Traveler, page 18
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Aislin had had the best sleep of her life, wrapped up in strong arms. Granted, she had never slept in a man’s arms before, and the last time she had been comforted by someone like this her mother had let her cry herself to sleep in her arms when her boyfriend had broken up with her. It felt odd to be so cherished, and valued, in such a short period of time. But then again, maybe she was looking too much into it. It was just a kiss, right? And falling asleep in his arms. She stirred as the sun came up, mumbling sleepily about how she didn’t want to get up, didn’t want to snap back into reality just yet.
Awakened long before the sun rose, Alex had laid there, idly running his fingers through her long hair. A faint smile twisted his lips when he heard her mumbling sleepily. It was rather adorable to watch if he was honest with himself, and yet he really should get out of bed, if only to deal with his job before she woke up. Holding back a sigh, he carefully settled her onto the pillows before kissing her cheek softly. Hopefully, she would still be sleeping when he came back.
Rising silently from the bed, he glanced once more towards Aislin, an affectionate smile sent in her direction before he left the room. He needed to call the school before it got too late. Taking a deep breath as he reached the kitchen, Alex groaned softly in disgust. Well...the chinese food needed to be gotten rid of before his house smelled absolutely horrendous. Grumbling under his breath, he began shoving the unopened containers in a garbage bag, intent of getting rid of this before he did anything else
When he was satisfied that the stench of old chinese food was out of his kitchen, Alex turned his attention to what he had originally gotten up to do. He needed to handle his job...but honestly he didn’t feel like dealing with his boss this early in the morning, especially not after the past couple of days. The woman bothered him incessantly with invites to dinner, and he simply hated dealing with the looks she gave him. Deciding not to even bother speaking with the woman, he grabbed his cell phone and fired off a quick text, claiming that he had been diagnosed with strep throat. That would give him several days off, time he needed to help Aislin and for the two of them to figure out what they were going to do.
Aislin went to move to snuggle closer to Alex, and then she opened her eyes when she realized he wasn’t there. A frown crossed her face and she lifted her head from the blankets, yawning a little bit as she looked around the room. There was no sign of her wayward guardian. Softly, she stood from the bed, stretching as she moved, walking out of his bedroom and into the living room, looking around with sleep-tousled hair and still-drowsy eyes.
Tossing his cell phone on the kitchen table, Alex stretched a bit before walking into the hallway. He blinked in surprise before smiling at the adorable sight of his charge standing there all sleepy and a bit confused. Chuckling softly, he walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. “What are you doing awake? I was just about to come back and join you.”
Aislin leaned back against him, closing her eyes a little. “Well, unfortunately for you, Mr. Bookman, your damn early morning schedule has rubbed off on me. So welcome to the new world of having an eighteen-year-old up at the buttcrack of dawn.” She stretched again. “I think I’m going to shower...before we begin our discussions for the day.” She smiled up at him. “Are you okay with that?”
He laughed softly, playfully running his fingertips along her stomach. “That’s fine, Aislin. Go ahead and shower...and I’ll see about getting something together for breakfast. Considering how many meals we missed in the past few days, I’m sure you’re starving just like I am. Pancakes?”
She shivered at the feel of his fingers on her stomach, and then she smiled. “I’ll be quick, I promise. And pancakes sound fantastic,” she murmured, then darted into the bathroom with a grin at him. She pulled the door shut behind her but it didn’t latch, slowly showing a gap in the door that Aislin was unaware of. She slipped out of her pajamas, not realizing until she had already gotten into the warm shower that she didn’t bring any clothing with her into the bathroom. Well, if that didn’t make for an awkward run across the living room when she got out, nothing would. She let the shower run over her, the smell of her lilac soap permeating every one of her senses. She felt clean, and even with the bruises darkening on her arms, she felt for once valued.
He watched her leave with an amused look on his face, noticing that she hadn’t gone back to her room for clothes. Debating silently as he moved through the kitchen, he pulled out everything that was needed for breakfast before finally coming to a decision. He set the ingredients on the counter before leaving the kitchen to walk down the hallway. While he didn’t want to keep going into her room without permission, he was quite sure that she wouldn’t mind him grabbing her a bathrobe. On second thought, she might mind if he went through her things in an effort to find it, no matter how nice of a gesture it was meant to be. Quickly changing direction, he went into his bedroom and grabbed the black silk robe he rarely bothered to use, not really minding if she borrowed it.
Reaching the bathroom door, Alex paused for a moment, noticing that it hadn’t closed all the way. It would be so easy to simply push the door open and walk in...but that really wasn’t fair to his...charge?...girlfriend?...student...or rather, whatever she was to him. She would decide when she wished to show herself to him. He smiled faintly before rapping his knuckles on the door, taking care not to push it open. “Aislin...I’m going to leave a robe for you on the door.”
Aislin pulled the shower curtain around herself, peering out from it to smile at him. “Thank you, Alex,” she murmured. “I forgot to grab clothing...but thank you so much for thinking about me.” She winked a little and then pulled the shower curtain back, humming softly to herself as she finished soaping up and then rinsing off. Still humming, she turned the water off, basking in the warmth for a moment as she prepared to get out of the shower.
