Aidan’s best friend? How come he’d never mentioned her, then?

I could see, despite how put together she was, the faintest of lines around her eyes that suggested she and Aidan were the same age. She reeked of expensive perfume, money, and class. Much like him. Minus the perfume, of course. “Nora. I’m a … friend too.”

“Nora is more than a friend.” Aidan shot me a displeased look that disappeared when he turned to Laine. Affection lit his expression and I felt an unaccountable jealousy over it. “It’s nice to have you home.” My jealousy only worsened as he hugged her and her fingers curled into his back.

Hmm.

Best friend, indeed.

“I can leave,” Laine said, stepping back from him.

“No, don’t. You’ve been gone a while.” Aidan’s reply surprised me. Weren’t we just about to rip each other’s clothes off? And yes, I knew it would be impolite to ask her to leave, especially since they hadn’t seen each other for whatever reason, but I couldn’t help the fact that my hurt was pricked. He turned to me. “Laine is a film producer for a small production company. She’s been filming in New Zealand for weeks.”

Wow.

Okay.

So not only was she beautiful, she was successful.

There was absolutely no reason to be threatened by that since apparently, they were just friends. Yet, Laine wasn’t looking at Aidan like he was just a friend. And while she may have shaken my hand, I didn’t miss the chill in the back of her pretty blue eyes when she did so.

“I brought dessert.” Laine lifted the bag. “I like my dessert. As if you couldn’t tell.” She ran her hands over her generous hips in a self-deprecating way that rang false. Laine must have been five ten. She was all slim waist, long legs, big bust, and full hips.

Basically, she was a walking wet dream and my total opposite in every way. I watched Aidan for any reaction to her but he was looking at me. There was apology in his expression and, if I wasn’t mistaken, sexual frustration.

I relaxed marginally, realizing he was being a good friend, but that didn’t mean he welcomed the interruption.

Ungenerously, I thought that if Laine was any kind of friend, she would’ve read the situation and given us privacy. Then I realized she had a key to his apartment and my jealousy returned tenfold.

How could I be jealous of a woman Aidan had been friends with for God knows how long? He and I had only met for real a few months ago. But jealous I was, and I did not like the emotion. Not even a little bit.

Attempting to cover my feelings, I gave him a reassuring smile and watched as he followed Laine into the kitchen to share out the pyramid of profiteroles and wine she’d brought. They worked around each other with ease, silently giving away their comfort with each other.

I swallowed hard, suddenly feeling I was the one who was intruding. “Bathroom?” I asked Aidan.

He gestured to me to come to him and I walked over, wanting to tug at my dress but stopping myself from making it obvious that I felt like a young country bumpkin next to Laine’s casual sophistication.

Aidan’s hand came to rest on my lower back, his fingers touching my ass, as he guided me down the hall to a door opposite the one he’d said was the master suite. He pushed it open, revealing a good-sized bathroom, tiled in a masculine gray slate. It had a large shower, an amazing claw-footed tub, and the essentials of toilet and sink. Aidan lowered his head and brushed a kiss across my lips. He murmured, “I’m sorry about this.”

“Don’t be,” I whispered. “She’s your friend.”

His hand on my back pressed me deeper to him. “Just a friend.”

I believed him. It was Laine I wasn’t so sure about. Call it female intuition.

After he left me, I closed the door, lost in my thoughts. Maybe I was being unfair. Just because I couldn’t understand any woman not being attracted to Aidan didn’t mean that every woman was. It wasn’t my place to question her motives. Not yet, anyway.

I moved toward the bathroom only to realize there wasn’t any toilet paper. Embarrassment filled me. I would have to go out and ask for some. Great. Willing the heat out of my cheeks, I opened the bathroom door and had just stepped into the hall when I heard my name in low tones.

“Yes, that’s Nora.” Aidan said.

“She’s the girl who dresses like Peter Pan, isn’t she? At the hospital.”

I sucked in a breath, leaning back against the wall, knowing eavesdropping was not cool but was unable to stop. Aidan had told Laine about me but he hadn’t told me about Laine? What did that mean?

“I can’t believe you’re fucking Peter Pan.”

“For God’s sake, Laine.”

“Well, you are. I didn’t walk in on something innocent here, Aidan.”

“I’m not sleeping with her. Yet.”

“She’s a child.”

“For Christ’s sake, she’s not a child. She’s almost twenty-three.”

“She looks younger. And she’s still a child. I thought you liked women your age—you know, sophisticated and educated. You told me this girl is some American high school dropout. Has this thing with Nicky and Sylvie forced you into an early midlife crisis?”

Aidan’s reply was angry. “This thing with Nicky and Sylvie?”

“That’s … not … I’m sorry. That was tactless. But I’m worried about you. You’re not yourself right now. You’re making decisions I know you will come to regret. This girl … she’s not a good idea, Aidan.”

“That’s where you’re wrong. You met her for two minutes and think you’ve got her worked out. You don’t know a damn thing about Nora. She’s the best idea I’ve had in years. And if you’re going to be judgmental, Laine, you can walk your arse right out this second.”

“Jesus, Aidan, I’m sorry.”

I ducked back inside the bathroom before I could hear anything else. I was already sorry for hearing too much. Trembling, I closed the door softly behind me and leaned my forehead against it. Laine hadn’t come right out and said it but her meaning was clear. I wasn’t sophisticated or educated enough for Aidan. Although I wasn’t some high school dropout!

For a while I’d forgotten my own insecurities. Even as he showed me around his apartment that I could never imagine being able to afford, even seeing his music equipment, knowing he’d used it to produce music for talented people around the world … I’d stopped feeling intimidated by him. All I cared about was the way he looked at me. He hadn’t made me feel too young or too uncultured for him.

He made me feel necessary.

But how long would that last if his best friend could see how unlikely we were together? I’d known going in that I was someone Aidan needed temporarily, and I’d known that my heart would probably be shattered by the end of it. It was to be my repentance. Right?

However, I suddenly had an inkling of how badly I could be damaged by him if just hearing Laine point out our differences hurt this much. Moreover, seeing Laine hug Aidan familiarly had provoked a kind of jealousy I didn’t know I was capable of.

Aidan Lennox was going to leave me in pieces.

I thought I was brave enough to handle it, but maybe I wasn’t. Maybe Laine interrupting us before we had sex was a good thing.

Shaken, I hit the flush on the toilet like I’d used it, ran the tap, and then hurried out of there. Wondering if I looked as pale as I felt and hoping I did so it confirmed the lie I was about to tell, I rounded into the kitchen to find Laine and Aidan looking up from the dessert they’d laid out. My stomach revolted at the idea of eating it, turning my lie into a truth.

And suddenly I was more than hurt.

I was angry.

Angry for constantly beating myself up about everything. Some of it was deserved. But wasn’t it time I stopped pounding myself with these insecurities? My gaze flashed angrily between them, suddenly not caring if they knew I’d heard.

“I’m sorry,” I said, grabbing my purse off the kitchen counter. “I don’t feel well. I don’t think my stomach is sophisticated enough for dessert tonight.”