Chapter Five

It was weird, being on a motorcycle without shoes or a shirt. And with the man he once thought was a serial killer. Aiden chose not to think about that right now—something that he’d gotten remarkably good at over the last few days.

His arms were wrapped securely around Finn’s firm waist, which Aiden was also not thinking about because his crotch was right against the small of this guy’s back.

He wanted to be able to sleep somewhere tonight. Popping a boner on this guy would decidedly work against that.

Finn didn’t live far away, which made sense, considering how quickly he arrived. His place was somewhere along the road where Aiden met him on that first night.

A few things registered with Aiden as Finn pulled to a stop. That his house looked more prone to spiders than Ryan’s modern glass dome of an abode. It wasn’t run-down or anything, just rustic. Homely. With a wooden porch and a swing that had way too many nails not to be handmade, it seemed like it would be somewhere cozy to read a book. Hell, the dirt-caked boots by the door only added to the charm.

Aiden blinked. A smaller, more dirt-crusted pair of boots sat beside the distinctly adult-sized ones.

“You all right?” Finn asked as Aiden swung his leg over the bike.

“Yep.” Aiden nodded, trying his best not to flush when he felt Finn’s broad palm rest against the small of his back.

“Have you had dinner yet?” Finn asked.

He led Aiden to the house, unlocking the front door and holding it open for him to step through.

“I… No. I didn’t get the chance to. But you don’t have to do that—”

“I’m shit at portioning for one,” Finn said, tossing the keys down on the living room table. “So it’s gonna go to waste otherwise.”

“In that case, sure.”

Aiden flashed him a hesitant, thankful smile, curiously looking around the small home. It was cozy, with deep, earthy colors. A series of frames lined a window with a perfect view of the beach. Not at all dissimilar to the view that Tam recommended.

In the photo were Finn and (who he assumed to be) Ryan, with Ryan in a graduation cap and gown, both men looking as proud as punch. Frowning slightly, he looked at the photo next to it.

The photo that held Aiden’s attention the longest, in a pristine red frame.

A group consisting of Finn, Ryan, a little girl between them, a young boy, Tam, and two women he didn’t know. Everything came together quickly then.

“This your daughter?” Aiden asked.

Once again, Finn ducked his head out from the kitchen, a soft expression on his face as he spotted Aiden holding up a photo of the little girl proudly holding a missing tooth, gappy grin and all.

“Yeah, that’s my little girl. Her name’s Millie.”

“She’s cute. Looks a lot like you.”

“Acts a lot like me, too,” Finn said from his post in the kitchen, voice only a little muffled. “Drives her poor mother up the wall.”

There were plenty of photos of Millie, Ryan, Tam, Adie, and some other faces he didn’t know—but none that stood out to him as the potential mother.

Aiden wasn’t exactly a nosy person by nature, but he couldn’t help but ask, “So her mam—”

“Has her this week.”

The response wasn’t curt, just to the point—with an ease that gave Aiden the impression that this arrangement was a long-standing thing.

“Your issue with portions makes sense now,” Aiden said as he made his way over to the kitchen.

Aiden had made a nuisance of himself on three separate occasions with this guy. Being in his house probably was the last thing he wanted.

That and he was terrified he’d say something to annoy him and end up out on his ass, having to face that monster arachnid alone.

“Yeah.” Finn chuckled, the sound deep and warm, and Aiden wasn’t affected by it. Not one bit. “Millie’s going through a growth spurt. Eats like a horse.”

Despite the rocky start that Aiden had with Finn, he couldn’t help but appreciate how highly Finn regarded his daughter. Aiden didn’t have any kids. He’d thought about it, at great length, and mentioned it a few times to Dan. But Dan always brushed it off, saying that they were way too young to be thinking about having a family.

Aiden now saw that it was just an excuse, something to hide behind.

But he wasn’t going to think about that right now. He shelved that away at the back of his mind amongst the other bulging “to think about later” boxes he had stored there. Not when Finn was kindly making him dinner and giving him a place to stay while Ryan’s house was invaded by venomous spiders. Even if Finn had absolutely no reason to be this welcoming to him.

“Finn?” Aiden said quietly then, arms crossed over his chest. “I want to apolo—”

“You want to take a shower before dinner?” Finn cut in like Aiden hadn’t spoken, glancing over his shoulder to him, hazel eyes locking with dark brown.

Aiden swallowed down the surging embarrassment. Okay, so Finn wanted to pretend like their encounter earlier didn’t happen. That was fine.

“Yeah, that’d be great.”

“Second door on the left,” Finn instructed, pointing with the knife he was currently cutting with—something that would have looked far more daunting if it wasn’t for the bright yellow apron wrapped around his waist. “There should be a towel in there. I’ll leave some clothes outside the door.”

Aiden thanked Finn and made his way down the hall. Along the walls of the hallway were even more photographs. This time on canvases. Some of Millie, some of landscapes and artistic underwater features.

Aiden squinted at one of the photos, thinking it was weirdly similar to the photo hanging over Ryan’s television. He’d recognize that tiny orange fish anywhere.

Brushing it off, Aiden rushed through a purely functional shower, not wanting to use up all the hot water, and emerged a few minutes later smelling of coconut.

The bathroom was small and messy, but it felt homely. There was a plastic cup decorated with seashells and glitter housing a purple toothbrush. And the walls were adorned with Millie’s pictures—drawings of plants and flowers lovingly protected behind a sheen of glass.

