Bygones

"Okay," Cadence said, trying to push the questions out of her mind. She knew him well enough to know that probing for answers would do her no good. Changing the subject she asked, "Sorry if my breath is atrocious." She was very much aware that her breath was hitting him directly in the face. Since he hardly ever slept, bad breath didn't seem to be much of a problem for him, a fact that had her momentarily jealous.
And wanting to kiss him even more….
She wasn’t expecting him to burst out laughing, but he did. "No, it's fine. I honestly hadn't noticed your breath at all.”
She bet he’d notice… if she kissed him.
Cadence swallowed hard. She needed to get those kinds of thoughts out of her head. Even though she wasn’t sure exactly what he was doing here, his mixed signals were not good for her.
She shouldn’t pursue them.
But his hand was sliding around her hip….
Cadence stared at him for a long moment, almost willing him to lean down and kiss her.
He didn’t.
With a deep breath, she moved back to the other topic. "Do you know if they have scheduled the memorial yet? I haven't checked my phone yet this morning." Even though there was no reason why he should know, he always seemed to be aware of everything before she was, so she thought it was possible he had heard.
"No," his blue eyes seeming to bore through her brown ones. "I don't think they've scheduled it. Are you planning on riding back to Shenandoah with your friends?
"I don't know," she said, dropping her eyes. "I just. . . can't relate to them anymore, you know? It's so difficult to carry on a conversation with people who have no idea what I'm doing now. They have no idea what they don't know."
"I understand," he agreed. "Well, Elliott still has the Enclave. He can drive you. Hannah can go with you, too. I think that's probably a good idea. But, I think I'll take Eliza with me."
"Oh?" Cadence asked, retraining her eyes on his. She felt hers widen as a thousand horrific thoughts flashed through her mind.
Why was he taking his ex-girlfriend with him??
"I don't think she's been particularly helpful to you, and I don't want her in your way," he explained.
At the mention of Eliza, Aaron pulled his hand out of her pants and placed it on her back, much more innocently.
Was that a sign that he would rather be with Eliza?
Holding in her disappointment, she tried to focus on his comments. "Okay. No, I haven't really talked to her much." She was apprehensive about Eliza spending so much time with Aaron, particularly when she wouldn't be present. Eliza clearly still longed to be with him, and she made it fairly apparent every opportunity she got.
Was there a chance Aaron might decide he wanted to be with Eliza, too?
Maybe now was a good chance for her to give Aaron enough reason to pick her instead….
"In fact," he added, an annoyed expression briefly crossing over his handsome face, "Ever since I told her that she was going with me, she won't get off the IAC. I guess she can just drive me nuts for a little while instead of you."
Shaking her head, Cadence mumbled, "Unbelievable. She just knows you're in my bed, and she doesn't like it," she added coyly. He didn't reply, just gave her a little grin, which made her smile in return. "My IAC is going a little crazy now, too," she admitted. "I guess word has gotten out."
"About Barbarosa? Yeah, I don't doubt it. People talk," he said. "Hunters are very impressed with you, you know?" He added, “I've heard even some of our old veterans, those guys who are never impressed with anything; they're making comments about your skills.”
"I got some mad skills," Cadence said giggling.
"You do," he agreed, joining in her laughter. "Unbelievable, mad skills."
She caught his eyes again and stopped laughing. After a moment she said, "Well, it's nice to know I'm appreciated. The only people I'm hearing from are our peeps at LIGHTS, which is great. They're so sweet to check in with me."
"Jamie and Meagan?" Aaron asked, asking who specifically she was referring to.
"Yeah, and Christian, couple others," she said nodding, trying to be nonchalant.
"Oh, Christian stopped by yesterday to ask about you, too," Aaron said. She tried to read his tone. Did that bother him? It didn’t seem to. "I guess I didn't realize you guys were that close. I mean, I know how he stood up for you after you killed Henry, but, well, I just thought it was a little strange."
Cadence was well aware of exactly why Christian would be asking about her, but she didn't offer that information at that moment, seeing no reason to. "He's a good guy," she said shrugging. "I guess you could say we are friends."
"Yeah?" Aaron asked. "That's good," he remarked and then quickly changed the subject. "No more flowers from Jamie?"
"Oh, god, no," Cadence said, dropping her forehead into his chest sharply. "That was awful," she added, referring to the time that Jamie had shown up at her doorstep with flowers, only to find Aaron was already there. "I felt really sorry for him. He's such a nice guy!"
"He is a nice guy," Aaron agreed. "He's a great guy."
"But I don't want to date him," Cadence chimed in.
"No?" Aaron said teasingly. "Not right now?"
