Aidan (Knight's Edge Series Book 3) Read online

  Moira said goodbye and hung up. That was the first time her kids slept away from her, and they were taking it much better than she had expected.

  Aidan prepared breakfast while she took a shower, and they ate it without haste. She began to pile the dishes to get take them to the sink, but Aidan put his hand over hers. “Thanks, but I’ll take care of it later. Come,” he asked, unfolding from his chair, still holding her hand.

  She followed him into the living room. Last night, she hadn’t noticed the room. Now, her eyes were drawn to the shimmering waters of the Atlantic that his waterfront apartment overlooked. The soft early morning light glinted off the gentle waves. Ingleses Beach, the sophisticated neighborhood where Aidan lived, was famous for its long white beach and calm green waters.

  Distracted by the view, Moira didn’t notice Aidan moving around the room, until he tugged at her arm. She dragged her eyes from the panoramic window, and her world tilted out of its axis.

  “What the fuck, Aidan?” she muttered, looking down at his face as he knelt beside her.

  He smiled and raised the open box he held in his hands. Inside the box, a wedding band and a ring peered at her. The band was thick, with a delicate Celtic pattern etched in a silver bed, frame by two bands of gold. The ring brought tears to her eyes. A thin band of white gold held an oval diamond in a deep shade of yellow. She cupped his hands, as they still held the open box, and stared into his eyes.

  “So?” he asked.

  She shook her head, but didn’t find her voice to reply.

  “Or you saying ‘no’?” He got crestfallen.

  “Silly.” She leaned and kissed him. “I’m not saying ‘no’. You’ve stolen my heart the moment you walked into Chez Nous.”

  “Love at first sight, eh?”

  “That’s all you’ve heard?”

  “I’ve selective hearing.”

  She chuckled. “What am I going to do with you, boy?”

  “Marry me.”

  “Oh, for fuck’s sake!”

  “That too.”

  “You’re impossible.”

  “But adorable.”

  “That you are.”

  She knelt in front of Aidan, and he took the rings from the box. Before he slid them on her finger, he reminded her, “You still haven’t said ‘yes’, though.”

  “Yes!” She covered his face with kisses, repeating the single word each time her lips connected with his skin.

  When the doorbell rang, Moira opened the front door to welcome Ana and her kids back from the movies, but her smile vanished, and her blood ran from her face

  Bob Mathias stood outside her door. “Missed me?”

  “Go to hell.” She swung the door to close it on his face.

  Bob moved faster, blocking the movement. He clasped the door and stretched his arm, keeping it open. “Don’t get your panties in a twist. I didn’t come here for you.”

  “Don’t tell me you miss your kids. You haven’t bothered to contact them in over five years. A little too late for that, don’t you think?”

  She wanted to claw the smirk off his face. “Tsk, tsk. Always jumping to conclusions, little Moira.”

  “I don’t have time for your silly games or stomach for your obnoxious presence. Either say why you crawled out of the whole you’ve been hiding in or scram.”

  “I’m here to deliver a message to your friend Vanessa Foster.”

  “Vanessa who?”

  “Don’t play dumb. Despite your hair color, you’re not at all stupid.”

  Moira gaped at the man she once called husband. What was she thinking when she defied her loving parents to marry that stinking pile of crap in the shape of a man? She had no idea what love was to mistake it for the fleeting attraction she felt for Bob.

  Now she knew better.

  “That’s open to debate. I did marry you, didn’t I?”

  Bob ignored the retort. “Tell your friend Vanessa to drop it. That’s all I came here to say. Believe me, if I could, I would be hundreds of miles away from you.”

  His disdain didn’t hurt anymore. In fact, Moira felt nothing staring into his drooping eyes.

  “Well, you’ve wasted your time. I have no idea what you’re…” It dawned on her who he was referring to. Duke’s friend was the only Vanessa she knew.

  Reading her reaction right, Bob taunted. “Good girl. So, you know who Vanessa Foster is, correct?”

  “I do,” she uttered through gritted teeth.

  “Tell her to drop the article. It’s not wise to pursue the subject. Consider this fair warning.”

  When a taxi pulled up in front of Moira’s house and out came Aidan, Bod scurried away like the coward rat he had always been.

  She closed the door after Aidan stepped inside. They sat on her couch, and Moira relayed to him what he just happened.

  “Scumbag. He came here just for that? Didn’t bother asking about the kids?” Aidan’s indignation was touching yet misguided.

  “Bob never wanted to have kids. It took me years to convince him to start a family. The kids are the only good Bob has created in this world.”

  Aidan’s features softened. “And that’s thanks to you.”

  “I don’t get why he came here though. I don’t know Vanessa that well.”

  “She was going to find him for you, for the alimony, right? Maybe he wants her to drop that?”

  “I never asked her to do that. He mentioned an article she’s writing. If this is about her work, why did he come here?”

  “Bob’s not that dumb. He probably didn’t want his visit to be on record. You don’t have cameras in your property, different from the office of the magazine where Nessa works. She’s moved to town kind of recently, so I figure he didn’t have time to track her home address.”

