Page 6 of Naughty Secrets

Chapter Four

NATALIE

“So what’s going on, Nat?”

My best friend, Alexis, joins me at my table in Sticky’s bar only seconds after Aiden leaves to get our drinks. She never misses a Friday happy hour, and I’m surprised she waited so long to start the interrogation since she spotted us right away when we came in.

“Hi, Alexis. You look great.” I fake smile, trying to buy some time to get my thoughts together, although I know she’ll see right through me.

Her hand skims down her narrow hip and her trim emerald-green dress that sets off her warm tan skin and thick black hair. Alexis loves to dress up, even for a night at our small-town country bar, and she’s gone all out tonight. Her dark eyes are thickly lined, and her lips are a rich, luscious plum. Beside her, I feel positively underdressed in my black sleeveless shift dress even with the gorgeous floral lace climbing the sides, yoke, and collar.

“Don’t try to pull that crap with me. I know you too well.” Aside from being a little too direct for some people, Alexis is smart, funny, loyal, and gorgeous. How she can’t find a decent guy is beyond me.

“It’s nothing.” I lean back in my chair, watching Aiden—he asked me to call him Aiden—walk through the crowd. He moves so easily it’s like someone cleared a path for him. Once upon a time, people moved aside for Sam that way. He dominated the room with the force of his presence alone, not merely because of his size, but in the way he held himself—confident and controlled, but not arrogant. Utterly male without the swagger or bluster.

Alexis raises a disbelieving eyebrow. “Maybe if you were here with any other man in town, I’d let it go. But you’re not with any man. You’re with Dr. Aiden Steadman, the hottest and most desirable eligible bachelor in town, who happens to have a sex playroom in his basement, if the rumors I’ve heard are true.”

“We discovered we had something in common.” I can’t say any more. Aiden’s daughter’s death is his business to share.

Her eyes narrow. “You have a secret sex playroom in your basement? If you do, and you didn’t tell me . . .”

My cheeks flush. “No. Of course not. I just meant we bonded over a shared experience after he fixed my sore tooth.”

“I’m sure you did . . .” She folds her arms across her chest. “ . . . Bond.”

“Alexis—”

“Sam has forgotten you exist, and Aiden is in desperate need of a partner. My abuela would call that a dangerous situation. Of course, she would have asked you a dozen questions by now, poked you half as many times, and lectured that you should be home with your husband and not partying with strangers. Then she would have turned around and told the story to her neighbor, Rosita, making it look like you were the perfect wife and Sam was the one in the wrong.”

“Aiden and I are just here to talk.” I am married to a good man, and I didn’t come out tonight with any intent of breaking my vows. “Things have been hard with Sam. I feel like we’ve lost each other. You know that. And today is especially difficult to get through alone. But I still love him. That has never changed.”

“So you go out on a date with Mr. Sex-on-a-Stick?”

My mouth opens and then closes again when I realize her questions and reproaches are more defensive than protective. “I know you like him, Alexis. I wouldn’t dream of getting in your way.”

Slightly mollified, she relaxes in her chair. “So you wouldn’t mind if I joined you?”

“No, of course not.” I try to ignore the selfish knot in my stomach. Alexis has been through a string of bad relationships, and she deserves to find someone who’ll treat her with kindness and love. Although Aiden hasn’t expressed any interest beyond friendship, she hasn’t given up hope.

“Alexis.” Aiden smiles when he joins us at the table. Professional Aiden in his shirt and lab coat was all kinds of sexy. Casual Aiden with his collar unbuttoned, his sleeves rolled up, and a cocky smile on his handsome face is definitely dangerous. Not that any of the women surreptitiously ogling him from the nearby tables are complaining.

“Nice to see you again,” he continues. “Can I get you something else to drink?” He places our drinks on the table—a Manhattan for me and a glass of what looks like scotch for him.

“Thanks. I’m good.” Alexis licks her lips and raises her voice over the house band’s slightly off-key cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama” as Aiden takes his seat. “So what did I miss? What were you two talking about so intently when you walked in?”

“Natalie and I were sharing stories about our children.” He reaches over and squeezes my hand. “It would have been Ethan’s tenth birthday today, and my daughter would have been five. She died in a car crash.”

Alexis’s smile fades faster than gossip spreads through Revival. “Oh.” Her hand flies to her mouth. “I mean . . . I’m sorry. I know about Ethan, of course, but I didn’t know you were—”

“Married?” Still holding my hand, Aiden sighs. “Not anymore. We blamed each other, even though there was nothing we could have done. We couldn’t weather the storm, so after the divorce, I decided to do something crazy and move to Revival. My grandfather had just passed away and his practice was available. It was a perfect opportunity to start over.” He shrugs and pats my hand. I can feel the gentle beat of the pulse in his wrist against my skin. Is he just being friendly, or is there something more behind his seemingly casual touch and the intensity of his gaze?

“Our relationship wasn’t as strong as Sam’s and Natalie’s,” he adds. “Sam is a lucky man.”

I feel guilty hearing Sam’s name, guilty that my heart jumped when Aiden patted my hand. Even worse, after talking to Alexis, I feel guilty because of the possibilities inherent in accepting an invitation to have a drink with such a handsome, compassionate, and very single man, who understands exactly what I’ve been through, and is so easy to talk to I feel like I’ve known him forever.

“Well, we’re glad to have you,” Alexis says, her face tightening as she stares at our hands on the table. “And yes, Sam is a great guy. Did Natalie tell you she met him in English class when they were only sixteen?”

“Yes, that’s right.” I smile at the memory of the first time we met. “He asked me the way to the chemistry lab, and we’ve been together ever since. He wanted to be a musician back then, and I wanted to be a teacher. We moved to Billings with big dreams for our future. I never imagined we’d wind up back here, running his dad’s farm.”

“We both traveled unexpected paths.” Aiden pats my hand again. “How fortuitous they crossed here in Revival.”

“I liked gym,” Alexis blurts out. “I like being outdoors in the sunshine, working the muscles, the blood pumping, heart pounding . . .” She trails off when her phone buzzes, and she glances down at the screen.

“I think I’ll go get a jug of water and a couple of glasses.” I pull my hand away and stand, needing an excuse to clear my head. If this is what I’m beginning to think it is, I need to nip it in the bud. Aiden is an attractive man, but there is only one man for me.

“Please. Allow me.” Ever the gentleman, Aiden pushes his chair away from the table.

“Get her another drink while you’re at the bar.” Alexis looks up from her phone, a smirk playing over her perfectly plump lips. “She’s going to need it.”

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