INK: Fine Lines (Book 1) Read online

  “There are a couple of things that you need to understand. If there is new evidence that can connect you with the murders, Glass is coming after you with a vengeance.” Jason raises a brow.

  “Yeah, I know. He as much as said so.” I recall our little exchange. What an asshole.

  “I wouldn’t be running any red lights or speeding in any residential zones,” Jason warns. “You should also conduct yourself as though someone is always watching. I think Glass will likely have a tail on you and be monitoring your movements.”

  “Goading him isn’t helping either.” Aiden gives my hand a rattle while giving me a disapproving look. I guess he saw our tête-à-tête.

  “I know; there’s just something that happens when he’s around me. I kind of lose my cool.” I bat my eyelashes, as if that will put their fears to rest. The look on Jason’s face says that he is saving the best news for last. “Is there anything else?”

  “Yes, and this you aren’t going to like, but if you really think about it, I know you’ll see the logic in it. Lay off that comic for a while. We are still working on an injunction against the new covers as well as delaying the release of the next issues until things die down a bit.”

  I close my eyes in defeat. I can already smell copious amounts of ramen in my future. “Jason, that’s like someone telling you that you can’t go to the courthouse to try cases.”

  “I understand. It’ll only be a few months, until we are sure this all over.” He comes and puts a hand on my shoulder. He gives me a fatherly look and for the first time I notice the crow’s feet spreading out from his eyes and graying hair at his temples. “You’re at the finish line here. Take some down time and enjoy it.”

  I’m so torn. I know it’s for the better, but I really don’t want to face Raphael with this tidbit of news. He’s going to have a conniption fit and fire me on the spot. Hey, painting portraits of the babies of the backwoods at the flea market isn’t so bad, right? Who am I kidding, it’s the worst. I have to do something. I don’t want to release issue six; I’ll redo it. I’ll do what they need me to for now, but this isn’t over. Not by a long shot. I don’t even like ramen.

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Rated R

  Aiden

  Leaving the parking deck, I turn toward the beach. “I thought you might like to celebrate with a walk on the beach.” My hand firmly entwines with her delicate digits. With all of the stress of the world having melted away she looks relaxed.

  “I’d like that.” Her luscious red lips erupt into a smile that lights up her face. The thought of tugging at her full lips with my teeth consumes me. My jeans cinch up slightly with my dick coming to life at the prospect of making her mine again. She gazes forward, watching the ocean draw closer.

  Before I can pull into a parking space she’s already unlaced her boots, ready to jump out when the truck finally comes to a rest. She runs, not walks, straight for the soft sand, letting it half-bury her feet. She looks so beautiful with the wind blowing through her hair, it’s perfect seeing her like this without a care in the world. She’s spinning on the sand and her skirt is whipping across her legs like a flag declaring her freedom. Dark strands of wild hair slide across her face unapologetically. It’s like when we were in high school.

  I can’t help myself; I run to her and lift her two feet off the ground, swinging her around for a victory spin. This feels so right, holding her, feeling her warm skin against mine. I bury my nose in her hair and breathe in her scent. Gardenias and lilacs—she’s intoxicating. I survive on holding her, smelling her, just being near her. I don’t know how I could have ever lived being far away from her.

  Her soft body presses against me and a pleasant hum resonates through my being. I whisper in her ear, “I told you I would see this through, and I want to see every day through with you for the rest of our lives.”

  I put her gently back on the ground, pulling back slightly to look at her in hopes that she returns the sentiment. Her long dark hair is wild just like her, and the red streaks create the illusion of her being on fire. She is, she’s on fire with beauty and life. Her pale blue eyes look at me lovingly. That’s the look I’ve been missing, that look that says everything a man could want to hear. I stare into her, seeing my whole world and future in her until neither of us can stand the distance a second longer. My lips crash over hers with a heat that rivals solar flares. Her kisses are delicate and careful, considerate. My hands find the silky skin under her sweater. My entire body ticks to life. I grind the growing bulge in my pants against her and an electricity courses through us, the passion running wild, sweeping us deeper into one another.

