Twisted by Lisa Harrington

And I’m sorry about the lock. I’ll take it down.” He starts to get up. “I’ll do my best to keep Bingley out.”
    â€œNo, it’s fine. I overreacted.”
    â€œAre you sure?”
    â€œYeah, I’m sure.”

CHAPTER 12
    â€œS o when do I get to meet Marla?” I ask. “Like, for real.”
    â€œOh, uh …” Aidan doesn’t look up from his newspaper. “Soon, I guess.”
    I push down the handle on the toaster. “Maybe she could come over for dinner tonight,” I suggest casually. “Didn’t you say you were off?”
    â€œYeah. But I think she works.”
    I’m not giving up. “Well, could you ask her?”
    He ignores me, pretending to be deep into his reading.
    I think for a second. “Actually, never mind. I’m going out later to see about getting a phone. I’ll drop by her store. It’s off Spring Garden Road, right?”
    His head whips up. “How would you know that?”
    â€œShe told me. She asked me to come visit her sometime.”
    â€œYou said you guys didn’t get a chance to talk.”
    â€œUm …” Thankfully my toast pops up. The bread’s not done enough, and I slam the handle back down. “We didn’t. It was literally two sentences. She just mentioned it on her way out the door.”
    He gives me a long look then says, “I have to go to the bank. I’ll drop in, see what her schedule is.”
    â€œGreat.” I smile. “What should we have? Or I guess the real question is, what brand of pasta sauce does she like?”
    My little joke goes unnoticed. He’s distracted. I can tell by the way his eyes are flitting over the page. Does he feel tricked? Well … he kind of was. But I want some answers . I’m hoping he’ll spill the beans knowing I’m going to be around Marla. Can he risk not telling me himself?
    â€œShe’s pretty,” I say, spreading peanut butter on my toast.
    â€œHuh?”
    â€œMarla. She’s pretty.”
    â€œYeah.”
    â€œWhere’d you meet her?”
    â€œAt the bar,” he answers.
    â€œOh.” I play dumb . So much for that plan . “Was it love at first sight? Did your eyes meet across a crowded room?”
    Again he ignores me. Probably too busy planning how he’s going to get to Marla and coach her so they have their stories straight.
    â€œDo you ever think about going home?” he asks suddenly.
    It throws me off. Apparently he wasn’t thinking about plotting with Marla at all. “To River John?”
    â€œYeah.”
    â€œNo.”
    â€œYou haven’t thought about it once?” He says it like he doesn’t believe me.
    â€œNo,” I repeat. “I haven’t.”
    â€œBut the bakery. You loved that place. I always pictured you taking it over and running it someday.”
    â€œWhat? You honestly thought that?” Offended, I throw my knife into the sink. “I would have hoped you’d have greater aspirations for me.”
    â€œYou make it sound like it would be the worst thing in the world.”
    â€œIt would.”
    â€œSo you don’t ever want to go back?”
    Is he serious? My mind is blown. “No, not while Vince is still around.”
    â€œRight.” He nods. “Of course … but if Vince wasn’t there?”
    â€œWhere is this coming from? Why are you even asking?”
    â€œI dunno,” he sighs. “I was just thinking.”
    â€œAbout what ?” I ask incredulously. “You’re actually telling me you’d consider going back.”
    He shrugs. “We moved a lot when I was a kid. I know I was only there for four years, but it was the only place that ever felt like home. I don’t like the city.” He goes back to reading his paper.
    I’m stunned. Aidan thinks of River John as his home? After all the shit that went down? And he thought I’d want to spend