Hot Christmas Nights (7 page)

If he had not convinced Nyla that they belonged together, he would just have to face the fact that they didn’t. If she refused to accept his love, if she chose to remain in the past instead of looking toward the future they could have, then he would have to move on. He refused to live the rest of his life waiting for her to come to terms with that one mistake they’d made three years ago.

Seconds drifted into minutes as they sat silently underneath the stars, huddling together as the temperature continued to drop. After some time had passed, Nyla cleared her throat.

His heartbeats stopped as he waited for her to speak.

“It’s getting late,” she said in a small voice. “I think we should head back to the hotel before the snow starts again.”

Aiden’s eyelids slid shut. He had his answer.

The silence in the cab ride back to the hotel clawed at his skin. He wanted to rage, to force her to see that the mistake she was making this time was so much worse than what had happened back in Atlanta.

But what good would it do?

She admitted that she loved him. But apparently loving him wasn’t enough to overcome the shame she’d allowed to paralyze her these past three years.

The only thing standing in the way of them being together was this ridiculous guilt she refused to let go of, and there was nothing more he could do to get her to see reason. His chest nearly caved in with the deep ache that settled there as reality set in.

It was time for him to move on.

Aiden held the door for her as she exited the cab, and gestured for her to walk ahead of him into the hotel. Once there, they stuck to separate sides of the tiny room, doing their best not to bump into each other. Nyla sat on the edge of the bed, her back to him. The room was so quiet that the sound of the zipper teeth pulling apart as she unzipped her boots echoed around them.

“You can use the bathroom first,” she said, still facing away from him.

“No, you go ahead.” He could barely get the words past the frustration clogging his throat.

Nyla pushed herself up from the bed and turned to face him. The pain in her eyes made Aiden want to pick up the chair next to him and crash it against the wall.

How in the hell could she deny that they belonged together? It was written all over her face.

Aiden clutched his fists at his sides. “Why are you doing this, Nyla? Don’t you see that the only people you’re hurting are the two of us? Everyone else has moved on. Why can’t you just let me love you?”

“I wish I could,” she said.

Aiden’s eyelids slid shut. God, she was killing him.

“You’re the only one who
can
do it, Nyla. You just have to decide that it’s worth it. Stop fighting this.”

“I’ve spent the past three years fighting my feelings for you,” she said in a voice so filled with hurt that it caused him physical pain. “But I can’t do it anymore.”

His eyes flew open at her softly whispered admission.

She walked over to him, stopping when less than a foot separated them. “I don’t want to fight this anymore, Aiden. I want to be happy. And you...
you
make me happy.”

She brought her hands up and clutched his face between her palms, pulling his mouth to hers. Aiden wrapped his arms around her and crushed her to him.

The sensual gasp that escaped her lips set off a ripple of electric sparks down his spine. He walked them over to the bed and lowered her on top of it, covering the length of her body with his. His fingers traced along the hem of the sweater dress she still wore, sliding underneath so he could grip her lush, smooth thighs. He pulled her body to him, drowning in how good it felt to have her body flush against his.

How long had he dreamed about this, prayed for it? Nyla had become his ultimate fantasy from the moment he met her. But she soon became so much more than just a fantasy. She became the woman he loved.

And finally,
finally
she was going to be his in the truest sense.

Together they undressed, him helping her as she pulled the dress over her head, her doing the same as he took off his own sweater. Aiden stole a moment to just stare at the perfection that was her body. She lay beneath him in a satin bra that barely covered her nipples. His mouth watered at the sight of all that luscious skin stretched out so gloriously before him, just waiting for him to feast upon it.

He dipped his head and traced the scalloped edges of the silky fabric. He swirled his tongue around her erect nipple through the bra, laving the peak until Nyla cried out, her body shivering.

Eliciting that response from her only made Aiden want to do it again and again. Levering himself up on one elbow, he set out on a journey, using her body as his personal erotic playground.

He pulled down the cups of her bra, exposing her magnificent breasts to his lips. As he indulged in the silken softness, running the tip of his tongue along the base of her breasts before sucking one erect nipple between his lips, his fingers traveled down her gently curved belly. He flattened his hand over her belly button and tucked his fingers just underneath the edge of her satin underwear, and pulled the material off.

It became a personal test of will to see how long he could go without touching her, but when Nyla spread her thighs open, his will shattered. He plunged his hand between her legs, her wetness coating his fingers. He dipped one, then another into her incredibly snug, incredibly hot passage, then started to move in and out.

