Shuttered Affections (Cornerstone #1) (14 page)

“I backed away from the gravitational pull that was Aiden
Stone.”

I confidently walked up to Aiden, who had a look of
discomfort on his face. As soon as he saw me, his expression lit up, and then
darkened again as if remembering how we parted at my apartment.

“Hello, gentlemen. My name is Julia. A VIP party we had reservations
for never showed and we have enough room for two more patrons in our other
section. Unfortunately, the section you’re in now has become over capacity for your
server to handle. Would you two like to join me over on the other side? A round
of shots will be on me for the inconvenience,” I said with a wink and a smile.

Aiden immediately jumped up and said, “Well, of course, we
would never pass up a free round of shots, would we, Coda?” He never took his
eyes off me as he spoke.

“Who gives a shit about the shots, I’d follow that blonde
goddess anywhere,” he said as he gently pushed away the busty brunette trying
to claw her way through his clothes.

“Can we come too?” I heard a nasally voice whine as she
grabbed Aiden’s hand.

He absently peeled her hand from his as I spoke, “I’m sorry,
but we only have room for two. Are you two gentlemen with any of these ladies? I’d
hate to separate a party.”

Coda stood up as he spoke in his sexy voice, “Heck no,
sweetheart. We would be more than happy to switch sections as long as it
doesn’t hurt the feelings of our pretty waitress.” His eyes twinkled in Sid’s
direction.

Man, this guy was a sweet talker just like Aiden.

Sid piped up, “Oh, no, please. Don’t worry about me. I’ve
got too many to handle over here as it is. Go ahead and have a good time, boys.”
She winked in response to him as she turned and sauntered off.

The nasal-queen stood and spoke boldly into Aiden’s ear,
“Can I have your number, sexy?”

“No, thank you. I’m married,” I heard him say.

My stomach turned with his words echoing in my mind. Really,
I knew he was married. This was old news. He hadn’t yet explained to me what
his text message meant. What was I doing?

My intent was to make sure these women got their grubby
hands off him. But, who was I rescuing him for? Myself? He was not mine to
rescue. His wife? The thought made me shiver as I began escorting the two men toward
my section.

“Damn, she’s nice to watch from behind too. Eh, Aiden?” I
heard Coda exclaim a little louder than he should have.

“Watch it, Coda. She’s mine,” Aiden practically growled his
assertion.

I turned quickly on my heel and faced him, making him stop
in his tracks, inches from my face. I glared at his words. How could he claim
me when he had already claimed a wife?

“Don’t forget, Mr. Stone, that you have not explained your
marital status to me, yet. So, until you give me a damn good reason why I
should trust you, then please, don’t act possessive over something that doesn’t
belong to you.” With ice in my stare, I turned and continued to lead them along,
very aware he was likely going to be pissed at me for calling him out in front
of his clone.

I heard a chuckle behind me and finally Coda said, “Damn, Aiden,
she’s got spunk! I like her. It’s about time you found someone to put your ass
in its place.” Then Coda clapped Aiden’s shoulder and continued to laugh.

Aiden didn’t say a word. He just followed me to their new
seats in my VIP section, which had emptied a bit as some people left to go
dance, but because of the lighting, my fib could not be seen from the other VIP
section.

Just as I was about to walk away and get them another round
of drinks, Aiden caught my hand and brought me close to him. I started to
struggle, but he held firm.

“I know I haven’t explained myself, Angel. I will if you
give me the chance, I promise,” he said sweetly as he brushed a curl out of my
eye. “May I ask you something?”

Oh, now, what was I supposed to say to that when he was taking
my breath away with his sweet, sexy talk? I seriously had to get my brain
examined. This man took away all of my mental faculties and replaced them with
mush.

I just nodded at his question.

“Why did you come over and get us if you’re still mad at
me?”

His question caught me off guard because I didn’t know the
answer myself.

“I don’t know. All I know is I couldn’t stand one more
minute of those girls with their hands all over you guys. I may be upset and
deprived of validity, but I’m still a finicky female and…” I couldn’t complete
my thoughts.

“…and you have a clone with you!” I said loudly as I pointed
in Coda’s direction. “I have a hard time resisting one Aiden, but two?”

Hearing Coda laugh loudly behind Aiden made me realize I was
being rude. I leaned to the side so I could see Coda and said, “Sorry for
ruining your fun.” I tried to sound sincere.

