Chapter 51

(Aaron)

Monday morning sneaks up on me and I am dreading heading into the office for the first time in years. Not because of the work but because I have to leave my bed where a very naked Rylan is still sleeping next to me. The temptation that she presents is hard to resist, but resist it, I must.

After we got home from my parents’ house last night, she made good on her promise to put much better images in my head. She did far more than that and by the time we fell asleep; we were both very satisfied. So very satisfied.

I untangle my limbs from Rylan’s, then quietly get out of bed. I take a quick shower, brush my teeth, and by the time I walk back into the bedroom, Rylan is sitting up against the headboard, watching me.

She has the black silk sheet tucked under her arms to cover her breasts and I am slightly disappointed. The smirk she gives me when I stop to just stare at her tells me she knows exactly what she is doing to me. I glance at the clock on the wall to see if I have time to have a little morning fun.

It is already six in the morning, and I have an early meeting with Quinn and our CFO to go over the current projections for the ultimate cost of the outreach center. We have yet to come up with a name for it.

“If I didn’t have an early meeting, I would so jump right back into that bed with you, baby.”

Rylan gives me a pouty look, then a wicked smile as she sits up and drops the sheet. “The tent you are making in that towel tells me that part of you is fully on board with that idea.”

I glance down, then back at her. “I am always fully on board with anything that involves making love to you.”

“Well, since you don’t have time for all of that, how about I do something for you instead?”

I walk the last few steps until I am next to the bed, then watch as she crawls to me. She reaches out with one hand to undo the towel at my waist, then she looks up at me. The lust in her eyes hits me in the balls full blast.

Fuck it, I can make this quick.

She lets out a laugh when I push her onto her back, then cover her body with mine. Her legs wrap around my waist and my cock finds her entrance in one smooth upward thrust and I am in heaven. If I could stay just like this with her all day, I would and I would be a very happy man.

Unfortunately, we both have other responsibilities that we must get to soon.

An hour later, after leaving a very sated woman alone in my bed, I am sitting at my desk waiting for Jeff, our CFO, to come up to the conference room. Quinn and Gavin, our corporate lawyer, are already in there going over a few things for the private practice that Annie is opening soon.

Since I have no input on that, I decided to just wait in my office and answer some emails. It occurs to me, not for the first time, that Quinn and I could turn the day-to-day operations of the company over to our COOs and just deal with major projects only. We could both work remotely and only come into the office once a week, or only when absolutely necessary.

Now that the company runs like a well-oiled machine, our daily presence isn’t really required. Also, with Annie due to deliver their babies soon, it would be a great chance for Quinn to take a step back and spend time with his family.

It is something to talk to him about another time. Soon. Like later today, maybe.

After twenty minutes of answering emails, my phone buzzes with a text message. It is from Quinn telling me the Jeff is on his way up now. I close my laptop and head to the conference room.

Jeff walks into the conference room a few minutes later. He sits his laptop on the table, then takes a seat. The meeting goes smoothly, with nothing unexpected popping up in the finances. The outreach center is coming along quickly thanks to Max and his crew and there have been no problems, which is surprising for any major construction company or a project of this magnitude.

Hiring Max was a good move, even if I was skeptical of Quinn’s choice to hire a family member. Despite those problems in his personal life, Max runs a tight ship, and all his workers are amazing. From what I have learned from Quinn, all the guys that Max brought with him from New York have worked together for years.

They are like a family, and it shows in their ability to get the job done not only quickly, but efficiently and correctly.

I agree with Quinn that we should use Max’s company for any future projects we have.

“So far, everything looks great on the construction side of things. Once it is completed, the real fun begins. That will be all in the hands of your medical staff, social workers, and security personnel. I am just the finance guy.”

“Yeah, Andrea already has designs for each room and the playground. She will work closely with the medical personnel to get their input once we are closer to that point.” Quinn says as he looks up from his tablet.

“This is a great thing you two are doing for the community. That area needs what you are giving them. I admire you guys for that.” Gavin says.

That is high praise coming from a lawyer, so I will take it. It makes me feel good to hear that we are doing something good. Knowing it is one thing, but hearing it from others is another thing entirely. We don’t need the validation, but it is nice to have.

“What do you say about taking a trip to the site after this meeting?” I ask Quinn.

“That is a good idea. I haven’t had the time for an onsite visit and now is a good enough time as any for one.”

So, here we are an hour later, pulling into the temporary parking lot of the outreach center. The sounds of construction equipment and men at work fill the car as Quinn parks next to Max’s battered work truck. To say that truck has seen better days is an understatement.

Quinn and I get out of his car, then walk slowly towards the little mobile home trailer that Max uses as an office. The screen door is open, and I can hear his voice as we walk up the three metal stairs. From the tone in his voice and the sound of the conversation, I have no doubt that he is talking to his lawyer.

“I don’t give a fuck what she wants, Lorelai. I just need her signature on those papers. All I want is to be out of this marriage as fast as humanly possible.” He practically screams into the phone.

Well, I can tell now that this visit is going to be different from what we originally planned. Max’s wife is a piece of work. First she cheats and now she refuses to set him free. Why are some women like that?

