sexual flutter in her tummy as the scent of his soap wrapped around her. “We need to talk over plans for our engagement party before my dad wakes up from his nap.”
“An engagement party?” Aiden looked horrified as he handed her the white sack filled with delicious scents.
Sage’s stomach growled and her mouth watered.
She spent most of her life focusing on being healthy. Spirit, mind and body, she fed them all the best.
Daily meditation, thought-provoking books. And a healthy organic diet. Whole foods, low fats and lots of vegetables.
She didn’t pollute her spirit with nastiness, her mind with negativity. Or her body with processed foods.
But Tilly’s donuts were special.
Amazingly special.
She sniffed the rich cinnamon-filled air, all but licking her lips. Of course, Tilly’s apple-cinnamon donuts went beyond amazingly simple into the realms of magic.
And Sage made a point to always embrace magic.
She’d like to embrace it right here in the foyer, but she had the feeling that Mrs. Green, her father’s housekeeper, would smack her if she did.
“What do you mean, we’re having an engagement party?” Aiden prodded, not caring that she was contemplating magic. “That’s a stupid idea.”
Hmm. She peered at his face, noting that he looked more irritated than upset. A night’s sleep at his own place and a delicious breakfast at Tilly’s clearly hadn’t gotten him any closer to embracing their newfound coupledom. Sage gave him a long look, noting that he didn’t look any more rested this morning than he had after traveling yesterday.
Jet lag over flying home from who knew where?
Or something deeper?
She tilted her head to one side, her hair sliding in a heavy wave over her bare shoulder to tickle her elbow. Aiden never talked about the navy. When he was home, it was as if that part of his life was a completely different world. Here, he was supergeek, the cute brainiac who cozied up with the Professor to feed his brain cells.
But this time he didn’t seem to be shaking off the stress. Granted, it wasn’t yet even twenty-four hours since he’d crossed the city limits. Nor had Sage been home at the same time he was in over two years. So maybe this was SOP for Chief Petty Officer Masters.
But she was still worried.
“Earth to Sage,” he said, looking irritated when she frowned. “We were having a conversation. You want to rejoin it?”
“No. You were offering your opinion of the intelligence of having an engagement party,” she corrected precisely. Since asking was pointless, Sage decided to keep a close eye on him until she was sure Aiden wasn’t hurting over something more than her father’s prognosis. Stress, she knew he could deal with. Worry was part and parcel of his personality. But if he was hurting, she’d have to step in and help. Somehow.
“It is a stupid idea. Why the hell would we want to have one?” No longer just looking exhausted, he’d added horrified to his expression. Sage didn’t know if the reaction was specific to their situation, or if almost any guy would be just as freaked at being told he was going on groom-grooming display.
“Because my father has decided he wants to throw one, that’s why,” she told him with a sniff. “Besides, you say that like I just told you we were being invaded by a marauding band of pygmies.”
“Do pygmies maraud in bands? Actually that might be interesting to see,” he said thoughtfully. “Did you know that some groups of pygmies were hunted by cannibals? With that kind of incentive, I’ll bet they’ve learned to maraud pretty well.”
“No, no. No pygmy lessons,” Sage protested quickly, waving both hands in the air as she rolled her eyes. “Instead, tell me what you’d find more threatening than interesting.”
“A biochemical attack by terrorists?”
She shuddered, giving him a horrified look.
“What?” he asked with a shrug. “That’s a threat.”
“You put our engagement party in the same
“An engagement party?” Aiden looked horrified as he handed her the white sack filled with delicious scents.
Sage’s stomach growled and her mouth watered.
She spent most of her life focusing on being healthy. Spirit, mind and body, she fed them all the best.
Daily meditation, thought-provoking books. And a healthy organic diet. Whole foods, low fats and lots of vegetables.
She didn’t pollute her spirit with nastiness, her mind with negativity. Or her body with processed foods.
But Tilly’s donuts were special.
Amazingly special.
She sniffed the rich cinnamon-filled air, all but licking her lips. Of course, Tilly’s apple-cinnamon donuts went beyond amazingly simple into the realms of magic.
And Sage made a point to always embrace magic.
She’d like to embrace it right here in the foyer, but she had the feeling that Mrs. Green, her father’s housekeeper, would smack her if she did.
“What do you mean, we’re having an engagement party?” Aiden prodded, not caring that she was contemplating magic. “That’s a stupid idea.”
Hmm. She peered at his face, noting that he looked more irritated than upset. A night’s sleep at his own place and a delicious breakfast at Tilly’s clearly hadn’t gotten him any closer to embracing their newfound coupledom. Sage gave him a long look, noting that he didn’t look any more rested this morning than he had after traveling yesterday.
Jet lag over flying home from who knew where?
Or something deeper?
She tilted her head to one side, her hair sliding in a heavy wave over her bare shoulder to tickle her elbow. Aiden never talked about the navy. When he was home, it was as if that part of his life was a completely different world. Here, he was supergeek, the cute brainiac who cozied up with the Professor to feed his brain cells.
But this time he didn’t seem to be shaking off the stress. Granted, it wasn’t yet even twenty-four hours since he’d crossed the city limits. Nor had Sage been home at the same time he was in over two years. So maybe this was SOP for Chief Petty Officer Masters.
But she was still worried.
“Earth to Sage,” he said, looking irritated when she frowned. “We were having a conversation. You want to rejoin it?”
“No. You were offering your opinion of the intelligence of having an engagement party,” she corrected precisely. Since asking was pointless, Sage decided to keep a close eye on him until she was sure Aiden wasn’t hurting over something more than her father’s prognosis. Stress, she knew he could deal with. Worry was part and parcel of his personality. But if he was hurting, she’d have to step in and help. Somehow.
“It is a stupid idea. Why the hell would we want to have one?” No longer just looking exhausted, he’d added horrified to his expression. Sage didn’t know if the reaction was specific to their situation, or if almost any guy would be just as freaked at being told he was going on groom-grooming display.
“Because my father has decided he wants to throw one, that’s why,” she told him with a sniff. “Besides, you say that like I just told you we were being invaded by a marauding band of pygmies.”
“Do pygmies maraud in bands? Actually that might be interesting to see,” he said thoughtfully. “Did you know that some groups of pygmies were hunted by cannibals? With that kind of incentive, I’ll bet they’ve learned to maraud pretty well.”
“No, no. No pygmy lessons,” Sage protested quickly, waving both hands in the air as she rolled her eyes. “Instead, tell me what you’d find more threatening than interesting.”
“A biochemical attack by terrorists?”
She shuddered, giving him a horrified look.
“What?” he asked with a shrug. “That’s a threat.”
“You put our engagement party in the same
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