Chapter 24

Annie

Just as Aiden and I are wrapping up our lessons for the morning, Charlie appears.

“How about a swimming lesson, Aiden?” she says. “If that’s okay with Mom.”

“Sure,” I say, smiling as Aiden jumps up eagerly from the table. “I think we’ve done enough school work for today.”

Charlie holds out her hand to Aiden. “Come on. Let’s go get you changed into your swim trunks.”

“Don’t get Stevie wet!” I remind him. “And be sure to go potty before you get in the pool.”

I remain at the table for a moment, admiring Aiden’s handiwork. In addition to writing his name, he wrote the entire alphabet and his numbers from one to twenty. I drew geometric shapes for him to color. We counted and did some basic arithmetic using M&Ms so he could conceptualize the quantities. I’m excited to think about teaching my son math.

I make a note to myself to go online and order some workbooks for us to use this summer in preparation for him starting kindergarten in the fall. Of course, I don’t know where we’ll be in the fall or what we’ll be doing. We certainly can’t stay here indefinitely. Shane was kind enough  to let us stay here at his estate, but we can’t trespass on his generosity forever.

After putting away our school supplies, I head downstairs to find Jake. I have this overwhelming desire to see him, to be in the same room with him. To be near him.

I know it sounds like a cliché, but last night was life-changing. The way he made love to me—the intensity, the passion, the fearlessness—he shook me to the core. I think it shook him, too. It wasn’t just sex. It was healing. It was bonding.

He’s the same caring and attentive boy I fell in love with so many years ago, but he’s also so much more now. He seems bigger than life to me now, not just figuratively, but literally as well.

Of course I find him in the fitness room. This time he’s standing on a mat lifting a barbell. There are several large weights attached to each end of the bar, and he’s straining, grimacing, as he raises the bar to his chest. I can’t help staring at his muscles as he lifts the weights, watching them contract and flex with the effort.

I’m not ashamed to say that watching him lift weights is a real turn-on. How can it not be? Last night, having all that strength and intensity directed at me was mind blowing.

“Aren’t you supposed to have a spotter when you do that?” I say, leaning in the doorway, watching him. “Those weights look pretty heavy.”

He lowers the bar to the mat with a grin. “I’m not lifting enough to need a spotter. All done with school?” He glances behind me. “Where’s Aiden?”

“Charlie took him to the pool for a swimming lesson.” I walk into the fitness room, finding it hard to take my eyes off Jake. He’s wearing black shorts and black sneakers, and nothing else. Jake brings a whole new meaning to the phrase tall, dark, and handsome.

He grabs a towel and wipes his face and neck. “Sorry, baby, I’m a sweaty mess.”

“That’s okay. I don’t mind.” I walk closer, standing just a foot away, and our gazes lock. Just thinking about how we made love last night kicks my pulse into overdrive. He was wild, almost animalistic. Just thinking about it makes me blush. He was fearless, intense, shameless.

And the way he marked my skin last night… leaving several small hickeys between my thighs, in a private place that only he and I will ever see. 

Gazing intently at me, he walks forward, steering me backward until my back hits the mirrored wall. He looms over me, like a dark guardian angel. I can feel the heat radiating from his big body and smell him, a combination of warm male skin mixed with faint aftershave. His gaze lowers to my mouth, and when I nervously wet my bottom lip, his expression darkens and his nostrils flare.

He leans down, his mouth close to my ear. His warm breath washes over me, teasing my nerve endings. “After last night, there’s no way I can ever again sleep without you. I’m just telling you.” He places a warm, open-mouthed kiss on my neck, just beneath my ear. “I need you in my bed, Elliot.”

I nod. “I’ll talk to Aiden. He slept in his own bedroom at Mom and Dad’s, so he should be fine having his own room again.”

Jake cups my breast through my top, his thumb brushing against my nipple. My nerves tingle all the way down to my core, leaving me hot and needy. I reach out and cup his face, and he leans into my hand before turning his face into my palm and kissing it.

