Virgin Marriage by Alexa Riley

Chapter 6

Caroline

“Where’s Marco?” I ask Gia as I walk into the living room to see what she thinks of what I’ve got on.

It’s a little black dress that hugs tight at the top and tucks in at the waist. It’s knee length and simple, so I decided to wear it with my favorite blue shoes. There are sparkles on the short chunky heels and I love how comfortable they are.

This is the third outfit I’ve changed into and I think I’m sticking with this one. Maybe. It’s hard to choose the perfect thing to wear when I have no idea where we’re going to eat. It doesn't help that I can't concentrate on anything but that make out session. My lips still tingle and my heart flutters. If he hadn't asked me to tell him to stop I wouldn't have. I think I know how far things would have gone and I would have ended up in bed with him.

Gia is all dressed up and is sitting on the sofa next to Elvis. She’s wearing slippers and she’s pulled her hair up. She pauses when she sees me and you’d think I caught her with her hand in the cookie jar by her reaction.

“Gia?”

I thought she was going out tonight and that this might be the night for her and Marco to seal the deal. What if it’s the night for me to do the same?

“I told him we had plans,” she rushes to say, and now I understand her guilty look.

“You lied to him?” I’m shocked because that’s not like her.

“It’s not a lie. I plan to hang out with you before you leave.” I raise my eyebrow at her.

“I’m in love with him.” She falls back on the couch and lets out a sigh.

“I know you love him,” I laugh, walking over and sitting down next to her. I take her hand in mine and give it a squeeze. “Why is this so scary for you?”

“Why hasn’t he said it?” she asks.

I know some people might think it’s crazy that Gia wants him to say I love you when they haven’t been dating that long, but I’ve seen them together. Hell, after the past twenty-four hours if I keep feeling like I’m feeling, I’m going to be where she is soon enough.

“Maybe saying those words isn’t so easy for him. Not all of us grow up in families where saying I love you comes out as easy as breathing.”

Gia’s family is affectionate, and she and Yana are the only two people to ever say those words to me. I’ve never heard my parents say it to each other, let alone to me.

Her head snaps to look at me. “Oh god, you’re right.” Understanding dawns on her. “I should have said it to him the first time I felt it. I bet no one has ever said it to him before.” I hear the sadness for him in her voice and it makes me wonder what kind of life Marco had and if it wasn't far off from mine.

“You’ll be the first person to say it to him, but that’s really special.” I try and help her see the silver lining. I know she’ll say it enough to him to make up for years of him never hearing it. That’s how Gia is.

“I’m going to marry him,” she adds as she nods.

“God, I love you,” I laugh and squeeze her.

“Love you too.” She nudges me with her shoulder.

“Are you going out with your man now?”

She sighs and tucks her feet under her. “He told me he was going to a business dinner if I had plans, but he was going to call me after.”

“And by call, you know he means show up here, right?”

“I do.” She smiles. “He loves me. Maybe he doesn't know that’s what this is, but he does. I’m so stupid.”

“No, you're not. It can be hard not seeing where someone is coming from when you grow up differently. For all you know he might be holding back on saying it because he thinks it might scare you. He’s already pushing in pretty fast.” I can’t wait for him to meet her family. I want to be a fly on that wall. I’m so sure Marco can handle them that I bet he’ll be one of them in no time.

Gia picks up her phone and I know she’s texting him. My phone chimes at the same time and I grab it off the side table.

Aiden: I’m sorry, sweetheart, but I have to cancel. I forgot I told a friend I’d go to an event with them tonight.

“He’s cancelling.” I drop my phone in my lap, knowing I should tell him it’s fine. If I’d had plans tonight I would’ve forgotten all about them too when he asked me to dinner. I’ve been so focused on that moment that the rest of the world faded away. I can only hope that’s what happened to him too and he isn’t blowing me off.

Gia grabs my phone and reads the text. She doesn’t say anything as she studies it for a moment. I know she’s overthinking it just like everything in her life.

“I want to call him a dick, but that kiss you told me about was way too hot for him to be uninterested.”

My phone chimes again in her hand and she gets to see it before me. “He’s not lying.”

She hands me my phone back and I read what he’s sent me.

Aiden: Can I call you after?

“Men hate talking on the phone, so if he wants to call you after, he’s serious,” she says with a confident smile.

My phone starts to ring in my hand and Aiden’s name comes up. “He said after.” I show Gia it’s him and for a second, I hesitate.

“Answer it,” she orders, and I slide my finger across the screen.

“Hey,” I say as I pick up. Hey? Really? Did that sound as lame in my head as it did out loud?

“You didn’t respond, I needed to hear your voice.”

His voice reminds me of the first moment I met him and he was snapping at Christian. I don’t know why, but it makes me smile and heats me up all over.

“I was about to, but you didn’t give me much time,” I laugh, and enjoy how impatient he was for my attention. It isn’t something I’m used to.

“Tell me I can stop by afterwards.” This time he isn't asking and his need to see me makes me smile.

“Stop by for what? A booty call?” Gia asks and apparently her hearing is as good as Elvis’s. I smack her thigh and she lets out an overexaggerated shriek.

Aiden chuckles. “I won’t cross the threshold of the front door. I only want a goodnight kiss.”

What if I want him to cross the threshold? “I seem to remember that not going so well a little while ago.” My face heats and Gia’s mouth falls open in surprise at how bold I’m being.

I get up off the couch and walk away from Gia. This feels so intimate, being on the phone together, and I really do hate that he isn’t coming back sooner.