Gods help him...that girl was going to be the reason he lost his mind! Leaving the robe on the hook just inside the door, he returned to the kitchen in a hurry. He quickly got to work, busying himself with preparing the batter for pancakes to keep from thinking about her in the shower. While the first set was cooking, Alex had started to cook the bacon, occasionally stealing a piece when it was done. In between flipping pancakes and stealing pieces of the best food known to mankind, he managed to pull out everything they would need...the plates and silverware, glasses, etc.
Aislin dried off gently, wincing at the bruises that she still felt, and then she slipped on the silk bathrobe. It felt like a whisper against her skin, like it wasn’t even there. A small smile crossed her face as she put the pendant that Alex had given her around her neck, fingering the delicate phoenix there gently. She loved it. Grabbing her pajamas in her arms, Aislin walked out of the bathroom, her blazing red hair damp from the shower, walking past the kitchen and trying not to let him see her until she came out of her room dressed. She knew that he did have feelings for her now, but that didn’t mean she needed to torture the poor guy.
Alex glanced up as he heard her passing the kitchen, his blue eyes widening slightly at the sight of her in his robe. It was to be expected that the robe would be too big for her...and yet to him, it looked just right. Smiling to himself, he tore his gaze away and returned to the stove to flip the last set of pancakes. He was going to need a cold shower soon.
Once safely in her bedroom, Aislin was hesitant to slip off the black silk robe. It felt so comfortable that it was almost like a second skin, but she knew that if she came outside dressed only in it she would drive the man absolutely mad. So, instead, she dressed in a black and pink bra and panties set, with loose lounge pants and a long sleeve shirt over it to hide the bruises. She needed to talk to him about them eventually. Eventually. She made sure the pendant was hanging outside the shirt and then walked out of her bedroom, the robe loosely held in her hand. “Here’s your robe back,” she murmured. “Thank you for letting me borrow it.”
Setting the plates of food on the table, he smiled as she came into the kitchen, his robe in her hand. “You’re welcome, munchkin. You can keep it if you like. I don’t wear it that often. Though I probably should...considering that I no longer live alone.” He remarked with a laugh, turning away to pull a bottle of orange juice out of the fridge.
“Somehow, I think the sight of you in a black silk robe would be more distraction than anything...well, besides that towel,” she muttered to herself, walking back to her bedroom to put the robe away. Aislin walked back into the kitchen, going to help him get everything else out of the fridge that they would need for this breakfast. She smiled at him. “Everything smells terrific, as usual.” She sat down at the table, having grabbed the syrup from the fridge to help him. “You must be starving.”
Alex glanced in her direction, giving her a mischievous grin. “Mm...I probably would be if I hadn’t eaten practically an entire package of bacon while I was cooking.” He poured them both glasses of juice before taking a seat. He let her get some bacon before he grabbed a few more pieces, tossing a few pancakes on his plate as well. “Well...you are now stuck with me for the whole week or so. I told the principal I have strep. Or rather...I texted her...she might have offered to come over and nurse me otherwise.”
Aislin’s eyes narrowed as he mentioned that little tidbit about his boss. “She would have offered to come over and...nurse...you?” she asked, trying to keep her teeth from gritting. “And why would she have done that?” she tried to act as if she didn’t care that much, taking a drink of her juice.
He blinked, setting down his fork. “Well, the woman is looking for her fourth husband...and she’s not very good about taking hints. She seems to think she is a cougar. Quite honestly...she’s old enough to be my grandmother. It’s disgusting.” Shaking his head, he grabbed a piece of bacon and took a bite before speaking again. “Thankfully...I don’t really need to stay after you graduate. I doubt the book is going to return to the school without you.”
Aislin put on a few pieces of bacon on her plate before Alex scarfed them all down. That man could eat, that was one thing she’d give him. She grabbed two pancakes and cut into them. “Oh good, so she’s not some sexy college-aged woman or anything that I have to be worried about. Unless...you have some sort of old lady fetish I don’t know about?” She arched her eyebrow, pointing her fork at him. “Yup, that explains everything. Old lady fetish.” Lin touched the pendant around her neck briefly. “Like I told you, though, Alex...I don’t think I want to stay in this world longer than I absolutely have to. Your world is my home, now...and it feels like more of a home to me already, in the little time I have spent there, than this place...even with everything that has happened.”
“Oh yes...a fetish for old ladies that masquerade as red-haired eighteen-year-olds...” He stuck his tongue out at her. “That’s fine that you want to go there to stay. I just want you to at least finish high school here. Don’t give that bastard stepfather of yours anything to gloat about...and make your late mother proud. Besides...that will give us time to make certain that we can bring everything you want to keep with us.” He arched a brow, giving her a pointed look. “Unless you want to leave all of your books behind?”
She bit her bottom lip, her eyes automatically going to her room where all of her books were. “No,” she whispered. “I don’t want that. So...we can’t stay there permanently for a while?” she asked, her voice sad. Abruptly, she wasn’t very hungry. “I’ll start working on the classwork today...and if I don’t get my high school diploma done in three months, I will do anything you want. But if I do...we leave then to stay in your world. Forever. Agreed?”
