Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 109205 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 546(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109205 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 546(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
“Excuse me,” I said as I pushed between the woman and Aiden. She shot me a dirty look, but I simply smiled and then faced Aiden.
“Does that happen a lot?” I asked, not liking the hint of jealousy in my voice. I was never the type of person to be jealous. I wasn’t naïve, and I knew for a fact that Aiden wasn’t a virgin. He obviously hadn’t remained celibate over the years, and neither had I. Obviously. But why did the idea of other women being in his bed nearly drive me mad?
He ordered two beers and then looked down at me. “Does what happen a lot?”
“Women throwing themselves at you.”
He laughed. “Yeah, we had a lot of Frog Hogs at the local bars back in Virginia Beach.”
“Frog Hogs?” I asked, never remembering him mentioning anything like that before. Of course, our emails had always been like two friends catching up. He’d ask about Boggy Creek, my folks, the orchard. He rarely shared anything about his own life. Only that he was going to be deployed or out of touch for a few weeks…which sometimes turned into months. We had certainly never talked about sex, or how many women Aiden was sleeping with, or the men I had been with—which had only been three, including Brian.
“Yeah, women who like to hook up with SEALs.”
I snarled my lip. “Women wanted to sleep with you simply because you’re a SEAL?”
He nodded and pushed money to the bartender. “Keep the change.”
“Thanks,” the guy said and quickly moved on to the next person.
“So, did you?” I asked, not even sure why. I didn’t really want to know his answer.
Aiden placed his hand on my lower back to guide me over to where our small group had found a table. I felt an immediate jolt of electricity rush through my body. I was almost positive he felt it as well because his fingers flexed against my back. We walked over to the two tables that had been pushed together where my brother, Kyle, Adam, Bishop, Bree, and now three other women all sat.
“Did I what?” Aiden asked.
I sighed. “You know, if you’re going to answer every question with another question, Aiden, this night is going to get pretty boring.”
“Then ask clearer questions, Squirt.”
I shot him a dirty look. I did not like him calling me by my childhood nickname. Not one bit. I wasn’t even sure why it bothered me so much. Maybe it made me feel like Hunter’s little sister all over again, and that was not how I wanted to feel, especially tonight.
Then a thought hit me. Was Aiden trying to put me back into that box? Did he still feel like we were in the friend zone?
Suddenly, I felt so very stupid. Of course he was. He had made it clear once we couldn’t be anything more than friends, so why would things change?
Good Lord, I hadn’t even been divorced twenty-four hours yet, and I was letting my thoughts go crazy.
No. I had every right to feel this way. I had never truly given my heart to Brian; I wasn’t going to lie to myself about that. I had been separated from him for a year. I had every right to move on with my life.
We stopped at the table and Aiden stared at me, waiting for me to ask the question again. I shook my wandering thoughts away. “Fine, did you hook up with a lot of these…Frog Hogs?”
He looked down and smiled, and I nearly melted at the sight of his dimples. Then he sealed my fate with a wink as he pulled out a chair for me and motioned for me to sit.
I waited for a moment too long, because Hunter asked, “What’s wrong, Willa?”
With a slow shake of my head, I turned to him and forced a happy expression. “Nothing at all. Aiden here was telling me about Frog Hogs.”
Aiden laughed and took the seat next to me. Once he got settled, he leaned his leg against mine. I waited for him to move it, but he simply left it there. There was plenty of room between everyone, so I knew he wasn’t cramped on the other side. I tried to move my leg, only to have his follow.
Instead of sitting at an awkward angle, I finally just accepted that his leg was going to be against mine. I simply needed to accept the fact that his touch made my lower stomach ache for more. I hadn’t felt that in…oh hell…since that night in the barn. Had Brian ever made my insides ache like this? He had to have at one point, right?
Stop comparing them, Willamina!
“What’s a Frog Hog?” one of the women asked, causing me to look her way.
“Women who want to hook up with Navy SEALs,” Aiden answered before he took a long drink from his beer.