Forget Me Not (Remember Me Series) (18 page)

The feel of him inside me, bowed my back, my eyes rolled back in my head and I clawed at him. Aidan started a deep rolling rhythm, his body pounding into mine, each stroke sending me closer and closer to the edge of pleasure.

The wave rose inside me. Wrapping my arms around his neck I drew his face down to mine, kissing him hard. I let my tongue dance along his lips until he opened to me, the kiss sending a spiral of pleasure crashing through me.

Aidan shifted his hips suddenly, driving his body deeper into mine, his hard length stroking against the sweet spot inside me. I gasped for air as he plunged into me, his gaze pinning me beneath him.

The wave of pleasure broke over me, my body lifting up off the bed as Aidan wrapped his arms around me, driving himself into me at a frenzied pace. Colour exploded behind my eyes and I writhed in his grip.

Aidan buried his face against my neck, burying his cry of release into my hair. The warmth spread within me as he spilled himself inside me, claiming me back as his own. And I was his, mind, body and soul. We belonged together, nothing could ever change that.

Aidan rolled onto his side and pulled me with him. He kept me securely wrapped in his arms, holding my body, cradled against him. We lay like that for what felt like forever, simply basking in the after glow of what we had done. I didn’t want to move, I never wanted to get out of the bed. Doing that meant facing the real world and I wasn’t ready for that just yet.

Aidan stirred and I gripped him tighter, using my entire body to hold him in the bed. He started to laugh, the sound vibrating through my body.

“Bella, there are some things I need to do.”

“But I’m not ready to face reality yet.”

He pressed his lips to my forehead, kissing me softly. Tilting my head up he crushed his lips to mine, the kiss quickly deepening into something more. I felt his body stir against mine once more and I couldn’t help but smile.

“You don’t need to go just yet.”

Aidan laughed, rolling over so I was pressed between him and the bed once more.

“I suppose it could wait a little while longer.”

He kissed me again as I drew his body onto mine. I would keep him with me forever if he would let me.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Aidan

Grabbing my keys I watched Bella as she made her way into the bathroom. She waved to me as I headed for the door. I didn’t want to leave her but I had one last thing I needed to do. With Will’s documents under my arm, I made my way to the car and gunned the engine. I owed the truth to the man that had given me the chance to find Bella.

Pulling up outside the large manor house I killed the engine, the silence flooding back in around me. I didn’t have to tell him. Perhaps he would be better off with hope? But I couldn’t imagine that he would be, I knew if I was in his position I’d want the truth. And that was exactly what I planned to do.

Climbing from the car I jogged up the front steps. On the third ring Will pulled the door open. I smiled at him before handing over the papers.

“Aidan, what are you doing here? I don’t think we were expecting you?”

Will turned his face to Stacey as she made her way into the hall, the smile instantly died on her lips. She had never really forgiven me for the way I’d behaved at her wedding. I didn’t have a good effect on women it would seem, but then the only woman I wanted an effect on was Bella. My mind raced back to that morning, the way she had responded to my touch. The taste of her beneath my lips. She was my own form of addiction, leaving her had been almost impossible.

“I thought I’d give you the papers, I signed them, if you’re wondering. I need a job and I really don’t think I’ll ever go back to the cops. I need something a little more relaxed now that I have Bella.”

Will beamed at me and slapped his hand down on my back.

“Come in, have a drink, we can celebrate.”

I shook my head.

“I came here for one other reason. I need to see Thomas.”

Stacey shook her head, she chewed her lip nervously almost afraid to go against me.

“You can’t. He’s resting, the doctors only let him out of the hospital under the condition that he rests.”

“Please, Stacey, it’s important. What I have to tell him is something he’s going to want to hear. It’s the main reason he hired me.”

“It’s Rebecca isn’t it? Did you find her?”

The sound of a young child beginning to cry somewhere deeper in the house drew Stacey’s attention.

“I don’t think you should do this, Aidan, but if you have to he’s in the study.”

She moved away down the hall, following the sound of crying. Will turned back to me, his expression had lost its happiness, replaced with a type of sadness.

“They should have been on their honeymoon, not spending their time in and out of hospital.”

“I guess the lesson here, Will, is we shouldn’t take what we have for granted.”

He nodded and started towards a door on his left. I followed him as he made his way into the study. Thomas sat on the other side of the desk, his face ashen and creased with pain. The moment he saw me he sat up a little straighter and plastered a fake smile on his lips.

“Aidan? How are you?”

“I’m fine, you look better than when I last saw you.”

Thomas smiled and started to laugh before cutting himself off with a small smothered groan of pain. He drew himself up further in the chair and folded his hands across the desk in front of him.

“I take it you’re not here for a social call.”

I shook my head.

“No, it’s about Rebecca…”

I could see the eagerness light up his eyes but he didn’t move or ask any questions, I took it as a sign to continue.

“I’m afraid I don’t have anything good to tell you. I can’t bring you any proof either, any evidence that might have existed was taken over by the police during the raid. All I can tell you is what Bella told me.”

Thomas nodded.

“Rebecca is dead… According to Christopher she killed herself.”

Thomas immediately shook his head. “Becks, would never do that. She had too much to live for, she loved Max far too much.”

Grimacing, I ran my hand back through my hair.

“They slept together and then she drove her car off a cliff at Freedom Island…”

Thomas’ face grew even more ashen, what little colour he had, draining from his cheeks completely.

“I don’t think you need me to spell out what I really think happened.”

Thomas nodded. “No, I don’t suppose I do… If she thought there was no hope of ever escaping, if she thought he would keep her there so he could…”

Thomas cut himself off. “I can see that as a reason she might, end her life.”

