Just For A Moment by Kate Carley
Chapter 14
“Hi, Grandma,”Piper called as they stepped into the kitchen at the Green’s home. Aaron set Piper’s tiny suitcase down, out of the way next to the wall.
“Piper! Oh, we missed you. How’s the arm?” Dolores asked.
“It doesn’t even hurt that much when I run.”
“Piper,” Aaron said in a stern voice. “Remember?”
Piper nodded. “Where’s Grandpa?”
“Down in his workshop.”
“I’m going downstairs to see him. Okay?”
“Hey, Piper. Let me give you a hug because I’m headed out,” Aaron said.
“Okay. Bye, Dad.”
“Be good. There is no running. No jumping. No rough-housing of any kind. Do you understand?”
“Yes, Dad.”
“Love you, kiddo.”
“Love ya, too.” With a skip, she rushed toward the basement door, but then she slowed her pace into an odd, hurried step, casting a glance over her shoulder before disappearing into the basement.
“Dolores, is this going to be alright for you and Cal? Having Piper stay with you?”
“Of course. I hope you don’t blame us for Piper breaking her arm.”
Aaron startled at her question and met her eyes. “Never. You know my little girl. She’s going to get bumps and bruises with the way she plays. And unfortunately, a broken arm doesn’t surprise me much.”
“Good. We were a bit worried that you thought we weren’t watching her.”
“No. That’s not been a thought in my mind. However, I’ve told her no wild play at all. Please correct her and let me know. I’m serious about cracking down on this.”
Dolores nodded, but her gesture didn’t give Aaron much comfort in the fact that she agreed. “Are you seeing Grace tonight?”
“I am.”
“How is she doing after her run-in at the hospital with that cheerleader friend of Caroline’s?”
“What run in?”
Dolores nibbled on the inside of her cheek, seeming to debate her next words. Finally, she shrugged. “Didn’t she tell you?”
“No.”
“Shelby wasn’t terribly kind about the accident. She said Grace looked exactly like Caroline, and she couldn’t understand how Grace could stand looking in a mirror every day.” Dolores shook her head and sighed.
“Good Lord. What’s wrong with that woman?
“Yeah, I don’t know. Her behavior hasn’t improved since the eighth grade. Honestly, she was brutal.”
“Grace never mentioned it.”
“Oh.” Dolores’s eyebrows pinched together. “I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“No. I’m glad you did.”
“I just wanted to make sure she was okay after the incident.”
“I’ll talk to her about it. Thank you for watching Piper. I’ll be back tomorrow before lunchtime.”
“No rush. Have fun.”
Aaron stepped from the house, now even more eager than before to be at Grace’s side.
A few minutes later, he pulled up outside of her home. He was a couple minutes earlier than they’d planned, and so he took his time getting out of the truck and wandering up the walkway to her front door. She must have been waiting for him, because he hadn’t even knocked when she yanked open the door.
“Hey there,” she said, grabbing ahold of his hand and tugging him into the entryway.
Her outfit screamed sex. Or maybe that was just his brain. Black leather boots encased her calves and made her taller than normal. She’d paired them with a printed skirt that didn’t even pretend to reach her knees and a black tight-fitting top that showcased her breasts perfectly.
“You missed me, huh?” Satisfaction radiated through his chest, and her arms wrapped tightly around his neck.
“I’m not so proud that I can’t say I missed you like crazy.” Her kisses were long and slow and sweet. “And I missed your kisses. How is it even possible? I’ve known you for what? A couple weeks?”
“I missed you, too. I’ve missed the way you smell and the silky texture of your hair.” He punctuated his sentence with another kiss. “You look gorgeous tonight.”
Grace worked her lower lip with her teeth, and he now knew her well enough to know she was coming up with a list of reasons—perhaps a list of responses to his compliment. After a second, she tilted her head and whispered, “Thank you.”
“I want to take you out on the town and show you off. And then, I want to bring you back here, strip you bare, and make you chant my name as you come.”
