Spark (20 page)

The way we dance, it’s as if we have been starved of oxygen, and this is our way of getting air. Don’t get me wrong; the champagne
definitely
helps.

After what feels like an hour, the club is much busier, the dance floor overcrowded. I need water … and air.

It’s quite dark inside, and the random flashing lights near the dance floor make it difficult to see. I take in a deep breath, and attempt to get through the crowd to the bar. The DJ puts on “So close to you” by Calvin Harris.
I love this song!
I move to it as I push through the crowd, singing along.

It’s a struggle to get through. Most people seem pretty drunk, and aren’t in a hurry to move. I have to push hard against them so they get the message. Taking me by surprise, a strong hand grabs mine and pulls me through the crowd until we come to some open space near the bar. My eyes have trouble adjusting with the bright lights in front of me. A tall figure abruptly stops and turns around, still holding my hand and we collide, arms encircling me on impact. My palms flatten out over a firm chest. A chest that I’ve had the pleasure of touching only once before.

It belongs to Aidan.

Our eyes lock, our bodies are flush against each other, and for a moment, neither of us move. Breathing quicker, our chests expand together.

Aidan leans down, our lips meeting with urgency and force. I wrap my arms around his neck. His strong arms pull me hard against him, lifting me off the ground. We lose ourselves to the moment, our lips and tongues engaged in a fiery dance whilst the beat of the music besieges us. This moment is everything I wanted and more … so much more. It’s an explosion of such desire and need, and I know he feels it too.

All too soon, we are interrupted from our revelry by wolf whistles and cheers from the bar. I pull my lips away from his, Aidan bringing my feet back to earth. We stare into each other’s eyes, and share a satisfied smile. The ruckus is coming from Rob, Crystal, and a few guys from Rob’s work. Rob strides over to us, and slaps Aidan on the back.
How embarrassing
. I didn’t realise so many eyes were watching.

“Don’t worry about them,” Aidan says. He slips his arms around my shoulders, my hands circle his waist, and he kisses me softly on the lips. “Let’s get some air,” he says tickling my ear with his stubble. I breathe in deeply, and shiver as I draw in his intoxicating aftershave. He smells suitably delicious.

“Yes,” I practically beg.

He takes my hand, lacing his fingers between mine as we exit the club. The cool air stings deep in my lungs, putting back some of the breath he stole. This time, unlike that night at the Orchid Lounge, he doesn’t let go of my hand, but holds it tighter. I like it, a lot. He leads me into the entranceway of a closed café, his eyes pinning me to the door behind me, before he presses his whole body against me.

“Do you know how long I’ve wanted you? Wanted to taste these lips?” he asks, almost breathless. He rests his forehead against mine.
Please let it be as long as I’ve thought about him.

“No. Tell me,” I whisper, shivering in anticipation of his words.
Was it the night he stayed on the sofa bed? Before then?
I know I felt something the first time I laid eyes on him, although I didn’t want to admit it.

“A fucking age,” he says with a heavy sigh, and gently brushes my hair away from my face. “Ever since I crashed at your place I haven’t been able to get you outta my head,” he admits. Yeah right, the towel incident. Nice to know I wasn’t the only one having wicked thoughts that night.

“Yeah, that night was something else … it just wasn’t the right time, for either of us,” I say with some seriousness.

A sexy
mm
noise escapes his mouth as he repositions himself, enough for the hard bulge in his pants to graze my hip.
Fuck.
“I know … but now, this feels nothing
but
right.” I tilt my head back, meeting his mesmerising gaze, and trying
not
to focus on the throbbing dampness between my legs.
Oh my God, if he keeps this up …

We plunge into another deep kiss, his tongue relentless against mine as our arms hold each other tight.
Pure bliss
.

Far too soon, the kisses become deliberately soft, Aidan’s luscious lips massaging mine. His warm hands caress my face; I never thought a kiss could be so damn good. It’s as if every other kiss never existed.

“Let’s go for a walk,” Aidan says with such composure, while I wobble on my heels, giddy from the taste of his lips.

I follow his lead, his hand in mine. My body trembles from the memory of his hot tongue in my mouth, and the way his hands held me, wanting to explore.

