather be.”

His lips crushed into mine forcefully and his hands moved to my cheeks. He stole my kiss like he'd stolen my heart—quickly—and before I knew it, it was gone.

When he pulled back, our breath mingled in the minute space between us. His shoulders heaved as he gasped for breath and I smiled, loving the effect I had on him.

“Someday, I'm going to give you your dream house. We're going to move in together, and whatever happens after that…we're going to go through it together.”

My lungs froze as I registered his promise.

“Aidan.”

He shook his head.

“Just say yes. Whenever we're both ready, that's what will happen. I'm too old to play games, to wait for what I want, knowing how quickly it can all disappear. I'm not saying tomorrow, but when you're ready, I want you to know that's where this is going.”

My heart skipped a beat as I took in the intensity in his green eyes. In his pupils, I could see my stunned reflection, but it only took me a few moments before I began breathing and my body melted into his.

“I love you, Aidan. I'll take whatever you give me.”

“Silly woman.” The edges of his lips tipped up into a smile. “I'm going to give you the world.”

And as he kissed me again, one of those romantic kisses that women who read romance novels dreamed about, and my foot kicked up behind me, I knew without a shadow of a doubt that everything he was telling me was absolutely true.