I stepped around Aiden and approached Coda with my hand
extended. “My name is Julia, by the way.”

Coda smiled with the whitest teeth I’d ever seen on a man. Grabbing
my hand, he brought it to his mouth and said, “Pleasure, Julia. Although, I
thought your name was Angel all this time. I’m Coda, Aiden’s partner in crime. And
you are the loveliest thing I have ever seen.” He ended his introduction with a
small peck across my knuckles.

“Nice to meet you, Coda. And thank you for letting me steal
you two away. It’s pretty obvious you two are brothers. You look so much alike.”

“He didn’t tell you?” Coda asked, sounding sincerely shocked
at Aiden’s omission.

“We’re twins,” Aiden admitted, looking bored at the idea of
Coda getting my attention.

I probably looked like a fish out of water as I stood and
stared at the two most handsome men I’d ever laid my eyes on.

Aiden put his hand on my hip and pecked my cheek before
saying, “But it makes me incredibly excited that you could tell us apart. Even
my mother has trouble sometimes.”

I turned around and just looked at him curiously. He wasn’t
kidding.

“The way you look at me makes it blatantly obvious, Mr.
Stone. Plus, this sexy tattoo peeking out of your sleeve clearly marks you as
mine,” I said, touching his bicep, tracing the lines of his tattoo with my
fingertip. My eyes never left his.

“I thought we weren’t being possessive, my Julia,” he purred
with a sly grin as he fingered one of my errand curls.

His comment brought back the memory that I was supposed to
be mad at him.

“You’re so right. My apologies,” I said coldly as I backed
away from the gravitational pull that was Aiden Stone.

A frown crossed his face, but he didn’t say anything else.

Finally, Aiden let me walk away. After taking care of
several other customers, I brought Aiden and Coda a new round of Stellas and
asked, “So, I still owe you gentlemen a round of shots. What’s your pleasure?”

I winked at them both as I said the word ‘pleasure’ and smiled
at my boldness.

“God, Julia. I hope you don’t ask that question to
everyone,” Aiden said with an exasperated sigh in his voice.

I scowled. Was he intending to stomp all over my confidence
tonight?

“Actually, Aiden. You’re the only one I’ve ever said that to
and I thought it would be fun to reenact with the Aiden I had the delight of
serving the other night. But, I was wrong in my assumption. So, what would you
two like? Lemon drops? Straight-up Jack? Appletini shots? You name it.” I tried
to keep the trembling out of my voice at Aiden’s need to deflate me.

“Pleasure… hmmm… so many possibilities,” Coda interrupted
and pondered his options. “I think a shot of Jack sounds perfect for me, but I
can think of so many other more pleasurable things. How about you, Aiden?”

You could tell Coda was trying to diffuse the tension
between us.

Aiden didn’t look at me when he answered, “The same is fine
for me.”

“Coming right up!”

I quickly retreated before I lost full control of my
emotions. He clearly had power over me in a way that frightened me. Just as I
attempted to be unaffected, he would say something that would slam me back down
to reality. I was likely going to be emotionally black and blue by the end of
the night.

Returning with their shots and struggling to act unaffected,
Aiden tugged at my hand, coaxing me to sit beside him.

“Aiden, I really have to get
back to work…”

He cut me off with a single finger to my lips.

“Shhh. Hush up and just listen for a moment. I don’t want to
leave with us all pissed off at each other. I know we have a lot to talk about,
but…” he paused, as if contemplating what to say. “Just let me give you one
kiss. That’s all I ask. Then, tomorrow, we’ll spend all the time in the world
talking through all the shit that’s happened today.”

He waited for me to respond, but my voice was completely
inoperable. To put him out of his misery, I simply nodded, lowering my eyes to
my lap where my hands twisted into nervous knots. Coda watched us curiously,
obviously already informed of our rather odd pull toward each other.

As usual, Aiden hooked my chin with his finger and tilted my
gaze to meet his.

His kiss was simple, sweet. The feeling of his lips on mine
still sent shockwaves through me. All the noise and action of the club quickly
faded into nothingness as we melted into each other. His lips were so soft and
tasted like my favorite beer mixed with the most seductive scent of man.