We walk down a couple of side streets until we come to a park bench under a row of immense oak trees littered with fairy lights.
Could it be any more romantic?

We sit down, and start to talk.

Really talk.
How refreshing
.

“Glad I finally get you all to myself.” Aidan beams.

I couldn’t agree with him more.

“Me too.”

“Tell me your secrets, Eevie. Tell me your dreams.” What a way to start the conversation. Heat spreads throughout my body, mainly to my cheeks.
There’s no way in hell I can ever tell you about my dreams.

“Wow, no one’s ever asked me that before. Well, I don’t want to work in real estate forever, that’s for sure. I’m just putting in the hard yards to gain some office experience. I’m back at uni, part-time, in a few weeks, so hopefully getting further along with my degree will open up some more doors.”

“What are you studying?”

“Psychology. I really want to get inside people’s heads.” It might help me understand some of the losers I’ve been dating. “I’m looking forward to kick-starting my brain again.”

“What do ya mean, again?”

“I deferred for the last two years to take care of things at home, so I feel like part of it has wasted away.”

“What happened at home?”

“My mum wasn’t well, and I had to pretty much do everything … you really wanna know this stuff?” Surely there’s more interesting things we could be talking about.

“Yes, Eevie. I want to get to know you. It’s all I’ve been thinkin’ about.” Really? This guy keeps impressing me, at every turn. It’s like he’s been reading some secret guy’s book on things a woman wants to hear, but his words and his warmth are so natural. So real.

“Really?”

“Yeah, lay it on me,” he says.

“Um, okay then. Well, my mum hadn’t slept for a couple of days when it happened. Dad was away, so it was just Mum and us kids. My nan, my mum’s mother, had passed away suddenly about a month before, and Mum had become pretty distant. She shut herself away from everything, to the point where she couldn’t function. Even the daily running of the household had her mood swings at such extremes over the littlest things. She never had much support from Dad, and he was always travelling.”

I have Aidan’s undivided attention, which gives me the courage to continue.

“The night she had a breakdown, she was manic. She heard voices, and begged me to make them stop. I have to say it’s the scariest thing I’ve ever seen. My mother had always been so strong, and she was reduced to … I don’t know, someone I didn’t recognise. I lay awake all night beside her, comforting her, doing all I could to make it stop, but all I could do was be there for her. As much as I wanted to sleep, I couldn’t, because I was worried she’d hurt herself. The next morning, when I finally got her to sleep, probably through exhaustion, I rang my neighbour for help.”

I take in a deep breath, and blow it out through my mouth. I haven’t talked about this in the longest time. I hadn’t had to. I’d forgotten how dark that moment was, the tormented look in her eyes, and how desperately I’d wanted to cry … but I couldn’t. Not while Mum was engaged in her own battle.

Aidan puts his arm around me, his warmth a newfound refuge. His hand firmly squeezes my bare shoulder.

“If this is too hard, we don’t have to talk about it,” he says, his voice revealing his softer side.

“No it’s okay. I want you to know.” I want to share my past with him, and he needs to know this is a big part of who I am.

“The neighbour rang the hospital, and they came in a van and took her away. She was a shadow of her usual bright and bubbly self. I’d never seen her look so lost, so vulnerable. It was like she was trapped in her own body. That first day in the hospital, when she stared up at me, she asked me who I was, and it broke my heart. As much as I wanted the earth to swallow me up, I had to keep it together.”

Aidan squeezed my shoulder again, telling me more about him than any words he might say.

“She was in the hospital for a good few months and when she was well enough to come home, we had to make sure we kept the stresses to a minimum. That meant someone had to step in and take charge of running the house … and that was me. So for a couple of years that was my life. My role was to keep the family ticking along, and make decisions and do things Mum couldn’t handle. She couldn’t make simple decisions for herself and she lost most of her friends because they thought she was ‘crazy’, but she wasn’t. She was just broken, Aidan.”

“She’s okay now though, right?” Aidan asks hesitantly, blinking those crazy long lashes.

My smile meets my eyes, touched at his concern. “Yeah, she’s good now, well, except for the divorce.”