He sat back against the leather chair and drew in a long shaking breath.

“How did Bella come by the knowledge?”

“Christopher used her as his replacement for Rebecca… He would punish her because he couldn’t do it to your sister… Bella reminded him of Rebecca for some reason.”

Thomas swallowed hard and grabbed a glass decanter. He pulled three glasses from their place on the stand and poured healthy doses of whiskey into all three.

I took the glass he offered and knocked it back in one gulp, it burned down the back of my throat, and drew tears to my eyes. It helped to chase back some of the colour into Thomas’ face, I watched as he replaced the glass on the table with trembling hands.

“Thank you for telling me, I know if Stacey had her way I’d never hear anything or see anyone until I was fully recovered.”

The door burst open and a small boy ran into the room, he carried a biscuit in one hand and Stacey followed after him.

“Max, no, Uncle Thomas, needs to rest.”

She called out to him as he raced around the table and launched himself at Thomas. Thomas winced and then started to laugh as Max tried to force feed him some biscuit. I watched the two of them interact. I could see the sadness in Thomas’ eyes as he cuddled his nephew to him.

Stacey seemed to understand the moment. She made her way around the desk and wrapped her arms around Thomas’ neck, pressing her lips to the top of his head, before whispering into his ear.

I turned away, it was a private moment, a family moment and I didn’t belong there. I had my own family to get back to. Bella’s arms to wrap myself up in, her lips to kiss and something that had taken me two years to get around to doing.

I headed for the door and Will followed me. He pulled it open and moved out onto the steps after me.

“Thanks for that.”

He said, holding his hand out for me. I took it easily and we shook hands. We hadn’t always seen eye to eye but he was a man of his word and that was something I could admire.

“Good luck with Bella, I wish you two the best and I’ll be in touch over the job.”

I grinned at him.

“But not too soon, I have a lot of lost time to catch up with the most beautiful woman in the world.”

Will laughed as I jogged back down the steps and hopped into my car. I was eager to be back with Bella, eager to wrap her in my arms. Eager to see her reaction when I surprised her. Turning the key in the ignition, it was all I could think about as I wound back through the country lanes to the city.

Pushing the key into the lock I stepped into the apartment. There was no sign of Bella and for a moment I felt the all the fear of the past two years washing back over me.

“Bella!”

My voice came out in a strangled cry as I moved into the apartment. The moment her head popped around the edge of the bedroom door I felt my heart slowing its panicked dance. She was here, she was safe, it was all behind us now.

I moved towards her, watching her carefully, afraid that at any moment she might disappear, that maybe it was all a dream. Was she really here with me? Was she really mine?

“I thought you’d never get back.”

She grinned up at me as I took her gently into my arms. Holding her as though she was made of glass, fragile glass that might break at any moment.

“Why so serious?”

Her smile disappeared, replaced instead with concern, worry creasing her brow.

“Are you really mine? Have I really found you, Bella?”

She smiled up at me once more, her brown eyes filled with warmth and tenderness.

“Of course I’m here with you… There is nowhere else on this earth that I would rather be.”

“When I thought I’d lost you, when I thought you were gone, it nearly destroyed me. I didn’t want to be on this earth if I thought you weren’t here. I’m nothing without you, a shell of a man. You make me everything that I am, you make me whole, you make me want to be a better man, strive harder, be good…”

“Aidan’s what’s wrong? What happened?”

I shook my head and smiled.

“You happened, Bella.”

Before she could question me further I dropped to one knee. Her face took on an expression of shock and amazement.

“Bella Brooks, I asked you this question once before and you said yes… Now I’m going to ask you again but this time I’m going to do it right.”

I pulled a small black box from inside my leather jacket.

“I bought this for you just after you disappeared and I swore that I would find you because I had such an important question to ask you. I bought it to prove to myself that I would find you, that you would come back to me.”

Tears spilled down her cheeks as she stared at me and the ring I held. I remembered the day I bought the ring. My broken ribs ached and I was covered in bruises but none of that meant anything. I’d have gladly had all my ribs removed if it meant I got to have Bella back.

The thought had occurred to me as I lay in bed. I climbed out of the bed, dragging my clothes on haphazardly before going to the car. Driving had been a bad idea but I didn’t care. I had to get the ring, it spread inside my mind like a virus becoming an all consuming urge.

Standing in the jewellers was painful, staring down at all the rings that she should have been there to look at with me. All the rings that she should have been there to try on. But she wasn’t, I was alone.

The minute I had the ring I tucked it into the inside pocket of my leather jacket and brought it home to stare at it for hours on end. It was like my tether to her, I would find her, I’d bought her a ring. It was stupid but it was something that stopped me from losing my mind in the early days

“Bella Brooks, will you do me the honour of becoming my wife? There is no life without you, you are my meaning and I love you.”

She nodded before dropping to the floor in front of me.

“Yes, yes, Aidan, so many times, yes.”

Pulling the ring from the box I slid the small platinum band onto her finger, the diamond glinting in the sunlight. She threw herself into my arms, her body crushed to mine. I didn’t hesitate, sweeping her up from the floor I dropped small kisses across her lips, chin, neck as I carried her into the bedroom.

“I know you wanted to wait before, to have some time to just be with each other?”

“I don’t want that anymore. I don’t care what anyone thinks… This is my life, Aidan, our life. Every night I was on Freedom Island I dreamt of you. I dreamt of the moment we would be reunited. I dreamt of being given a second chance, of you asking me again to marry you. I don’t want to waste another minute. I’m yours… If you’ll have me?”

I grinned down at her as I laid her beneath me on the bed.

“I’ll always have you, Bella. I was made to love you.”

I kissed her again, holding her in my arms as I vowed to never let her go again.

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