Alpha Aidan's Rejection Chapter 96

TARA

　　The feeling of Aidan's hands on my head as he braided my hair was therapeutic, coercing the stress of the day from my body like therapy. I melted into him on the bed, groaning whenever his fingers touched my scalp at how good it felt. Who knew that getting braids could feel like a massage?

　　"I thought you'd be terrible at this," I said to Aidan, one braid in as he combed out the other half of my hair. The room had been silent since he began otherwise. "You seem to have a secret talent."

　　I was sitting in front of Aidan with my back pressed against his front, my hands on each of his thick thighs, while his hands manipulated my head. My eyes were already dropping at this point with how surreal it felt.

　　"Not a talent," Aidan said, and I could feel him shaking his head. "Just something I picked up a long time ago. I remember doing it for my mom sometimes."

　　It was funny how I moved from not knowing anything about Aidan's Mom to knowing how close she had been with Aidan in his early days.

　　Clearing my throat, I spoke. "It's good that you have those memories. And notice how it'll become easier for you to approach thoughts or topics about her as time goes on? Other than keeping it in and letting it eat you without you even knowing."

　　After a quiet moment, Aidan's reply came through. "You're right," he simply said, then I felt his soft lips pressing a kiss on the back of my shoulder, and I sighed dreamily. "All done," he finally said, and I smiled.

　　His hands slid from my head after one last lingering touch, and even though I would have preferred to maintain our position where I was currently pressed against Aidan's heat, sleep was calling to me.

　　I recalled that Aidan had promised to render a priceless service to fulfill his end of our deal, and I almost snickered out loud.

　　Aidan must have noticed my drowsiness himself, because he moved from my back, making me mourn his loss internally, and then he threw the covers back for me to get under.

　　I wordlessly did that, closing my eyes with a smile on my face, and after some shuffling, including the sound of the lights turning off, I felt Aidan's body beside mine.

　　Beginning to miss the way we were before, I turned around, giving Aidan my back, and I scooted into his warmth, sighing at the familiarity. Aidan's hands wrapped around me from behind, and he kissed me again all over my skin.

　　This felt good. In all the right ways.

　　"Goodnight, Aidan," I called sleepily, and Aidan made an unintelligible sound.

　　"Goodnight, my love."

　　Within seconds, the familiar feeling of my head slowly falling into bliss wrapped around me, and I let myself crash.

　　I barely moved all night, and by the time I woke up, Aidan's hands were still wrapped around my waist, his soft breath fanning the crook of my neck from where his head was logged.

　　I also felt a digging at my lower back from where Aidan's Vick was supposed to be, making me wonder how he was hard in his sleep.

　　A squeamish smile instantly crept up my face as I thought about waking him up with a little present.

　　My eyes darted to the LED table clock at my bedside. The time was a few minutes past five, and I groaned at the thought that I had to get up, which meant putting an end to this beautiful time with Aidan, or I was going to run late with…everything.

　　In a matter of seconds, I was facing Aidan now, taking in his perfect resting face. Soft looking and long eyelashes, a perfectly crooked nose, and my most desired types of lips…just because they were his type. As if knowing that I was staring at him, Aidan's eyes peeled open, and a part of my brain shut off on meeting his hazel orbs which were slightly red from just waking up.

　　"How long have you been staring at me like that?" Aidan asked, one long finger coming up to brush the hair from my face.

　　"Like what?"

　　"Like you want to eat me."

　　I actually did want to eat him.

　　Instead of responding to the question, I just chuckled. "Good morning to you too."

　　Aidan groaned, his eyes finding the clock behind me. "Good morning, but let's go back to sleep. It's still so early."

　　"I wish I could," I replied truthfully. "I'd love nothing more than to stay in bed with you, but Nadia will be up soon, and I have to get ready for the diner anyway. Besides, I just had the best sleep last night than I've had in weeks, so I'm glad."

　　Aidan's brows knitted in confusion. "Why haven't you been sleeping?"

