Second Chance Summer(83)
And more.
In fact, she could see anything and everything in those eyes.
A groan coupled with a thrust from Aidan had her clutching at him as he continued to move beneath her. Not wanting to hurt him by squeezing too hard on his ribs with her knees, she clasped his hands and pushed herself upright, crying out as this seated him even deeper inside her.
“Okay?” he asked, sounding breathless.
She could only let out a short laugh. “So okay.”
Aidan smiled and, hands still entwined with hers, locked his arms. Held suspended above him now, she rocked her hips, riding him, meeting him thrust for thrust.
“Oh, f*ck,” he murmured. “You should see yourself, Lily. You’re the hottest thing I’ve ever seen.”
He was one to talk. The sight of him sprawled beneath her, the muscles in his arms corded with the effort of keeping her balanced, the unadulterated hunger and desire etched on his face …
And just like that, the pressure inside her built and then exploded. As he followed her over she fell forward onto his chest again, burrowing into him. Murmuring her name in that husky voice she loved, he hugged her in close and they drifted back to sleep together.
Lily woke up with a smile on her face. It’d been a week since Aidan had shown up at her place injured, and she’d woken up with a smile every single day since.
She was alone in her bed now, but Aidan hadn’t been gone all that long, and he’d left her boneless and satisfied as always.
She stretched, feeling her muscles ache in the best of ways after the night before, when he’d brought her fantasy to life showing up with ropes and some very … naughty uses of them.
And then he’d made her write a list of more fantasies, which had brought out that wicked, badass smile of his and a promise to make every one of them come true.
She reached for her charging phone on the nightstand and checked her email out of habit. But the truth was, she’d stopped worrying about the lack of hits on her resume awhile ago. She was actually loving being back in Cedar Ridge. She wasn’t exactly sure what that meant, but it led her to the reason she felt happy.
Aidan.
In spite of her initial hesitancy, she’d taken him into her bed and it had forever changed what he meant to her.
Whatever that was.
But it wasn’t a mystery how he felt about her. She thought of how he looked at her, how he always seemed to be looking at her as if he couldn’t help himself. How he was there whenever she needed him.
And then there’d been the “I love you.” Hard to discount that. Aidan never said something he didn’t mean.
Never.
Her heart rolled over in her chest, exposing its tender underside as it tended to do in all matters Aidan, leaving her … vulnerable.
And both giddy and terrified at the same time.
She needed to relax. Some people did that with yoga, or meditation, or even a trip to the spa. Lily was starting to learn, or maybe it was her remembering, that she felt most at peace on the mountain. She put on her hiking clothes and, as she had every day since getting the package, added Ashley’s scarf. Today there was a wind that made her glad for the added protection.
Two hours later, she stopped at what had become her favorite place atop the mountain, where she could see everything and feel closest to Ashley. And the fact that it was getting easier each time to get there made her feel good. This was her haven now.
Not the place she had to fear.
She let out a deep breath and a lot of tension. The wind kicked in and pushed at the trees high above her, making them sway and dance. The staccato sounds of the branches hitting each other along with the chatter of the squirrels as they ran for cover was comforting because it sounded like …
Her childhood.
There was only one thing missing, of course.
Ashley.
“Hey, sis,” she whispered, fingering the scarf. “I’m back.” She let out a low laugh. “Turns out I can’t stay away. I feel you here, Ash.”
She drew a deep breath and looked across the chasm at Dead Man’s Cliff. “I’m so sorry. I’m sorry I ever climbed that stupid cliff. And I’m sorry you did too. Most of all, I’m sorry you can’t be here now.” Her breath hitched, constricted by tears. “I miss you so much.”
When she’d first come back to Cedar Ridge, she’d honestly believed that she needed to get to the mountain and stare down the face where Ashley died. Actually, she’d thought that until this very second, but the truth was she didn’t need to. If anything, what happened to Ashley there had taught her that there were some things that weren’t meant to be conquered at all.
She knew the truth now. In losing Ashley, she’d also lost too much of herself. Lily needed to come back to Cedar Ridge to remember how to live.
Yes, being here was a visceral reminder of a terrible tragedy.
But it was also home.
She let that knowledge settle in, warming her from the inside out. It didn’t take away her losses, but gathering Ashley’s scarf closer, she understood something else.
It wasn’t supposed to.
Ashley would always be a part of her, maybe one of the best parts, and she didn’t have to let that go. She just had to be able to live the life she was supposed to live.
“Thanks, Ash,” she whispered.
The wind caressed her, and she turned her face into it. It felt like Ashley’s spirit telling her it was okay to carry on, to keep chasing adventure. That’s who she was, and this was where she belonged.