  We are brought crashing back to reality by the sound of someone clearing their throat. We both look in the direction of the sound to see a woman holding her hands over her child’s eyes, shooting us a look that could kill. We look at each other. Shay’s pale cheeks fill with color; I can only laugh.

  “Sorry.” Shay mouths wiping my moisture from her lips, trying hard to suppress the rampant giggle fighting to escape. She’s a beautiful work of art.

  I tug at her hand and we walk further down the beach, laughing. Once we are a safe distance from the duo I fall backwards into the sand pulling her on top of me. She rests her hand on my heart. I hitch a few rogue strands of hair behind her ear to no avail as the wind lashes them back across her face. “Unruly, just like you.” I study her with adoration. “I love you Shay. My heart won’t beat unless you are in it.”

  She leans down and kisses me. The longing and desperation riding on her lips makes me yearn for her, makes me want this with her forever. Her guard is down and I will cherish that. I’m never going to leave her again. I’m here, for good, whether she’ll have me or not. I can feel the gears turning in her mind; she thinks I’m already making my exit plan, but she’s wrong. I have to prove it to her, starting now. “You just can’t turn it off can you?”

  Her lids close heavily and she shakes her head. Releasing a long sigh, a sad smile spreads across her face, but her eyes don’t light up. They are drowning in doubt and caution.

  I slide her to the side, leaning up on one elbow. “Shay, why don’t we take things slow. Whatever pace feels right to you. I’m not going anywhere. I’m here with you. It’s where I want to be. There is nothing that could pull me away from you now.”

  She looks at me from under her lashes, thinking a moment too long for my comfort, I put my finger over her lips “Shh. I said slow. Why don’t we try dating, we haven’t done that in a long time. We can see where it goes.”

  She’s taking a moment to consider it; at least she didn’t just shoot me down right away. She’s looking deep into my eyes and I’m captivated by her gaze. I’m lucky to have her even if it is only for this moment. Her lips are inviting me to devour them. Her teeth glide along her bottom lip. She’s such a tease. She finally gives me an answer by slipping her hand behind my neck and pulling me to her in a series of kisses that get us thrown off the beach.

  Chapter Forty

  Revisited

  Shay

  We round the corner, passing the dilapidated gate to my neighborhood, Sunset Heights. It was supposed to be the premier retirement community in the county. Situated just two miles as the crow flies from the ocean, across the street from the river and minutes from downtown Palm Harbor, the location was prime. The master-planned community was to boast five thousand homes built exclusively for those fifty-five and up. That is, until the real estate bubble burst, forcing the developer into bankruptcy.

  Now the community has no maintenance crew, no home owner’s association, and eighty or so cookie-cutter ranch homes sparsely dotting the vast expanse of empty home sites on huge plots of land sold off to the home owners by creditors to recoup their losses. I own one such home, a small two-bedroom, one bath, low-maintenance ranch home that sits on four acres of land. A graduation gift from my uncle when he decided he would trade in isolation for shuffleboard at Holiday Park.

  As Aiden starts to
turn onto my street, I put my hand on his arm, shaking my head in disapproval. “Can you go the other way? I don’t want to drive by Gary and Alice’s.”

  He fails at a smile and nods, taking the second left that brings us the long way to my house.

  “You get the groceries and I’ll get the suitcases,” Aiden bargains with me.

  “Sure thing.” I get out of the truck and go to the back, pulling up the cover that reveals our groceries tethered with bungee ties in the bed. The air is heavy with the smell of rain. The sky has a dual personality. Above my house there’s a beautiful pink glow from the sunset, not one cloud over us. Looking east toward the ocean I can see the storm rolling in slowly, pregnant with rain.

  “Hey, do you think we’ll have time to grill out?” I draw Aiden’s attention to the looming clouds.

  “Oh yeah, we’ve got some time,” he answers confidently, surveying the skies, then dips into me with a quick kiss.

  As soon as I breach the threshold of the house I notice the stale quality to the air. I open the windows to circulate out my absence. Aiden is already on the covered porch, firing up the gas grill.

