"Mrs. White, this is my wife, Lilli. Lilli, this is Mrs. White." I smiled brightly as she pulled me into a large hug.
"Oh, my dear, welcome!" I hugged her back. She pulled away. "If you need anything at all, you just let me know."
"Can you smack him again? That was great," I laughed.
"Hey," Aidan grumbled playfully.
"Oh Aidan, my boy, you’ve got yourself a feisty one." She laughed and turned back to look at him. "I love her already."
"Well, as long as she has your approval, I suppose I’ll stay married to her." He laughed.
"What?" I exclaimed. "I have to stay married to you?" I stuck my finger down my throat, making fake gagging noises.
"You know what…" Aidan grabbed me by the waist and tossed me over his shoulder. "I can easily carry you to the pool!"
"Don’t you dare," I smacked his back.
"I definitely see the life coming back into this old house." Aidan turned and looked at Mrs. White’s thrilled face. I had to twist to see her expression. She truly was happy, almost joyous.
Aidan smacked my ass before putting me down. I screamed and, once on my feet again, smacked his head before hiding behind Mrs. White.
Leaning to the side of Mrs. White’s head, I whispered in her ear. "Tell him to behave."
"She won’t team up with you, she’s on my side." Aidan exclaimed.
"Phhhttt!" I snorted, "We women stick together."
"Oh, you two…" she shook her head, "Aidan, behave! Go through your luggage."
"Traitor," he chuckled at Mrs. White.
"I knew I loved you." Kissing her on the cheek, I giggled and went back to my luggage.
Using the ruse of sorting my clothes, I tried to process the marriage, the house, the same bedroom. It was all so much. This bedroom alone was about the size of the apartment Dixon and I had lived in. It was ridiculous.
Our first night back, our presence was demanded at Viola and Liam’s house for dinner. She wanted to hear about the island and if I enjoyed it. I think there was a small glimmer of hope in her eye that Aidan and I would’ve ‘connected’. However, I’m pretty sure I saw the glimmer die when Aidan and I acted just as before – married friends. Arriving back at the house the tension started to build.
Once in the bedroom, I went to the bathroom to shower and get ready for bed. After slipping into a pair of pajama bottoms and a t-shirt, I emerged. Aidan wasn’t here, so I climbed into bed – alone.
Tossing and turning for over an hour, I finally climbed out of bed and decided to walk around the house. My first venture was to the library. There were so many books, wall to wall books. Grabbing one, I sat down on a large lounge chair. ‘Little Women’ had always one of my favorite stories and I quickly got lost in the pages.
My eyes fluttered open and I stretched out, feeling warm and cozy. A firm, warm body was pressed against me. Twisting my head, I came face to face with Aidan.
"Good morning," he croaked. Looking around, I realized we were in the bedroom. How in the world did I get into bed? "You fell asleep in the library. I carried you here last night."
Had I asked out loud?
"You could’ve left me there. I would’ve –"
"Slept there all night?" His voice strained as he stretched, rolling his eyes.
"You didn’t have to carry me up here."
"It’s fine." He sat on the edge of the bed. My eyes scanned his bare back. He stretched again, arms over his head, his muscles flexed and lengthened. I almost moaned at the sight.
"Well, thank you."
He nodded and rubbed the back of his head, making his way to the bathroom. Watching him cross the room, my body tingled.
Once he was out of sight, I rubbed my face. Snap out of it!
After only a few minutes, he emerged freshly showered and walked into his closet. I quickly made my way to the bathroom and showered. When I came out of the bathroom, Aidan was standing at his large, door length mirror tying his tie around his neck.
"Do you have plans for today?" He looked at me in the mirror.
"Um…I need to get my college stuff taken care of and finalized." I shrugged. "That’s about it."
"I probably won’t be home till around eight." He finished the knot on his tie. "I have a lot to catch up on."
I nodded and headed to my own closet. I closed the door and pulled on a pair of jeans, a t-shirt, and a sweater. When I walked out, Aidan was standing there. I stopped short.
Leaning forward, he kissed the top of my head. "See you tonight." He spoke quickly and walked out the door.
The routine was the same for almost two weeks. I would explore the house, swim, work out, and some days I volunteered with Viola. Aidan usually didn’t get home until seven at the earliest, which was on a good night. Typically, when he got home he would go to his office and work the rest of the evening. I’d frequently fallen asleep in the library, though I always seemed to wake up in bed next to him.