“Your family’s lucky to have you, Eevie. Not many daughters would do what you did. It must have been tough.” Aidan frowns, as if he somehow understands.

“It was, but I did what I had to do … and we got back on track.” I smile at Aidan, to try and encourage him to give me one back. Tonight is not about sob stories. It’s about new beginnings.

Aidan thankfully changes the topic, and we sit for what seems like hours, talking about our upbringing and where we went to school. As an only child, he spent most of his formative years living on a farm with his mother and grandparents. When he started high school, his Mum re-married, and with his step-dad on postings with the army, he ended up in boarding school for most of high school and college. His face lights up when he talks about his motocross, supercross, and the idea of one day, competing overseas. He’s in talks with sponsors so he no longer has to do it as a privateer. He’s passionate about his trade, and is looking to branch out, perhaps into a partnership with another cabinetmaker. It seems like he has taken every opportunity to push himself. Aidan is a man with goals. He is so motivated—and it’s such an attractive quality. With all that he has achieved and what he hopes to achieve, he isn’t the least bit pretentious. He is just a normal, down-to-earth guy.

Have I stumbled across the Holy Grail of men?

Aidan doesn’t mention anything about his father, but I don’t pry. Who knows what the situation is. He could have died or something, and I don’t want to put my foot in it. I’m sure it will come up in conversation eventually.

“So, when did you break up with your girlfriend?” I ask, shocked that I come straight out with it. Not that I’m keen to talk about her, but if we are going to start something, I want us to be honest with each other. Plus, any information about himself he’s willing to offer, I’m willing to digest.

“A couple of months ago, but it had been on the cards for a while. It wasn’t just the long-distance relationship. We wanted different things,” he says flatly.

I breathe out, the tension in my shoulders easing. What a relief. He got straight to the heart of it. Now, enough talk about her.

“So, what about you?” he asks.

“What about me?”

“The ex?” He raises an eyebrow. I think he knows I’m avoiding the question.

“Oh.” My eyes devour my hands as they nervously twiddle in my lap. How do I explain what happened with Jon, let alone the disaster with Alex? A shudder runs through me as an image of Alex flashes in front of me while I sit in
that
chair.
Goddamn fucker
.

Aidan takes my hands in his, and moves his face closer. His eyes search mine for answers, and he looks worried.

“Rob or Crystal didn’t fill you in?”

“No. All I got earlier tonight was that you were single. That’s pretty much all the information I needed.”
Swoon!
Although,
that was all I needed, too.

“Funny that. Someone whispered something in my ear, too. Do you get the feeling that we’ve been set-up?”

“Looks like it only took a nudge,” Aidan says, and I return his smile. Okay, seeing as though we are sharing, I’d better answer him. I take in a deep breath.
Here goes
.

“Well, things didn’t work out with Jon. We broke up a while ago, but I knew from the beginning it wouldn’t work. The sad thing is we are no longer friends, but that was his decision.”
Breathe
. “More recently I was seeing this guy …” I can’t even say his name. “Really, he’s not even worth talking about. The best part of that story is that it’s over.” I shake my head, and try to keep the conversation light, but I get the feeling Aidan notices it’s a sensitive topic.

“Do I need to pay this creep a visit?” Aidan says, his tone serious.

Creep
. He’s nailed Alex in one word.

My heart swells at his attempt to defend my honour. He is so sweet. Sweet enough to eat …

“Let’s just say if you and I were to come across him in a dark alley, he’d be more concerned about seeing me than you. Perhaps you could be my wingman, you know, back up, just in case I get in over my head.” I let out a giggle as I notice Aidan’s serious expression change to one of amusement.

“Anytime. I’d love to see you in action.” Aidan leans in and kisses me, completely disarming me. The conversation ceases as his soft lips gently caress mine.

When his lips eventually leave, his taste is forever imprinted on my lips. I run my hands through his hair, studying the features of his face in the soft light beneath the trees. I keep coming back to his sparkling pale-blue eyes. They are breathtaking.

“You know you’re pretty lucky. I only recently swore off men. You may have changed my mind.”