| |
HE WALKED TEAGAN INTO the room, as had become his custom, and paused as Teagan turned towards him. He cocked his head slightly in question. Slowly, cautiously, Teagan’s placed her hands on his broad chest. He sucked in a breath but made no move to stop her. Encouraged, her hands traveled the length of his chest and she wrapped her arms around his neck. When he remained perfectly still, with only a raised eyebrow, Teagan leaned up on her tiptoes to kiss him.
At first, he didn’t respond to Teagan’s feather light kiss. Then he groaned, seeming to give up all resistance, and crushed Teagan firmly against his hard, muscular body. When his strong arms went around her and his hands caressed her back, Teagan took a chance and deepened the kiss. She sighed into his mouth, moving the kiss farther than he had taken it in the street, and curled her fingers through his gorgeous, onyx hair. She made a small sound low in her throat, like a possessive growl, and he groaned against her mouth in response.
Without any warning, Aidan thrust Teagan away from him, breaking the kiss and their embrace, and abruptly stepped back. Their physical contact was broken, but she couldn’t help but notice they were both breathing in hard short pants.
“Gods give me strength,” he said hoarsely. “This is not a good idea, Teagan. There’s so much going on in your life right now, and you’re not thinking straight. There’s blood bond with Colin. I refuse to let myself take advantage of you like this.”
Quite the contradiction to his words was the way Aidan was looking at her. Like he wanted to pull her back into his arms and do incredible things to her. She gave a soft laugh and pulled out her sexy-come-hither look.
“I’m a big girl, Aidan,” Teagan said pointedly. “I know what I’m doing.”
“There’s too much at stake.” He left her standing there, untouched, to pace around the room.
“You mean we could both get hurt if we fall for each other?” Teagan asked seriously, and he nodded. “You mean Colin could get hurt?”
He nodded again.
“Aidan,” she whispered, and he stopped pacing to look at her as she spoke. “This isn’t a whim. This isn’t because I’m overwhelmed and feel like you’re my only option.” He shook his head, but she continued. “This is because I’ve already fallen.” She told him honestly.
She didn’t know when, she didn’t know how, but some time in the last week or so while he’d taken care of her and made sure she felt safe and protected, she had fallen for him.
When he still hesitated, Teagan grabbed his arm and gently tugged him towards the bed. He broke away from her and headed towards the door of his closet. He turned his back to her and took off his shirt, tossing it in the laundry basket there. An awkward silence permeated the air between them. She could tell he was thinking, at war with his own thoughts. He always had the same face when he did that. She sat on the bed and watched him partially undress and couldn’t help but notice his muscled back and shoulders. His body was breathtaking, like a piece of artwork. Smooth like the surface of a finely sculpted statue.
Teagan smiled to herself. On his left bicep she noticed a tattoo of a Celtic cross which somehow, she had never noticed before. Something was written inside the cross, but she couldn’t make out the letters in the dim light. Starting on the right side of his neck, trailing over his shoulder, and down to the small of his back was another huge tattoo. This one was of a dragon. She was thinking the black and grey tattoos against his bronzed skin were incredibly sexy when she saw him visibly stiffen. She sighed in frustration again. What was it going to take?
“Teagan,” he said sitting down on the opposite edge of the bed with his back towards her. Man was he fighting temptation. “I still don’t think this is a good idea. I should go.”
“Aidan, Colin chose to be a protector. I want you to choose to be with me.” Teagan entreated; her hands clasped in front of her. “I’m not a job. I have feelings and desires.”
“I want nothing more than to be with you, Teagan. To make you feel all those things you desire, to prove to you that you are worthy of love.”
“What’s holding you back?”
“You are. You say you’re ready, but I still see a world of hurt in you. I can’t be your crutch.”
“That’s what you think? that I’m broken, and you’re my crutch? Why, because Colin left, and I’m not allowed to have a thought of my own? He didn’t leave me, Aidan. He left for me, so that I could find what I truly needed. He wanted me to be happy, and neither of us thought what we had was true love. As tough as it was, he was right. Colin felt like my security blanket, something I’ve always known. He was familiar. With you, it’s different.”
“Okay Teagan, you win.” He sighed reluctantly and all the determination seemed to flow out of him in that single breath.
“Just lay with me tonight. I won’t ask for anything more.”
“For tonight.” He agreed.
In the darkness in his own bed Aidan lay stiff as a board as far from Teagan as he could get. He lay there with one arm at his side and one arm flung over his face. Teagan sighed restlessly and scooted across the bed so that she could wrap her arm around him. He stiffened at her touch but didn’t move away. She nestled her head on his arm and breathed in his spicy scent. She was relieved when he finally realized she wasn’t trying to seduce him, and he wrapped his arms around her. He turned towards her and gently kissed the top of her head. He was warm, and Teagan closed her eyes, smiling into the darkness.
She laughed.
“What?” he asked.
“I still can’t forget the look on your face when you went flying through the air.”
“Ha, hah. I bet it would be hard to forget, though. I was shocked as hell.”
Her laughter filled the room, and he playfully poked at her, causing her to laugh harder.
“It’s good to hear you laugh, Teagan. It’s like music, and it warms my heart to know you’re happy.” Aidan told Teagan still sounding amused, and he kissed the top of her head again.
Without thinking, Teagan raised her face to his, and he kissed her tenderly. Waves of contentment washed over her. The fingers of Aidan’s left hand traced lazy circles on her arm, and she shivered with delight.
“Good night, Aidan.” Teagan purred. She was completely enchanted by this man.
“Good night, Teagan.” He said back warmly, and his arms tightened around her, ever so slightly, pulling her closer to his side. Her heart was overflowing as her eyes closed, and she drifted off to sleep.