Alpha Aidan's Rejection Chapter 73

TARA

　　My eyes blinked open, and I momentarily forgot where I was. Looking around me to accustom myself to the darkness of the room, I remembered where I was, and when the steady inhale and exhale of a second person sounded next to me on the bed, memories of what happened between us hit me like a train.

　　"Shit," I cursed, looking around me for something to tell me what time it was. It was still dark, so it wasn't dawn yet.

　　I didn't plan to sleep over at Aidan's house. Hell, I didn't plan to sleep with him at all!

　　Sighing, and making sure that Aidan was still asleep, I tossed the covers off me. 'Covers I did not recall throwing on in the first place.'

　　That must have been Aidan.

　　Red slowly heated my cheeks in a blush.

　　Speaking of, I let my gaze wander over and settle over Aidan on the bed, finding it so easy to make out his sleeping features in the dark. He was on his back, and his bare, sparsely inked chest rose and fell steadily, and before I knew it, I was lost studying every single detail about Aidan's sleep pattern. His face was calm and peaceful, a stark contrast to the deranged man who handled me mere hours ago, and it was by sheer reserve that I didn't force myself back into bed with him. I also forced myself to leave the memories where they belonged because I didn't trust what I could do.

　　Sadly, I had to leave, so I peeled my eyes away from Aidan's perfect body, and slid down the bed, shoving my things into my tote bag.

　　I made a quiet attempt to dress up and sneak out of the room, and when I was done getting my clothes on, I turned to take one last longing look at Aidan's already memorized face, only to find that this time, his once shut eyes were wide open, staring back at me.

　　I barely muffled the shriek that tore through me, even though I slapped a palm to my mouth as my heart rate shot up like a bat out of hell.

　　"Christ, Aidan! That's creepy," I scolded him, fisting a hand to my chest to calm my racing heart. I nearly had a heart attack.

　　He ignored me, and from his next words, I could hear the disappointment in his voice. "So this was a bam bam, thank you ma'am, and run away from me type of deal? Ouch, Tara."

　　After a few seconds of being stunned, I found my voice.

　　"That's not it, Aidan. I thought you were sleeping, and I didn't want to disturb you."

　　"Well," Aidan reposted. "You were supposed to be sleeping too. Here," he said, tapping the free side of the bed. "And I couldn't have slept heavily when I could feel my…you walking away from me, Tara."

　　Willing myself to not think about what he just said…or almost said, I tightened my grip on the bag and spoke.

　　"I have to go."

　　Aidan nodded once, sitting up, and resting his back on the headboard. "Okay. Why?"

　　Without thinking, I answered.

　　"Because I didn't tell anyone I was going to be spending the night away. I was only supposed to pick up our stuff, and then go get Nadia, and I don't want her to wake up and not see me. Esme and Jenna would be worried sick too having not heard from me all night."

　　Aidan nodded again, understanding my plight.

　　"I doubt they'd be worried sick since they knew you left with me, but since that's the case, we can leave."

　　I paused. Aidan didn't wait for my response before he got off the bed and strode to pick up his pants. I averted my gaze from his half-naked body because I needed my head to be clear.

　　"We?"

　　"Yes. I'm taking you home. If you're going to wake up in the middle of the night, wanting to leave, then I'd be making sure I see you off to your doorstep before I can come back here to sleep. Don't bother arguing if you really want to go home. Get in the car, Tara."

　　My argument got lost in my throat, and within minutes, Aidan was driving me home, and thick silence swirled around us in the car.

　　Aidan was the first to break the silence after what felt like an eternity.

　　"So you're sure there's no other reason why you're leaving in the middle of the night that I should know of? And that you won't ghost me now that something has happened between us?"

　　Hitting the nail on the head, I see.

　　Honestly, I hadn't thought about it. I was just in a hurry to leave, I hadn't really given much thought to how I felt about sleeping with Aidan. Still, I responded as truthfully as I could.

　　"I was in my correct state of mind when I agreed to it, so I don't see why I should avoid you, Aidan."

　　We fell into another bout of silence, and Aidan spoke again. I guess I wasn't the only one who was tense.

　　"Have dinner with me tomorrow."

　　My head snapped to Aidan, and it was then I realized that the car had come to a halt.

　　"What?"

　　"Go on a date with me," he said, looking serious about it. "I think we deserve a break after all this, just the two of us."

　　The shock was evident in my voice. "I-I…where would we even go?"

　　Aidan smiled, looking hopeful. "Why don't you just bring your fine self, and leave the rest of the details to me? Sounds good?"

　　I guessed he was staying after all. Even after seeing me in my entirety, Aidan still wanted to be a part of our lives. Of my life.

　　I finally nodded, fearing that if I opened my mouth to say something, I might ruin it, or I might be yanked out of this dreamland with my words.

　　"Good," Aidan nodded. "We're here. Go inside, Tara, I'll see you later."

　　Still stunned, I managed to turn my attention to the door handle, but Aidan stopped me.

　　"Come here," he said, and I instinctively leaned in as he did, closing the space between him and me.

　　Our lips connected, locking us in a passionate kiss, and fireworks went off in my stomach.

　　When I succeeded in alighting the car and going inside Esme's, Jenna was standing by the door with a smirk and a knowing glint in her eyes, asking me. "So, how good was it?"