He sucked her nipple into his mouth as his thumb rubbed the bundle of nerves at her cleft, increasing the pressure on both until he felt Nyla’s muscles tightened. Once again, a scream tore from her throat as she began to shake.

He wanted to bring her to orgasm one more time before connecting his body to hers, but Aiden couldn’t hold out any longer. He shoved his pants and underwear down his legs and kicked them off, rolled on a condom, then moved between Nyla’s open thighs. Taking himself in his hand, he guided his hardness into her incredible warmth.

The satisfied groan that tore from his throat was three years in the making.

Nothing he’d ever experienced could describe what it felt like to be surrounded by her hot, welcoming body. Aiden held himself still so he could take in the moment. He couldn’t rush this. He’d wanted it for too long. Had dreamed about it, wished for it.

“I love you so much,” he whispered into her ear as he rocked his hips slowly against her.

She wrapped her legs around his waist and clutched him to her. “More than words can say, Aiden. I love you so much more than words can say.”

Her head thrust back, Nyla cradled his hips and helped to guide him as he pumped in and out of her, establishing a rhythm that matched their twin cries as they both panted with every thrust.

Aiden buried his head against the hollow between her neck and shoulder. He tried like hell to slow down, but with every lunge Nyla’s body sucked him in deeper, squeezing him, cloaking him, saturating him with her wetness, until he could no longer fight the need to reach that paradise waiting just on the other side.

With one last, long, deep drive of his hips, pleasure exploded within his brain, swiftly reaching out to coat every fiber of his body.

Aiden collapsed on top of her but quickly twisted them around so that she lay on top. He’d never been more replete with satisfaction in all his life.

There was no denying it now. Christmas miracles really did happen.

Chapter 6

D
espite the blanket of heavy clouds covering Rome, gentle streams of the dawn light filtered through the window. Nyla stared at the shadow the hotel room’s lone chair cast against the wall. She wasn’t sure how long she’d been awake, waiting for her conscience to ruin the peaceful silence. She thought surely it would happen, had convinced herself that if she ever gave into the long-held desire to make love with Aiden, she would burst into a ball of flame.

But things were different now.
She
was different now.

She was no longer Cameron’s fiancée, preying on his younger brother. They were two adults in love, and they deserved this happiness that pulsed around them like a physical presence in the room.

Nyla stretched out on top of him, relishing how wonderful his hard body felt against her. She rested her cheek on his chest, the methodic beat of his heart steady and strong in her ear. She traced her fingertips over the soft dreadlocks that fanned out across his shoulder.

“Good morning,” came Aiden’s husky whisper.

Nyla looked up at him, smiling at the sight of the satisfied grin curving his lips.

“Good morning,” she said. “Merry Christmas Eve.”

“It’s Christmas Eve already?”

“Yes, it is.” She placed her hands on either side of him and tried to lever herself up, but Aiden clamped down on the small of her back, anchoring her to him. His strong fingers slid down to her naked behind and squeezed.

“Where do you think you’re going?” he asked.

“It’s your last day in Rome. There’s still a lot to see before we leave at noon.”

“The only thing I plan to see is how many more times I can make you scream out my name.”

Before she knew what he was doing, he flipped her over and had her on her back. His impressive morning erection sent shivers skittering along her nerve endings as he rubbed it against her inner thigh. Nyla’s eyes fell shut as she spread her legs wider and welcomed him inside.

“Open your eyes,” Aiden whispered against her throat.

She did as he commanded, staring into his brown eyes as his hardness penetrated her. His long dreads cascaded down like a curtain around them, brushing against her sensitive skin.

“Faster,” Nyla said with a throaty moan. She locked her legs over the back of his thighs and encouraged him to pump faster. Her inner muscles constricted just seconds before everything burst into white-hot light.

Aiden collapsed on top of her, their heavy breaths mingling.

“I’ll see the Pantheon on the next trip,” Aiden said. “I don’t want us to go anywhere else but this bed until it’s time to leave. And when we get back to San Gimignano, I don’t want to go anywhere but your bed for the next
week
.”

“It’ll be hard for me to bake bread from bed,” Nyla said with a laugh. “I’m not sure Leoncini’s customers will like that.”

“That’s too bad for Leoncini’s customers.”

He kissed her shoulder and tightened his hold around her. His suggestion, though unfeasible, sounded like heaven to Nyla’s ears. Spending an entire week wrapped up in Aiden’s arms, making up for the three years they’d missed out on... Nyla couldn’t imagine anything she’d want to do more.

“When do you leave Switzerland?” she asked.

“As early as mid-January. Unless something unexpected happens and the project gets delayed.”

“If there aren’t any delays, how soon after the project is completed do you have to return to the States?”

