Lucas frowns with discontent as Aria walks back into the building. He knew that his time with her was coming to an end but he wasn’t sure whether or not she was lying about seeing her next client. So he does what he did last time to keep her attention on him, something he has slowly become obsessed with getting. “Aria, have you had lunch yet?”Aria stopped and looked back at him confusedly and warily before looking over to Daisy. As expected, Lucas’s fiance looked surprised by Lucas’s brazen behavior; asking another woman out to lunch when the woman he’s supposed to marry is standing right next to him. Daisy’s silence doesn’t last long because she quickly speaks up before Aria even has the chance. “Honey, didn’t Ms. La Belle say that she has more work to attend to? Let’s leave her to it. Your uncle wants to see you anyway.” The sudden mention of Lucas’s uncle wanting to see him was something that he thought would’ve been one of the first things Daisy would’ve said to him. This make

Even within the back of the room near the bar, the speakers let out the booming bass that rattled Mason’s eardrums as well as the club’s walls. No surprise, Mason had a feeling that Lucas would go back to his old habits. His best friend would always drag him along to a club to get drunk and occasionally take a woman to bed when he’s had a bad day. And the moment Mason saw Lucas’s face when he got back to work, he looked gloomier than ever. Lucas hasn’t confided in him yet on what has been ailing him today but Mason knew that he was going to eventually, likely after his drunk. He just hopes that it doesn’t involve Aria. Their alcoholic beverages had ripples in them because of how loud the bass was. It didn’t seem to bother Lucas one bit. He seemed to enjoy it quite a bit. “Old habits die at all, eh?” Mason’s voice is a little raised so that Lucas can hear him over the music.“What?” Lucas still didn’t hear everything he said.Mason signs and scoots closer before trying again with an

From the other side of the door, Lucas’s expression dropped into confusion and he whispered to himself. “Alcoholism…?” It was hard for Lucas to believe that Aria had ever been an alcoholic. And this was the first time he’d heard about the death of her friend.Aria on the other hand froze up and her mind went blank when she heard the interviewer’s chosen words. The silence was making everyone impatient so the interviewer leaned over her desk while repeating herself. “Ms. La Belle, could you tell us about Madaline Dyke? She was the guitarist in your band, was she not? You were both close friends for a long time?” she then tilted her head, the impatience was showing in her eyes. “Could you tell us more about your relationship?”“Sh– she… uh…” Aria swallowed saliva that felt as hard as a rock as she inhaled a shaky breath and held her hands behind her back. “She… Yes, she was the guitarist in our band. I’ve known her since college… we had dreams of becoming stars together… and she was t

The tall city towers began to shrink into houses and eventually into abandoned shacks. As Lucas drove out of the city limits and further out into the rural areas the sky started to darken gradually yet rapidly. Eventually, he drove by a small, rundown, old building that looked like it was supposed to be a nightclub. Or at least it was vibrant decades ago, now it reminded Lucas of a dusty skeleton. However, lights were coming from inside the stained windows and there were a handful of people parked in front of the building. Lucas just hoped that this was still a club and it hadn’t been taken over by a gang of robbers or something.Lucas pulled up onto the gravel parking lot and warily entered the nightclub. Thankfully, it was still just a club. Most of the people there were middle-aged or older. It looked as if the regulars had remained regulars for decades as well. The handsome man walked up to the bartender on the other side of the counter. The woman looked to be in her mid-forties

As Lucas reached for Aria’s body he paused momentarily to make sure that the woman was truly sound asleep and he could see that she was. Her sides slowly rose up and down with each breath. When her slumber was confirmed he reached closer to her hip until he was able to place his hand on it and slowly glide down to her thighs. A real gentleman would’ve felt shame and self-loathing but such prideful things were overpowered by his curiosity and temptation. His hand gilded her figure as if memorizing her shape by touch alone, he even made sure not to apply too much pressure so that he wouldn’t wake her up. His feelings eventually began to boil into desire and he felt the urge to feel her skin so he reached for the most exposed area, her back on her nightgown. It was satisfying yet torturous to only graze his fingers down her shoulder blades and spine. Feeling up on her stopped abruptly when she moved ever so slightly while still asleep. Even her scent was hypnotizing as he leaned down cl