INK: Fine Lines (Book 1) (27 page)

His face lightens and a weight he’s been carrying disappears. “That’s a sight for sore eyes.”

“What?” I ask, looking behind us to the wide-open yard.

He pulls my attention back to him by way of his finger gently guiding my chin in his direction. “You. Really smiling.”

My face blooms pink and I smile again. I have to look away from the intensity of his gaze setting me on fire. Everything around us stills; the only motion left is our breath. I’m going to stay in this moment forever. Nothing but Aiden’s arms holding me, shielding me from the horrors of the world. A hot current is coursing through me as he touches the skin on my back.

He picks my chin up once more to meet his lips. His kiss is unassuming, filled with the sweetness of a school crush. Aiden has never kissed me so gently, with such love and admiration. His tongue teases mine lightly in a dance that grows from tender to passionate. My hand trails up his shirt, touching his solid abs. A moan escapes him and a quiver rides up his chest. Our hearts thrum together in time, skipping all the same beats. Our kisses blow on the embers of love once thought lost. I can’t stop myself from running my teeth on his bottom lip and giving a light tug. He pulls back from me, notably breathless. “I’d better get the steaks on.”

From the smug smile, his confidence has returned. He steps through the sliding glass door and I’m left wanting more of that kiss. 
Wow, that kiss!
 I inhale deeply, trying to trap the feeling inside me. I don’t want to let it go.

He reappears in the doorway with a plate and the barbecue tongs. “Hey babe, do you mind making the salad?” He smiles, noticing I’m still riding the wave of euphoria.

I press a smile into the side of my cheek, “Sure thing.”

Going through the motions of washing and chopping vegetables, I can’t help but replay the kiss to recapture the feeling. Huh, feeling. I haven’t 
felt
 anything for a while, I muse to myself.

***

Aiden and I sit in the lounge chairs sipping wine on the porch looking out into the purple horizon to the west. Thunder is rumbling in the distance, heralding the deluge to come. Our fingers are interlaced lazily between the chairs. “That was delicious,” I mention again.

“I was worried you might eat the plate at the rate you were going.” He flashes me a million-dollar smile.

“The last few days have been a bit rough. I don’t think I’ve eaten a whole meal since my birthday.” I try to recall.

“Let’s not talk about that.” He stares out into the darkness absently, rubbing his thumb on the top of my hand. “We can talk about anything but that.” He squeezes my hand lightly.

“Okay.” I’m feeling bold. My confidence in Aiden is on the rise. I want to continue our conversation from the truck earlier today. I’m not sure whether I’m trying to snafu the whole deal on purpose or just test the waters but I dive right in. “So, where were you this time?”

“I’m here with you,” he answers without looking at me.

“No, while you were gone. Where did you go?” I can’t stop the hurt from seeping into my voice.

He turns to me and hesitates for only a moment. “All over really; Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, but mostly the Khumbu valley.”

The shock of him talking to me about where he had gone has me speechless. Trying to process the information, I just blurt out, “What’s the Khumbu valley?”

He Looks away from me again staring thoughtfully into the night. “Tengboche, to be exact. It’s in the Khumbu valley.” He hesitates, “Tibet.”

“Tibet?” I had always imagined Aiden running off to exotic locations, going all Brad Pitt in 
Legends of the Fall
, but wasn’t sure it was true. “Why Tibet?”

“I was looking for something,” he says simply.

“Did you find it?” I ask.

“Sort of, well…” he was searching for the words. “Yes, I found it,” he finished with resolve.

“What was it?” I tried not imagining it was some specialized surfboard or a rare reptile like he usually comes back with.

He sits up in the lounge chair, swinging his legs around to stand up and pulling me up to him. His eyes are incredibly intense. I open my mouth to speak but before I form the words his lips are covering mine in another amazing series of kisses.

A flash of lighting paired with a crack of thunder announces the arrival of the downpour. It startles me closer into his rock-solid form. The rain is relentless, defying the protection of the porch by coming down sideways. We are soaked inside minutes. We don’t notice or care. We are locked in a passion that has never before flowed between us. It all feels so new, better than the first time. The heat of our bodies creates tendrils of steam rising playfully in the rain.

Reaching back I untie the leather cord holding his silky hair in place. My fingers tug gently at the wet strands, pulling him deeper into our kiss. His hands still on the bare skin on my back, only to pull me closer to him. We both ache to be closer to each other. His fingers tangle in my hair sweetly and I’m rendered completely breathless. I gasp, tugging away for a moment.

He leans down, touching his forehead to mine, gliding the back of his hand along my cheek. “I found it.” He breathes it out, relieved, with a satisfied smile.

“Aiden-“

He puts his finger over my lips and sadness overcomes him. “Shhh.”

Our eyes meet and the new passion and intimacy of years past ignites. I know that he loves me, that I love him and always will. I throw my arms around his neck and pull him into another kiss that confirms our love. He leads me into the darkness of the house, our lips never parting, our hearts erratic but still in time. He lays me on the living room floor and hovers over me.