As we reluctantly pulled out of our embrace, he cupped my
face and brushed his thumb over the blush of my cheek.

“Thank you. Your lips make everything else seem nonexistent,”
he said with a mix of passion and sadness in his eyes.

I just bit my lip, unsure of what to say or do. I felt
embarrassed, like I let the whole club see me naked or something.

Aiden quickly gave my lip attention, pulling it free from my
teeth with his fingers. He let them linger, brushing along the sensitive skin
with tenderness as his eyes watched his fingertips trace my mouth. He gently
placed a peck on my lower lip before releasing me and letting me walk away—my
legs feeling like noodles in the process.

While I loved the attention, I felt like I gave in to him. If
I did that sort of thing, I would end up in the same relationship I had with
Rob. I had to stand strong. Stand up for myself.

The rest of my shift went by quickly. Aiden and Coda didn’t
stay much longer and I was grateful for the relief in knowing I wasn’t being
watched like a hawk by two gorgeous men.

Lib let Sid and I go at the same time, which would have been
convenient if we drove the same car.

As we walked out the door together a little after two in the
morning, Sid stopped abruptly and grabbed my arm so tight, pain surged down to
my fingertips.

“What the hell, Sid!” I exclaimed, then followed her gaze to
see what caused horror to overtake her body.

“Dex!” Sid screamed so loud, it pierced my ears and caused
my brain to swell.

“A girl has to keep some of her dignity. Shit.”

Dex came running out of the front doors immediately and
everything began to slur together.

I heard Sid telling Dex to take me inside and felt his large
arms wrap under my neck and legs as he swiftly carried me. Reality slammed back
into me as I realized no one was protecting Sid.

“Sid! Don’t leave her!” I cried as I scrambled to hold onto Dex’s
neck.

“Shh, sweetheart. Pete is with Sid. I don’t know what the
hell spooked you girls, but you’re not going home alone tonight, got it?” he said
with a stern, yet loving tone.

I just nodded my head and fought the tears that were
beginning to swell in my eyes.

As we entered the employee lounge, I heard Sid explaining
the situation to someone and I reached for her in an attempt to shut her up. I
didn’t want everyone knowing about my morbid past.

“Sid, please stop,” I begged as Dex sat me down on the
couch.

“Jules. They need to know who the creep is. If they’re going
to protect you, they need to know,” she said sternly as she pointed toward the
outside door.

Both Dex and Pete weren’t in the room now. Fear bubbled up
in my throat.

“Where’d the guys go?” I was worried about them.

“Don’t worry, Julia. Pete got a good look at him, but Dex
didn’t. They’re just going to see if he’s still out there. They don’t know
anything yet, only that he scared us. So, they’re not going to approach him. They
just want to know what he looks like.”

“Damn it, Sid. He knows where I work, where I live, next
thing I know, he’s going to show up at my school.” I buried my face in my
hands. “I can’t believe he found me.”

I felt the couch move as Libby sat beside me. She didn’t
touch me as she said, “Julia, we’ll keep you safe.”

Lib and Sid were the only two in town that knew my past. And
I wanted to keep it that way. But it seemed now that was no longer possible. I
loved these people and I loved this town. I didn’t want to move again.

No, I refuse to run.

“Lib, I don’t want them out there with him. I have a photo
of him I can show the guys so they can keep him out. I know it’s a lot to ask
of you to turn business away, but…”

“Julia, I don’t want that monster in here or anywhere near
here for that matter. He is not welcome in my establishment and I think it is a
very wise idea to let Dex and Pete know this. However, you know Becky is going
to sing like a canary when she gets wind. So, I think it would be best for you
to pull Dex and Pete aside and inform them of the situation. You don’t have to
give them the full details, only that he is not welcome anywhere near you or
this club and they should try to keep it under wraps. Period.” She had a fierce
anger in her eyes. Not at me, but at this man who made me crumble and sob like
a baby.

“Let me get his photo out of my purse,” I said as I began to
stand up.

“No need, sweets. I have his mug shot locked up in your
employee file. I’ll… actually, he may look much worse in his mug shot than he
does every day. Maybe you should give it to me. I’ll show the guys both
photos.” She smiled with a look of sorrow and pity.

I hated when people looked at me with pity. Feeling sorry
for me did not make anything better.