Alex stared at her for a moment before replying, his expression serious. “Aislin...we can go there permanently. Once you’ve learned enough to control your jumps, you could back and forth between here and there, and quite honestly, I would feel better about taking you there if you can control your jumps and get yourself to safety if need be. I have a feeling that the only reason you would come back are for the books. Let me handle getting those moved to a safe place I have, and by the time you’re ready, you won’t have to think about this place ever again...if that’s your wish.” He sighed softly. “But...before you do any work or leave this table...you need to finish your breakfast. You’ve missed too many meals lately, and those jumps take more out of you when they are uncontrolled. You need the energy and calories it will provide.”
Aislin scowled at him. “I’m not hungry,” she said stubbornly. “I had enough food this morning...just eating a lot right now doesn’t appeal to me. I’m sorry. So that means, if I have you for a week, that we can begin my training...right? But first...I promised you the truth.” Aislin looked at her juice. “But..do you have anything...stronger to drink?”
Silently he rose to his feet and went to a cabinet near the sink, pulling out of a bottle of vodka. “I probably shouldn’t let you have this. But after the past couple days, you probably need a drink as badly as I do.” He commented calmly, setting the bottle in the middle of the table before taking his seat again.
Aislin poured herself a shot of vodka, slinging it back in one swift motion. This was going to be rough. Rougher on Alex than on her. “Just...sit still for a moment, ok? You wanted to know what happened to me, before you got there...on the, Islands.” She stood, and in one swift movement she took off her shirt and her pants, standing before him in her bra and panties. She had chosen this particular set because it looked more like a bikini than lingerie...which she hoped would make it easier to have him look at. Bruises, purple and dark now, were on her wrists, her arms, a few on her abdomen, one on her collarbone, and a few on her thighs, were showing their ugly faces now. “I needed to show you...first.”
Though he had gotten a glimpse of her bruises last night, it looked much worse now in the daylight. He closed his eyes for a moment, struggling to rein in the vicious anger that the sight of her bruised body caused. Taking a deep breath, he opened his eyes and looked at her, reaching over to gently grab her hand. “Come here...” He pulled her onto his lap before wrapping his arms around her. “Whatever happened...it changes nothing between us...and you don’t have to tell me until you are ready. It is enough for me to know that you are willing to...not hide...” He wasn’t quite sure how else to put it without coming across the wrong way.
She buried her face into his shoulder, trembling a little. “I need to tell you now, Alex,” she whispered. “I don’t want anything between us, even something like this...and if I am going to let myself be...close to you...I need to do this.”
His arms tightened around her, holding her close to him. He sighed softly before replying softly. “If that is what you wish to do, Aislin...then I will support that choice. I just don’t want you to feel like you have to. Obviously something bad happened...and you think that I will be angry about it. And most likely I will be...but not at you. Take your time...I can wait as long as you need.”
Still keeping her face in his shoulder, she took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “All right....when we pulled into the harbor at the Islands, Brileia got taken by the harbormaster. The Captain said that he had cargo to deliver, but that he didn’t want her to be sold into slavery. So they took her. Once she was gone...something broke in him, and he asked me to go find her, and bring her back...using whatever means necessary.” She swallowed. “I knew what that meant, when he asked me...knowing the people of that particular Island and what they traded in, what they made their money doing...so I sought out the harbor master. I found him, at his home...and he took his payment for the information on Brileia from my body.” She trembled slightly, but steeled herself so she could keep talking. She needed to get it all out. “I didn’t think it was going to be so...rough. I mean, I wasn’t a virgin before this, but...I didn’t think he’d be so abrasive about it...after it was done....that’s when you found me.” Her voice trailed off, and she was afraid to look at him, afraid that despite his words he’d somehow think less of her. Tears threatened at the corners of her eyes, but oddly a burden had been lifted from her shoulders. She had told him...it was done.
As he listened to her haltingly tell her tale of what had occurred while they were apart the previous day, Alex found himself clutching tighter to her as if she would disappear from his arms. Gods, he was never going to let her out of his sight if he could help it! How dare that man treat her so harshly?! And how could that damned pirate dare to send her out to find a girl he threw away so easily?! He would take care of that bastard later...but for now he had a half-naked girl on his lap to reassure.
He buried his face in her hair for a moment, letting the scent of her shampoo calm him. Finally he spoke softly. “I am so sorry, Aislin. You should never have had to make that sacrifice. Dragon should not have sent you to fix his mistake...and I should have found you sooner.”
Aislin shook her head, pulling her face back to look at him, her eyes wide. “No...not at all. You couldn’t have known where I was...you didn’t even know I disappeared until that idiot told you I had gone...so don’t beat yourself up over this, please. None of it was your fault. Not at all. Understand me?” she took his face between her hands, looking at him, searching his face.
He stared into her green eyes for several moments, not happy with the shadows he saw within their depths. Gently caressing her cheek, he gave her a reassuring smile. “Of course, Aislin. If I am not to beat myself up over it, I think the same should go for you. Yes...it was a horrible experience...but you did it with the best of intentions, right?”
