snowing out there?” She motioned towards the window.
“I heard.” He frowned. “We could be in our swimsuits on the beach right now.”
“I know.” She let him go and watched him stand up. He walked around the room, comfortable wearing only his skin. Her eyes followed him.
“Well?” he asked from the bathroom door.
She stood and followed him into the other room.
“Damn.” He stopped and looked around. “This is a far better bathroom than I have downstairs.”
She’d paid little attention to it yesterday, but now she glanced around and appreciated the glass, the marble, and the clean lines.
There was an entire wall for a shower. White tiles and clear glass made the room feel twice the size it was. A modern floating tub sat in front of etched glass windows. Dual porcelain sinks with large mirrors hanging over them filled another wall.
Aiden was right, the bathroom was gorgeous. Better than the one she had back at the camp.
“I guess I didn’t get to fully appreciate it yesterday. I was too busy being worried for my father.”
“Speaking of which,” he said as they stepped into the water together. “I didn’t mean to interrupt your conversation last night.”
She smiled and wrapped her arms around him. “No, you didn’t. He’d just woken up.”
“Oh?” he asked, holding onto her.
She sighed and rested her forehead against his chest. It was hard to explain, but she hadn’t been crying because she’d been relieved that he was okay. She’d been crying because he’d woken up and once again called her Nora instead of Aubrey.
She had a feeling that her father was slipping away from her. Not that he’d ever been a major part of her life. The entire time she’d lived under his roof, she’d only seen him about a dozen times a year.
He’d controlled so much of her day-to-day life that she knew he’d been watching everything she’d done. It had been almost like living under a microscope. Like she was trapped in prison instead of a home.
She tried to think of one good time she’d had with her father while she got dressed and ready for the day, but the only thing she could come up with was the day he’d ridden with her to drop her off at the airport so she could go to River Camps.
She pulled on the best dress pants she’d packed and double-checked her reflection one last time. Aiden had disappeared downstairs to the room he’d left his luggage in to get dressed.
Her eyes ran over to the bed they’d shared last night, and she felt her body instantly respond to what they’d done to each other earlier.
She couldn’t believe the control he had over her body. It was almost as if he snapped his fingers and she jumped to attention.
“Ready?” he called up to her.
“Coming,” she replied and then felt her face flush at the memory of him making her come several times that morning in the bed and again in the shower.
Isaac’s place was bigger than they needed for the visit, but it was nice to have room to spare and their privacy, which they wouldn’t have in a hotel room. She knew that Isaac rented out the empty home when he and his wife weren’t living in the beach house that they’d purchased not far from the campgrounds.
They stopped at a little bagel shop a few blocks from the hospital and had breakfast sandwiches. The simple sandwich was one of the best meals she’d had in a while.
They showed their IDs to police positioned outside the room and were approved for entry. A nurse opened the door for them. It was the same nurse that had visited her father last night.
“I just got back on shift and wanted to check in on your father. It looks like he had a good night.” She stood back so they could walk into the room. “I was just going to go check and see if Dr. Williams was around.” She smiled at them and then left the room.
“Hi, Dad.” Aubrey walked over and sat next to her father’s bed. “How are you feeling this morning?” She noticed instantly that his coloring was better.
“Confused.” Her father sat up slightly. “No one will tell me where Bridgett is.”
She took a deep breath and glanced over to Aiden.
“I’ll go…” He glanced towards the door.
“I could use some real coffee,” her father threw towards him. “I’m sure you could find a respectable coffee shop somewhere near here. I like it black.”
Aiden’s eyebrows shot up, and Aubrey