I slowly got up and went over to the hook where my purse and
jacket hung. In a small, secret pocket within my purse, I pulled out the photo
I never, ever looked at. Keeping the front of the photo down so I didn’t have
to see it, I slid it across the small table toward Lib. She picked it up
without asking why I had it and slid it into her back pocket.

Dex and Pete entered and Dex’s gravelly voice boomed through
the room, “I will be driving you both home.” It wasn’t a request.

“Julia, you should tell them about the notes,” Sid prodded. I
didn’t want to stomach this now. I was tired and wanted to just crawl into bed.

“Dex, Pete, please. I’ll tell you as much as I can, but I
really just want to get home. Can we discuss this at my apartment? I need to
get out of here.” I looked up at both of them with pleading in my eyes.

“Of course, Jules,” Pete said with a kind smile, clearly
laced with concern.

We all gathered our things and left.

Dex was a smart man and kept quiet the entire way. He only
spoke to tell us he would see to it that our cars were brought to our apartment
by morning. Pete followed us in his car; I assumed so he could help Dex get our
cars back to our apartment.

Dex and Pete came in and settled down on our couch. Sid got
us all bottles of water as we made ourselves comfortable in the living room.

Dread coursed through my veins as I sought the courage to
tell these two friends my secret.

I let out a really loud sigh and began spilling the beans,
“Before you two say anything, please just let me get the whole story out. I
will not tell you everything and I don’t want you to push me for more
information than I’m willing to share. With that in mind, I don’t want or need
your pity. What I need is your help and support. The only reason I’m even
revealing this information is because I cannot stand the fact that this man has
ruined my life once. I cannot run again and I refuse to live in fear every day.
Since you two are some of my dearest friends, I know I can count on you to help
me through this and make sure this man never steps foot on H
²
0
property again.”

Filling my lungs with a ragged breath, I pushed my emotion
aside and plowed on with my story.

“His name is Robert Meads, but most of the time he goes by
Rob. He is an ex of mine who, let’s just say, became abusive and controlling. My
parents didn’t believe me when I attempted to seek help from them. They loved
Rob. And I hope to God they are not the reason he knows where I am now. When I
finally got the guts, and the help of my best friend, to leave the situation I
was in, I told my parents I did not want to see him anymore and did not want
him to know where I was moving. They were not happy with my flight attempt, and
although reluctant, they agreed to my requests. While I was with him, he had
some very severe… tastes… and stalking tendencies. He even went as far as
harassing Sid to get to me. He didn’t allow me to go to school, wouldn’t allow
me to work… Let’s just say, I was not allowed to have a life. He kept me away
from Sid for over six months once, before she finally dragged me away. These
are not all the details, but with his photo and this little bit of history, I
would hope you could help me in making sure he stays away? Please?”

They just stared at me with big eyes and open mouths.

“Also, he knows where I live.”

With that little bit of information, both men looked at each
other in astonishment and grumbled curses under their breath.

“Shit, Julia. We can’t leave you here,” Pete said, making it
sound like a question with the light lift in the last word. I knew better
though. It wasn’t a request.

“Wait,” Dex said, holding his hand in the air and finally
coming out of his trance. “How do you know? Has he been here?”

“Um, well, Monday night when I came home from work, I found
a note that must’ve been shoved under the door. I also had a note left on my
car when I left work Tuesday night. They were both in his handwriting. And they
were… creepy… just like the notes he used to leave for me whenever I was bad,” I
explained, sudden embarrassment flushing my face.

Pete had an angry look as he cringed and said, “Bad? What
the hell?”

Dex interrupted him with stealthy composure, “What did the
notes say, Jules?”

I ducked my head down as I slowly rose to get the notes from
my desk drawer in my room.

I sat back down with the box full of notes in my lap. Plucking
the note from Monday night out, I slid it across the coffee table toward the
two men. Their brows furrowed as they read it.

Thought I couldn’t
find you? Think again.

I did the same thing with the second note… this time, my
hands were shaking so bad, you could visibly see the paper tremble in my hands.

I saw you with him
tonight. Does he know what a slut you are? Does he know you belong to me?

Sid piped up and admitted, “I also got a note from him that
was left on my car yesterday as I was leaving for work.”

She quickly opened the small, remote-control drawer within
the coffee table and handed it over. Dex mumbled a few curses before he opened
it and began to read.