　　I shrugged against the pillow as my hands came up to trial Aidan's bare chest. "Just had a lot going on at work and in my mind, so it's been hard for me to have a good night's rest. I haven't been sleeping during the day either ever since the incident with Nadia."

　　His frown deepened. "I didn't know that, Tara."

　　"Yeah," I said, exhaling loudly. "I can't close my eyes for more than a few minutes without fearing that when I let them stay closed for too long, I'd wake up to the door wide open, and her gone again."

　　"I understand your worries," Aidan said, nodding. "You should know that she learned from her mistake though. She knew what she did was wrong, so chances are that she won't do something like that again. Nadia is smart. She was just…" Aidan paused.

　　"Looking for her father," I completed quietly.

　　Aidan stayed silent for a few seconds, thoughts swimming in his eyes, and then he spoke.

　　"Walk me through the things you're supposed to do today."

　　It took me a moment to process Aidan's words, but I did, and I got to it.

　　"Not much, actually. Breakfast, get Nadia ready for school, then head to the diner. Pick her up at three-thirty, and have her stay with me till I close the diner at five. Then dinner. Typical day," I said, listing our routine for almost every day of the week off the top of my head.

　　"I can do that," Aidan said, stealing the words off my lips and the breath out of my lungs.

　　"Do…what exactly?" I asked with a chuckle, and Aidan shook his head.

　　"I'll take care of your day for you. I need you to stay home, and take as many naps as the hours will allow you."

　　I wouldn't lie, I was already excited about the thought. The things I could do with a whole twelve hours to myself? I have not had that in well over a decade. But I shook the thought off. It wouldn't even work.

　　"No, no, Aidan. I can't skip going to the diner for another day. I've been away for too long, a-and you have to work, right? I doubt you can do that with Nadia jumping around and all over your…"

　　Aidan's left pointer finger came up to shut my lips, holding off my protest.

　　"You'll be able to take your mind off her by knowing she's safe with me, so you'll be able to lose yourself to sleep, and it'll become easier to do that in subsequent days. And if I imagine correctly, you've always had to look after her all day, so I'll say you deserve today off," Aidan explained.

　　And he was right. Since I had Nadia, my life has been centered around her two-four-seven, not that I hated it. My life would have been bland without my daughter in it.

　　Point is, it wasn't easy, but it had become easier after her first few years since she could now take care of herself to an extent, even though I always had to keep an eye on her.

　　Twelve hours to myself…was a luxury I hadn't imagined affording till Nadia basically grew into a woman.

　　Aidan was giving me that on a platter.

　　"A-are you sure?" I asked still, my eyes shining with hope and doubt at the same time, and my heart pounding in excitement.

　　Aidan closed the gap between us, sealing my thoughts of protests with a kiss, and sending my brain into a muddle. "Maybe I should get breakfast going, so you'll know I'm capable of taking care of you both for an entire day."

　　I shook my head, closing my eyes briefly. "I didn't mean it like that, Aidan. I'm talking about you…how will you work?"

　　"I'll go grab my laptop on the way, and I'll work from the diner. I quite like the view," Aidan said like it was nothing, shutting me up with another quick kiss, and jumping off the bed before I could speak.

　　Not knowing where to start my appreciation from, and recalling Aidan's line about him but needing me to say thank you when he did something thoughtful, I stared at him as he threw his pants on instead, hoping that my eyes conveyed what my words couldn't.

　　They were the same pants he wore yesterday, and I knew that there was no way he'd be a hundred percent comfortable in those. Aidan didn't mind that. He didn't mind how inconvenient it would be for him to make me have something as simple as a day to myself.

　　The thought drew tears to my eyes, and I knew that there was no way I made a mistake by loving Aidan.

　　I didn't want to spoil my first day off in years with a round of tears, so I shrugged the thought off the forefront of my mind, letting it simmer down somewhere at the back of my mind.

　　"Okay then. I guess I'm having a day off after all," I said, breaking into a smile.