“I’ll talk to him after dinner tonight,” I say.

“I know I have to share you with Aiden, and I’m okay with that. And I get that Aiden’s needs have to come first. After all, he’s your baby.”

“He’s not my only baby.” I lean forward to kiss him. “You’re my baby too. Don’t worry. I have more than enough love for the both of you.”

He presses his mouth to mine, sucking gently as he seals our mouths for a kiss that makes me ache.

* * *

After supper, Jake and I take Aiden downstairs to the home theater to watch a kids’ animated dinosaur movie.

This theater is amazing. It resembles a commercial movie theater, just smaller in size. Still, I bet it could seat forty people. There’s a concession stand in the rear of the screening room, with a vending machine filled with cold drinks. Aiden was amazed when Jake showed him how to push a button to make his selection.

“You don’t have to put money in it?” Aiden said.

“Nope. Just push a button and your drink comes out here.”

There’s also a candy vending machine that spits out free candy—a child’s dream come true. Aiden is astounded.

The best feature, though, is the old-fashioned red-and-white popcorn machine. Aiden finds the process of making popcorn fascinating, and he asks Jake to lift him up so he can watch the first kernels pop.

It’s painfully ironic that my parents disapproved of Jake when we were in high school and considered him a bad prospect for a husband. And yet, he’s clearly the best thing that’s ever happened, to me, and to Aiden.

It’s pretty clear to me that McIntyre Security has made the family quite wealthy. I can’t even imagine how much a property like this estate must be worth, but certainly it’s in the millions, or maybe even the tens of millions.

But it’s not just the money. It’s Jake himself. He has more integrity in his little finger than Ted has in his whole body. My parents should be ashamed of what they did to us. Frankly, I’m ashamed on their behalf. I don’t know how I’m going to reconcile my relationship with them knowing what I know now. For Aiden’s sake, though, I’ll have to figure something out. They’re his grandparents. He’s already lost his father. I don’t want him to lose his grandparents, too.

After having made popcorn for everyone, and gotten us all soft drinks and candy, Jake goes into the control room in the back and cues up the movie. I don’t remember what it’s called, but he says it’s rated G and that the reviews on Amazon said it was a good choice for families with very young children. The fact that Jake took the time to read the reviews ahead of time means the world to me.

Jake and I sit in the middle of the front row, and Aiden automatically climbs into Jake’s lap when the opening credits begin to roll.

Aiden looks back at Jake, his expression very serious and a little sad. “I wish you were my dad.”

Jake reaches for my hand and squeezes it so hard I silently wince. “So do I, pal.”

“My dad’s not very nice,” Aiden says, his eyes filling with tears. “He hurts my mom. And sometimes he hurts me.”

“I know.” Jake rubs his hand up and down Aiden’s back. “But he’s not going to hurt either of you again. I won’t let him.”

Aiden nods wistfully. “I believe you. You can do anything.”

Oh, my God. My throat tightens up, and I’m afraid I’m going to start bawling like a baby. I stand up. “I’ll be back. I need to get something—a napkin.”

“I’ll get you one,” Jake says, looking at me worriedly.

“No, that’s all right. You guys sit. I’ll be right back.”

I head for the back of the theater and grab a napkin from the dispenser, dabbing at my tears. I hold back a sob, breathing through my mouth as I try to rein in my emotions. I don’t know which is affecting me more… Aiden’s fear of his father, or his absolute trust in Jake.

“Hey.” Jake comes up behind me and wraps his arms around my waist. “It’s okay. I’ve got you.”

I turn in his arms, wrapping mine around his waist and holding on tightly. I press my face into his shirt. “I’m sorry.”

“There’s nothing to apologize for.”

“Hey, guys!” Aiden yells, waving at us from his seat. “The movie’s starting! You better hurry!”

“We’re coming,” Jake calls to him. “Be right there.” He tilts my face up to his. “Everything’s going to be fine, I promise.” And then he kisses me, soppy tears and all. He takes the napkin from my hand and dabs my cheeks. “We’re coming.”