“Well, mister, it sounds like you’ve got our entire evening all planned out. And I’m completely on board with all the festivities.” She picked up her sweater and shrugged her arms into it. Then, she grabbed her handbag, and Aaron escorted her out to his truck.
“Are you still thinking pizza?”
“Absolutely! I haven’t been back to Gino’s since I came to town.”
“I feel kind of bad taking you out to a family pizza joint.”
“Don’t be. I’m excited about this. Besides, I remember loving Gino’s pizza.”
“Then Gino’s it is.”
Aaron maneuvered his truck down Oregon Street toward the downtown area and the family-owned restaurant.
“Gino’s can’t be more than a half mile. We could’ve walked.”
“Some other time. Tonight, we’re on a date.” He gestured at the torture devices she wore on her feet. “Those boots don’t look like they’re made for walking.”
She laughed at him. “You’d be surprised what I can do with these boots on.”
“Yeah, that’s the other reason I’m driving. I’m not getting arrested for having sex in someone’s front yard.”
“Can’t control yourself with me around?” Grace ran her fingers from his shoulder down along his bicep.
“Something like that.” He chuckled at her teasing. “Maybe after we eat, we could go to The Rox. They’ve got live music tonight.” He almost hated himself for mentioning it. Even the thought of her lithe body rubbing against his as they moved to the rhythm was more than he could take.
Honestly, if she had said the word, he would’ve skipped dinner. Hell, he would’ve made her a peanut butter sandwich—or something else equally unromantic—and then spent the entire evening through tomorrow just before noon in bed with her. Loving her. Kissing every bit of flesh in reverent worship of that fine body.
Good Lord, they’d made love on that plane as if they had been created to fit together. As if they’d been enjoying each other’s bodies for years. The entire event had been insanely wicked and so fucking hot, and yet, Aaron hadn’t really seen her body. But without carnal knowledge of one another, Grace had touched each and every sensitive spot on his body. Then on a whimper, she’d chanted his name while she came, dragging him along with her. And from her throaty moans, he assumed she’d enjoyed the shit out of it, too.
“You’re awfully quiet. Are you worried about Piper?” Grace asked beside him when he pulled up in the angled parking outside of Gino’s.
“No. I’m not worried at all. Piper is going to do whatever she wants no matter where she is. The broken arm wasn’t Cal and Dolores’s fault.”
“Kids will be kids.” Grace lifted her eyes to his without an ounce of judgement on her face. “Did you ever break a bone? An arm? A leg?”
“I broke my collarbone falling out of a tree.” Aaron paused and shook his head at the memory, unwilling to offer up the details. He’d fallen all of four feet, but he was lucky that his injury hadn’t been worse. Dumb luck—or at least, that’s what his five-year-old memory had always told him. Sobbing in front of his friends would’ve been acceptable with a ghastly compound fracture—warranted even. It had been a source of embarrassment every time the guys brought it up.
“You?” Aaron asked her.
She laughed with a little shake of her head as if she, too, had a secret that she wasn’t willing to share.
“Stay there, and I’ll come around to your side.” He jumped out and rounded the front end of his truck. When he popped open her door, he caught her hand and pulled her against him as she climbed down.
“Now, tell me,” he said, kissing the tip of her nose. “Whatever thought popped through your mind when I asked about you breaking any bones.”
“Just my arm. Sledding with Caroline out at Ridge Park. I was maybe four or five. We were having so much fun, and my dad was at the bottom of the hill. That’s where the best sledding hills are. Have you taken Piper there?”
“Absolutely.”
“Then you know how much speed you can get. And how many trees are out there. She swerved to miss the tree, but we fishtailed and so the back end of the sled hit the tree. Caroline cried harder than I did. She felt so bad.”
“So, you know what Piper is feeling now? With that cast on?”
