Chapter 53

(Aaron)

After the police drove away with Donovan, who was screaming like a lunatic in the backseat, my dark mood from earlier lifted. However, I decided to keep my emergency therapy appointment with Dr. West. Since he made the time for me, it would be rude to cancel.

This will give me a chance to talk to him about my parents and setting up that family session he suggested. I am not sure I am ready for that yet, but talking it over with West is a good idea. I want to let my parents keep seeing the son they know rather than the son I became.

In many ways, I am still that same man. Yet, the things I have seen and done in the line of duty have changed me. Much like the ebb and flow of water changes how a river is shaped.

My experience during wars and after has changed my outlook on the world.

I no longer see everything as black and white, good versus evil, light versus dark, or good versus evil. The world is not that simple. Life is not that straightforward, and it has never been.

Some days I miss the mostly innocent eighteen-year-old I was before I left home for boot camp. I knew that there was darkness in the world, but I had only seen little bits of it here and there. Quinn coming into my life that summer showed me some of it.

His father was a mess. Alcoholism is horrible for anyone to experience, but it is even worse for the children that get ignored or forgotten because of it. As an adult and a man in love, I can understand why his father crawled into a bottle instead of dealing with his grief in more constructive ways. It was still horrible, but I understand it more now.

Life has changed me, and I am scared to let my parents see just how much I hide from them. I am worried about my mother more than my father. She was a helicopter mom when I was a kid, and she about lost her mind when I followed Quinn into the Army. Anytime I was injured in battle, she called me every day to make sure I was alive.

I fear that she won’t be able to handle some of what I have to tell her about my time in the Army.

However, my mother has surprised me recently, and she may surprise me again by handling it all better than I expect. I know she is stronger than I often think she is. That is one thing I love about her. My mother is a fighter.

An hour after I get to Dr. West’s office, I leave feeling much better about having my parents with me for my next official session with him. He told me to give my mother the benefit of the doubt, and she may surprise me. It was exactly what I was already thinking before I talked to him.

Now I am heading back to the penthouse to check in with Rylan and Rosalie. I am sure the police already talked to Rosalie about Donovan being arrested; at least the officers I talked to earlier said they would have Detective Anson call her once Donovan was booked and sitting in a cell. I just want to check in to make sure they are alright.

One scumbag down, one to go.

When I pull into the garage, I can see Jennings and Kimiko flanking the elevator doors. David waves at me as I walk up to the elevator. Three guards down here may seem like overkill, but I feel better knowing they are here watching over not just Rylan and her sister, but Annie and Grace as well.

No one is getting in that elevator unless they are on the approved visitor list and have their thumbprints in the system. Which is basically only family and a few of our friends. Call it paranoia, but Quinn and I take the safety of our loved ones very seriously, even if we put ourselves at risk.

“How’s it doing today? Anything out of the ordinary?” I ask when I stop in front of Kimiko.

All the man does is shake his head no. Silent like always. I glance at Jennings, and she does the same thing. No news is good news in this case.

“Well, that is good news, then. I have some good news to share as well. Donovan is no longer a threat as of a few hours ago. You two can take off now; I am going to work from here for the rest of the day.”

“Will this mean that I am no longer needed?” Jennings asks.

“Not at all. I want you to stay on until Paulson is caught. Having the two of you standing by is just smart. Since Rylan will be going back to work, I think having you stay here for Rosalie is a good plan. Just in case that douche decides to try to get to her as a way of hurting Rylan.”

“That asshole will regret it if he tries while I am here.”

“That is exactly what I want to hear.” I smile at her and then press my thumb to the scanner to call the elevator down. “Did everything go well today while they were at the clinic?”

“There were no problems. We waited outside while they were inside. Afterwards, your mother and Mrs. Winters came here for a bit and then left.”

Oh. Wait, Vivien joined my mom at the clinic? Wow, I did not expect that. I guess that just shows the power of women when they stick together and hold each other up. I will have to call my mother and Vivien later to thank them for being there for Rosalie today.

The elevator dings as it arrives, and I bid Kimiko and Jennings goodbye and then step inside. It only takes a few minutes to reach my floor, so I lean casually against the wall while I wait. I should have stopped to get something for dinner on the way here.

However, knowing my mother, I am sure she cooked them something before she left. If I had to guess, I would say it was a quick, easy meal, something that could easily be reheated later if needed.

I am greeted by complete silence when I enter the penthouse. Considering the fact that most of the rooms are soundproofed, that didn’t really surprise me much. I take my suit jacket off as I walk further into the house.

After looking in the kitchen for Rylan and not finding her, I move into the living room. It too is empty. I lay my jacket over the back of one sofa and then walk towards the stairs. Maybe she is with her sister?

As I get to the bottom of the stairs, I hear Rylan’s voice coming from down the hallway towards my home office. I frown but then make my way to my office, undoing my cufflinks and rolling up my sleeves as I walk.

She is on the phone, and her laptop is on the desk; mine is off to the side while she does whatever it is she is doing. I knock on the doorframe to get her attention so that I don’t startle her when she finally looks up. I can tell by the way her shoulders are already tense that the conversation she is having with whoever she is talking to isn’t going well.

