Love on the Lake (Lakeside #2)(57)
How comfortable he was with them. The way that little boy wrapped himself around Aaron, like he never wanted to let him go. How bright Aaron’s smile was. The way he called him little man.
It could be family. Or a family friend. But then why wouldn’t he tell me that? Why not explain that friends from out of town were coming for the weekend?
Because he didn’t want you to know.
Because he has something to hide.
My hands are shaking as I slip the key into the lock. My mind is going a million miles a minute, to the point that my thoughts are jumbled and all I can see is Aaron hugging that little boy on a loop. He was Aaron’s spitting image.
Not once has Aaron said anything about having a sibling. And I can’t imagine that Dillion wouldn’t mention something like that. It seems too important a piece of information.
I head straight for the bathroom and open my medicine cabinet, pulling out my prescription. The antianxiety medication is a take-as-needed prescription, but I try not to use it too often. If there was ever a time I needed a little assistance to calm down and think rationally, it’s now.
I pop the tablet under my tongue and let it dissolve on my way to the kitchen. I open the freezer door and pull out my bottle of vodka. I need a good stiff drink. Probably more than one. I also need my head to stop spinning and my worst-case-scenario button to stop going off.
I manage to make myself a martini without spilling half the vodka on the counter. I drop into my reading chair, sipping my drink, staring at the wall, trying to make sense of what I saw.
My phone pings with messages, but I don’t check to see who it is. I’m contemplating making another martini when there’s a knock at my door. I’m calmer than I was when I first got home, my worries covered with a soft, fuzzy, protective blanket of serenity.
I push out of the chair, find my balance, and cross the room. Dillion is standing on the landing, phone in hand. “Hey. I thought you were out with Aaron tonight.”
“I was. He had to cancel.”
She looks me over, brow pulling together, and her gaze darts past me, to the kitchen counter, where the vodka and shaker are sitting. “Did something happen? Are you okay?”
“Aaron’s an only child, right?”
“Uh, yeah, why?”
I tap my lip and blow out a breath. “I think he’s keeping something from me. Or someone.”
“What do you mean, someone?”
I step back, allowing her to enter. While I make us both a drink, I tell her what happened, starting with Aaron canceling our plans and ending with me forgetting my wallet and stopping by his place, only to find he had company.
“That boy looks like him, Dillion. Exactly like him. Same mouth, same nose.”
“I honestly don’t know what to think, Teagan. I’ve known Aaron my entire life, but I spent the better part of a decade living in the city, so there are a handful of years where we didn’t see much of each other. I’d like to think I’d know if he had a kid, though.”
“And I’d like to think the same, but if it’s not that, then why wouldn’t he tell me he had friends or family coming to visit? The only reason to omit something like that is because he’s got something to hide. And maybe that something is a someone. What if he has an entire family I don’t know about?”
Dillion rubs her temple. “I just can’t see it, Teag. I guess it’s possible, but he’s so loyal. I don’t know. In some ways it would explain him coming back when he did. Maybe him and the mother aren’t involved anymore? Do you want me to ask Tawny or Allie if they know anything?”
“No. I don’t want to start gossip.”
“That’s fair.” Dillion raps her nails on the counter. “Then I think the only thing you can do is confront him and hope he has a good explanation.”
I don’t attempt to contact Aaron for the rest of the weekend. Instead, I focus on putting together design plans for the newest Footprint Construction renovation project and work on the farmers’ market, since a number of things need my attention. I have emails with questions from the twenty-five vendors that have signed up. There are a lot of balls in the air, more than I thought there would be. But I want this to be a success, need it to be, so I keep juggling them.
On Sunday night I go to bed, promising myself I’m not going to reach out to Aaron first. After a fitful night’s sleep, I realize that I can’t physically consume enough coffee or energy drinks to stay alert, so I grab an old bottle of caffeine pills from the medicine cabinet and toss them into my purse. It’s been a while since I’ve had to resort to caffeine in pill form, but I need to get through my shift at the diner without falling asleep.
I’d like to say I’m surprised that I don’t hear from Aaron, but based on his monthly disappearances and the way he takes a few days before he reaches out, I’m not.
By Tuesday evening I’m exhausted from the constant anxiety and lack of sleep, and I’m tired of waiting. It’s become clear that Aaron is dodging me, especially since Tuesdays are my Footprint Construction consulting days and he’s nowhere to be found. He calls and says he has to take care of things on another project and doesn’t bother to stop by the office at the end of the day.
So instead of going home after work, I drive to Aaron’s house because I can’t take it anymore. I also need my wallet back. All I have is my credit card saved on my phone, and most of the stores here don’t have that kind of payment option like they do in the city.