“Fine, set up the mediation, but I will not promise to stay if all she does is cry and make excuses for her actions. There is no excuse for anything she has done.” He ends the call then throws his phone, full force, at the wall. It gets imbedded in the drywall.

“FUCK!” Max screams out, enraged.

“I agree with that sentiment,” Quinn says after a moment of silence.

Max spins around to look at us. His chest is heaving, and his eyes are wild looking. This is a man on the edge of a full-blown meltdown. That is not good at all.

“Come on, man, we are getting you out of here,” Quinn says quietly.

To my surprise, Max lets Quinn lead him from the trailer with no resistance. The look of utter defeat on his face is heartbreaking. Leita did a number on him, and it shows.

“Take him home. I will make sure the foreman knows that he is in charge for the day, and then I will call for a ride back to the office.” I tell Quinn as he looks back at me before walking out of the trailer.

He nods, and then they are gone.

What a shit show. I feel bad for what Max is going through. No one deserves that shit.

After glancing around the interior of the trailer, I can tell that he has been sleeping here and more. There are takeout containers all over the counter in the small little kitchenette. The trash can is overflowing with beer cans and even more takeout containers.

I have seen worse on other construction sites, so this doesn’t really phase me. My only concern is for Max. So, instead of heading out to find the foreman, I look for some trash bags and set about cleaning the place.

But first, I open all the windows and light a few of the incense sticks I find in his desk drawer, because it stinks like a dorm room in here.

An hour and several garbage bags later, I step out of the trailer and carry the bags to the industrial size trash bin. After throwing the bags inside, I head back to the trailer to wash my hands. As I am drying my hands, there is a knock on the door, followed by an enormous man walking into the room.

This must be Hugh, Max’s foreman.

“Where is Max and who are you?” He asks in a voice with a very thick accent. By the sounds of it, I would say he is from Brooklyn, New York.

“Max went home for the day with his brother-in-law. As for who I am, I am Aaron Carter, half owner of the company that is footing the bill for this project.”

“Oh, well heck, it is nice to meet you. I was just coming to tell Max that some of the guys were knocking off for lunch. Are you sticking around?”

“We originally came for a walkthrough of the site to check the progress, but that will not happen today. Quinn and I will just come by another day.”

“Or I could walk you through now while work is slow for lunch.”

I think about it briefly, then agree. Now is a good time, so I might as well get it done. So, that is how I spend the next few hours of my day.

The level of excitement that fills me as I walk with Hugh is something that I haven’t really felt towards anything Quinn and I have done with G&C Enterprises in a long time. I can see everything coming together and then the end result will help so many people. More than just the homeless veterans in the area.

The mobile clinic that will operate out of the center will hopefully help more people in a wider area as well. That was a great idea from Annie. Having a doctor in the family has been pretty nice. She has given us some very valuable ideas and practical information.

Once back at the office, I send Rylan a text message to check in and ask how her day has gone. I know she and Rosalie went to the clinic that Annie recommended for the abortion. So, I want to check in on them both to see if everything went the way it should have.

I know that there isn’t anything more that I can do for Rosalie on this matter. What she needs now will be rest and moral support. That last part I can give her, but I don’t think I am the right person for that at all. Rylan is the one person she needs more than anyone else.

Or a mother figure.

With that thought, I call my mother and ask her to call Rylan later. Just to see if there is anything either of them needs that I haven’t thought of yet. Being a man, this is way out of my field of knowledge.

Everything I know about women is, well, mostly sexual. How they think and why they do the things they do is a mystery to me. I know three women well. One is now married to my best friend, one is my mother, who I admit is still confusing to me, and then there is Rylan.

I want to think I know her better than I know myself, but there were years that we didn’t really speak to each other much. Then there was all that time I spent watching her from afar, like a creepy stalker, only to push her away when she tried to get closer to me. We know each other only as well as we have allowed, or I have allowed.

Which, for all the distance I put between us, it is amazing that she knows me as well as she does. Quinn jokes that Rylan is the only other person other than him that can pull me out of the dark and therefore she is what he calls The Aaron Whisperer.

Not a fan of the phrase, but he isn’t wrong.

The thing I need to work on, with Dr. West’s help, is to be able to pull myself out of the dark without the help of anyone else. They won’t always be able to be there if an episode happens and I disassociate from reality for any amount of time.

So far, I have only had a few of those episodes in the last few months and I have been able to ride it out alone. I haven’t told anyone other than West about them, mainly because I didn’t want to worry them.

Now that my parents are here in California, I know that I have an even bigger support system than ever before. Using it will be a struggle for me since I have been so used to relying on either myself or Quinn when the darkness comes for me.

Feeling that now, I make a call to Dr. West to ask him if he can fit me in today instead of tomorrow. To my relief, he is free and will see me as soon as possible. I leave the office and make my way to the garage.

The moment my car comes into view, I stop in my tracks. Leaning against my car is someone I haven’t met in person yet, but I know his face.

The monster himself, Grant fucking Donovan.

“Where is my wife, Carter?”