Worthy of Me by Yajna Ramnath Page B

arms around me and then a hard muscled chest against my cheek.
    “Hey,” Aiden whispered in a deep husky voice. “I love you, and that is all that matters okay?”
    I nodded, loving the feeling of his skin rubbing against mine.
    “Allison will come around eventually, but for now? This is our time.”

***
    In honour of the upcoming Christmas holiday, Houghton played host to its own Winter Wonderland kind of setup. The fact that it was almost always cold all year round helped with the whole event. It was beautiful, the fake snow that fell over my cheeks made me laugh while the tender look in Aiden’s eyes while he watched me flit form place to place made me feel so damned loved, it was almost painful.
    Aiden and I built snowmen, okay, we tried to.
    “For a guy who lives in the snow town, you really suck at this,” I chuckled.
    “You are none the better,” he grumbled when the carrot nose continued to fall off. After another three attempts he threw it onto the floor and walked away.
    I ran and jumped on his back, locking my legs around his waist and my arms around his shoulders. Aiden’s laugh filled the snowman room. Older and younger couples looked at us with indulgent smiles, and little children giggled at the two grown-ups who had a mentality switch with a pair of five-year-olds.
    “You want to grab something to eat?” Aiden asked as we passed an Italian restaurant.
    “Yes, I am starving for something that is not sugar coated,” I grinned.
    “You say that like it was such a chore to eat all that candy-floss,” he rolled his eyes.
    “I think I enjoyed it most when I was sucking it off your lips,” I said huskily.
    I watched in satisfaction as his eyes blazed with intense lust and love all mixed into one. We sat at a corner table where we could watch the street and the rain that God decided to bless us with. The table was round with a red table-cloth and plates and cutlery set up already. Aiden ordered hot chocolate and lasagne.
    “The waitress is probably wondering whether we have a screw loose for having hot chocolate with lasagne,” Aiden chuckled.
    “Nah, she’s busy hyperventilating in the back room because she had to serve you,” I countered and watched him reach over for my hands.
    “Well, good for her, there’s only one girl that does it for me now,” Aiden raised a brow at me, daring me to say something against him.
    I just smiled back and took in our surroundings.
    “So how come your parents allowed you to come here?” Aiden asked.
    My body stiffened, I didn’t want to talk about my parents. I didn’t want to talk about anything relating to my past. I really didn’t. Looking at Aiden, though, I knew I had to. I had to tell him everything if I expected to move on with my life and find a better one for myself.
    “They didn’t,” I swallowed. “Uh, they, uh, they didn’t know I left until I landed here.”
    Aiden watched me, he held on to my hands when I tried to pull it out from under his.
    “Hey, relax. You don’t have to speak about it if you don’t want to. I’m sorry I asked.”
    Dinner passed by in silence. The only sounds came from the clinking of dishes around us, the hum of conversation and the rush of the heavy rain that poured outside. Aiden and I ate and cleaned out our plates, probably to avoid each other. I knew he felt bad about the fact that I didn’t tell him more about myself. I knew I owed him that much, I needed to trust him with everything if I expected him to do the same for me.
    After paying the bill, Aiden held my hand and we stepped out. I expected him to rush us into the parking lot but instead he walked slowly. He let the rain pelt down on us, soaking into my knee-length black dress and his button shirt and jeans. He held me close to his body in the middle of the parking lot, his lips trembling from the cold rested against my temple. Both his hands wrapped around my waist and rested at the small of my back. My hands lay flat against his shirt. I looked