e, but it’d be so much more fun if you didn’t send someone to do your dirty work like a little pus—”
“Hey!” Andrew cuts me off. “That’s enough from both of you. Get out of my house. If either of you cause any problems for me or this campaign, I will send someone to deal with it. Understand? I tried, but if you don’t want to play this game, fine, stay quiet then, and that’s the only way you all stay safe.”
Aiden stares at Andrew, a challenge in his eyes and not seeming the least bit threatened by his father. “Go fuck yourself,” he says. “Come on, Amelia.”
Without looking back, we leave the room, hand in hand, our anger fueling us as we exit the private hallway and join the crowded halls again. I can’t believe the nerve on Andrew. To say all that horrible stuff about Aiden and his family. To threaten them. Maybe I really should’ve let Aiden hit him, at least it would’ve made him feel better.
We reach the large front hall where we entered, and although there still are people around, it’s not as busy as it was before. I catch a glimpse of the bald security man with the earpiece and we stare each other down. There’s a tick in my jaw, then I reach out and knock over the vase I was instructed not to touch earlier. It falls to the floor and shatters.
Aiden’s head swivels over to look at me, and for a second I freeze. Everyone is staring at us in shock. I can’t believe I just did that! But then Aiden smiles, a real smile that reaches his eyes, the first one since pulling up to Andrew’s house, and he laughs. A smile spreads on my own face, and before I even know what we’re doing, we both reach out to another vase on a stand beside the one I just broke, and without looking away from each other, simultaneously push it off.
The sound of the vase shattering is drowned out by the security guard yelling, “Hey!”
Aiden and I burst out laughing and rush out of the house, my heart light for the first time since hearing Andrew’s voice today. We dodge the people coming up the steps and run all the way to the valet, where Aiden produces his ticket.
“Guess we shouldn’t have done that when we don’t have an escape waiting.” Aiden laughs, his eyes light and shining as they focus on me.
A quick glance behind us at the house makes it clear no one’s following us to yell at us. “It certainly does undercut the drama, but at least they’re too busy cleaning it up.”
Aiden’s smile is genuine as he pulls me into him, wrapping his arms around me and holding me close, his chest rumbling in time with his chuckles.
20
We spend the next day walking down the beach and into town, shopping until we can’t shop anymore, and trying to get our minds off of what happened last night. Aiden didn’t really go into detail with our friends, but they know it didn’t go well. By the time we get back from shopping, we’re all exhausted.
I’m in Aiden’s room lying on the bed, eating a Nutella sandwich for dinner while scrolling through my laptop and waiting for him to come back with more sandwiches.
I’m so deep down the rabbit hole of watching random YouTube videos that I only notice that Aiden has been gone for much longer than it should take to get more sandwiches when my stomach growls.
He better not have gotten distracted and forgotten about my Nutella.
When I open the door to go find him, he’s standing right in front of it about to come in, one hand holding a plate of sandwiches, the other pressing his phone to his ear.
“As always, it’s been a pleasure talking to you, Andrew. Go fuck yourself.” He hangs up the phone and I stare at him with wide eyes.
“That was Andrew,” he says flatly, stepping around me and into the room.
“I gathered as much.” I close the door and turn around to look at him. “What happened?”
I sit cross-legged in front of him on the bed and take the sandwich that he holds out to me.
“Oh, you know, just some thinly veiled threats. The usual.” He takes a bite of his own sandwich and rolls his eyes. “He was all, ‘I’m a powerful man with powerful connections, keep that in mind if you try to screw me over.’ ‘Promise to stay quiet and not cause trouble and I’ll keep everyone safe,’ blah, blah, blah.”
Everyone safe.
“He called you for the sole purpose of making sure you kept your mouth shut?” That must not have gone well. “What did you say?”
His jaw clenches. “He’s pissing me off. Threatening me and my family? And have you noticed that black SUV with the blacked out windows that’s been parked across the street since last night? Surveillance? Really?”
I feel the color drain from my face. “Someone’s been watching us? Are you sure it’s Andrew and not …?”
He knows where my train of thought is headed and immediately comforts me.
“It’s not Tony, I promise.” He puts his warm hand on my thigh and my heart automatically calms down. “I saw that it was Harvey when he rolled down the window to have a smoke.”
I take a relieved breath. “Okay. What are we going to do about Andrew?”
He lifts an amused eyebrow. “We?”