Aiden’s passion runs through me deeper, hungrier than ever for closeness. Our tongues dart around one another, circling and exploring our lips. I’ve memorized every bump and groove on Aiden’s lips, so soft yet unyielding in our heat. They express everything he’s ever needed to say to me without letting a single word pass.

I tug playfully at his hair exposing his neck to lay a string of kisses up to his jaw, biting down gently. He leans up and pulls his shirt over his head. In the flashes of lightening I can see his perfectly sculpted body. I marvel at his sublime form, strong and rippling, his entire physical being godlike.

My fingers trail lightly down his chest to the waistband of his jeans. One button, two buttons—I jump when thunder rattles the windows. A cold chill runs through the room, through me.

Aiden wraps his hand around my wrist, tighter than I’d like. He leans down over me, brushing his lips against my ear. “You want this?” He puts my hand on the hard bulge in his pants.

“Yes,” My whisper is desperate.

“That’s what you want, my love?” His voice sounds angry and foreign. I’m confused. “All I’ve done for you and 
this
 is what you want?”

My passion is replaced with fear as my heart sinks to my toes. I know that voice. I try to squirm free from him. “Aiden? What’s wrong?”

Lightening illuminates the room and Aiden is covered in something—mud, ash, I don’t know. He doesn’t look like himself. I whisper, “Aiden?”

“Tsk tsk, my love. I want to rip his vocals chords out so I don’t have to hear his weak proclamations of love.” It’s Aiden’s voice, but not Aiden. Oh God the Specter, the Specter is in Aiden!

He falls limp on top of me. I call his name frantically, still trying to free myself from his weight. The urgency in my voice is rising. He’s not responding. I press my ear against him to make sure he’s still breathing.

From the corner of my eye something moves around the room, blacker than the dark itself—a void of light. More lightning reveals the Specter moving toward us. I manage to roll Aiden off of me and dart for the kitchen to grab the knife. Returning to the living room, Aiden looks familiar again and has come to. He scrambles across the room to his backpack.

“Aiden,” I scream, desperate to be near him—to protect him or for him to protect me, I’m not sure.

“Shay,” He pulls something from his backpack. “Get over here.”

I run and bump into him in the darkness, still with the knife in my hand. Lightening once again reveals him in the altered state of the Specter’s shadowy form. “Shay, I will make you mine.”

I notice the gun in his hand. I drop the knife and reach for it, shaking my head. I can’t let him have the gun. Not when I don’t know what’s happening. I’m tugging and pulling. I give up and back away.

“Shay, I don’t know what’s happening,” Aiden’s voice pleads. I can’t see him, it’s too dark. Is he the Specter, has it been Aiden all along?

The lightning provides a strobing slide show of the events unfolding in the room. Brief flashes of light reveal whether Aiden is himself or in the cradle of the Specter. It feels like they are both menacing me, backing me into a corner. Aiden has the gun trained on me.

Aiden’s voice booms louder than the thunder, “Shay, It has me, it’s controlling me and I can’t stop it! Run!”

I take careful steps backward pleading with him, “Don’t do this!” I realize with new resolve I have to get that gun. With the next flash of lightning I make a note of where Aiden is standing. In the cover of darkness I rush him with all of my strength, knocking him to the ground. I land on top of him and try to pull the gun away from him.

I roll off of him with the gun tightly in my grasp. The world is still, only the sound of Aiden and my breath. I feel him start to move, scrambling away from me across the floor. “Aiden?”

“Bring me the gun, Shay,” he says, his voice pleading and laced with fear.

The gun is heavy in my hand, warm under my grip, but hot on the barrel. Lightening reveals a stream of smoke slowly spreading from the barrel and I don’t understand—why would the gun be smoking?

“Shay, the gun,” Aiden’s voice is insistent from where he is sitting on the floor. A low grumble of thunder punctuates his adamancy.

I absently move toward him when the room starts to spin and wobble. Everything around me is hazy. Aiden comes to me, I’m aware of his closeness. My knees begin to buckle and I think he’s saying something, I hear his voice, but it’s like a rumbling thunder in the distance.

I’m snapped back to reality at the sound of another gunshot clear and loud complete with a flash-burn from the shot. I suck in a ragged breath before the confusion and fear pull me under into hysterics. I press hard through my lips but it still comes out as a whisper. “Aiden.”

To Be Continued…

You can pick up the next book in the series - 
INK: Vanishing Point (Book 2)
 On Sale for 99 cents until June 4, 2014.

INK: Abstraction (Book 3) is available NOW

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While you wait for INK: Abstraction, consider reading
INK: Sketches
 Part 1. The events leading up to the start of the series.

Bringing the INK Series to life has been an amazing journey for me and I’m so glad you decided to come along with me. I hope you have enjoyed delving into the lives of Shay, Aiden and Eli as much as I have.

There is so much more in store for our favorite characters including a special announcement about McNab coming soon. To stay current with all of my news and get the skinny first please join my mailing list. I promise I’ll only send email when I have big news and you’ll be the first to know. Sign up here.

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