“I honestly don’t remember much. Mostly what my mom and dad and Caroline talked about, along with the pictures of me in a cast. But ever since then, I haven’t been much for sledding.”
“Bet you have three reasons not to do it.” Aaron kissed her again and then took her hand, directing her down the sidewalk toward the pizza joint.
“I have a list longer than three. There are hundreds of reasons parents shouldn’t let their kids ride on sleds or bikes or wear ice skates or rollerblades. But we still do all those things, and someday—even if I’m scared to death—I’ll let my kids do them, too.”
“Practical.”
“Realistic. I can’t help making lists. It’s just who I am. And sometimes I know they’re a little crazy, but it’s in those moments where I stop and remind myself that it’s not practical to say, ‘I’m never strapping on a pair of rollerblades to enjoy the exercise.’ And I know when I have kids, I’ll teach them, too.”
Grace smiled up at him, her brown eyes wide with wonderment when they paused at the door to Gino’s.
“Are you ready for this?” he asked her.
“Yes.” She reached for the door handle, but he quickly took it from her and let her slip inside the restaurant in front of him.
“Good evening. Table for two?” the hostess asked from behind her podium, which bore a sign indicating they should wait to be seated.
“Yes,” Aaron said.
“Could we sit in one of the booths along the side?” Grace asked.
“Sure.” The hostess walked them through the restaurant to the far wall and set down the menus, one on either side of the table. Grace slipped into one side, and once she was seated, Aaron took his spot opposite her.
“Your waitress will be with you in a moment.”
Grace glanced around in amazement. “This place looks exactly the same. The photographs are all still here.” She gestured to the opposite wall where a couple dozen framed photos hung, all taken at different locations around town.
“I wonder how many years ago those black and whites were taken.”
She pointed to the Gino’s Pizza logo—an oval circle rimmed in red with red lettering at a diagonal. “I remember coming in here after they painted that logo on the back wall. It’s all so familiar, and yet, something isn’t the same.”
“It’ll come to you eventually.” Aaron lifted the menu and looked at the pizza toppings. “What’s your favorite type of pizza?”
“I like pretty much anything.” Grace tapped the menu in front of her. “Gino’s special, or oh, look at this, a Margherita pizza. Those are yummy. Oh, but I like the Oak Bend specialty with all the meats and veggies.”
“How about the Gino special?” It was a pepperoni and green olive pizza—one of his favorites—that Piper didn’t appreciate.
“That sounds perfect.”
“Would you like a beer?
“Sure.”
When the waitress returned, Aaron gave her their pizza order. “And I’ll take a Leinenkugel light. Grace, what would you like?”
“Make that two of the Leinenkugel Light.”
“I’ll be back in a moment with your beers.”
Grace glanced around again. “It just clicked. You know what’s different?”
“What?”
“There’s no pinball machine here.” Disappointment was apparent in her voice and on her face.
“Really? I’ve never seen one here before.”
“I was awesome at that thing. It was a classic Kiss pinball. And I freaking rocked that thing. I was better than any of my friends.”
“Whoa. You’re pretty sure of yourself, aren’t you?” Aaron chuckled as he tried to imagine Grace as a young teenager.
“Yeah. When it came to that silly pinball machine, I was.” She laughed. “I was never into sports, but give me a pinball machine, and I could shine.”
“I think they sold it to The Rox, because there’s a Kiss machine there.”
“No way. I was there the other night with Madalyn and didn’t notice it.”
“It’s way in the back. They have some pool tables and a few pinball machines. Do you want to go play after we eat?”
Grace seemed to bounce in her seat across from him. “Of course! Maybe we could have a friendly competition?”
“Highest score after three games?”
The waitress returned with their beer bottles and set one tiny napkin square in front of each of them before placing each of their bottles in the center of the napkin. “Your pizza will be up in about ten minutes.”
“Thank you,” Aaron said. When she stepped away, he and Grace each picked up their bottle and tipped them together with a dull clink. “May the best player win.”