  Quietly I walk up behind him and rest my head in the divot on his back, releasing a heavy sigh. He reaches for my hand and draws it around across his chest to his heart. It feels good like this, I feel so at ease. Aiden looks straight ahead and takes in a breath to speak. “This is how I want things to be.”

  “I know,” I say quietly. “Part of me wants this too.”

  He turns around, not releasing my hand, keeping it resting over his heart. “Shay, there are no words for how I feel about you, none that will do. ‘I love you’ feels so small in comparison.” His golden eyes penetrate me to the depths of my heart. I study his gorgeous features. His silky brown hair tied back, his handsome jawline, the way his lips demand that I nibble them. I smile and reach up, scratching the close-cut beard on his chin. My laugh is carried out on a sigh.

  His face lightens and a weight he’s been carrying disappears. “That’s a sight for sore eyes.”

  “What?” I ask, looking behind us to the wide-open yard.

  He pulls my attention back to him by way of his finger gently guiding my chin in his direction. “You. Really smiling.”

  My face blooms pink and I smile again. I have to look away from the intensity of his gaze setting me on fire. Everything around us stills; the only motion left is our breath. I’m going to stay in this moment forever. Nothing but Aiden’s arms holding me, shielding me from the horrors of the world. A hot current is coursing through me as he touches the skin on my back.

  He picks my chin up once more to meet his lips. His kiss is unassuming, filled with the sweetness of a school crush. Aiden has never kissed me so gently, with such love and admiration. His tongue teases mine lightly in a dance that grows from tender to passionate. My hand trails up his shirt, touching his solid abs. A moan escapes him and a quiver rides up his chest. Our hearts thrum together in time, skipping all the same beats. Our kisses blow on the embers of love once thought lost. I can’t stop myself from running my teeth on his bottom lip and giving a light tug. He pulls back from me, notably breathless. “I’d better get the steaks on.”

  From the smug smile, his confidence has returned. He steps through the sliding glass door and I’m left wanting more of that kiss. Wow, that kiss! I inhale deeply, trying to trap the feeling inside me. I don’t want to let it go.

  He reappears in the doorway with a plate and the barbecue tongs. “Hey babe, do you mind making the salad?” He smiles, noticing I’m still riding the wave of euphoria.

  I press a smile into the side of my cheek, “Sure thing.”

  Going through the motions of washing and chopping vegetables, I can’t help but replay the kiss to recapture the feeling. Huh, feeling. I haven’t felt anything for a while, I muse to myself.

  ***

  Aiden and I sit in the lounge chairs sipping wine on the porch looking out into the purple horizon to the west. Thunder is rumbling in the distance, heralding the deluge to come. Our fingers are interlaced lazily between the chairs. “That was delicious,” I mention again.

  “I was worried you might eat the plate at the rate you were going.” He flashes me a million-dollar smile.

  “The last few days have been a bit rough. I don’t think I’ve eaten a whole meal since my birthday.” I try to recall.

  “Let’s not talk about that.” He stares out into the darkness absently, rubbing his thumb on the top of my hand. “We can talk about anything but that.” He squeezes my hand lightly.

  “Okay.” I’m feeling bold. My confidence in Aiden is on the rise. I want to continue our conversation from the truck earlier today. I’m not sure whether I’m trying to snafu the whole deal on purpose or just test the waters but I dive right in. “So, where were you this time?”

  “I’m here with you,” he answers without looking at me.

  “No, while you were gone. Where did you go?” I can’t stop the hurt from seeping into my voice.

  He turns to me and hesitates for only a moment. “All over really; Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, but mostly the Khumbu valley.”

  The shock of him talking to me about where he had gone has me speechless. Trying to process the information, I just blurt out, “What’s the Khumbu valley?”

  He Looks away from me again staring thoughtfully into the night. “Tengboche, to be exact. It’s in the Khumbu valley.” He hesitates, “Tibet.”

