Loving Siblings: Aidan & Dionne (19 page)

“
Is Mom in?” she asked, still hoping
for a response to break the ice.

And it finally came, but it was anything but
pleasant.

“
Did you see the white Van in the
drive, then?” he said.

Okay, it was a
sarcastic
response, but it was a response,
nevertheless.

She stared at his belligerent and stark
profile, but he didn’t even bother to look at her. The signs
weren’t good. Aidan was clearly much too upset for her to try to
reason with him now. Dad had warned her that he was a bit grouchy
those days since the school he was hoping to attend in fall hadn’t
written back. But she didn’t believe that was the main reason for
his grouchy disposition, although it could have influenced it.

“
Right,” she said quietly. “I see
you’re busy. I’m sorry I’ve bothered you.”

Again, no response.

Hurt by being so coldly dismissed, and
not knowing what else to say or do since it was clear Aidan was
hell-bent on being cantankerous, she turned and left the room. She
decided it wasn’t a good moment anyway, because she was just too
tired to have it out with him. She’d give it another try when she
was feeling less
kaput
.

She wasn’t sleeping well—still trying to get
used to noc shift in addition to coming to terms with her place in
her younger brother’s life—and she really needed some extra
shut-eye. Rest was important now, and she’d spend what little time
she had getting some rather than picking a fight with Aidan.

She knew she had to talk to him, though, and
she really had planned to do that right after that poolside fiasco,
but then an unexpected, hectic week bore down on her like an out of
control locomotive, and she just didn’t get a chance.

When she finally made it to her attic room,
and barely set a foot over the threshold, she suddenly froze. She
instantly felt her entire body sizzle—and then explode. Energy
returned full force—by way of an explosive temper born out of a
ripped open wound—when she spotted her rumpled bedcovers.

“
That’s IT!” she hissed before she
snapped around and stalked toward the stairs before angrily taking
them.

**~~**

Aidan hadn’t moved. He was exactly where
she’d left him, and in exactly the same pose. Filled with rage and
fury, born out of fatigue and stress, she was more than a little
upset, and he was going to know he’d picked the wrong day to piss
her off!

She had just about all she could take of his
antics and pain-in-the-ass attitude!

All the hurt she felt came crashing
down on her like a ton of bricks—bricks made out of
ice
. Clearly, someone had lain in
her bed, and it didn’t take a rocket scientist to know who that
person was, or who those
persons
were.

Aidan and one of his sex-sluts.

There was
no
doubt
in her mind. Her room smelled of him. She’d
recognize his scent
anywhere
.
It was a sensual, musky scent combined with his fresh deodorant,
and it never failed to make her dizzier than anything in the world.
No. There was no doubt in her mind he’d been in her room—with
Candace, no doubt!

Her blood boiled. Her white summer skirt
swayed aggressively around her bare legs when she came to an abrupt
halt beside the armchair while he continued to act like he didn’t
notice she was there. She only realized she was still holding her
book bag when it dropped from trembling fingers with a thump on the
floor.

Her fists balled tightly, but she
stuck them in her sides as she tried,
really
hard, not to punch him! Then, angering
herself more for even
considering
another physical act of violence toward another, she took a
deep breath and calmed herself.

A little.

“
Aidan,” she began, trying her
darnedest to control her tone. “Please tell me you didn’t bring one
of your sl—girlfriends up to my room? You didn’t, did you? You
wouldn’t disrespect my privacy like that, now would
you?”

She tried really hard not to, but she was
clearly having trouble not gnashing her teeth. What made it extra
difficult was . . . he was still ignoring her!

“
Aidan?”

“
Nope,” he finally
answered.

She swore she saw red. “What part of what I
said—?”

“—
Asked.”

“—
asked
are
you answering “nope” to?” she finished without a hitch.

He sighed, exasperated. “All of the
above.”

She lost it.

“
Oooh you—you
LIAR!
”

He gave her an insultingly brief and
disinterested look before he tossed the remote onto the coffee
table, and got up. She stepped back when he towered over her, but
he didn’t immediately pass her, as she expected him to. Instead, he
paused to lean down, forcing her to bend back.

He looked her straight in her angry eyes.
“I’m. Not. Lying,” he stressed each and every word. “You wouldn’t
disrespect me by stubbornly calling me a liar in my face after I
told you the truth, would you?”

“
How do I even
know
you’re telling me the truth—?”

“—
I
didn’t
take any girl up to your room to
fuck
in your bed, alright? Clear
now?”

She started by that crude word and blinked
big, angry eyes up at him. When he was done, he rounded her and
strolled toward the kitchen as calm, cool, and freakin’ collected
as could be!

“
I don’t believe you!” she shouted
after him.

“
I really don’t care. You got your
answer. Now leave me alone,” he said before he disappeared into the
kitchen.

Oh, but if he thought they were done, he had
another thing coming!

She followed him into the kitchen with heart
pounding and blood pressure high enough to burst an artery. She
entered just in time to see him close the fridge after helping
himself to a bottle of Cola, and he twisted off the cap as he
looked straight at her without revealing his thoughts.

Her eyes narrowed and her nostrils
flared.

“
Still here?” he honed. “Thought I
told you to leave me alone—”

“—
I’m warning you, Aidan,” she hissed,
“you bring another one of your easy sl–girls to my room, and so
help me—!”

“—
I already told you,” he cut her off
with a tone that silenced her. “I didn’t. So chill and get off my
back, Dionne.” He glared tightly at her. “Why don’t you do what you
do best, and go run and hide up in your little ivory tower and lock
yourself up for the rest of the day until Prince
Hel
shit
comes to rescue you
from the big bad dragon? That’s what you want to do right now,
don’t you? Run from me? Well,
do
it
.”

