Chapter 15

       I was nervous all afternoon. I was counting down the minutes until my next break and itching to get to that stock room.

I had mustered up a plan, Sarah was involved and had a back story for anyone who had asked where I was and now, I was ready to go.

I couldn't dress up in a fancy red dress whilst on my way to a fancy restaurant, but this was how it was and I was...happy. The smile on my face this afternoon said it all.

"Your smiling is making me anxious." Sarah said whilst going through some paper work on the desk. "But I'll take whatever you're having."

"No you won't." I interjected. She wasn't having Mr Aaron King, the source of all my happiness so far.

I really needed to get a life.

"Don't you have somewhere to be?" Sarah smirked. Sometimes I wish I never had told her anything.

"Break?" I replied. A date with a hot man? A little secret retreat for the hour? Either of those would do.

"Go." She said, as if it was up to her anyway. But, I didn't argue. I grabbed my things and left the room quicker than she could have said come back.

And once I was out of the room, my nervousness came back. I didn't know why I was so nervous, I had done all sorts with this man in secret but this had some intimacy to it. He was planning something for me, to cheer me up. Nobody had ever been this kind to me before.

It shows I didn't usually have great taste in men, obviously.

I ran up to the stock room with enough speed to not seem suspicious. I got to the door and I couldn't even falter, if I did I was worried I'd never go in there.

Oh, Chloe, don't get all panicky now. You're not going to get caught!

I opened the door and was met with Aaron, his large body taking up most of the stock room. I looked around the room, a small plate of this evening's tea was on the floor. His hand was behind his back.

"Hi." I breathed. He smiled and it lit up the room.

"Hi." His voice seemed raspy. He pulled his hand from behind his back and out came a little buttercup. "I picked it up from the ground earlier when we were allowed out." He started rubbing the back of his neck with his other hand in what seemed to be embarrassment.

"I love it." I waltzed in to the room and took the buttercup from out of his grasp. I brought it to my nose. "It smells delightful, almost like it has never been in the prison's yard."

"It's probably a little crushed as I've held it in my pocket most of the afternoon." He said sheepishly. "But it's not dead yet so that's a good thing." He then chuckled nervously. "I shouldn't be joking about death."

"I mean..." I was silent for a second before I burst out giggling. Christ, I was like a high school girl giggling over her crush.

Was I the only girl who could stand in a room with a convicted murder and while he jokes about death I just stand there and laugh?

I must have been.

"Come, sit down." I looked around the room for a chair. "On the floor." He stated. Oh yes, the floor. I didn't mind, not one bit, I was just grateful to be here with him.

"Delicious looking meal." I said as I looked to the plate. The dinner ladies here never did a fantastic job but I wasn't complaining.

Nobody could burst the bubble I was currently in.

"You don't know the great difficulties of trying to sneak that up here without getting beat by a batton or something." He shook his head.

"You must really hate us." I said.

"I don't hate you." I looked in to his eyes. "I just hate the rest of them. You could beat me with a batton whenever you like." He winked my way. I'm sure I blushed.

"If that's what you're in to." I smirked back. He laughed.

"Would you like to eat this delicious five star meal with me? I've only got one fork, but it's got blunt edges."

"Sounds great." I said and he let me take the first bite.

"So, I want to know more about you." Aaron stated.

"Okay, well, I work-" I stopped. "You know where I work." I giggled nervously. I was bad at this. He looked at me with interest. "Umm, there's not really much to tell. I'm quite boring."

"Nonsense." He said while taking a bite for himself. "You have any ex boyfriends?" He looked so casual whilst he was asking.

"Yeah, just the one when I was about eighteen. We ended half way through university-"

"Was he nice?" Aaron intervened.

"He was nice enough. A little bit boring, I would say."

"So you like a bit more excitement, hey?" Aaron's eyes were twinkling with playfulness.

"You can say that." He was right, he had to be. Otherwise this situation would have scared me in to running for the nearest hills, or a new job. "But yeah, he was nice but he wasn't marriage material."

"You want to get married?" He asked, his interest piquing even more.

"One day, I hope." I saw the deflated look on Aaron's face, yet it left as soon as it came, leaving me wondering if I had ever saw it at all. "Or not, it doesn't really bother me." I lied a little. I think most girls had envisioned a future where they'd marry the love of their life. It was definitely in my future, but for now, I don't think Aaron needed to know that.

I wasn't even sure the man loved me.

Oh no, did I love Aaron? Was I in love with the man?

I shook those thoughts away.

"Do you have any ex girlfriends?" I asked to change the subject. I bet he did, I could picture all the women wanting Aaron King.

"No." A dark look flew across his face. "I don't want to talk about this anymore." He said and it left me wondering why.

I didn't want to push.

"Ask me another question." Aaron said, I suppose he could see the look on my face.

"Any question?" I replied. I had a lot of questions for the man. A side from his exes, I had questions such as, why did he murder that man? What was the back story? What did he feel like once he had done it?

Was that a good thing to ask on a date?

"Anything you want."

"I'm not really sure it's appropriate." I toyed.

"Go on." He pushed.

"I don't want you to get mad." I said as I placed the blunt fork down.

"I dare you to ask me."

"I just don't want-"

"Chloe, for the love of God, if I don't want to answer it I'll just tell you. I want to know what's on your mind, and people ask each other questions on dates." He leaned back against what seemed to be a mop bucket. He was all ears. "I want this to be as realistic as possible, I know it's hard but I'm trying."

"I know." I sighed. I was so thankful for that. I was trying too. "It's just, realistically, people don't usually go on dates with convicted murderers in prison." I wanted to be honest. "Not many people have questions about such a thing." I waited intently for his reaction.

He didn't show a thing.

"I don't usually like talking about it." He said. He was starting to close off. He was the one pushing me to ask him any question I wanted and now he was closing off?

"I know but you keep asking me to ask you questions and-"

"I know and it's my fault but I was hoping you'd lay off about that and ask me something like 'what is your favourite colour?'" My heart melted. He looked like an innocent child in that moment. I suppose he just wanted to be treated normally.

"Aaron." I sighed. "You have to understand that when you're in a room with someone like you, asking them what their favourite colour is is like-"

"Boring?" He questioned. Damn, now I felt like a dick.

"Not one bit." I moved closer to him and took his hand. "Nothing about you is boring, but why you're here and why we're doing this right now is because of what you did back then." I sighed again. "I just wanted to know, that was all. I also do want to know you're favourite colour."

"It's red, but I just really don't want to talk about the other stuff, I thought it would have been okay but it's not now."

"I know and-"

"I really really don't want to talk about it." He continued.

"Aaron, I know that-"

"I can't." His eyes were starting to look panicked. I was trying to tell him that I wouldn't talk about it anymore. Why was he intervening so much and cutting me off before he could listen? And why was he looking so panicked?

That panicked look made me anxious.

"I'm-"

"Shut up, please, shut up." He laid his head in his hands. Let me reassure you Aaron! I was pleading with him internally.

"For the love of God, I'm trying to-"

"I didn't murder that man, Chloe!"