I lifted a brow as her cheeks turned red. My heart nearly stopped when Frank’s “All the Way” started.
“Willa,” I whispered, placing my hand on the side of her face. She leaned into it and smiled.
We stood there for a moment or two, lost in each other, before she finally raised her brows and I drew her closer once again. She nestled into me like her body was made for mine.
We slowly danced as I listened to the words of the song that Willa had purposely chosen. I was hyper-aware of every breath I took, every beat of my heart, and every single place my body touched hers.
How could I explain to her how much I loved her? How I’d been in love with her ever since that morning my senior year when I’d walked into the kitchen and—seemingly overnight—my best friend’s little sister had turned into a beautiful young woman right before my eyes. That the first kiss we shared in the barn had carried me through so many rough patches over the last few years. The thought of kissing her again, holding her in my arms… Fuck, I wanted to take her back to her house and bury myself inside of her for hours and hours.
But how could I ever ask her to live with a man who was so broken? What if I ever hurt her or Ben? I would never be able to forgive myself. Never.
She drew back and looked up into my eyes, and my stomach dropped like I’d just jumped out of a plane.
Willa chewed nervously on her lower lip. “Aiden, will you…will you…”
She looked away from me and pressed her mouth into a tight line. There was no doubt she was struggling to say something, and I hated that it was my fault she was faltering. I placed my finger on her chin and lifted until her gaze met mine.
“Will I what?”
“Come home with me tonight?”
My heart nearly seized in my chest. I wanted to scream out yes! Hell yes, I want to go home with you! But another part of me panicked. What if something happened again? What if I had another dream and this time I ended up hurting her?
She laced her fingers through mine and brought our hands up to her chest. “I need you to trust me, Aiden. Will you trust me?”
I didn’t have to think twice. “I trust you, Willa.”
She closed her eyes and shook her head. “I know that. Listen for a second.”
The music had changed and a faster song came on. Willa sighed in frustration as she glanced around the dance floor that was becoming more and more crowded. “Who knew all these people lived in Boggy Creek!” she shouted over the song.
Laughing, I replied, “It’s a small bar, Willa.”
With a roll of her eyes, she led us off the dance floor and back to the table where only Hunter, Kyle, and Bishop now sat.
“Where are Lacy and Connor?” Willa asked.
Hunter curled his lip in disgust. “They wanted to take advantage of being alone all night and said something about a new position. I honestly want to bleach my ears—and I cannot believe I just repeated it.”
Kyle and Bishop both laughed as I looked around for Bree. “Where’s Bree?”
Hunter shrugged. “I’m not sure. Last I saw, she was dancing with some guy she knew from high school.”
I knew Bree lived in Boston now, and that she and Hunter weren’t exclusive, so it wasn’t really a surprise that she was dancing with other guys. Hunter didn’t seem to be the least bit worried about the idea of her with another guy either.
“We’re leaving,” Willa announced out of the blue. I snapped my head to look at her and then back at Hunter.
Hunter raised a single brow and asked, “Together?”
Willa flashed him an innocent smile and nodded. “Congratulations again, big brother.” She leaned down and kissed him on the cheek. “I’m super proud of you.”
Hunter kissed her on the cheek as well and told her he loved her, too, then he gave me a warning look. One single look that said a million different things.
Willa slapped him on the side of his arm. “Stop giving him a death stare.”
With his two fingers pointed at me, Hunter moved them to his eyes and then back at me. “I’m watching you, dude.”
I smirked. “Is that your best threatening move? If so, I hope your K9 partner is a bit more intimidating.”
Hunter dropped his hand and narrowed his eyes at me. “Fuck you, O’Hara. Don’t hurt my sister, or I’ll kill you and feed you to my dog.”
I pointed at him. “Now that is more of a threat.”
Willa tugged at my hand, clearly ready to leave. “Have fun, boys!” she called out before we made our way through the bar and out into the crisp fall air.