He groans. “I need to see you tonight. It’s already killing me I have to cancel.” I can actually hear the pain in his voice. I shouldn't like it as much as I do, but I’m glad I’m not alone in this ache.

“Okay. Stop by and kiss me goodnight.” The last thirty minutes waiting for him to come back were nearly impossible, so I have no idea how I’m going to get through the next few hours.

“I’ll be there,” he tells me. He’s quiet for a moment and I’m not sure if I’m supposed to say bye. “Caroline.” He sighs my name and there’s longing in his voice. “I’ll be thinking about you all night until I see you again.”

“Good,” I tease him. “You’ll miss the dress I put on, though.” He groans again and I feel my core clench. “I’ll see you soon.”

“That’s a promise,” he says, and I end the call. I want him to do whatever it is he needs to so he can get here soon.

“Two girls all dressed up and no place to go,” Gia says from the couch. It’s then I remember I did have plans tonight. Ones I’d been on the fence about going to because I didn’t want to go alone.

“Instead of watching the minutes tick by until we can see our men—”

“You called him your man!” Gia shouts, making me cheeks heat. I ignore her and press on.

“We could go to the event I got us tickets to a few weeks ago.” I remind her of the tickets Mrs. Badger gave me because she couldn't make it. She’d been one of my first dog walking clients and was so good to me. I put the tickets aside thinking maybe it would be a good place to meet clients. The event is for an animal rescue charity, so people who attend likely have animals, and it’s all for a good cause.

“Let’s do it.” Gia hops up from the sofa and we get ourselves together before we grab our bags and leave. We hail a cab and soon we’re pulling up outside the hotel where they’re having the event. I see some people brought their pets with them and I smile. I think Elvis is better at home on the sofa taking his seventh nap for the day.

“I hope they have something to eat,” Gia says. “I forgot to before we left.”

“We can grab something after. I’m scared that some of this isn't meant for us.” I motion to a tray a server is holding. It looks fancy, but I’m pretty sure it’s all meant for the dogs.

“Yeah, I’m not risking it.” Even as Gia says the words, her eyes follow another tray that passes us.

I laugh as we each take a glass of champagne and mingle for a while. I run into some people I actually work for and get introduced to more.

“I think I should volunteer,” I tell Gia. “They are doing a lot of good here.”

“I was thinking the same thing. Maybe…” Her words trail off a moment later and I follow her line of sight. She tilts her head and I’m in shock. “Is that—”

“Aiden,” I finish for her and smile when I see him. “What are the odds?” I’m deliriously happy to see him. Seeing him now in his casual suit, I find him impossibly more attractive.

He’s in a pair of slacks and button-up shirt with the top button undone. His hair is a little messy and I know he’s been running his hands through it. I can tell he’s trying to be nice to whoever he’s talking to, but somehow, I know he’s ready to go. I watch as he pulls out his phone and I wonder if he’s checking the time or seeing if I texted him. Maybe I should have, but I didn't want to bother him while he was at his event.

As if feeling my eyes on him he lifts his head from his phone and he stares right at me. I watch his face light up with a smile and I start to move towards him. His smile drops just a bit as he stands up a little taller. He looks a bit more rigid than when I first noticed him, but I can’t figure out why.

“Hey,” I say when I finally get to him. It looks like he’s about to reach for me but stops himself.

“Hi,” he says after a beat. “You look beautiful.”

Something about the way he’s looking at me feels off. He’s not leaning down to kiss me or moving closer. He doesn’t touch me in any way, when today he couldn't keep his hands off me. What’s changed? Is it the people around us? I know he comes from money, so does my presence embarrass him?

“Thanks.” I tuck my hair behind me ear, suddenly feeling shy. Maybe he thinks I stalked him. “What are the odds? I got tickets from a client,” I tell him in a rush as I try to explain. “It’s why I’m here.”

Gia stands next to me and her eyes go back and forth between us. She can feel something is off, too. A long pause falls between us and it’s so awkward that I think I might have mixed up the Aiden I know with this lookalike.

Then it’s as if time stands still when a brunette woman walks over and slides up next to Aiden. They stand so close for a moment and I’ve convinced myself she’s going to say she’s his sister or something.

“Aren’t you going to introduce your wife?” the beautiful brunette laughs like Aiden doesn't have any manners and she’s scolding him.

It takes me a moment to realize what she said and still my brain doesn’t want to process it. His wife. My eyes fly to his hand, but there’s no ring on his finger. She glances down to my line of sight and my stomach begins to churn.

“Wife?” Gia whispers next to me as she’s already caught up to what’s going on. I feel her hand fly to elbow and hold me steady.

“Where’s your ring, Aiden?” The brunette asks.

“What the fuck?!” Gia shouts, and I hold my arm out to block her so she can’t move forward.

“Don’t. It’s not worth it,” I say to her, my eyes flying to the brunette woman.

She has a bitchy look on her face, but guilt eats at me. I kissed her husband and had plans to do so much more with him. “He’s not worth it,” I tell the brunette, hoping she gets my message. I turn around and pull Gia with me before she can cause a scene. It’s the last thing I want. Right now, I need to get out of here before the pain hits me.

I hear Aiden say my name, but I keep moving through the crowd with Gia next to me. “I’m sorry,” she says when we burst through the doors of the building and into the night air.

“I just want to get out of here,” I tell her, fighting the tears that are desperate to flow freely. I won't do it here, but I’ve got to hurry.

In a matter of seconds, she has me in a cab and her hand locked into mine. How can it hurt this badly to lose something when it was never really mine to begin with?