Page 86 of Northern Stars

I finally looked over and saw Aiden standing outside with his arms crossed. When he noticed that I saw him, he stepped out of my view.

“Did Aiden put you up to this?” I asked Tommy.

“He said he’d read my manuscript if I apologized.”

Oh, Aiden.

He still controlled my heartbeats.

“Fine, I forgive you,” I blurted out to Tommy. Did I truly forgive him? No, of course not. I despised that man. Yet if it got him to leave me alone, it was good enough of a lie for me to tell.

Tommy walked off confidently, and I rolled my eyes as I sat back in my chair. I stared out the window and watched Tommy hand Aiden his manuscript. They talked for a while, Aiden nodding at whatever Tommy was saying, and the moment Tommy walked away, Aiden tossed the manuscript into a nearby trash can.

I smiled a little.

That was a very Aiden thing to do.

It wasn’t long before he walked back into the inn to head to his room. He didn’t look my way, even though I’d wished he had. I wanted to see his blue eyes again so I could read more pieces of his soul he’d kept to himself.

He said he wanted to be strangers, but his actions and words were so out of sync.

“Hey, Hailee, can you run up the room service tray to Aiden’s room? I’ll watch the front desk,” Mr. Lee requested.

I raised an eyebrow. “What? Can’t someone from the bar and grill do that like they normally do?”

“Carly was the only runner here and went home sick.”

What kind of bug was going around the inn?

I grumbled a bit. “Can Henry take them?”

“He’s out back. Go, please. I don’t want to keep him waiting.” Mr. Lee waved me away, so frustratedly, I did my job. I carried the tray up the stairs. Seconds before I knocked on Aiden’s door, my stomach twisted into knots. When he opened the door with a smile, it hurt to see how fast it faded from his face when he realized it was me.

“What do you want?” he barked.

“Nothing. You’re the one who requested room service, so here it is.”

He grumbled something under his breath. “Fine.”

“Would you like me to set it down on your table?”

He stepped to the side to let me in. My skin felt tingly from being in the intimate space with him. I set the tray on the table, uncovered his meal, a burger and fries, and poured his beer into the chilled glass. “There you go. If there is anything else you need, you can let me know or—”

“Ketchup.” He cut me off. His new favorite habit.

“Oh. Right. Okay. I’ll be right back.”

I hurried down the steps and shot to the kitchen, then came back up with the ketchup. “Here you go.”

“How did you forget mustard?” he rudely asked.

“Um, maybe because you didn’t mention mustard?”

“I did. I said ketchup and mustard.”

“No.” I stood taller. “You said ketchup. Since when do you even like mustard?”

“Let’s not act as if you know who I am anymore.”

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