"Not ever," she admitted, crinkling her nose up. "Just not my type."
“What is your type?”
The question caught her off-guard. Why did he want to know?
She stared at him with her eyebrows raised. Could she get away with saying, “You’re my type—guys just like you,”? No, probably not. “Uh… I don’t know,” she said, feeling her face redden.
"Well, you probably aren't going to want to date anyone for a little while, I would imagine,” he offered.
Cadence’s forehead puckered. Did he know she was still hung up on him? “Why?”
His eyebrows arched, as if he couldn’t believe she didn’t know. “Jack,” he reminded her.
Letting out a deep breath, Cadence felt like a heel. Of course—her ex-boyfriend had just died. Why would she be looking to date?
Why was her hand still trailing over her boss’s washboard abs?
These were all questions without answers….
"I guess not," she said quietly.
Without actually moving, he said, "I need to go in a few minutes." He slowly brushed the hair back from her face again.
Disappointment washed over her. She knew he had a schedule to maintain, and she couldn't interfere with it, not if she wanted to keep the team happy and continue to pursue the possibility of getting back together with him someday. "Okay," she said quietly but not pushing herself off of him so that he could get up.
"Wow, I didn't think you'd agree that quickly," he teased, still not trying to get up yet either.
Flopping over again so she could see his face, she said, "Well, I know how busy you are. And, besides, the longer we lay here, the more I'm going to want to do things to you," she added, seriously, peering straight into his eyes. She felt her face heat up, but the words were true, and when they’d shot out of her mouth, they’d been unstoppable.
His eyes stayed locked on hers, a small smile on his face, but he said nothing. She was still running her hand across the skin beneath his shirt when she felt a change in texture, a raised area, and realized she had inadvertently found his scar, the one he had gotten when he saved her life. She wasn't sure if it would hurt for her hand to be there or if it would make him self-conscious, so she slid her hand back a bit. "Sorry," she said quietly, possibly meaning for her admission as well as for touching the mark. He shook his head slowly, as if to say it was okay, prompting her to ask, "Does it hurt?"
"No," he said, his voice just above a whisper. "It's fine."
Hesitantly, she asked, "Can I see it?"
Was this a cheap shot? Trying to get him to take his shirt off?
He seemed to consider the request for a moment before shrugging and saying, "Sure, if you want to."
Somehow, she managed to untangle herself from him and roll out of the way, allowing him to sit up.
Aaron looked at her for a moment, hesitating. Did he have the feeling that if he took his shirt off, it would all be over, and she would lunge at him, unable to control herself?
She hadn’t ever seen him with his shirt off before, but her imagination was running wild with images of how hot he had to be, judging on what she’d just felt and how good he looked with his shirt on.
Aaron grabbed ahold of the collar of his T-shirt and pulled it off over his head, and Cadence couldn’t help the gasp that came out of her mouth.
‘Holy f*ck,’ she thought, glad she could at least keep the words from spewing out of her parted lips.
Every muscle was clearly defined, from his abs to his biceps. He wasn’t bulky, but compact, like a runner.
Like the hottest f*cking runner that ever ran….
“Are you okay?” he asked her, arching an eyebrow at her.
“Uh… yeah,” Cadence mumbled. But she wasn’t okay--and she was suddenly extremely aware that she had made a mistake. She should have never asked him to take his shirt off when she was still so close to him--in bed.
Taking a deep breath, she concentrated on the scar; after all, that is what she had asked to see. She reminded herself of the seriousness of what had happened the night that he was shot and how he had taken that bullet saving her. The mark wasn't large or mangled-looking, just a simple circular scar, a bit raised compared to the area around it, right under his ribcage. It was evident that Jamie's quick skills in healing it had kept the damage to a minimum, at least externally. She carefully ran her fingers over the circumference. "Doesn't seem like much now, does it?" she admitted.
"No," he agreed. "The exit wound is almost unnoticeable," he added, though he didn't turn around to show her. He seemed very much aware that having his shirt off had affected her more than she was letting on, and if he didn't start moving out the door soon, the situation could easily get out of control.
Cadence lifted her eyes to his and bit down on her bottom lip. What were they doing here?
Playing with fire.
Thoughts of how amazing it had been when he’d kissed her at the club in Paris filled her mind. The way he’d taken command of her, pulled her in, and made her feel like she was floating up off of the floor.
She wanted that again.
She craved the rush that only he could send shooting through her body.
“I have to go in a few minutes,” he said again, his voice just a whisper. “And we have a lot to talk about.”
He meant their relationship—didn’t he?