Ignoring his taunts and sarcastic remarks,
she narrowed eyes. “Are you going to stand there and tell me with a
straight face you haven’t been up in my room?”

“
Nope. I’m standing here telling you I
haven’t taken any girl up to your room since the last time,” he
said calmly, gazing at the disapproval on her pretty face as he
brought his bottle of soda to his lips. “Satisfied?” He popped
brows before he took a good swig.

“
Why should I believe you?” she asked.
Her tone was softer, even if her look wasn’t.

He lowered his bottle and looked at her with
mild interest.

“
That hurts,” he said,
unconvincingly.

“
Yes,” she tossed back, “I can see
you’re suffering something awful.”

He remained silent and just stood there,
tapping the bottle against his stomach. “Is this what you really
wanna do, Dionne?” he asked.

She suddenly felt overwhelmed and overly
sensitive, and adding insult to injury, she felt hot tears burn
behind her eyes. She was pushed to her limits and on the verge of
coming apart at the seams, but she knew she had to keep it together
for just a little while longer.

At least until she can make it up to her
room and . . . lock herself up.

“
No, this isn’t want I want to do,”
she finally answered, lowering her eyes. “But it’s not like I don’t
have any reason to be upset—”

“—
I’ve never lied to you,” he finally
said. “Let’s get that straight, first and foremost. And I’m not
about to start now.”

She raised her head and narrowed
suspiciously shimmering eyes at him. “Then maybe you can tell my
why my bed looks as if someone’s been in it?”

“
Maybe,” he shrugged, “because
someone
has
been?”

“
A
HA
!” she cried, shaking an accusatory finger at
him. “So you’ve never lied to me? And you’re not about to start
now??” she mocked. “So tell me, Honest Abe, who else in this house
has the audacity, the arrogance, and the conceit to just waltz into
MY ROOM as if it’s his, and lie down in MY bed without my
permission? Tell me
that
.”

“
Look Dionne,” he sighed, exasperated.
“I just took a nap in your bed, that’s all. I’m telling you the
truth. I haven’t brought another girl to your room since that day,
okay?”

“
Oh lucky, lucky me,” she scoffed,
crossing arms.

“
Good,” he drawled. “I’m really
touched you believe me. Really.”

Then he pushed from the counter and
sauntered over to her to exit the kitchen, forcing her to
straighten in order to continue glaring at him. She raised her head
and stuck her chin out as she arched a brow to show she wasn’t the
least bit intimidated—even IF he was six feet four, towering over
her five foot five, and she felt just a teensy-weensy intimidated.
Just a teensy.

“
What I want to
know
,” she said pointedly, “is why you’d
even
want
to nap in my bed?
What’s wrong with
yours
?”

“
Nuthin’s wrong with mine—”

“—
Then why go through the trouble of
going all the way up to the attic—?” but she abruptly stopped when
he suddenly moved and towered over her, narrowing eyes as he looked
down at her surprised face that was rapidly infusing with bright
color.

“
What do you wanna hear, Sis?” he said
with a seductively deep tone. “Do you wanna hear I take naps in
your bed because I miss being with you? Do you want to hear how I
can’t sleep unless I can smell you all around me? Do you need to
hear me tell you I need to breathe you in otherwise I don’t feel
like I’m alive? What do you wanna hear?”

She stood there, speechless. Wide-eyed
and . . .
utterly
tongue-tied.

“
Look,” he sighed, dropping lashes for
a moment. “I just—” he paused, then raised his gaze. “I just take
naps in your room. Nothing else,” he resumed with a somber tone and
look. “It’s the quietest place in the house. And when I’m there, I
feel at peace.”

She swallowed, and lowered her eyes as she
averted her face. “Oh.”

“
After what we shared by the pool last
Saturday, and seeing how you don’t even want to touch me
anymore—”

“—
I don’t want to talk about that
anymore—”

“—
all I have left is your bed,” he
continued, undisturbed. Then he passed her with what looked a lot
like a childish pout.

“
Are you . . . pouting?? What are
you?
Ten?
” she said, feeling
she needed to say
something
after that shocking revelation!.

“
Whatever,” he tossed carelessly over
his shoulder.

She turned and looked at his broad
back before he dropped into the armchair, but he didn’t pick up the
remote again. She sighed and looked down at the wooden floor,
thinking how much she hated this constant bickering, and how it was
taking its toll on them both. It was just a matter of time before
it would start affecting the rest of the family, if it hadn’t
already. So they needed to have this resolved
now
.

And although she darn well knew what he
wanted, she couldn’t bring herself to give it to him. She wasn’t
going to be Aidan Boyd van Nuys’ “new and exciting” thing. She knew
she didn’t have it in her to survive a fling like that.

But she also knew they needed to stop this
iciness between them.

“
Aidan?” she called softly as she
turned and looked at him across the room. “You know we can’t keep
doing this.”

She didn’t get a response, so she crossed
the room and came to stand beside the armchair again. He was
sitting back, relaxed in the large armchair with one shoe against
the coffee table, sipping his soft drink. She was wracking her
brains for words to say as she stood there with, unbeknownst to
her, a look of anguish and desperation.

She sighed softly as she took a seat on the
overstuffed armrest of the sofa.

“
Don’t you think forgetting what
happened is the best thing for everyone? We’re under a lot of
pressure these days, what with you looking for the right university
to further your education, and my juggling my internship and job.
We need to take a breather and sort things out for ourselves. But
until then,” she placed her hands in her lap, “is it too much to
ask you to respect my space as I respect yours? I mean, you’ve got
your own room and your own bed. Your room is much bigger than mine,
and more accessible, right?”