Chapter 13

(***Aaron***)

The next morning, I woke up alone in Rylan’s bed. I can hear voices and music coming from somewhere in the house, and I remember that her sister is here. I hope she didn’t hear anything we did last night, but we are all adults, so I shrug my shoulders and roll out of bed.

After taking a shower, I come back into the bedroom and find my clothes from last night folded on the end of the bed. They smell clean, which makes me laugh. Rylan must have gotten up early and washed them.

That makes me feel guilty for sleeping longer than she did, considering how I woke her up last night. She must be tired today. I wonder what she has planned for the day since she won’t be going to work.

I get dressed quickly, then head to the living room, where I can hear the music. When I walk into the room, Rylan looks over at me from where she is sitting on the couch. Rosalie is sitting with her, but her back is to me.

“Hello ladies.”

Rosalie turns around to look at me, and there is a knowing smile on her face. The bruises are fading, and she looks much happier than she did yesterday. I want to know what happened to her, but I also don’t want to be too nosy.

“There is coffee in the kitchen,” Rylan says as she gets up off the couch and walks over to me.

I pull her into my arms and kiss her softly, then let go and head into the kitchen. I can feel her following me. Once we are both in the kitchen, out of sight of her sister, I spin around quickly and pin her to the wall beside the doorway.

She gasps in surprise, and I take full advantage of her open mouth. I kiss her passionately until I feel her melt against me. The soft moan she makes is music to my ears.

I pull back so I can look at her. “I wanted to do that when I woke up, but I was all alone in that bed of yours.”

She wraps her arms around my neck, then pulls me back for a quick kiss. “I would have been in there with you, but Rosalie needed to wash some clothes and didn’t know where the laundry room was.”

“Thank you for washing my clothes, but I would have just gone home to change.”

Rylan does something I have never seen her do before; she blushes. I kiss her nose, then step back so I can make a cup of much-needed coffee. She steps up to the counter next to me, and she is nibbling her lower lip when I glance over at her.

“What is on your mind, Rylan?”

She glances towards the doorway, then back at me. “My sister needs to go home so she can put her affairs in order. I will be going with her, but I was wondering if you would come with us.”

“Are things that bad at home for her? Was it her husband who did that to her face?”"

She nods her head. “Grant is a real self-righteous bastard. He thinks that because she is his wife, it gives him the right to do whatever he wants to her.”

“Did she press charges?”

“No, but she has pictures from when it happened, and her neighbor witnessed some of it and is willing to make a statement. She is also going to file for divorce. I offered to let her stay here until she could get back on her feet. We are going to South Carolina to get her things, file the police report, then come back.”

“You want me to come with you to act as a threat against her husband?”

Again, she nods her head.

“When do you want to go? I can have our jet fueled up and ready when you two are.”

Rylan hugs me tight, and I just hold her for a few moments. When she pulls me away, she smiles at me before she rushes out of the room to talk to her sister. I drink my coffee as fast as I can, then walk back to her bedroom to find my keys and phone.

I look at the time, then look at the many missed calls and the voicemail icon on my phone. Those calls and voicemails are most likely from my parents, wondering where I am. For the second time in such a short time frame, I feel like the teenage boy I once was.

That last year, before I signed up for the army and left for bootcamp, was my rebellious year. Well, more than usual, anyway. Sneaking out of the house to meet Quinn, then staying out all night. Meeting up with girls from school to do some heavy petting and making out. I was drinking pilfered beer from my father’s stash.

It was a fun year. It was also the last year that my life had any semblance of normalcy. Everything after that was not so great. Not all of it was bad, but when it was, it was the stuff of my nightmares.

“Hey, are you okay?” Rylan’s voice pulls me out of my thoughts just in time.

I put my phone in my pocket before I turned around to face her. She is walking to me slowly, with a look of caution on her face. I hate that I put that look there, but I am glad she took the slow approach, even though she had no idea what was going through my head.

“I will be. Come here,” I ask gently while opening my arms for her.

She closes the distance between us, then snuggles close as I wrap my arms around her. I could get used to having her in my arms like this. We don't need words, just quiet comfort.

“When do you two want to leave for South Carolina?”

“Tomorrow, if you can use the jet, it feels kind of weird using your company jet, though.”

“Well, Quinn isn’t using it anytime soon, so we might as well make use of it. It will save you time and both of you money. I need to go home and have a conversation with my parents to work out their living arrangements.”

She pulls back enough so that she can look up at me. “Are they really going to move out here while you do your therapy and steps to get better?”

“My mother is insisting on it. I am going to rent them a small house close to mine.”

She frowns. “Why not let them stay with you?”

I laugh, then kiss her lips softly before I step away from her. “There is no way I will live with my parents again. I need to have my own private space. That can’t happen if my mother is living with me.”

“She loves you, Aaron. I am sure she just wants to make sure you are okay.”

“I know, but think of it like this: you will soon have a roommate and less privacy. With my place being free of my parents, we will have a place to go for some alone time.” I wiggle my eyebrows at her suggestively.

As expected, she laughs. “Fair enough. You also have a pool and a Jacuzzi.

“Naughty.”

“You betcha.”

“Okay, I gotta get out of here before I take you back to bed. I will text you the time we leave once I make the arrangements. I will use the front door this time.” I give her a kiss goodbye, then leave the room.