She nodded. “I know. I just—”
She didn’t get anything else out because Aaron’s mouth was suddenly on hers, his hands on either side of her face as he’d dropped his shirt. All of the breath left her lungs as she pulled him on top of her, bringing her knees up on either side of his hips as his tongue continued to dance with hers.
The feel of him, the scent of the ocean, the taste of mint, all of it mingled together to make her lose her mind in a way that had her practically clawing at him, trying to get more. She could feel him pressed against her, and it was clear that he was just as anxious to get to her as she was to him.
Lifting her hips, she ground against him as he lowered his mouth to her neck. Her arms wrapped around him, gliding down his back, her nails raking over pure muscle as his thumb found a hardened nipple beneath her shirt.
The idea that he could take her right now, have her writhing and spasming beneath him in a matter of seconds was all she could think of. She wanted to tear his pants off and wrap her hand around his thick cock, guiding him inside of her.
But almost as quickly as he’d kissed her, he pulled away, pushing up onto his elbows as he hovered above her. “I’m sorry, Cadence,” he said, shaking his head slowly.
“Don’t be,” she said, her eyes wide as she fought to catch her breath. “I’m not.”
He smirked at her, that crooked grin making her want to rock her hips against him even more. “I mean… I have to leave. It’s not fair to you for me to do this, to throw myself at you and then leave.”
“I really don’t mind,” she told him, squeezing his hips with her knees, trying to prevent him from getting further away from her.
“I don’t want to… make love to you… and leave you,” he explained, his voice sincere.
He had a point. She didn’t want that either. “Do you have to go?”
He nodded.
“Can’t… someone else? Elliott? Hannah? Christian?”
Shaking his head, Aaron said, “It has to be me.”
She understood without him having to further explain.
But she was desperate. “Can I go with you?”
“No.” A wave of disappointment washed over her. “I think it’s more important that you go spend time with your friends and family.”
Jack. She had forgotten—again.
He was right. “Okay,” Cadence said.
“But when I get back… we’ll get this all sorted out, okay?”
Cadence nodded. “Okay,” she said again.
Aaron leaned down and pressed his lips lightly on hers, and she tried not to move for fear she’d attack him.
With one more small smile, he rolled off of her, grabbed his shirt, and pulled it back on.
Cadence slipped off of the bed, got to her feet, and scooted out of the way so that he could follow her to the door as he put his shoes on. Before she turned to face him, she took a deep breath and attempted to clear her mind, which was easier said than done. When she finally spun around, he was standing so close to her that she almost ran into him, taking her breath away again. "Sorry," she whispered.
"It's okay," he assured her, locking his eyes on hers and placing his hands on her hips. "Let me know if you need anything while I'm gone."
Sliding her hands up his chest to rest on his shoulders she nodded. "Be careful, okay?" she insisted. "No getting shot this time, not for anybody."
"I'll be careful," he assured her. "Nobody there worth getting shot for."
"And, was I worth getting shot for?" she asked, her voice just above a whisper, her lips dangerously close to his again.
"Absolutely," he replied before finally giving in and kissing her one more time, gently at first and then more eagerly.
Cadence slipped her hand up to the back of his neck, pulling him to her, returning his kiss, and parting her lips. He was caressing her neck and jawline now, and she leaned into him, no longer capable of caution.
Why did they keep lighting the fire if they didn’t want to get burned?
It took all of her self-control to keep from falling backward onto the bed, dragging him on top of her.
He knew he couldn't stay, shouldn't take this too far, wouldn't want to cause her to do something she might regret, particularly under these emotional circumstances, but he was, after all, nearly human, so maybe he could be manipulated?
Still, he somehow managed to pull back at last, and she let him, putting a breath of distance between them, momentarily, before she leaned back in and slowly kissed him again. He seemed to be fighting his own battle with restraint, however, so eventually, she found a way to back off, though she did quickly kiss him twice more before finally taking a step backward, leaving a wide enough gap between them now that the spell was temporarily broken.
"I'm going to go now," Aaron said quietly, staring into her eyes, his hand still resting on her face, his thumb caressing her cheek softly.
"Okay," Cadence whispered. "Bye."
He grinned at her, slightly amused at the awkwardness between them, no doubt. "Bye. I'll talk to you soon," he replied, finally releasing her.
Cadence nodded and dropped her hands to her sides. She took a few steps backward before finally turning and walking into the adjacent bathroom, closing the door behind her. She didn't want to watch him leave.
Once the door was closed, she took a few deep breaths, trying to figure out what all of this meant.
Was there a chance he really did want to be with her?
Did she dare to let her mind go there?
Yes, she did. She couldn’t help it.
Now, she just had to hope that Eliza didn’t find a way to get her claws into him while they were gone… together.