When I wake up, my ankle looks a bit better. The swelling has gone down and I swing my legs over the side of the bed. I stand up, trying to put a bit of weight on my bad foot. To my surprise, pain doesn’t shoot through my leg when I lean on it. I take a hesitant step toward the bathroom and smile as I hobble toward the door.
With my ankle feeling better, it might only be a few more days of hobbling and then I’ll be back to normal. I decide to leave my crutches at home today. I check my phone and my heart sinks a tiny bit when I see it blank. I shake my head. I’m being silly. Of course Aiden wouldn’t text me right away. He’s probably busy, either at work or out on the mountain. He’s not exactly the texting type.
I hum to myself as I get ready. It doesn’t take long until I’m ready for work and heading out to site. I check my phone again and resist the urge to text him. Maybe Cecilia is right. Maybe I should cool it a bit with Aiden, or at least try to be a bit more subtle.
The thought of sneaking around seems wrong. I don’t want to sneak around with him. I’m proud of spending time with him. He’s the most caring, understanding, complex man I’ve ever met. I try to push these thoughts aside as I drive into work. I’ll need to focus on this hotel for the rest of the day, and not let my thoughts of Aiden or my doubts about the project stop me from doing my job.
Around noon, my phone finally buzzes and my heart jumps when I see Aiden’s name. Cecilia looks over at me from across the tiny site office and gives me a knowing look. I ignore her and type a reply. I can’t keep the smile from my face - I’ll see him again tonight.
The afternoon drags on, and I end up staring at my computer screen without getting anything done for what seems like an eternity. I try to focus on the environmental reports that I need to prepare, and on making sure all our applications are up to date. I try to focus on the daily inspections I do on the site but all I can think of is Aiden. I keep seeing his face in my mind and imagining what his hands feel like when they’re on my body.
This time, I’ll drive out to meet Aiden at his place. At least we won’t be seen together there.
After a few hours that last a lifetime, I finally drive away from the construction site. I leave the dust and dirt and timber and barricades and high-vis clothing in my rear-view mirror. I drive back to the hotel and hobble up to my room to shower, rushing to get back in my car and drive out of town.
I drive past the ‘Welcome to Lang Creek’ sign and past the bends in the road that are becoming more familiar with each passing day. I turn off toward Aiden’s cabin and smile as my car starts snaking its way up the mountainside. When I turn the engine off, his front door opens and he greets me with arms wide open and a smile painted across his face.
“You made it!”
I laugh. “Did you think I wouldn’t?”
“I was worried about your ankle.”
“It’s feeling much better,” I say. It’s only half true – it was feeling great this morning but with all the walking I’ve been doing it’s starting to throb. Aiden smiles and wraps his arms around me.
“Thanks for driving up here,” he says. “I have to admit I got a stern talking-to about being seen with you in town.”
“You did? So did I!” I laugh. “Apparently people don’t like seeing us together.”
“Apparently not,” he says with a grin, sliding his hands toward the small of my back and pulling me into him. He smells like smoke and fresh pine and I take a deep breath before tilting my chin up toward him. His kiss tastes as good as it did yesterday – as good as it did the first day, and as good as I hope it’ll taste tomorrow and the next day too. When we pull apart, I glance around at the forest surrounding his cabin and smile.
“It’s so peaceful up here,” I say. “I understand why you live here.”
Aiden grunts in response and puts his arm around my waist to guide me to the cabin. When we get a bit closer, I see something through the trees. It looks like a building of some sort.
“What’s that?” I ask, pointing to the building. “It looks like a big house!”
“It is a house,” he says. I glance up at his face and see it darken. “We used to live there, before the accident.”
He guides me toward the cabin and I glance up toward the big house one more time. I can sense that Aiden doesn’t want to talk about it, so I let him lead me inside. We sit on the couch together. He brings me a beer. We laugh, we talk, we make love. His touch feels even better than it did before. It feels like we’re starting to get to know each other’s bodies in a way that I didn’t think was possible. Every time he touches me it feels more intimate than the last time. Every time I come, it feels more intense – like my body is letting go of just a little bit more tension with every orgasm he gives me.
The sun has gone down and the moon is shining in the night sky when I finally sigh. Aiden’s arm is draped over my shoulders, and my naked body is pressed against his under the blankets of his bed. I look up at him and smile sadly.
“I should go,” I say. “I need to work tomorrow.”
“Don’t go,” he says, wrapping his arm around me. I chuckle and lay a soft kiss on his lips.
“I don’t want to,” I say. He smiles and kisses me again.
“I’ll drive behind you to the main road,” he says. “To make sure you make it down safely.”
My heart grows in my chest and I smile at him. He’s so attentive, so thoughtful that it constantly surprises me. How could this be the violent brute of a man that Cecilia was telling me about? How could this be a man who needs a warning?
When we get to the main road, he flashes his headlights at me and I wave at him through the window. I watch his headlights in the mirror as I drive back toward town, sad to be leaving but happy to be with him.
We spend the next few weeks exactly like that. On weeknights, we steal any time together we can. On weekends we take off together and he shows me the mountains where he grew up. Every day, I get to see a little bit more of him and I feel myself falling for him. I’ve never met anyone as beautiful as him. He makes me feel like I matter, like he sees me for who I am and not for who he wants me to be. For those weeks, I don’t think about the hotel, or the environment, or my father. I’m just completely, blissfully happy.