“I can take a couple of weeks off,” he said. “If there’s a good enough reason.”

She smiled up at him. “How about a week in Paris with me playing tour guide?”

“That definitely sounds like a good reason,” he said. “But you know what would be even better?” He kissed her bare shoulder. “If you came back to Atlanta with me.”

“Aiden—”

“You told me that you’ll have to leave your job soon anyway, Nyla.”

“That doesn’t mean I have to leave the entire country.”

“Your dream is to open your own bakery. Come back home with me and see your dream through. There’s nothing stopping you from making that happen.”

“I’m not ready to make that decision just yet,” she said.

“You do realize you can’t stay here forever, don’t you? You’ll eventually have to come back home. There’s too much waiting for you there.”

Nyla nodded. Then she reached up and pulled his head down so she could lose herself once again in his kiss, partly because she couldn’t get enough of kissing him, but also to close this subject. Thinking about the difficult decisions that lay before her was bound to ruin her Christmas Eve.

They remained in bed for another hour, and Nyla quickly discovered that Aiden knew about a lot more than just computers and astronomy. He knew exactly where to touch, as if he’d been giving her body pleasure all his life.

She finally convinced him to let her leave the bed around 9:00 a.m. so she could find some breakfast. When she returned to the room, she found a shirtless Aiden standing over his open bag, dressed only in a pair of black boxer briefs. He’d tied his hair back behind his head.

Nyla bit back a needy moan at the sight of his well-toned abs and broad shoulders.

He looked up and smiled. “Tell me you’ve got a Sausage and Egg McMuffin in that bag.”

“Sorry, I only have a couple of
cornettos,
” she said.

His mouth twisted in a frown. “Do I even want to know what that is?”

She laughed. “They’re sort of like a croissant filled with cream.” She held up the beverage tray. “They are a breakfast must, along with a hot cappuccino.”

“It’s not a Sausage and Egg McMuffin, but I guess it’ll have to do.” He walked over and hooked an arm around her waist, pulling her to him. He pressed a kiss to her lips. “Of course, I’d be just as happy to have
you
for breakfast.”

“I’m not sure that would be a very filling breakfast.”

“I beg to differ,” he said, his head buried against her neck.

A sharp gasp escaped Nyla’s lips as he sucked on a spot just below her ear. She tilted her head back. “If only I had known three years ago that you were going to be this insatiable.”

“If I had known just what I was missing, I would have told Cameron about us a lot sooner.”

Nyla stiffened. Her entire body grew tense as his words registered. She leaned back and peered at him. “What did you just say?”

Aiden’s brow furrowed; then he shook his head. “Forget what I just said.”

He aimed for her mouth again, but Nyla averted her face. She disengaged from his hold and took several steps back.

“What do you mean that you would have told him sooner?
You’re
the one who told Cameron about us? That’s how he found out, because you
told
him?”

Aiden dropped his hands to his sides. “That was three years ago, Nyla. Why does it matter how he found out?”

“It matters because
I
say it matters. Now answer me, Aiden. Did you tell him?”

The air around them grew taut with tension as seconds ticked by. Without answering, Aiden walked over to his bag and yanked out several garments. He tugged a shirt over his bare chest and stepped into a pair of pants, his jerky movements stiff with anger.

With every second that passed Nyla’s patience withered, until it vanished completely.

“Aiden!” she called.

“I didn’t tell him, okay?” He crossed his arms over his chest and looked over at the dresser before bringing his eyes back to hers. “But I made sure that he found the evidence.”

Nyla’s mouth fell open as a rush of air escaped her lips. “What...what evidence? Aiden, what did you do?”

A muscle in his jaw twitched and his expression grew more rigid.

“I left a string of emails we exchanged open on my computer,” he started. He took a deliberate pause, and then continued. “Cameron had a habit of checking basketball stats on the computer whenever he came over to the house, so when he called to say that he would be dropping by, I left my computer open on the kitchen counter, because I knew he would look at it. And see the emails.”

Nyla wrapped her arms around her stomach, trying to ward off the feeling of being kicked. With growing horror she recalled some of the emails she and Aiden had shared, some flirtatious, others downright sexual. She had stopped their exchanges when she realized that things were getting out of hand, had deleted them all from her computer. But apparently he hadn’t.

Nyla looked at him now, unable to believe the role he’d played in all the heartache she’d suffered.

“How could you?” she whispered.

“How could I not? I wasn’t going to just stand by and watch you make the biggest mistake of your life.”

“That was not your decision to make!”

“Do you know how miserable you would be if you were married to Cameron right now?”

