FINALLY got around to finishing this chapter. Wellll here is is! And let me know what you think, please! Also make sure to check out my story Just a Kiss on here as well ;) I tend to update that one more frequently than this...

R&R! And thanks so much for the reviews I've received! LOVE YOU GUYS.

Xoxo,

Kaitlyn

Aaron chuckled softly but still had a touch of worry in his eyes. I wasn't so used to see so much emotion displayed from Aaron in one setting. I was not sure what to expect in the future. The more I was with Aaron, the more his personality became so much more foreign to me. The more he changed and was turning into a person that could be labeled as more than just a naïve and provocative nuisance to my very existence.

Zander was like Aaron in many ways. He was an older figure that could be imagined as Aaron in the future, around his late twenties. If I hadn't had known better, I would have said that two were related, or brothers to say the least in this given equation and scenario.

"Thank you," Aaron said suddenly and solemnly, Zander nodding once when the two locked eyes. A silent exchange interconnected the short distance where Zander stood by the bookshelf and Aaron by the door, book in hand and ready to leave this small, claustrophobic room. I was becoming infuriated being ignored by the only people in my life at that moment, my questions continually going unanswered without a hope or change of ever being revealed. Aaron finally looked my way, his expression protected with a ghost of fortification as he moved to my side and asked me if I was ready to go. I nodded and he unpredictably took my hand, tucking the dilapidated ancient book under his arm as he led me out the door, putting a murmuring Zander behind us, him muttering what sounded like a silent prayer and plea in a native and foreign tongue for his old and new friends as we walked into the thundering night.

My mind was only half-aware of my surroundings as Aaron led me down the gloomy and obscure alley we had originally toured down before. The memory seemed like a life-time ago. He refused to touch me; I could tell as he kept a safe distance walking alongside me, his arms crossed over his broad chest with the book clasped firmly without a hope of escape. I was trying to figure out what his problem was when headlights flashed in front of our vision, blinding me momentarily as I brought a hand up to cover my eyes and regain eyesight.

Aaron froze in his place, swearing under his breath as he swung me around in one swift movement and pinned me against the wall. He was facing me, his face just simply inches from mine as his breathing slowed and the thin book lay propped between our still bodies. I swallowed, nervous from both the situation and his closeness as he stared into my eyes, willing me to keep quiet until he gave the okay. I nodded, apprehensively inflexible against the hard wall. The sensation of him was all around me, fanning over me until I was succumbed into our own personal bubble. He smelled like mint, making my head spin as I stared into his midnight eyes, unblinking. My hands were shaking so badly that I had to clench my fists together, my nails digging into the palms of my hands, indisputably drawing blood as I gasped from the awareness of this small speck of a pinch.

I peeked a glance to the right sideways at the direction we had been headed before, searching for any signs of an unwanted guest, when Aaron quickly and suddenly moved away and backed up farther than necessary from my stunned frame, his voice barely above a whisper as he spoke.

"Coast is clear. Let's get you someplace warm. I know a room that we can stay in for the night. It's not…safe to be driving at this hour."

My eyes shifted into a look of suspicion as Aaron rolled his eyes and took a head start in front of me, his steps wide, steady and fast-paced. I scoffed and made a face at his unspoken response as I ran to keep up with him, his height having an advantage on how fast he was moving. I was nearly out of breath as we passed each creviced wall, his car left abandoned in the empty parking lot as he ushered me up a flight of stairs, daring a glimpse over his shoulder into the night when he thought I wasn't watching. I thought I was going to trip up the stairs from all of the running when he and I finally made it to the top.

The floor was vacant and quiet, and I wondered who even managed this run-down motel. Zander did not fix me as the kind of guy who hung around a nearly empty lot wasting his time away in a small and stuffy room full of ancient books. Being as broad-shouldered as he was, he surely got out more often than this background of a life was leading on. Aaron opened the door for me, the room already unlocked as I wandered inside and craned my neck around the room.

The walls were bare except for a single picture of a crying woman hanging over the bed; not your typical hint of motel décor. A table sat in the corner with an open drawer that looked like it had recently been broken into and one queen sized bed. My eyebrows furrowed at the sight, never once having taken in a motel room that had only one bed right in the very center of the right-hand wall. Well, sleeping arrangements were going to be interesting to sort out, that was for sure. "

You can shower first," Aaron spoke as he stretched and sat on the bed, extending his legs out in front of him as he leisurely lay back on his elbows into a lounging position. I ran my eyes up his torso and to his face, finding his eyes on me at once as I realized I should probably answer his offer.

