Page 36 of Troubles

“Help me with this. We’ll spread this out and lie on top of it.” He hands me the blanket and opens up the netting. “He’s out of town this weekend. Asked me to watch for a package delivery.” He climbs into the hammock and reaches for me, pulling me in. I yelp as it sways from my weight dropping in. Aidan chuckles, adjusting me so I’m half on top of him.

“He told me I was welcome to use his deck if I needed to get away from the boys. They get to be a bit much sometimes. And you’re the one I want to spend my alone time with.” He trails his fingers down my arm as the breeze blows gently across us.

“This is perfect.” I yawn, resting my hand over his heart. “Tell me about your tattoo—the cross.” I’ve wondered since catching a glimpse of it in the darkroom. I’ve seen it plenty since. Traced it with my fingertip. Studied the intricate knots, the heart, and hands. The crown.

“I got it in honor of Michael.” He places his hand over mine and slides it down so his thumb finds the inside of my wrist. “His passing.”

The shift is subtle, but it’s there. I can feel the tension, like there’s more to say, but he’s not quite ready. I get it.

“I’m sorry. So sorry.” I place a soft kiss to his warm lips and press my hand to his heart, and the tension eases away. My eyes are heavy and everything about this moment feels right. I feel a connection to him that I haven’t truly known before. Our breaths match—our heartbeats in sync.

As I drift off, I hear Aidan murmur, “Codladh sahm—sleep well.”

22

Aidan

Ilie here in the hammock with Lis’ hand pressed to my heart once again. It’s fitting, her hand resting there. She owns me.

I’ve been waiting for the question about my cross—she’s spent a fair amount of time staring at it, tracing it. And it hits me. Right now—in this moment—my heart is cocooned safely between Michael’s memory and Lisbeth’s presence. The beats evenly match up to the rhythm of hers.

As exposed as we are, swinging in a hammock on my neighbor’s deck, I can’t imagine feeling closer to her—more in tune to her. It feels a lot like love, and I want to stay here. Not just here in this moment, but here—in the States. Thoughts of what I need to do in order to stay here start swirling through my brain. I’ll need to sort my visa to start, an apartment of my own. To talk to Lis and tell her the rest the story. I just don’t know how.

The hammock is a romantic idea, and certainly better than the sauna of my room, but I want more. I need to have a space for just us. For us to be together, maybe live together. The thought washes over me as the soft breeze ruffles her hair, blowing wisps of it across my chest and I relax into sleep, feeling like I have a plan, a purpose, and someone to share it with. Not someone, Lisbeth.

Morning comes way too early, the sun streaming through the trees barely filtering it before it hits my eyes. This is how I want to wake up on the regular. Wrapped up in this woman, feels like the definition of home.

There’s no way I can pull myself out of this thing without waking her. Instead, I squeeze her and tickle my hand from her hip, up to her waist and back down until she starts squirming.

“Why? Why would you wake a person like that?” she grumbles while planting her hands on my chest and pushing up. Her hair is a wild mess, her cheek is red where it was pressed against my skin all night, and she couldn’t be more beautiful.

“I couldn’t wait to see you. It was selfish.” My smile stretches wide across my face as I slide my hand up her arm and try to tame her wild hair away from her face.

Much as I love this moment, I need to get things moving. “Come on, love. Let’s go back upstairs.” I swat her arse and try to sit up, but the hammock sucks me back in. The motion making us swing way too hard, the ropes creaking as we rock.

After another failed attempt and both of us almost falling out on our heads, we’re out of the damn thing and back up on my deck.

“What’s the plan today?”

“Go get dressed, we’re going to get you some coffee and breakfast. I like you better when you’re fed and properly caffeinated.” I drop a kiss on her forehead and head up to my loft to grab my laptop and get ready for the day.

Lis

We round the corner to the diner, the bell jingling, and find a booth toward the back. I slide in and Aidan scoots in next to me. “Uh… What are you doing? Something wrong with that side over there?” I smile and nod at the other side of the table. “You know Gracyn and I make fun of people for doing this at the bistro. Right?”

“I do. You’ve both shared that with me many times, but we have to work on our to-do list, for today, yeah?” He pulls his laptop from his bag as the waitress comes to the table, coffee pot in hand. Bless her. I flip my cup on its saucer and push it toward her eagerly.

“What can I getcha?”

I dump in a dollop of creamer and inhale a healthy dose of the life-giving liquid. I look up to order and both the waitress and Aidan are staring at me. I might have groaned as I drank half my cup down. The waitress refills my cup for me while we order a mountain of food and Aidan pulls up a website for apartments in the area. “So, your plan?”

“Right. It’s time for me to look at a different living arrangement. And I would love for you to help me. Would you look with me?” He turns his very serious eyes to mine and holds his breath.

“Okay. I can tag along. Do you know where you want to look?” I lean into his shoulder and wrap my free hand around his arm, for a better view of the screen. Yup, just for a better view of the screen.

“What do you think? You’ve lived here longer, I’ll trust your guidance.”

“Okay.” We haven’t really had the talk yet about how long he’s staying. I bite my bottom lip and lean back to get a better look at his face. I’m taking Gracyn’s words to heart and much as it makes me feel squishy, I ask, “Are you looking for something short term? Month-to-month?”

---