“I needed to go through this. I’ll need to go through it again. I have to keep seeing that people can argue without getting physical. I have to learn what’s normal.”

She was probably right but he could go his entire life without wanting to see the fear in Shelby’s eyes again.

She moved close, raised herself on tiptoes and pressed her lips to his.

“Thank you,” she told him. “Thank you for everything.”

And then she was gone. Which was probably for the best because all he could think was that he wanted another kiss, and another. He wanted her mouth everywhere and his mouth doing the same and them getting naked and—

No. That wasn’t what this was about. They were friends on a mission. Because of their deal, he was becoming a better man. A desperately aroused man with no relief in sight. Talk about a hell of a way to build character.

* * *

SHELBY WOULD HAVE thought the fight between Aidan and his brother would have made her edgy for days. But the truth was, she’d never felt better. Relaxed, calm, capable. There was a sense of freedom that she couldn’t completely explain. She supposed it came from knowing she’d taken a big step in her healing.

While the argument between the brothers had terrified her, what had come from it had been wonderful. There had been anger but no violence. And Aidan had been totally there for her. He’d seen her terror and he’d reacted in a caring, gentle way.

She’d thought a lot about what had happened and had come to realize it wasn’t so much that he’d understood she was afraid, it was that even though he’d been angry, he’d been reachable. He hadn’t gone to such a place of darkness that he couldn’t be brought back.

Her therapist had talked about that. How most people who weren’t her father could get angry, but even flooded with that emotion, they could be reasoned with. That her job was to find men like that, men who could be trusted no matter how enraged they might be. She hadn’t thought such a man existed—except for her brother—but she’d been happily wrong.

She smoothed the icing on the cake she was making for Aidan. It was one of her favorites, with three different fillings, including one flavored with Kahlúa. She had a feeling he was going to like it. She hoped so.

“That looks beautiful,” Amber said as she walked into the back of the bakery. “I know a boyfriend cake when I see one.”

Shelby laughed. “No boyfriend, I promise. This is for a friend who happens to be a guy.”

“Yeah, I’m not a big believer in that. Twenty-one years ago I took one look at Tom and thought that I had to get me some of that.” She smiled. “I still feel that way. The man moves me.” She nodded at the cake. “That’s an I-got-to-get-me-some-of-that cake, Shelby. You can pretend all you want, but the message is in that icing there.”

Shelby just smiled at her partner. She’d already explained about her experiment with Aidan. Some people got it and some didn’t. Regardless, she knew they were creating something great together and it wasn’t the least bit romantic.

Not that she couldn’t appreciate the allure. He was a big, strong, handsome guy. Equally necessary for her, he was someone she could trust. Gentle, smart, funny and, okay, sexy. Sometimes she thought about what it would be like if they were more than friends. She would bet he kissed like a dream. If nothing else, he had lots of experience.

That made her smile, which caused Amber to raise her eyebrows. “See. There’s something going on.”

“I can look without touching.”

“Where’s the fun in that?” Amber wrinkled her nose and placed her hand on her stomach. “I have an appointment with Dr. Galloway.”