His eyebrows quirked with amusement at my staring, a smirk settling easily on his face as he tilted his head to the side. "Need me to help you find it?" I shook myself once and narrowed my eyes, putting a hand on my hip at his sarcasm.

"I think I can manage on my own, thanks," I said in a breathy tone, my voice quivering slightly.

"Darn," Aaron muttered under his breath with a sly grin, looking up at the ceiling as he waited for me to go into the bathroom I'm sure and get myself…situated.

I scurried into the bathroom, checking my reflection in the mirror before closing the door behind me and locking it, protecting what I didn't want lurkers like Aaron to see.

The reflection looking back at me made me stagger back a step as I struggled to regain my balance. The girl's hair was long with kinky waves, just reaching the middle of her stomach and falling in a curtain down her back. Her frame was small and fragile and innocent, her arms small but strong, although she felt very weak and helpless on the inside, although she would never admit it out loud. There were deep gray arches underneath her wide and childlike green eyes, marking the occasional traces of gray, much like an identical color that she imagined people were once able to call her mother's eyes, if she had ever known her.

Stripping down and turning on the water, I stepped into the heated water that engulfed me and shut my eyes tight, let the water drizzle over my face. I grabbed the nearest shampoo bottle, not bothering to check the label or brand, and squirted about the size of a tennis ball of the orange liquid into the palm of my hand before scrubbing the suds into my matted and wind-blown hair. The unfamiliar sense of security overwhelmed me, my heart pounding hard in my chest as the scent of oranges filled the steamy air around me, smelling stale and off. I ran my fingers through my hair once I conditioned it and then worked on scrubbing my body down with a strange smelling herbal soap. It was unlike any scent I had ever come across, even after having been to countless antique and organic stores with Gwendolyn.

I sighed. My heart ached for what Gwendolyn would think if she ever discovered my absence. Her almond eyes would be wide and frightened, trickled with tears as she reached for the phone. Her black spiral hair would be in its ever-present messy bun on the top of her head and she would be wearing her yoga clothes, having just dropped her mat by the front door before calling out my name, only to find no response or presence. Aaron would surely have to take me home tomorrow, right? I had a life to live, and kidnapping was illegal, anyway. I should have a say in whether or not I wanted to go home.

I twisted the knob of the shower and wrapped a towel around my body, stepping away from the shower and over to the large, rectangular mirror, plastered to a jade green wall, fading vines bordering the edges in hand painted, professional swirls, which I could imagine were once breathtakingly beautiful and exotic. I wrapped the towel securely around my vulnerable body, a cold air hitting me like knives once the heated temperature was gone. My eyes traced over the tiled floors as I traced my toe over the cracks where chunks of the flooring should have been.

"Sorry I couldn't take you somewhere classier. Figured you wouldn't mind too much."

I jumped at the sound of Aaron's voice, steadying myself on the small bench on the outside of the bathtub that I had nearly fallen off of. Did he seriously ever knock? He had absolutely no sense of privacy. I was wrapped in nothing but a towel for crying out loud! Aaron chuckled at my reaction and walked over to sit beside me, straightening from his stance as I moved as far as I could away from him. He stared intensely at me for a moment before pointing to my towel.

"How did you enjoy the high-quality bathing unit?" He smiled at my raised eyebrows that automatically shot up as soon as the words left his lips.

"You mean…the shower?" I asked, my voice confused and off as I tried to keep a clear mind, my gaze wandering back towards the tile and then the wall in front of me—anything to avoid his enigmatic black eyes…

"If that's what you want to call it," he smiled. Aaron ran a hand through his tousled hair, shaking it a bit to where it fell perfectly in place without so much as any needed effort.

I blinked my eyes, distracted for a moment, before turning towards the door and uncertainly crossing my legs, lengthening the gap between Aaron and me. Something passed in Aaron's eyes, but before I could place a name to the emotion it was gone as quickly as it came and he leaned forward to prop himself up on one elbow. He placed his hand near my leg so he could steady himself and leaned his body to one side, our shoulders just barely touching. His posture was so easygoing and he seemed comfortable here, as strange as that seemed given the circumstance we were in. It's the most "at ease" that I had seen him since we'd met, and I could not help but wonder what the other side of Aaron was like that I had yet to discover. If I ever would.

Well there it is! Hope you guys enjoyed and please check back for another chapter! It may be a VERY delayed update, so while you wait you should follow my other story, Just a Kiss and send your lovely reviews that way! ;) Thanks soooo much and I love you guys!

Tata for now,
Kaitlyn xoxo