The Interview

Chapter 5

Aria's POV

I barely slept.

By the time morning came I was already awake, staring at my phone as the notifications kept rolling in. Messages from people I didn't even know. Comments on the fake photos that kept getting worse.

...slut

...bet she fucked him for money

...daddy issues much?

I reported the posts. Flagged them on every platform I could find. Sent emails to the university administration with screenshots and timestamps.

Nothing happened.

The photos kept spreading.

Elena woke up around eight and immediately started her own campaign. She posted on every social media platform she had, saying the photos were fake, that someone was targeting me, that people needed to stop sharing lies.

"This is bullshit," she muttered, typing furiously on her phone. "Absolute bullshit."

A few people listened to her. Her friends commented in support. But for every person who believed the photos were fake, ten more shared them anyway.

By noon I had to turn my phone off completely. The messages were too much.

I sat in the library trying to study but the words on the page wouldn't stick. People walked past my table, whispering.

"...that's her..."

"...those photos..."

"...shameless..."

I kept my head down and pretended I couldn't hear.

At three I went back to the dorm to change. Put on the white button-down and jeans I'd picked out last night. I looked at myself in the mirror and barely recognized the girl staring back.

"Where are you going?" Elena asked. She was lying on her bed scrolling through her phone, still trying to do damage control.

"That thing I mentioned. Off campus."

"You're really not going to tell me what it is?"

"It's nothing important."

Elena sat up. "Aria. Someone is destroying your reputation and you're acting like everything's fine. This isn't fine. You need to..."

"I know." I grabbed my bag. "I'm handling it."

"How?"

I didn't answer. Just walked out before she could push harder.

The bus ride to the Ashford Estate took forty minutes. I sat in the back watching the city pass by, trying to calm my nerves.

I had one shot at this. One interview. I needed to seem professional and capable, not like some desperate eighteen-year-old with a revenge plan.

The bus dropped me off at the main road. I had to walk another ten minutes up a private drive before I even reached the gates.

The estate was massive.

Huge iron gates. Stone walls that stretched in both directions. Security cameras everywhere. Beyond the gates I could see lawns and gardens, a private road winding up to what looked like a mansion straight out of a movie.

I pressed the intercom button.

"Name and purpose," a voice said through the speaker.

"Aria Lennox. I have an interview at four."

There was a pause. Then the gates started opening.

A security guard met me on the other side. He was built like a tank, dressed in black gear, with a radio clipped to his chest.

"ID."

I handed over my student ID. He scanned it with some kind of device and handed it back.

"Follow me."

He led me up the private road toward the main house. The place was even more impressive up close. Three stories of stone and glass, with columns at the entrance and perfectly trimmed hedges lining the driveway.

I tried not to gawk.

As we walked I saw people working on the grounds. Gardeners trimming bushes. Someone washing windows. And in the distance, near what looked like a maintenance building, I saw my father.

He was bent over some piece of equipment, tools spread out around him. His work uniform was stained with grease.

My chest tightened.

He didn't notice me.

I was grateful. I didn't want to explain why I was here.

The security guard led me to the main entrance. The door was twice my height, solid wood with iron fixtures. He opened it and gestured for me to go inside.

The entrance hall was massive

Marble floors. A chandelier that probably cost more than my parents made in a year. A sweeping staircase that split into two directions. Artwork on the walls that looked like it belonged in a museum.

"Wait here," the guard said, and disappeared down a hallway.

I stood there feeling completely out of place.

A woman appeared a few minutes later. She was in her forties, tall and put-together. Dark hair pulled back in a perfect bun. Designer clothes. Sharp eyes that seemed to see right through me.

"Aria Lennox?" Her voice was cool.

"Yes."

"I'm Victoria Ashford. Matthias's sister." She looked me up and down like she was evaluating livestock. "Follow me."

She led me through the house to a sitting room that was somehow even more intimidating than the entrance hall. Expensive furniture. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the gardens. Everything perfect.

"Sit," Victoria said, gesturing to a chair.

I sat.

She remained standing, studying me with those calculating eyes.

"You're eighteen," she said. It wasn't really a question.

"Yes."

"A freshman at Lunar Ridge University."

"Yes."

"What's your major?"

"I haven't declared yet. Still taking general courses."

"And why do you want to work here?"

I gave her the answer I'd practiced. "I'm looking for part-time work to support myself through school. I'm hardworking and detail-oriented, and I'd like to gain experience in a professional environment."

Victoria's expression didn't change. "Your parents work here."

My stomach dropped. "What?"

"David and Susan Lennox. Maintenance division. They're your parents, aren't they?"

How did she know that? I'd used my legal name on the application but I hadn't mentioned them.

"Yes," I said carefully.

"Why didn't you mention that in your application?"

"I didn't think it was relevant. I'm applying on my own merits."

Victoria made a small sound that might have been amusement. "Interesting."

She asked a few more questions. My availability. My experience. Whether I had reliable transportation. I answered as honestly as I could without giving anything away.

The whole time she watched me like I was a puzzle she was trying to solve.

Finally she said, "Wait here. Mr. Ashford will be with you shortly."

She left.

I sat alone in that perfect room with my heart pounding.

This was it. Matthias was coming.

I heard footsteps in the hallway.

I stood up without thinking, smoothing down my shirt.

The door opened.

A man walked in and my breath caught.

I'd seen photos online but they didn't do him justice.

Tall. Broad shoulders that filled out his expensive shirt perfectly. Dark long hair. Sharp jaw that might have been carved down by the goddess herself.

And that scent. Cedarwood and something darker. I'd smelled it at the bar.

Recognition slammed into me. That stature? Those lips?

The stranger from the bar. The one I'd grabbed and kissed without looking at his face.

It was Matthias Ashford.

Oh fuck.