Rylan glances up at me after I knock on the doorframe. She rolls her eyes and then shakes her head in annoyance. I walk to her and then stand behind her chair. She looks up at me, but I make a shooing motion with my hand to indicate for her to continue her conversation.

I grab a pen off my desk, then bundle her thick silky hair up off her neck into a bun, then I insert the pen to hold it in place. I softly massage her shoulders and neck. Pressing gently yet firmly into her stiff muscles. The last few days have been intense for her and Rosalie.

“Look, I know you and my father have had your issues, mainly my entire existence, but he loved you and chose you. You, Eva, not my mother.”

Oh, the evil stepmother.

“I will not talk to my father about you, Eva. You cheated, and now you are facing the consequences. Yes, he cheated first, but instead of leaving you for my mother, a woman he didn’t love, by the way, he begged you for a second chance. Two wrongs don’t make a right, Eva. Take what he offered you and go back to Spain.”

With that, she ends the call and lets out an exasperated sigh. She then leans forward a bit to give me better access to her neck and shoulders. I keep massaging for a few more minutes to give her time to calm down.

When I feel her relax, I step back, then walk to the desk and take a seat on the corner of it so I can face her. “What was that all about?”

“For some reason, my stepmother thinks that I have the power to change my father’s mind about their divorce. Why she thinks I would even try to talk him out of it is beyond me. She made all my time in their house miserable, and now she wants me to help her. Why the fuck would I do that?”

“Come with me,” I tell her as I stand up and hold a hand out to her.

She gives me a curious look but puts her hand on mine after she stands up. I lead her out of the office and then through the living room, stopping at a set of pocket doors, doors that look just like the wall and have no obvious handles, on the back wall of the living room. I open the doors to reveal a hallway.

“Woah, these doors blend so well. They look just like a part of the wall.” Rylan says in a stunned voice.

“I wanted it to be just like a part of the wall so that the rest of the first floor was hidden away. The home gym and a few other nice amenities are back here. One is the hot tub and sauna.”

“You have a built-in sauna?”

“A hot tub and jacuzzi too. My house has them too, just behind the gym. Yes, I am rich, and my homes reflect it.” I chuckle at her expression.

“The odds of me moving in with you just tipped more in your favor than before!”

“Oh, so all I had to do was tell you I had a fully working sauna in my home to get you to move in with me?” I laugh as I lead her down the hall to a set of glass double doors.

“No, but it is a major bonus.” She snickers.

I gasp in mock hurt. “And here I thought it was my amazing cock that was the deciding factor.”

“No baby, it is the deciding factor! That beast in your pants is a work of art from the gods above.”

Beast, huh?

I turn to look at her, and there is laughter in her eyes, and her cheeks are flushed. “That is a relief to know because the beast in my pants wants free right now.”

My steps quicken as I lead her past the small lounge pool to another set of pocket doors, just like the ones in the living room. I let go of her hand and use both of mine to slide the doors open. A small changing room is revealed.

I walk to a cabinet to the left of the door and then open it. I take out a stack of three fluffy white towels and then walk to the bench by a frosted glass door. After setting the towels down, I turn back to Rylan; she is smirking at me, that sexy-ass smirk that lets me know she wants everything I am offering her.

“Get undressed while I turn the sauna on and get the water heated.”

She wastes no time at all and is already reaching for the bottom of her T-shirt to pull it off as I walk past her. My naughty little vixen is eager for me. I am just as eager for her and can’t wait to have her naked, sweaty, and pressed against me.

Twenty minutes later, I walk back into the small changing room. I pulled my white button-up shirt out of my pants and unbuttoned it while I was in the utility room getting the sauna set up. Rylan is wrapped in a towel and sitting on the bench, waiting for me.

The sight of her like that is almost enough to drive me to my knees right then and there. All that smooth, pale skin is on display just for me. Her legs are crossed at the knees, and when she sees me entering the room, she uncrosses and parts them slightly.

I watch her as she devours me with her eyes. Those beautiful blue orbs dilate, and her pink tongue comes out to lick her lips. My cock hardens to an almost painful state at the sight of her arousal.

To tease her further, I slowly reach down and undo my belt, then wrap the end around my hand and whip it out of the belt loops. The quick intake of breath from her lets me know she likes what she is seeing. After dropping the belt on the floor, I undo the button on my suit pants, and ever so slowly, I pull the zipper down.

“My god, you are beautiful and so sexy. It should be a sin,” Rylan whispers breathlessly.

I feel the exact same way about her.

“Like what you see, huh?” I ask in a seductively low tone.

She just nods her head as she continues to ogle me.

I keep going with the striptease until I am in nothing but my boxers, which are straining at the seams to hold in my rock-hard erection. Before Rylan has time to react, I am in front of her and on my knees. I look up at her with a smirk on my face as I spread those luscious thighs.

“This,” I kiss her left inner thigh. “Has been,” I kiss her right inner thigh. “On my mind,” I flick my tongue over her clit. “All damn day.”

“Oh, fuck.” She moans as I put her legs over my shoulders.

“You are so wet for me, baby.” I lick her juices up. “This is just the prelude.” I tell her before I fasten my mouth to her core.

Her moans echo off the walls as I feast on her sweetness; making Rylan orgasm is the highlight of my day.