I hear her laughter as I walk through the house. Before I leave, I wave to Rosalie, who waves back with a smile on her face. I can’t wait to meet her dickwad husband so I can put the fear of God into him.

An hour later, I walk into my house and am greeted at the door by my very irate mother. The look on her face would normally scare me, but after the night I had with Rylan, it doesn’t have its usual effect on me. I sigh and shake my head as she launches into what sounds like a well-rehearsed tirade.

I hold off speaking until she finishes. If I learned nothing else from her through my childhood, letting her finish whatever she needed to say was my biggest lesson. Once she stops talking and just stands there staring at me, I walk into the living room to sit down.

“Where the hell were you all night, Aaron?” My father asks when I walk into the room.

“I couldn’t sleep, so I went for a run.”

“You were out running all night?” My mother interrupts me before I can say where else I was.

“Can I finish what I have to say without either of you interrupting me? This conversation will go much faster that way.”

She snaps her mouth shut, then walks across the room to sit next to my father. I wait a few moments to make sure neither of them is going to speak before I continue. I glance at my dad, and he nods his head.

“Being interrogated the moment I walked into my home is not something I ever want to happen again. I am not thirteen anymore, and I have my own life. I understand that you were worried after the conversation we had yesterday, but I was fine.”

“You could have called to tell us you would be out all night.”

“Again, I am not a child, and I haven’t needed to account for my whereabouts to either of you for quite some time.”

She goes to say something more, but Dad stops her. “He is right, Tori. We worry about you, son.”

“I know, pop, but I was fine. In fact, I was more than fine; I was with Rylan.”

This gets my mother’s attention instantly, like I knew it would. She gives me a questioning look, and I know exactly what she is thinking. She was right before about my feelings for Rylan.

“Yes, mom, I have feelings for Rylan. We talked last night and decided to try the dating thing.” We did way more than that, but there is no way I am telling either of them that.

“I like her. She is a very lovely woman. One who very clearly loves you.”

I clear my throat and shift in my seat. My dad chuckles as he watches me squirm. I stand up, then head towards the hallway.

“I am going to change, and then I want to talk to you two about what we discussed yesterday. About moving out here temporarily.”

Thirty minutes later, I am sitting with both my parents at the kitchen table. My mother insisted on cooking something for lunch while I was changing. I gave her a hug and apologized for going off on her when I got home. Despite what I said to her earlier, I know she said everything she did out of love and worry for her only child.

Instead of getting straight to what I wanted to discuss, I skirted around that topic and asked them to fill me in on what has been happening back home since I was there last. That was for Quinn’s father’s funeral.

A man who got more than he ever deserved, in my opinion. 

They told me a couple of stories about some crazy tourists, a missing kid that was found a few hours later asleep in the cage with a puppy at the pound, and how our old neighbors sold their house to a newlywed couple that my mother isn’t a fan of.

When I asked why she didn’t like them, she made a face that looked like she just sucked on a lemon but refused to say what it was she didn’t like. Dad just shrugged his shoulders like he didn’t have a clue, which doesn’t surprise me. She will keep it to herself until whatever it eats at her boils over and she lets her anger get the best of her.

“So, about you two moving up here like dad suggested last night? I think it is a good idea; however, I have a few thoughts about it if you do move here.”

“I like this idea, Aaron. Your father and I have wanted to have an extended stay out here for years. Your house is enormous enough that we won’t be all on top of each other.”

I knew this was going to be something she would say. She would want to live here to keep an eye on me at all times. It would be just like it was when I was growing up. Quinn was my saving grace that summer, more than he ever knew. He was my chance at a less strict upbringing.

With a glance at my dad, I can see that he is shaking his head. He is not a fan of this idea. At least I will have his support here.

“Mom, I love you, but that won’t be happening. The two of you living here in this house are not what I need. I think renting a house for you close by is the best idea. There are a few really good houses available a block away, within walking distance.”

I can tell immediately that she doesn’t like this idea and wants to argue with me about it. Thankfully, my dad intervenes.

“Tori, we can’t hover like when he was little.”

“But he is sick, and he needs his mother,” she cries.

My mother's statement leaves me staring at her in a tense-filled silence. The way she said it made it sound like what was wrong with me is so bad that I need to be hospitalized. I don’t like how she is looking at me either.

“You can’t just make me soup and rub some Vicks on my chest. I am not sick like that. What I need from both of you is just your support.”

“I didn’t mean it like it sounded.” Mom’s voice is quiet.

“Right, so where I was going with this conversation was that I would rent one of those houses and have you two live there. You will be close when I have an episode, or you two can come over here to just check in on me. This will allow us to spend more time together, and you two will have your own space. All I ask is that you call first.”

“I am your mother, and I shouldn’t have to call first before I come to see you.” She is angry, and I understand where she is coming from.

“Another reason I suggest the rental property is my new relationship with Rylan. We are both adults, and sex will be happening. Her sister is moving in with her, so we will have no privacy there. I want to have privacy with my girlfriend in my home without my parents there. Does that make sense to you, mom?”

She looks away, but I can see the embarrassment on her face as she does. “I hadn’t thought of her being your girlfriend. Of course, you two will want your privacy.”

“Mom, I love you, but I don’t need you to hover over me like when I was a kid. What work I have to do can’t be done with you restricting my activities, setting curfews, and hovering over me. If you live here with me, I know that is what you will try to do.”

“Then why are we even moving here at all?” She asks in a frustrated tone.