  “Makes sense. You mentioned something about a murder she was investigating. I don’t remember the name of the politician.”

  “I didn’t say the name because I don’t remember. It’s Celso something.”

  “Celso Farias?” Panic raised her voice.

  “Sounds about right.”

  “Give me her phone number again, please. I need to talk to her now. Bob managed the advertisement campaign for many politicians in the past. If he came out of hiding to tell her to stop digging, it’s because she’s getting too close for comfort. And if she’s unearthing dirt about the bunch of politicians Bob worked for, she is danger. Real danger.”

  Epilogue

  A Couple of Years Down the Road

  Felipe

  Swirling, Felipe tried to take in all the surrounded him and ended up grabbing the railing for support.

  “If you fall flat on your face, I’ll laugh my head out, but mom will be pissed, so quit it,” Dani admonished him, in her infuriating older sister tone.

  “I can’t stand still. This is so much more huge than the last concert we went to.”

  She rolled her eyes at him. He hated when Dani did that. She was usually right when she made that face at him. “Huger, you mean? And yes. This stadium fits much more people than the arena we went to last year.”

  From the pit between the stage and general admission audience, Felipe gawked at the amount of people filling the seats on the stands. Full house. On the giant screens that framed the stage, he spied the general admission area in the live feeds. Impressive.

  The opening act had just finished, and soon Knight’s Edge would take the stage. A buzz spread through the audience, so evident, even young Felipe noticed.

  Dani tugged the sleeve of his t-shirt.

  “What?” he shouted to be heard.

  “Let’s go back. Mom said just a couple of minutes.”

  He resisted the idea, then went along when he remembered Mom had promised they’d watch part of the performance from the pit.

  Felipe got antsy backstage. The band had been playing forever, and they were still stuck there. “Mom, can we go now?”

  She messed with his hair and kissed his cheek. The cold from her cheeks sta
rtled him. She was crying. She always cried during the concerts. As they hurried down the corridor toward the entrance to the pit, Felipe asked his mom, “Why are you crying? You always cry in Knight’s Edge’s concerts. I thought you liked them.”

  “I do. The songs are so beautiful, so touching. That’s why I cry, but it’s a happy cry.”

  Felipe didn’t understand the concept. He only cried when he was in pain. Or very sad. Or very upset. Or hurt.

  He had never realized he cried so often.

  Still, he didn’t cry when he was happy. That made no sense.

  Uncle Duke screamed into the mic, “Do you like whiskey?”

  The audience roared, and his mom sobbed louder than before. He didn’t recognize the song. “Is this new, Mom?”

  She squeezed him tight against her before replying. “Yes. That’s from the recent album.”

  Felipe whooped when Aidan stepped to a mic. He had heard Aidan sing around the house, but never with the band. Uncle Duke sang most of the new song, while Aidan sang the chorus. He didn’t understand why his mom cried, especially now that Aidan was pointing at her, but he wouldn’t let his mom cry alone. He hugged her waist and listened to the lyrics.

  A smoky bar, a crowded room

  Your whiskey eyes take me to the moon

  Every time, all the time

  When you’re down on your luck

  When you feel stuck

  Remember you’re mine

  From that very first time

  When I looked into your whiskey eyes

  Love is real

  Love is here

  In your whiskey eyes

  When the song was over, his mom leaned down and kissed him. “Thank you. That was very sweet of you.”

  “No problem. Mom, I still don’t get why you cried though.”

  “Because Whiskey Eyes is my song.”

  She said that as if it meant something to him. “And?”

  She chuckled. “And, you’ll get it when you’re older.”

  THE END

  Thank you for reading Aidan.

  If you enjoyed the story, please consider leaving a review on the online store you bought it. Reviews put smiles on authors’ faces.

  Would you like to attend Aidan and Moira’s wedding? You’ve got it. Just email Liz Gavin describing your favorite scene and why you liked it. She’ll send you the bonus scene.

  I

  Sneak Peek 1

  Synopsis

  Party boy meets his match and sparks fly.

  Noah Cartwright owns a successful bistro in a southern Brazilian beach as he struggles to put together his rock band. He was burnt by betrayal years ago, but hasn't given up on finding Miss Right.

  Ana Oliveira hides dark secrets from her past as she attends tables and studies to get her teaching credentials. She knows Mr. Right is a fantasy. She stopped believing in fairy tales a long time ago.

  They've got little in common, except for a sizzling hot chemistry, which could jeopardize their future plans. Yet they gravitate towards each other and the resulting collision changes both forever.

  Knight's Edge is a series of standalone romances without cliffhangers and with guaranteed Happily Ever Afters. If you love hot rockers and their sassy ladies, you must read this series.

  One-click this book today to get Noah’s story and learn how the Knight’s Edge began and made it to the top.

