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It wasn’t until he’d stopped in front of her, his dark eyes looking at her and yet not really seeing her, that she said, “Aiden, what is it? What’s wrong? Y-you’re scaring me!”
He swiped a hand over his face, but otherwise he stayed distant, uncompromising. “It’s my parents,” he rasped.
She blinked. “What about them?”
“They’re dead.” He shoved his hands into his pockets, his lashes sweeping downward just as she caught a glimpse of his deep despair. Except, when he looked back up, his eyes were unreadable, empty. “They died late last night in a car accident.”
She pushed off the swing, then stumbled, so close to collapsing with grief and heartbreak for him, for a moment she stayed still, fighting for control. “Aiden, I-I don’t know what to say. I’m so sorry.”
He took a backward step. “Don’t be, you weren’t to blame. No one was.”
She reached for him, her hand then falling limply by her side at his obvious dismissal of her sympathy. Her heart wrenched. He was in shock that was all! He’d come around, and she’d be there for him when he did. She could hardly blame him for his distance, his grief. He’d lost both his parents! It seemed too hard to believe, to comprehend. “Do you want to come to my house?” she asked.
He glowered then. “And why would I do that?”
She pressed a shaky hand to her mouth. “I-I thought you could use a cold drink, take a moment to regroup. Maybe even talk about—“
“Talk about what?” he gritted. “No amount of talking or pretending is ever going to bring my parents back. End. Of. Story.”
She nodded. “I-I know. Of course, you’re right. But you’re in shock, let me help you.”
He shook his head, his dark eyes as empty as his words. “I don’t need your help, Luna. I don’t want your help.” His jaw hardened. “I don’t even want you, not anymore.”
She gasped sharply, pain ricocheting from her scalp to her toes and back again. “You don’t mean that.”
“I do mean that,” he said harshly. “We’re over, Luna.” His hands fisted. “I’m sure you’ll find some other man to marry. Some other man to have children with and live your dream life.”
“I-I don’t want that with another man.”
He sent her a withering, impatient look. “You will.” He looked down at his feet, then back up slowly, as though unwilling to face her. “This is goodbye, Luna.”
Her screams of denial were all on the inside as she watched him pivot from her, then walk away without once looking back. She stayed frozen, watching until he became a distant speck, then...nothing.
She woke with a gasp, the memory that had been a dream, solidifying her vow for revenge. She sat and glanced at the still form of Aiden beside her as he soundly slept. So peacefully unaware of the deep pain he’d caused.
She climbed out of bed. If today was her last day with Aiden, then she’d be the one calling the shots. She would decide what they’d be doing.
He was getting up while she was making coffee, and his voice was still husky with sleep when he said, “How does a lunch cruise around Sydney Harbour sound today?”
She scowled, even while she was secretly delighted. She’d wanted to call the shots, but a lunch cruise sounded lovely. “Sure,” she said, “would you like a coffee?”
“Please.” He stepped closer behind her as the coffee machine did its thing, black liquid gold oozing into the bottom of a cup. His arms surrounded her from behind. “Have I told you lately how much I love having you here?”
She turned in his arms and looked up. “I’m not sure you’ve ever told me,” she said pointedly.
He chuckled. “Hm. I’ll have to remedy that, and tell you every single day.”
She stiffened. Did he really think she was going to stay here permanently? She had a career, her own life. That a part of her yearned to give all that away to be with him made her realize just how close she was to falling for him again.
She forced a sunny smile. “I expect you to do just that.”
She made them coffees and they stepped out onto the balcony together, the sun already warming the air and the traffic zooming past as everyone drove to work, prepared for their day ahead. She looked up at the cloudless blue sky, feeling suddenly nostalgic.
How would she look back on her days here with Aiden? Would she wonder if things could have been different or better? Would she wish she’d actually tried to make things work instead of giving into vengeance?
“You make a good coffee,” he said huskily. “Just what I needed to start my day.”
“Your coffee machine does all the hard work.”
