Carpathian 03 - Dark Gold

doctor yelling at me."
    She looked at Aidan when she said it.
    
    Aidan raised an eyebrow, but his features otherwise remained expressionless granite. For some reason, that made her heart beat faster than if he had looked annoyed. Aidan Savage was planning something. She didn't know what, but she was certain of it.
    
    She hung up the phone. "I'm going to the theater," she said defiantly.
    
    Aidan nodded. "So I heard. Do you think it wise?"
    
    She shrugged. "I'm well enough. My health appears to be back to normal."
    
    "I am not concerned with your health at this moment,
    
    Alexandria," he said softly, "only his."
    

Chapter Twelve
    
    "Aidan, may I have a puppy?" Joshua, sandwiched between Aidan and Alexandria in the car, carefully avoided looking up at his sister.
    
    Alexandria stiffened resentfully, her chin up. Aidan's hand slid along the back of the seat and rested lightly on the nape of her neck. His fingers curled around the slim column and began a slow massage. "Joshua, it is fun to tease Alexandria that I am the big boss and can overrule her, but we both know the truth. Alexandria is your sister and your guardian. Why would you ask me such a question?"
    
    "Ah, Aidan." Joshua stared down at his hands. "She always says no. Don't you, Alex? She says it's too hard to find an apartment that will allow a puppy. But now we live with you. A puppy could live there, don't you think?" He looked up hopefully. "Your house is really big, and I'd take care of it, except when I'm at school."
    
    "Well, Joshua, I do not know," Aidan answered seriously, giving the matter consideration.
    "Puppies can be a significant amount of trouble. Marie and Stefan have many duties, keeping the household running. To be fair, they would have to be consulted also. This is not a decision to be made lightly. In any case, before you take the issue further, I think discussing it with your sister should be your primary starting point."
    
    Joshua shrugged and grinned engagingly up at Alexandria. "She already said we could have one if we ever found a place that would let us."
    
    Alexandria tried to focus, but her eyes were burning even behind the extremely dark glasses Aidan had insisted she wear. The car windows, too, were darkly tinted to help block out the sun, but it still felt as if a thousand needles were stabbing at her when the light touched her face. It was terrifying. And it meant that once again Aidan had been telling her the truth.

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    
    "We haven't been in Aidan's home long enough to know if we're even going to stay, Joshua."
    She ignored the fingers tightening around her neck. "And it isn't fair to saddle Marie with such a job so early. Let's wait and see what happens. I'll be starting work soon, and we're all just settling in. I'm not saying no. I'm just saying we should wait a little bit longer, okay?"
    
    "But, Alex…" There was a whining note in Joshua's voice.
    
    "I think Alexandria is being very fair, Joshua." Aidan's tone brooked no argument, and Joshua subsided immediately.
    
    She was oddly grateful to Aidan. Ordinarily Joshua would have tried to wear her down. And right now she was so tired it seemed difficult to think or function properly. Her eyes were streaming, and the muted sunlight was searing her arms and face. She wanted to cry, to scream against the fate that had done this to her. All along she had hoped Aidan wasn't really telling her the truth. That he merely had some devious reason for trying to convince her to believe him.
    
    We will be home soon , cara. The words moved through her mind, wrapping her in velvet and warmth like the comfort of his arms.
    
    "I can't accept this." She said it aloud, oblivious to the fact that Joshua sat between them, all ears. "I just can't, Aidan." It was a measure of her state of mind that she had said anything that might upset Joshua. She was always so careful around him.
    
    Aidan's hand slid lower down her back, tangling in her silky hair, linking them together. "Do not worry so. All will be well," he said, easily smoothing over the moment.
    
    The car pulled to a stop, and Stefan opened the door on Aidan's side. Instantly unfiltered sunlight poured in, a streak of heat and light, and Alexandria knew immediately that Stefan had been instructed to open Aidan's door rather than her own. Aidan, as always, was protecting her from her own folly. Even