He’s so gorgeous that I’m lost in his mere presence. I watch as his gaze roams all over me without a hint of shame. I loved the way he stood there with his hand on his hip and the other with his phone to his ear. Once he ends the call, he slides his phone onto the table and then wags his finger, beckoning me to come closer.
As if he’s magnetic, my body glides over to him until we’re nearly touching. “I’m not sure why I’m here.”
“Because you want to be. Because it’s St. Patrick’s Day. And as they say, it’s the luck of the Irish.”
“You’re just so cute, and I’m homeless. So I’m the lucky one.”
“Uncle…” Bella soft voice utters. Our heads snap to her to see her rubbing her eyes.
He kneels in front of her, hugging her. “You were sleeping. Did we wake you?”
“No, I’m hungry.”
“Okay, the pizza’s coming. Let’s put on the first Harry Potter, eat, and then we can go to bed.”
“Yay,” she shouts, jumping over to the sofa and lays down, leaving us a little bit of room to relax. Aiden takes my hand and leads me over to the chair and sits then tugs me onto his lap.
“Sorry, all the other seats were taken,” he growls against my ear.
“Did you tell her to do that?”
“No, and I’m just kidding, babe. I’m going to get the plates and a drink for that one. You can set up the movie.” He lifts me off his lap and into the chair. Then he hands me the remote and goes into the kitchen.
When he comes back into the room, I have Bella on my lap and the movie ready to start.
Setting down the plates, he narrows his eyes at his cute little niece who stole his spot. “Hit play, pretty lady.”
Aiden winks at me and sits down on the sofa all alone and grumbling to himself.
Chapter 5
Aiden
The pizza and the movie were good, but now we’re ready for bed. Bella fell asleep just after she ate her pizza.
I stand up and stretch my body, grunting in the process. The movie was good, but my mind stayed on Kate. “I’m going to put her back in bed. Are you ready?”
“Yes, I am,” Kate yawns, stretching her arms out.
“I’ll be back to clean up. You can head to the bedroom if you’d like.”
“I’ll give you a hand,” she states, standing up and closing up the pizza box.
“No, you relax.” I wave my hand at her to sit.
She rolls her eyes at me and waves me off. “Just take her to bed. It’s getting late, and I’m sure you have to work in the morning.”
“I do, but I’m going to work from home tomorrow.”
“Can you just do that?”
“Yes, I can.” I smile at her once more before scooping up Bella and taking her to her bedroom. Shit, I’m going to have to move into a bigger home soon. That’s going to be a nice change.
“Goodnight, sweet pea,” I whispered into my niece’s ear, tucking her in for the night.
“I can’t wait to have cousins,” she says with a sleepy smile.
“Me either, kiddo.” Kissing her forehead, I say, “Goodnight,” and head out of the room with just the nightlight on.
When I return to the living room, Kate has cleaned off the coffee table and turned off the television. I hear the sink running, so I head over to lend her a hand and carry off my beauty to bed.
My body aches to possess her, but I know it’s probably not the right time. We just met, and she’s not that kind of girl. Hell, I’m not that kind of guy, but with her, I can’t shake this primal urge to start claiming her.
“Doing dishes?” I ask, stepping up next to her to dry them. The scene to anyone else would be a domesticated couple, but this is the first of our nights together.
“Sorry, I couldn’t help myself. I’m a bit of a neat freak.”
“That’s fine. I just don’t want you worrying about anything. You’ve had one hell of a day. Speaking of…we need to report it to the police.”
“I know, but I just wanted to forget about it for the day. After all, it wasn’t like they would find those bastards. She and her boyfriend must have had it all planned out for a long time.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“I’ll call while you’re working and call my job too.”
“Where do you work?”
“I work at Presence St. Joseph in their laundry department part-time while I’m in school.”
“Wow, that’s a lot of work and travel, isn’t it?”
“It is, but I didn’t want to be dependent on my parents. They have plans for me, and it includes marrying the man they have picked out.”
A burning rage in my chest dominates my soul, and I know I can’t let that happen. She’s mine. I knew that from the second our eyes met. No one and I mean no one is going to take her from me.