Page 6 of Tied and Tangled

Not only had I fallen in love with his twins, I’d fallen in love with him.

“Hey, Aria, I am so sorry, but I couldn’t find it,” he apologized, and I blinked trying to get my thoughts together.

“Oh.” My heart sank. He was talking about my phone. Of course, he was!Get it together, Aria!I chewed my lower lip, and my gaze dropped back on my purse and duffle bag.

I had already gone through both bags twice. I knew for sure it wasn’t in there.

“Would you like to come up? Maybe you have better luck,” he offered. My head popped up to meet his blue stare head on.

“Oh.” I licked my lips. “Yes, please. Thank you!”

“Of course. Come on.” He waved toward him, and I followed him into the elevator. Empty, with just the two of us. I stood next to him. He pushed the button for the top floor, and the elevator started to life.

The elevator had never seemed particularly small to me. Not even when I would take the girls to the park with their bikes. But somehow, Aiden Stark made the spacious box feel like close quarters. I snuck a peek up at him, and he surprised me as he was staring right back.

“Thank you for letting me look for it.” I tried to make small talk to hide the fact he had just caught me trying to check him out. My words seemed to take him by surprise.

“Letting? Ari—"

“I just mean you could have company.” I blurted. “A date.” I winced, hating the sound of that.

Shit.What if there was another woman up there?He’s not yours, Ari!I had to remind myself.

“I just mean, umm…” I swallowed hard.How could I put my foot in my mouth only five stories up?

“No date,” his voice rumbled deeply, and I looked away.

I had to.

I was too worried he’d see the relief painted on my face at the knowledge he didn’t have a woman over. That could lead to questions I had no way of answering without making a bigger fool of myself.

“Oh. Umm, well…” I cleared my throat and took a chance. Looking up at him, my eyes caught his staring right at me. Not through me exactly, but almost like he was trying to figure me out.

“Have you eaten?” he blurted, and before I could answer, the elevator jerked to a stop.

“What the—" My eyes roamed up. We were only on the fifteenth floor.

That’s when everything turned black.

It all unfolded in the blink of an eye, but it had felt like it went in slow motion. The lights when out around us, enveloping us in pitch black, and the world began to shake. My mind hadn’t even processed what was happening.

But thankfully, Aiden Stark was quicker on his feet than I was.

“Shit,” he cursed, and my heart felt like it plummeted to the ground. “Fuck. Baby, hold on to me,” he ordered, but before I could ask him what he meant, his arms wrapped around me protectively.

I was finally in his arms. And it was during a scary earthquake! Just my luck!

Wait, did he call me baby?

He scooted us to one of the farther corners, and I let him. His big, strong body caged me in, and I held on to his narrow waist like my life depended on it. His scent and warmth covered me. The shaking seemed to pick up. The elevator shook harder, and his embrace on me tightened when I screamed.

I felt his lips at the top of my head as he soothed me. The deep sound of his voice rumbled over my head as big, capable hands stroked my back.

“Breathe for me, baby. It’s okay. Just an earthquake,” he calmly soothed. I shuddered. Trembled in his arms.

I had been born and raised in LA. I should have been used to the way the ground liked to rock and roll when you least expected it to, but I never had.

I hated quakes.

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