Is a gift of love enough to open Aiden’s heart and let Tris back in?<br><br>After the car accident that killed his parents and left his sister paralyzed, Tris is left with nothing. His family is destroyed. His reputation is shot. And all he has is the guilt of knowing it was all his fault. People in town know he’d been drinking that night, and know he should never have gotten behind the wheel. And even Aiden, the man he thought he’d be with forever, blames him too much to stay.<br><br>But Tris can’t let him just disappear. After months of loneliness and isolation, Tris brings Aiden a gift on his birthday, a hawk he’s carved from a chunk of wood they’d found in the forest during an afternoon of love. A small chink seems to open in Aiden’s heart, the first sign of forgiveness. With renewed hope, Tris takes a job renovating one of the older homes in town and tries to rebuild his life. But the townspeople have long memories, and when his sister’s condition worsens, forgiveness -- and Aiden -- seem to slip even further out of reach ...

Without Aiden

Aiden put a finger under his chin and raised his eyes. “You have to be more careful,” he murmured and gently touched Tris’s lips with his own. “Those two meant to hurt you, bad.” Tris’s heart warmed, then stumbled over Aiden’s next words, “Maybe you should leave town.”


Tris stared at Aiden’s averted face while his dreams crumbled around him. “You want me to go?” he asked as panic churned in his stomach. Anguish made him reckless, and he bunched Aiden’s shirt in his hands. Tears laced his words. “You’ll never forgive me, will you?”


Aiden looked at him with distress. “I thought I had. But seeing you at the bar…Goddamn, Tris! Your parents died because of your drinking.” He scrubbed his face with his hands. “I just need a little more time. I still care, but…”


Chapter 16