Total pages in book: 30
Estimated words: 27288 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 136(@200wpm)___ 109(@250wpm)___ 91(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 27288 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 136(@200wpm)___ 109(@250wpm)___ 91(@300wpm)
I laugh at his teasing even as I shiver under the heat of his gaze. I find yesterday’s clothes, tugging on my leggings and socks but frowning at my jumper. I’m going to boil alive if I hike in that.
Aidan must have the same thought because seconds later he tugs something over my head. I wriggle my way into the clothing properly, then look down at myself. The t-shirt is huge on me, but it smells like Aidan and is super soft.
“Jesus, seeing you in my clothes is so fucking hot,” Aidan groans behind me, and I turn to find him staring at me with his own t-shirt half on. “Fuck, Autumn. No matter what you wear, you’re the most stunning girl alive.”
“Stop being so damn sweet.” I blush all the way to my toes and hurry to find my shoes while Aidan finishes dressing. Then, we’re finally ready to leave.
Just as we’re about to reach the front door, his buzzer rings. I jump at the unexpected noise, laughing at myself for the overreaction as I realize what the noise is.
Aidan frowns, crossing to the little metal box beside his front door and pressing the button to speak to whoever is ringing his bell.
“Hello?” He shoots me a look that makes it clear he’s as impatient to leave as I am.
The voice that comes back through the buzzer is grainy with static. “Who is this?”
Aidan and I lock eyes, confusion passing between us. Why is this person buzzing Aidan’s door if they don’t even know who lives here? Unease trickles down my spine, making me shiver. What’s that expression? Like someone’s walked over your grave.
Yeah, that weird foreboding feeling I can’t explain. That’s what that staticky, questioning voice gives me. Ugh.
It’s nothing, I try to reassure myself. Maybe the person’s just lost. I’m only on edge because I want to get out and hike, to spend more time with Aidan. That’s all.
“This is Aidan Allen,” Aidan says into the speaker. “Can I help you?”
“...thought it was you,” the voice grumbles, nearly too low to make out through the buzzer system. “...taking what isn’t yours and…”
I step closer to Aidan, frowning deeper. I swear I recognize that voice…but from where? I can’t place it, especially with the interference screwing with the sounds, but that seed of suspicion is planted in my gut. I lean into Aidan, using his solid warmth for comfort.
The static stops and Aidan tries to ask who it is or if they’re even still there, but there’s no reply. I sigh, shaking my head as Aidan turns to me.
“That was weird as hell,” Aidan mumbles with a furrow between his brows. I step into him, and he wraps an arm around my shoulders, tugging me close. In his arms, everything else fades away. I can barely remember what I was worried about.
“Yeah.” He holds the door open for me, and we step out into the empty corridor. “Weird.”
Aidan’s place is on the outskirts of town, close to the best hiking trails, and the walk to the trail only takes twenty or so minutes. The first inhale of morning air settles my nerves, and contentment flows through me as I shake off the confusion of before.
It’s a mild day outside, a little chilly but in a good way that means I won’t feel like I’m dying of overheating when the hike gets hard, and the sky is blessedly clear.
We pick the trail that I know has the best viewpoint over the town, and Aidan keeps my hand in his while we begin the incline.
7
AIDAN
This trail is one of my favorites, and it’s made even better by the company I have this time. Autumn is sunshine in human form, pointing out the flower buds and spring blooms along the side of the path. The trail is rocky at the start, but the higher we climb, the more lush the surroundings become.
It’s at that point, near the top of the hill where the trees begin to fill out on either side into the deepest part of the wooded section, that I pause, turning to take in the trail around us. I swear that I saw another hiker behind us a second ago, but there’s no one there now. Maybe they’re stopping for water or maybe my peripheral vision is playing tricks on me. Regardless, it’s not anything as important as the beautiful girl tugging on my hand, pointing at a dirt track to the side that leads off the main trail and into the wooded area.
“The summit’s just up ahead,” I say to Autumn, even as I start following her. I’m at her mercy, and I don’t have a single complaint about that. Whatever she wants, she can have, even if that’s taking some tiny path off the track into some trees. I’ll follow her off the face of the damn earth.