You won’t interfere
again. You can’t take her from me this time.

“That asshole!” Pete spit out with pure rage in his voice.

Dex stabbed his finger into the second note. “Who did he see
you with, Julia? Were you with a guy any time Tuesday?” Dex asked in a calm
manor, like he was interrogating someone who might spook at any moment. And, in
reality, he probably was.

I’m surprised Dex didn’t remember. It wasn’t like him to not
put two and two together.

I sat with my arms curled around my abdomen, attempting to
hold myself together.

Damn it. All my secrets were coming out.

“Um, the guy who I am interested in stopped by the club Tuesday
night. He’s the one you asked me about to make sure I was okay with him
touching me. I can only imagine Rob was referring to him,” I mumbled.

“You mean the photography professor who also showed up with
a stunt double tonight to check you out?” Pete asked.

“Wow. How did you know…?” I was too shocked to complete my
sentence. “Please, don’t tell anyone. I don’t want him to get in trouble for…”

Pete held up his hands in a gesture of surrender. “It’s okay,
Jules. I couldn’t care less if the professor has a thing for you. He looks like
a genuinely nice guy, although you both seemed a bit pissed at each other
tonight. I won’t pry… I was just curious if that is who you were referring to.”

“Is this one of your professors at school, Julia?” Dex
asked.

I just nodded, my gaze landing on my hands as I wrung them
nervously in my lap. Oh, God. This conversation was going way further than I
had ever wanted it to.

“Damn, guys. I really didn’t want you to know all of my
secrets,” I said in exasperation. “A girl has to keep some of her dignity. Shit.”

With my mini-fit, the guys both began to chuckle at me.

Glad you find humor in
my misery, guys. Geez.

“Well, I’m not leaving you alone. I’ll sleep here tonight,”
Pete said. His demeanor confirmed that there was no arguing with him. “And
Julia, I think you should tell your professor what’s up. I know you want to
keep your secrets, but if he is half as crazy about you as he appears, he’ll
want to know what’s going on. If he is aware of this issue, he’ll at least be
able to keep an eye out on things at school, even if he’s only with you for a
period or two.”

I nodded and cringed at the idea of sharing this information
with Aiden. He would wipe the floor with me for sure. The last thing he would
want was to get involved with a girl who had baggage.

“Damn. All this shit is likely to end his interest in me for
sure,” I mumbled through my semi-dried tears. “Last thing he’ll want is to risk
his career over an emotional basket case with baggage.”

Then a thought came to me and I wanted to clarify a few
things.

“Hey guys. Nothing has happened between Aiden and me yet. We’re
definitely attracted to each other, but it hasn’t escalated beyond that. His
entire career could be in jeopardy if it gets out that he even shows a minor
interest in me. So, please, if you could just keep it under wraps… keep all
this shit under wraps… I would be forever in your debt,” I stated as I waved my
arm across the evidence-strewn table.

“Julia, we would never even dream of sharing your private
information with anyone outside of our little family,” Dex said with
conviction.

“Agreed, Jules. And, trust me, we will do our best to keep
Becky out of it, considering she’s the town’s gossip queen,” Pete added. “But,
you might want to tell your boy-toy to tone it down a bit while at the club. A
few people knew who he was. Luckily, none of them knew you were a student of
his.”

I just nodded and said, “We actually spoke about that
earlier today. But obviously he and I need to have the discussion again if he
knows what’s good for him.”

“Heh, yeah. The kiss made it pretty obvious you’re putty in
his hands,” Pete said with a chuckle.

“Ahh, shit. How many people were watching us?” I asked,
rolling my eyes.

It wasn’t a question I really wanted answered, but Sid piped
up anyway and said, “Everyone. There wasn’t a single eye in the club that
wasn’t glued to those two gods. Twins. Damn, you have it good, Jules!”

I lightly backhanded Sid in the arm and said, “Cut it out, Sidney!”

Dex gave Sid and me hugs and told Pete he would be back in
the morning to help him get our cars for us. I thanked Dex for being so good to
us and Pete made sure to lock up behind him while I dragged myself to my room.

As I started to doze, I heard my bedroom door creak open and
my heart began to hammer out of my chest. I squeezed my eyes shut and prayed
silently.

Please let that be Sid or Pete. Please…