Peeking his head out the door, he saw that the hallway was empty bar a pile of clothes neatly stacked on the floor. Aiden hastily gathered them in his arms, not exactly wanting to flash Finn when the towel precariously wrapped around his waist inevitably failed him.

There were a pair of soft gray shorts and a short-sleeved vest with the sketch of a diver on the front. Pulling the clothes on, Aiden came to the stark realization that he’d never felt small before. Average, sure. But never small.

Back home, he’d never really had anyone tower over him—and Dan had been just shy of his height, which made it easy to share clothes when the need arose.

But right now? Aiden felt tiny.

Luckily, the shorts Finn had provided came with a drawstring that Aiden fully utilized, grimacing in the mirror when he noted that his legs looked like two stick insects poking out. And the vest? Well, nip slips were likely, considering how it hung from his frame like someone at an outdoor indie concert.

But Aiden wasn’t going to be picky; Finn had already been so hospitable. He could deal with looking a little ridiculous. Hell, Finn had already seen him at his most ridiculous. Three sheets to the wind, sloshed levels of ridiculous. If anything, he should feel relieved about that. Any good first (second, or third) impression was long gone.

Making his way back out to the living room, Aiden was just in time to see Finn carrying out two steaming bowls of what looked like stew. Aiden’s stomach rumbled loudly.

“Looks good,” he said, trying his best not to visibly look self-conscious even though he damn well felt it.

“Yeah.” Finn ran his eyes up and down Aiden, nodding slowly. “Looks way better than it does on me.”

Aiden tried to collect his thoughts that amounted to a great big “what the shit” before opening his mouth to speak. But no sounds came out—because how exactly did he tell Finn that he meant the stew?

Finn caught on quickly all by himself, closing his eyes briefly, muscle of his jaw clenching slightly, before shaking his head and muttering, “The dinner. You wanna take a seat?”

Aiden wanted to sit down, if that meant breezing past that comment, for a number of reasons.

Aiden wasn’t sure if he was taking the piss and being sarcastic, and he really didn’t want to ask for clarification.

Accepting compliments was not something that Aiden did easily. Give? Absolutely. Take? No. The best he could do was a nod and a thanks.

Aiden took a seat as Finn placed the bowls down on the table, the room lapsing into uncomfortable silence that Aiden desperately wanted to break. Silence that he knew was uncomfortable because this man did not want him in his home but undoubtedly felt some kind of obligation to host him. Aiden was paying his brother a large sum of money to stay in his spider-infested home.

So to break the hush, he said, “I saw the photos in your hallway. Are they from the same person who took the pictures at Ryan’s?”

Briefly, Finn looked up—surprised—spoonful of stew halfway to his mouth. “Yeah, they are.”

“They have the same orange fish.” Aiden tried to explain how he noticed the similarities without having an ounce of creative expertise. “I like orange.”

Finn remained silent, focused on his stew. Aiden felt his chest constrict, shifting uncomfortably in his seat as he stirred his own dinner.

“I’m not super artistic.” Aiden spoke hurriedly, wishing the silence somehow wasn’t so thunderous between them. “I work… Well, I suppose I used to? Anyway, I worked in a call center, and a photo like that in the office would have brightened up the day a little?”

Aiden recalled the dimly lit office with its dull white walls and dodgy kettle.

“Thanks,” Finn said after an extended pause, ducking his head. “It’s just a hobby, but it’s nice to hear from someone who isn’t close family.”

Aiden leaned forward, tone almost accusatory. “You took them?”

Finn raised a brow at the inflection of Aiden’s words.

“Not that you don’t look like a photographer!” Aiden was quick to correct himself. “I just—”

Finn’s brow hiked higher, and Aiden sighed, slumping back in his chair. There was no winning with this guy; he should just drop the bullshit. If he pissed him off, then he pissed him off. Watching his words clearly wasn’t helping matters here when the guy had an impenetrable gaze and a strong bullshit detector.

“Okay, you caught me out. I thought you were some kind of badass wildlife wrangler when you first pulled up.”

Finn let out a low, rumbling laugh. “First a shoddy repairman, a serial killer, and then someone who can’t cook. Now a wildlife wrangler? I’ve heard it all now.”

“In your defense, you debunked most of them pretty quickly.” Aiden hid his smile behind his glass of water. “I still don’t know about your repairman skills. I’ve been using the other bathroom ever since.”

Finn chuckled drily. “Nice to know you have so much faith in me.”

“Could add a few more things to that list.”

Aiden’s hand tightened against the glass when he realized he may just have presented Pandora’s box to Finn in a neatly wrapped bow.

“Like what?”

Fuck.

“Like…” Aiden was ending up out on his ass tonight. “Shit, okay. You’re kind of terrifying.”

Finn blinked, those golden-flecked eyes burning into him. “I’m terrifying?”

“Intimidating might be a better word,” Aiden tried again, not quite backtracking, but it was close enough. “Big?”

“If I keep quiet, you’re going to keep digging that hole,” Finn said in an unreadable way that infuriated Aiden.

“Any chance of a ladder to get me out?”

“Nope.” He popped the p, a shit-eating grin blooming on his face, eyes crinkling. The scar lifted with the motion, and Aiden’s breath caught in his throat at the sight. “It’s kind of fun watching you flounder.”

“Another one: You’re a dick.”

Finn laughed. Loudly. Aiden couldn’t help but join in, somehow feeling they’d found a common ground.