“Carter and Michelle will watch them. He’s off tonight.” My older brother and his wife lived right next door, so it wouldn’t be too difficult at all to get them to watch the twins.
“Okay,” she agreed.
I swallowed, and resisted the urge to bend her over the counter right then and there. I had to fight to remind myself there were children in the house. Thankfully, they made that chore a little easier when both Kyle and Kennedy came barreling down the stairs.
I took a step back and spun around at the exact moment Kennedy greeted me, wrapping her arms around my thighs.
“Morning, Daddy.” She giggled when I tickled her under her chin.
After helping the kids settle down into their breakfast chairs, I ran upstairs to take a shower, and then sent a text to my assistant letting him know I wouldn’t make it into the office until nine that morning—well after my usual seven-thirty arrival time. I was looking forward to breakfast with my family, and then dinner with my wife that evening.
Chapter Fifteen
Patience
The place where it all started. Buona Sera. The Italian restaurant where I’d met my father that night, six years ago, not knowing Aaron would be there.
“Ready?”
A chill ran down my spine when he put his hand at the small of my back, bringing me closer to him.
I nodded and let him guide us to the front door where the hostess didn’t even bother to ask whether there was a reservation or not. She simply greeted us with a smile, pulled out two menus, and led us to one of the best seats in the dining space.
“This is D’Angelo. He will be your waiter tonight. Please let him know if you need anything.” She nodded and went to return to her post at the front.
“Would you like to start off with something to drink?”
“Seltzer with lime and a Ducale Gold for my wife.”
“Right away.”
Watching the waiter hurry off to bring us our drinks, I bit the inside of my cheek to prevent the smile that threatened to break free. He’d remembered my favorite red wine from this place.
“Do you come here often anymore?” I questioned after unfolding my napkin onto my lap.
He turned those intense hazel eyes on me, gaze boring into mine. “This is the first time I’ve been back in over five years.”
I dipped my head, unsure of how to respond to that. So many feelings were being stirred up. My logical mind told me that I should hate him. Common sense would dictate that I hate him. Yet, common sense always failed me when it came to Aaron Townsend.
“How was your first day?”
I lifted my head, thankful for the relatively safe question.
“It was great. Moira was a little overly friendly at first this morning. It was a bit awkward but she eventually calmed down once I told her she didn’t need to cater to me. I was there to do my job. I got to learn the layout of the library. I mean, most libraries are the same. The Dewey Decimal system doesn’t change from one library to the next, but I needed to familiarize myself with the digital archives. I’ll be doing that the rest of the week.”
I glanced up as D’Angelo returned with our drinks.
“Thank you.” I smiled at our waiter, picking up my glass and swirling the wine around a little before taking a small sip. It was delicious, just as I’d remembered. It’d been a while since I’d had a glass of red wine to savor like that. When I opened my eyes, mine caught with Aaron’s who was staring intently at me, his breathing obviously increased. My own body began to respond to the apparent sexual tension.
“Stop it,” I muttered across the table.
He raised an eyebrow.
“We’re in public.”
“So?”
I pushed out a breath. “Aaron.”
