“Thanks,” Emma replied. She quickly buckled her seat belt and turned to Aidan. “Okay then.”
As they pulled out of the parking lot, Aidan said, “There’s someone else who is very anxious to see you.”
“Oh?”
He took his gaze off the road and grinned at her. “Beau.”
Emma laughed. “I hope you brought him home last night.”
“I thought his home was your house?”
“His original home.”
“Ah, then yes, I did. Of course, he kept circling through the rooms looking for you.”
“Poor baby.”
“I’m sure he’ll be more than ready to share your bed and your leftovers when you get there.”
She grinned. “I hate sleeping alone, so I’ll be thrilled to have him as my bed buddy again.”
Aidan opened his mouth to say something but then closed it.
“What?” she asked.
“Nothing.”
Since she sensed his comment dealt with offering his services as her bed buddy, she decided to drop it. When they turned on Aidan’s street, Emma’s chest clenched as she was enveloped by a mixture of both happy and painful memories. As he pulled into the driveway, she couldn’t help but flashback to the night she had found both his car and another’s.
When he killed the engine, he glanced over at her. “Why don’t you sit tight while I go unlock the door, so you don’t have to wait?”
She shot him a look. “Aidan, I think I can stand for two seconds while you open the door.”
“Fine,” he grumbled.
She couldn’t believe how extreme he was taking her bed rest. One minute it was infuriating and the next it was endearing. She just hoped her hormones would allow her to appreciate him rather than verbally berate him.
The next thing she knew Aidan had moved like lightning from the car and through the garage, so by the time her slow-moving form reached the door, he had it unlocked and opened. “Nice footwork, Speedy,” she remarked.
“You’re welcome.”
Beau came yipping into the kitchen. “Hey boy, did you miss me?” He whined and then nudged her belly. “Aw, we’re both okay. I just have to take it easy,” she informed him.
“Speaking of taking it easy, let’s get you on to bed.”
“You’re so bossy,” she replied as she padded down the hallway.
When she entered Aidan’s bedroom, she gasped. The quilt Grammy had made her when she was a little girl was draped over the bed while the antique silver framed pictures of her parents sat on the nightstand. Her glider and ottoman rested to the right side of the bed. She turned back to him, unable to hide her surprise. “Did Casey suggest this?”
“No,” he murmured.
Her heartbeat broke into a wild sprint. “You mean, you did this? For me?”
“Yeah, I did.” Aidan rubbed his neck furiously when she continued staring at him. “Casey got your essentials and all, but I thought you needed some things to make you feel more at home here. Even if you say you aren’t staying long.”
She couldn’t breathe, let alone speak. Oh God, why did he have to be so amazing? Every time he did something caring and compassionate, it almost broke her heart, instead of warming it. It was like throwing it in her face once again that besides the one glaring mistake he had made, at his very core, he was a good man—one who deserved to earn her forgiveness.
Emma took a few tentative steps over to him. Standing before him, she stared into his questioning blue eyes. She leaned in and gave him a hug. “Thank you, Aidan. This means so much to me.”
He quickly wrapped his arms around her. She closed her eyes and let the feeling of comfort and even love wash over her. His warm breath tickled the skin on her earlobe. “I’m glad you like it. I want to do anything and everything I can to make you happy.”
“Well, this was a wonderfully amazing start.”
“You’re welcome.” She could hear the pleasure vibrating in his voice. “So do you want to rest for awhile? Or I could fix you an early lunch.”
“Actually, I’d kill for a shower. I feel pretty disgusting.”
Aidan nodded. “I picked up the seat from the medical supply store. Let me go get it ready for you.”
“Great, I’m going to feel eighty years old,” she grumbled, trailing behind him into the bathroom. She skidded to a stop at the sight of her favorite robe hung over the door and all her toiletries and makeup laid out on the counter.
Aidan put the toilet lid down and motioned for her to sit. “You don’t need to be on your feet, remember?”
With a sigh, she obliged him and sat down. It didn’t take Aidan long to get the seat set up. After he turned on the water and adjusted the temperature, he glanced over his shoulder at her. “Okay then. You’re all set.”
“Thank you.”
When Emma didn’t move, Aidan’s brows creased in worry. “You need some help?”
The very thought of him seeing her na**d again sent a stinging rush of warmth across her cheeks. She shook her head back and forth furiously. “I can handle it.”
“Fine,” he replied. When the door closed behind Aidan, Emma’s fingers went to the hem of her shirt and then froze. Her gaze honed in on the shower seat. A flashback of the later days of her mother’s cancer battle assaulted her. Her mother’s ravaged form trying desperately to get in and out of the shower flashed in her mind, and she shuddered.
That vision coupled with everything she had been through in the last twenty-four hours sent her emotions careening out of control. Most of all, fear still hung heavy around her. It was like a silent specter in the room, mocking her that her perfect dream of having a child would actually come true. Just the thought of losing Noah sent a chilling shiver reverberating through her.
Burying her head in her hands, she wept unabashedly. Even though she knew she shouldn’t, she let the sobs roll through her. At the bathroom door cracking open, she froze.
“Em, are you all right?”
“I’m fine,” she replied forcefully, but her wavering voice betrayed her.
Aidan stepped inside. She tried to hide the trembling of her body as he tentatively walked across the tiled floor. Peeking up at him through her fingers, she took in his worried expression at the sight of her still sitting on the toilet. “Why aren’t you showering?”
“I, uh…”
Kneeling down in front of her, he took her chin in his fingers, raising her head to meet his gaze. “Em, you’ve got to stop crying. It isn’t good for you or Noah.”