Page 82 of Building What's Meant to Be

My phone beeps one more time, but I don’t look at it and slide it into my purse as Aiden pulls up, gets out of the car, and greets me with a kiss.

Right now, out of the three versions of him that I’ve seen, he’s Aiden-the-protector. Shoulders back, eyes sharp. The man is strong and he loves me. I don’t have to worry about Puma. There’s no way he could find me in little ole Butterbury.

Aiden asks me about my morning, and my phone suddenly feels like a blinking alarm in my purse, signaling that I have a secret.

“I’m tired. Heard the scratching again last night.” As I speak the words, I get a case of flop sweats, worried that it was Puma. But that’s silly. If he were looking for me, he wouldn’t scratch around outside the door.

“Why didn’t you text me?”

“Didn’t want to bother you.” My voice is slow, sleepy.

“Am I going to have to pitch a tent outside Toby to keep an eye on things?”

“Is Murder Doll still in the trunk? If so, that might not be a good idea. It could sense your vulnerability while you’re sleeping under nylon and go after you.”

Aiden chuckles, but as I connect my comment to Puma’s messages, my stomach tightens on top of the nervous perspiration coating my skin.

“Is it hot in here?” I crank up the AC.

“Welcome to southern summers. The house is supposed to be done in less than a month. We’re a couple of weeks behind because I pulled the guys off the job to help at Bubba’s, but I can’t wait to give you a tour.”

At first, only Aiden and I were working on Bubba’s, but last week a crew of guys appeared and went full blast, building and finishing off an addition and then the roof. I was wondering where the crew came from.

“I’m surprised your place isn’t a Designed to Last project.”

Aiden bristles. “Nah, they’re busy.”

What I’m more surprised at is that I haven’t been up there yet, but he said he wants to do a grand reveal. Apparently, not even his sisters have been inside.

“Don’t want to get into it with the ladybosses over creative differences?” I ask around a laugh.

“Something like that.”

“Did you visit Mae, Taylor, and the baby last night?” I ask.

“Actually, they were at Ladyboss HQ for a bit.”

“What were you doing there?”

“Um, discussing the future and Gatlin Stoll. He still hasn’t turned up.”

“Oh, you mean the future like running for mayor.”

“Yep. And like I said when we first met, I’d like to make you Mrs. Mayor. I saw you and knew.” Aiden playfully elbows me.

“No, you were just amusing yourself while in jail.”

He tips his head from side to side. “I had an inkling. I didn’t know this at first, but after spending these last weeks together, being with you made me want to come home, settle down, and—”

I’m afraid to hear the rest of the sentence. “But you are home, right? Don’t you have to be a resident of Butterbury to becomemayor? And you’re building a house. That seems pretty settled if you ask me.”

“Yeah, but my work takes me all over the place.” When he says this, he suddenly sounds as tired as I feel after the poor sleep last night.

My phone beeps, startling me. I ignore it when several more messages come in.

“Are you going to check that?”

I shake my head. “Nah. Anyone who needs me knows where to find me.” Except for Puma. I hope.

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