  Noah (Knight’s Edge Book #2)

  Sneak Peek

  Ana Oliveira woke up to a throbbing headache. Used to crippling migraines, she feared getting up abruptly would trigger the habitual nausea, so she took a deep breath and relaxed her tense muscles, opening her senses to her surroundings. A refreshing whiff of salty air filled the room and the distant rumbling sound of crashing waves against rocks soothed her. Those were familiar to her, after living by the ocean for the last four years. Her lips curved up as she smoothed the soft bed linen under her palms. As she stretched on the mattress that hugged her body, she reached up and tucked her hands under the pillow. Extra soft, probably stuffed with goose feathers.

  Her stomach dropped. She didn’t own silk sheets or a memory foam mattress and her old pillow would feel much harder under her head than the softness of a feathery nest she was currently experiencing. The subtle shuffling sound of another body moving against the silk sheets, dipping the mattress towards its center, stole the air from her lungs. Her heart forgot to beat for a couple of seconds. Afraid to open her eyes, but knowing she wouldn’t be able to avoid doing so for long, Ana crinkled her nose and squinted her eyes before allowing them to open. Just a little. When she recognized the room, her jaw dropped, making her mouth open into a perfect round shape. How the hell had she ended up in Noah Cartwright’s room? In his bed? With his boyish face buried between her thighs? Panic couldn’t begin to describe her feelings.

  “Finally! I’ve been waiting rather patiently for you to regain consciousness,” he offered her as if she had a clue as to what he meant. Apparently ignoring her confused state, Noah kept gliding his long fingers down her thighs, then lifted her knees before encircling her soft flesh and squeezing it.

  As if hypnotized, she lay there and watched. Blaming it on the marching band playing inside her skull, Ana didn’t resist his wandering hands. She chose not to acknowledge the effects his trademark smile, complete with perfect white teeth and endearing dimples, had over her. The surge of hot liquid flowing down her body had nothing to do with that grin. She hoped.

  She also said nothing to stop his scorching hot lips from tracing a wet trail from her elevated knees, down towards the top of her thighs. As if detached from her body, she observed his dirty-blonde head move dangerously close to her most private part. That was when she realized she was wearing her date lingerie. The silk black set of panties and bra she reserved for special occasions. What the hell did she do last night? She didn’t go out with Noah Cartwright, that was a given. Or was it?

  When she tried to focus, her head threatened to explode like an atomic bomb, so she decided to take it slow. Baby steps should be the norm today. She would get answers, if she asked him the questions colliding in her mind. She just needed to stop him and talk. The fact that her body seemed to hum under his fingers didn’t help that part of her plan, though. As tempting as his intentions were, she needed to stop him.

  Before she could utter a word, his sultry voice filled her ears. “I wouldn’t take advantage of you while you were sleeping, no matter how tight you held me to your chest. You’ve no idea how tempting you were, gorgeous. I behaved, though. Now it’s time for our delayed fun to begin.”

  The promise of pleasure in his voice and the intense heat in his sparkling eyes tempted Ana to allow herself a taste of what Noah offered her. As long as she kept it brief, she would be safe. That was her story and she intended to stick with it. She read somewhere that orgasms helped combat migraines. That was a treatment she would gladly adopt.

  As Noah’s tongue circled her belly button, she bunched the sheets in her fingers and hissed. She felt his smile against her soft skin, his stubbled chin tickling her senses, as his teeth grabbed the thin strap of her panties. When they sank into it and Noah pulled his head as if to tear the fragile elastic band, she shook her head. He stopped, but rubbed the tip of his nose against the tiny piece of cloth that covered her entrance. Just once. It was enough to make the fabric wet from her body’s reaction to his touch. She was in trouble.

  “We can’t do this, Noah. It isn’t right,” she moaned against the fist she stuffed in her mouth. Her teeth left deep marks on her skin. Maybe the pain would remind her why it was wrong. “You’re my boss, for crying out loud.”

  “That’s your best argument?” His soft chuckles got muffled by her round thighs as he ignored her words and kissed his way down one leg before turning to the other and tracing the inside of her thigh, dragging his wet lips towards her entrance. Ana’s belly fluttered with anticipation, but she needed to stop him and tell the truth before they went too far. He h
ad the right to know.

  *This is just the beginning of Noah & Ana’s story.*

  Learn more Knight’s Edge Series of romance novels about hot rockers and their sassy ladies at lizgavin.com

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  About the Author

  International bestselling author Liz Gavin’s books have made it to #1 in countries as diverse as Japan, the UK, the US, Canada, Australia and her home country Brazil, collecting 4 and 5-star reviews. Nominated for a Summer Indie Book Award in 2016 and again in 2017, this RWA member constantly seeks new opportunities to improve her craft.

  In late 2015, her thirst for knowledge propelled Liz to leave the comforts of family and friends in Brazil and move to California to pursue a Master’s degree. She lives in sunny SoCal, where she’s researching the writing process for her thesis, in the hopes to figure out why she creates in English instead of her native Portuguese.

  Liz Gavin writes in contemporary, paranormal, and historical genres. In her sexy stories, one finds smart, independent women, who don’t need rescuing by knights in shining armor, but indulge in steamy action with swoony Alpha males with big hearts. She also writes about women discovering their sexuality and finding happiness in unconventional setups.