Page 22 of Stranded
“You’re deliberately doing it.”
“Maybe,” I repeated his words. I yawned and leaned forward to place my head on his chest. “What now?”
“We keep track of what we eat here until the owners return. Then we head back home.”
“And…”
“Take things from there.”
I heaved a frustrated sigh. “Just so you know, all you need to do is say the words, and I’ll leave with you.” I reached up and caressed the scars on his face. He pulled away but then kept still. So still his entire body went rigid. “It made me so mad the way she reacted to your face. Does it hurt?”
“No, but it tingles.” He exhaled deeply. “It doesn’t bother you? ’Cause you’re what I think gay men would call a catch. You don’t need to be with someone so hideous.”
“You’re not hideous.” I furrowed my brows. “And I’ll give anyone who says that or looks at you that way the finger. How outrageous. My Daddy’s a gorgeous man. I’ve always thought so.”
He took my hand and kissed the back of it. “What about you and school? Ready to tell me what happened there?”
“I stopped going to classes, so I flunked.”
“Why did you?”
“We were fighting so much, and you kept telling me what I was doing was useless. It really bummed me out. I started believing it.”
“Fuck. I was so horrible to you. Why do you even want to be with me?”
“At first, I wanted to murder you, but then I understood. You tried to push me away, didn’t you? Because you were afraid you wouldn’t be able to control yourself.”
“Yeah, but it’s no excuse to tear down your self-confidence. It was a shitty thing to do, and I’m sorry. Maybe you can go back, pursue your dreams, and do what you’ve always wanted.”
“What about you?” I asked. “I hate seeing you moping around. You miss your job. I’m not saying to go on more deployments, but what if there’s something similar you can do?”
“I don’t know. I’ll have to think about it.”
“You will? Truly?”
“Yeah.”
“Good. I think we’ve covered everything.”
“Except your mother. We can’t tell her about us. Ever.”
“That’s gonna suck. You must know a hitman… Eh, I’m joking. Don’t look at me like that.”
He scowled. “Don’t you ever say something like that again, Aiden. Your mother raised you.”
I snorted. “I’d take arguing with you over the way she brushes me aside. She’s not necessarily a bad mom, but she never made time for me. She hired a babysitter, even when she was home.”
“Still. I don’t want to hear that kind of talk from you ever again. Understand?”
“Okay, Daddy.”
10
JACKSON
It took three days before we were found. Three days of absolute bliss, living with Aiden and pretending the outside world didn’t exist. We talked a lot, really talked. And played stupid games, like me chasing after him outside. When I eventually caught him, I wrestled him to the ground and rutted into him like an animal in heat. No matter how rough I was, he always loved it.
In fact, the rougher, the better. He was insatiable and kept coming back for more.