“Do you know how miserable I
have
been? For the last three years I’ve been cut off from my family, from everything I knew and loved.”

“You chose that. You’re the one who left.”

“Because I was humiliated! And
you
did that to me.”

“I couldn’t let you go through with marrying him, Nyla. It’s as if you were blind to the kind of person Cameron was, but I knew, and I just couldn’t let you go through with that. I loved you too much to see you do something you would regret.”

She shook her head. “Don’t. Don’t stand there and say you loved me. Because of what you did, I was made to look like a cheating whore in front of a church full of people whose respect I worked my entire life to get.
You
did that to me.”

He took a step forward, but she held her hands up, warding him off.

“I have to get out of here,” she said.

“Nyla, come on.”

She grabbed her bag and began to stuff her clothing and toiletries in it. “I’m going back to Tuscany. I’ll catch the train.”

“Nyla, don’t do this.”

The pain in his voice matched her own. She looked over at him, her tumultuous emotions warring with each other. Just when she thought she could finally be happy again, that she could finally freely share the love she felt for him. To have him deal her a blow like this hurt her to the core.

Her limbs grew weary with the weight of the revelations that had come to light.

“Just how did you expect me to react, Aiden? Did you think I would be grateful to find out the one person I trusted the most is the one who betrayed me? And don’t tell me you did it because you loved me,” she said. “You did it because you were selfish.”

“You’re damn right I was selfish,” he said. Nyla flinched at the bite in his tone.

He closed the distance between them, his voice softer, but no less angry.

“Did you ever once consider what it would be like for me to stand there and watch you marry Cameron, knowing that you were in love with me? Did that
ever
cross your mind, Nyla? Those family dinners when I had to sit there and pretend that you were nothing but a future sister-in-law? Your damn wedding rehearsal dinner, when I had to toast to you and my brother’s happy life together, just minutes after you told me that the time we’d had together was over? You ever thought about how that made me feel, Nyla?” He shook his head. “Cameron had everything. His entire life, all he did was win. He wasn’t winning you.”

Nyla’s head jerked back. “I wasn’t something to be won,” she said.

Aiden ran both hands down his face. “I didn’t mean it that way.” He reached for her, but she spun out of his reach.

“I think you did,” she said. She grabbed her bag and walked out of the room.

She didn’t make it past the door to the next room before Aiden’s voice stopped her.

“Nyla, please don’t leave,” he called. “Not again. Not like this.”

She didn’t turn, but she couldn’t continue walking, either. Her body shivered as Aiden’s arm brushed against her when he walked past her and came to stand in front of her.

“I understand that you’re upset. And I guess you have a right to be.”

“You guess?”

He put his hands up. “Okay, you do. I can see how it seems as if I orchestrated what happened three years ago, but I never intended to have you humiliated.

“After you told me at the rehearsal dinner that we couldn’t even hang out anymore once you and Cameron were married, that just did me in. Believe it or not, even though the wedding was only two days away, I still didn’t think you would go through with it. I realized then that you would. That’s when I decided to take matters into my own hands.”

“Which you had no right to do.”

“You weren’t supposed to get hurt, Nyla.” He shook his head. “When Cameron didn’t say anything after he used my computer that night, I thought he just brushed it off as nothing serious. I decided then that I would just have to accept it. Knowing my brother, I should have known he’d take the most dramatic route.”

Nyla’s throat tightened as she struggled to swallow past the hurt clogging it.

“I’m still not sorry I did it,” Aiden said. Her eyes flew to his. “You wouldn’t have been happy with him, Nyla. You deserve someone better than Cameron.”

“You?” she asked. “Are you any better? You made decisions about my life without bothering to ask what I wanted. You took it upon yourself to define what would make me happy.”

“Yes, I did, because I know you—the real you—better than Cameron ever could. I know you well enough to know that you would never have been happy with him. You admitted yourself that you’re relieved you never married him.”

“This has nothing to do with Cameron,” she said. “It has to do with you, going behind my back.” She shook her head. “I never would have thought the person I fell in love with three years ago could ever do something like this.”

“Nyla—”

“I can’t stay here in Rome with you,” she said. “I need to go.”

“It’s Christmas Eve. Do you think you’re going to get a train ticket back to Tuscany this close to the holiday? Come on.” He held his hands out to her, pleading. “You came here because of me. At least let me bring you home.”

She knew he was right. The chances of securing a last-minute train ticket back to Tuscany were slim at best.

Ignoring his outstretched hand, she said, “I’ll be waiting in the lobby.” She moved past him and continued down the hallway to the elevator.