  “Tibet?” I had always imagined Aiden running off to exotic locations, going all Brad Pitt in Legends of the Fall, but wasn’t sure it was true. “Why Tibet?”

  “I was looking for something,” he says simply.

  “Did you find it?” I ask.

  “Sort of, well…” he was searching for the words. “Yes, I found it,” he finished with resolve.

  “What was it?” I tried not imagining it was some specialized surfboard or a rare reptile like he usually comes back with.

  He sits up in the lounge chair, swinging his legs around to stand up and pulling me up to him. His eyes are incredibly intense. I open my mouth to speak but before I form the words his lips are covering mine in another amazing series of kisses.

  A flash of lighting paired with a crack of thunder announces the arrival of the downpour. It startles me closer into his rock-solid form. The rain is relentless, defying the protection of the porch by coming down sideways. We are soaked inside minutes. We don’t notice or care. We are locked in a passion that has never before flowed between us. It all feels so new, better than the first time. The heat of our bodies creates tendrils of steam rising playfully in the rain.

  Reaching back I untie the leather cord holding his silky hair in place. My fingers tug gently at the wet strands, pulling him deeper into our kiss. His hands still on the bare skin on my back, only to pull me closer to him. We both ache to be closer to each other. His fingers tangle in my hair sweetly and I’m rendered completely breathless. I gasp, tugging away for a moment.

  He leans down, touching his forehead to mine, gliding the back of his hand along my cheek. “I found it.” He breathes it out, relieved, with a satisfied smile.

  “Aiden-“

  He puts his finger over my lips and sadness overcomes him. “Shhh.”

  Our eyes meet and the new passion and intimacy of years past ignites. I know that he loves me, that I love him and always will. I throw my arms around his neck and pull him into another kiss that confirms our love. He leads me into the darkness of the house, our lips never parting, our hearts erratic but still in time. He lays me on the living room floor and hovers over me.

  Aiden’s passion runs through me deeper, hungrier than ever for closeness. Our tongues dart around one another, circling and exploring our lips. I’ve memorized every bump and groove on Aiden’s lips, so soft yet unyielding in our heat. They express everything he’s ever needed to say to me without letting a single word pass.

  I tug playfully at his hair exposing his neck to lay a string of
kisses up to his jaw, biting down gently. He leans up and pulls his shirt over his head. In the flashes of lightening I can see his perfectly sculpted body. I marvel at his sublime form, strong and rippling, his entire physical being godlike.

  My fingers trail lightly down his chest to the waistband of his jeans. One button, two buttons—I jump when thunder rattles the windows. A cold chill runs through the room, through me.

  Aiden wraps his hand around my wrist, tighter than I’d like. He leans down over me, brushing his lips against my ear. “You want this?” He puts my hand on the hard bulge in his pants.

  “Yes,” My whisper is desperate.

  “That’s what you want, my love?” His voice sounds angry and foreign. I’m confused. “All I’ve done for you and this is what you want?”

  My passion is replaced with fear as my heart sinks to my toes. I know that voice. I try to squirm free from him. “Aiden? What’s wrong?”

  Lightening illuminates the room and Aiden is covered in something—mud, ash, I don’t know. He doesn’t look like himself. I whisper, “Aiden?”

  “Tsk tsk, my love. I want to rip his vocals chords out so I don’t have to hear his weak proclamations of love.” It’s Aiden’s voice, but not Aiden. Oh God the Specter, the Specter is in Aiden!

  He falls limp on top of me. I call his name frantically, still trying to free myself from his weight. The urgency in my voice is rising. He’s not responding. I press my ear against him to make sure he’s still breathing.

  From the corner of my eye something moves around the room, blacker than the dark itself—a void of light. More lightning reveals the Specter moving toward us. I manage to roll Aiden off of me and dart for the kitchen to grab the knife. Returning to the living room, Aiden looks familiar again and has come to. He scrambles across the room to his backpack.

  “Aiden,” I scream, desperate to be near him—to protect him or for him to protect me, I’m not sure.

  “Shay,” He pulls something from his backpack. “Get over here.”