AriaDamon gently releases my hands and steps out of the car. The door shuts with a soft click that somehow feels louder in my chest than it does in the air. I watch him round the hood in those long, measured strides of his. The same ones that always make it seem like he knows exactly where he’s going, every single time.He opens my door, and I step out into the sharp bite of morning air. It smells like hotel soap and expensive polish out here. Clean and cold. Too clean for whatever we’re walking into. The air feels off.Then I see Leo walking out through the wide glass doors of the hotel lobby. His shoulders are squared, and his expression unreadable. Kingsley wheels in behind us, stepping out of his car like this is just any other Tuesday.Damon’s fingers find mine, lacing perfectly into them.The second his hand finds mine, the tension crawling across my skin goes quiet. We walk towards the lobby together, with Kingsley keeping pace just to our right.Leo gives a sharp nod as we ap
AriaAfter a while, I push myself up, limbs still heavy and warm from the aftershocks. He doesn’t speak—just watches me with that unreadable expression he wears when he’s trying to figure out how to hold back and still stay close.I find my slides under the bed and slip them on without a word. He stands too and helps me balance, fingers light on my waist, like he still doesn’t trust that I’m steady. I glance up, catch the softness in his eyes, and neither of us says anything.We peel off the rest of our clothes in silence. His sweats slide down, and he kicks them off. My shirt goes next. Then, we walk to the bathroom, bare, quiet, and completely unashamed.The shower is already running when I step in, the heat fanning across my skin, washing away everything that just happened, but none of the weight it carried. He follows behind me. We don’t look at each other much, but we don’t need to. The space between us still feels full, like we’re still tangled, even with the water separating us
Aria Morning creeps in quiet and low, with the usual sleepy grey light peeking through the curtains. I feel it before I open my eyes. Damon’s body is curled into mine, solid and warm, like a second skin on my back. His arm is draped across my waist, fingers resting just under my ribs like they know their place.I should be sleeping. But my mind won’t let me. It’s too loud up there, too full of yesterday.What got into you, Aria Williams?The question comes and goes in the same breath. Because I already know the answer. I like him.God, it’s annoying even admitting that to myself. I’ve fought the feeling for too long— tried to label it as survival instinct, proximity’s cause, some twisted form of Stockholm Syndrome—anything but what it actually is. But here we are.I like him.And, I think I’ve liked him longer than it’s safe to admit. Maybe since the hospital. Maybe since that stupid drenched night at Ashbury Lane. Maybe since the day he looked at me like he didn’t know whether to ki
DamonShe stands slowly, still quiet, and reaches for my hand again. This time, it feels different. Heavier. Like a promise.I take it, still breathless, still barely recovered, and she leads me back toward the bed. There’s this look on her face now—something between softness and fire. She’s not asking. She knows what she wants, and I’d be lying if I said I could deny her anything at this point.She climbs onto me slowly, straddling my hips like she’s meant to be there. There’s a look in her eyes…clear and sure and hungry…and it hits me harder than anything else ever could. I reach for her instinctively, hands on her thighs, thumbs brushing the inside, but she takes her time settling in.She leans down and kisses me again—this time slower. Tender. But there’s hunger under it, too. The kind that simmers. She rolls her hips once, just a little, grinding against me through the thin barrier of her panties, and I groan into her mouth.“Take them off,” I murmur.She doesn’t waste one second
DamonI pretend I didn’t see it, and we eat in silence. I clear the plates after, help her off the stool, and we walk slowly back to the room. I close the door behind us, thinking the night’s almost over. But my phone rings.I walk to the dresser and grab it."Have you heard from your brother?" Father asks the second I pick.I blink. "Which brother?""James."What's my bit with James?"No. We don’t talk.""How’s the office?""Fine.""Hope you're back on top of things.""I’m busy, Father. Everything’s fine."He cuts the call.A’s watching me from the bed. "What was that about?"“Joseph Stone.""What did he want?"I pause for a bit. "He was asking about James."Her head tilts. "James... as in James Stone?"I nod. "Yeah. But it’s not my problem."She looks at me with a look I can't quite place. Then sighs. "Do they know?""Know what?""The last five days.""Definitely not. If they did, your face would be plastered on every blog you follow on that phone."She presses her lips together. "
DamonThe room is dim and quiet in the kind of way that feels too loud. Just the steady hum of the heater filling the silence, low and constant near the window. Aria’s curled up with her back to me, buried under the duvet like she’s trying to disappear into it. Her breathing is soft and steady. Peaceful, almost. But me? I haven’t known peace since this morning.I’m on the couch beside her, hunched forward with my elbows on my knees, and my hands clasped together like they’re holding me together. I know that I need to rest. My body’s screaming for it. But every time I try to shut my eyes, my mind turns into this replay of every mistake I’ve made, and the secret I’m still keeping. The truth I’m about to drop like a bomb.We ate a couple hours ago— one of Kingsley's delicately prepared specials, that neither of us really had the appetite for. She picked at her food, then gave up halfway through. I didn’t press. After that, I helped her into the shower again. And yeah, it was awkward, mo