Page 108 of Winning the Nightcap

She holds my hand as we step into Mom’s room to find her reading in her rocker.

Mom’s eyes lock with mine and her eyes light up brightly with recognition.

“Aiden, sweetheart. I’ve missed you,” she says with so much love, my heart nearly bursts out of my chest.

“I missed you, too, Mom,” I choke out as tears threaten to roll down my face. She stands, hugs me close, and I fall apart in my mother’s arms.

Chapter Sixty-Three

Bec

Two weeks go by, and Aiden and I have fallen back into our normal routine. Since he came back to me after taking the time he needed, we haven’t spent another night apart, aside from his away games.

When he showed up at my door unexpectedly after weeks of not seeing each other, it was as if my entire body could relax, finally having him near me again.

He’s talking with his therapist once a week, and I’m so glad he decided to take this step. It’s clear that it’s become a positive outlet, and he seems more confident that it’s helping every time he has an appointment, even though he admits it’s difficult talking about his past.

Judy hasn’t had any more traumatic flashbacks or serious instances of confusion since Aiden started visiting with her again. I can feel the relief emanating off him when we arrive for our visits to discover she’s having mostly good days.

I haven’t told Aiden that I love him since my first confession, and he hasn’t told me how he feels either. I’m not in any rush to push the conversation.

In my heart, I completely understand why he couldn’t say those words to me before and I don’t want to put any pressure on him to define our relationship status now. I want him to focus on getting himself to a good place. Besides, I know how I feel about him, and he shows me every day how much he cares about me. That’s all I need.

I roll over to find Aiden’s side of his bed empty.

Well…his edge of the bed, since I woke up spread out in the middle and Hopper is stretched along the rest of the available space. How Aiden never falls off the side of his own bed when he shares it with the two of us is something I’ll never understand.

I reach my fingers over the sheets and give my legs a quick stretch, noting a familiar soreness between my legs. Memories of last night bring a dopey smile to my face. I shut my eyes, letting the images flash through my mind.

“What are you thinking about, beautiful? That face is making me want to crawl back into bed with you and never let you leave,” Aiden says.

I open my eyes to soak in the sight of him shirtless and in low-slung sweatpants, leaning against the door frame of his bedroom, reminding me of the first night I slept here.

“Would it inflate your ego too much to say I was thinking of you?” I ask. I laugh when he launches himself onto the bed with me. With so little room to spare, he ends up on top of me, trapping me between his body and the mattress. He trails kisses from my jaw to my shoulder.

“Hm…it might, but I promise to use it as motivation. I’ll give you more reasons to make that face.”

“And what face is that exactly?”

“Like you’re happy here. Are you?” He lifts up to look at me with a hopeful expression. I watch as his eyes roam over me looking for any hint he could be right.

“I’ve never been happier than I am now,” I say with confidence.

Aiden was the missing piece I never allowed myself to look for. I used to let my own fears keep me from going after the things I wanted but couldn’t dream of finding. But not now. Not now that I know I’ve found that with Aiden.

“What if I told you breakfast is ready in the kitchen,” he mumbles into my neck before nibbling my skin softly between his teeth.

“Had to one-up yourself, huh?” I laugh when he pins me to the bed with his full body weight, his head turned to the side and resting on my chest just below my chin. I place a kiss on the top of his head before running my fingers through his hair.

“Figured you’d need to refuel after last night,” he says.

“Hmm…are there pancakes?”

“Of course,” he says, looking up at me with a smirk. He pushes up on his forearms, relieving me of his weight, and kisses me lightly on the lips. “Let’s go, Miller. Before everything gets cold.”

He stands and reaches for my hand. I take it and stand in front of him, stopping him when he starts to lead us to the kitchen.

“And you?” I ask. “Are you happy?”

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