Page 89 of Hunt for the Roses
I have one hand on the wheel as my opposite elbow is propped on the windowsill and my fingers are on my lips in contemplation. “You don’t know that, Ari.” I say the words, but I’m not sure if I fully believe them.
“It’s not fair,” she continues in a whisper.
I’m at a loss for words because I don’t have any words to provide her solace right now. In an attempt to console her, I grab Aria’s hand across the center console and interlock our fingers together. “Maybe we should take a break from all this tonight. I’ll understand,” I say as I keep my eyes on the road.
Aria rests her elbow on the door of the car as she rests her palm on her head. “No. I’m tired of listening to my head.” I glance over at Aria, surprised yet so elated by her response. She peeks over to me and says, “I don’t want to go home.”
I tip my lips up in the corner and turn my head to put my eyes back on the road. “Feel like seeing some stars again?”
When I peek a glance over at Aria, I see her mouth stretch into a genuine smile as she says, “Sure.”
She knows exactly where I’m taking her.
* * *
As my tires roll over the gravel of Crestside Landing, I take a quick look around to see that no one else is here. When I park and turn off the engine, Aria opens her door to get out of the car, and I follow suit after I pop the trunk open. I go straight to the back of my car to retrieve a blanket and bring it over to the hood of the car.
“What’s that?” Aria asks.
“Ari, I know you teach math and can forget other pieces of knowledge, but this would be a blanket.”
She rolls her eyes as she smirks at me. “I meant to ask if you’ve been keeping that specifically for a night like tonight.”
I shrug as I start to unfold the red flannel blanket and lay it out flat on top of the hood of my car. “I hoped for it.”
Aria smiles as she pulls the side of the blanket that’s spread out toward her and helps stretch it across the hood. “No other women better have been wrapped in this blanket.”
I look her in the eyes and gesture an “X” across my chest with my finger. “Cross my heart.”
Aria smiles back as she walks around the hood to meet me where I’m standing and wraps her hands behind my neck. I bend my head down to kiss her, but as soon as our lips meet, I grab the backs of her thighs and sit her on the top of the blanket on the hood of my car.
Aria bites her lip as she scoots herself back until she’s sitting up against the windshield, and I hop up to sit beside her. I bend one knee and rest my elbow on it while my other bent leg is tucked sideways underneath.
“Why did you tell the truth?” I ask as I turn my head to look up at Aria, who’s sitting straighter than I am.
Aria inhales as she looks out at the water in front of us, and she slowly shakes her head as she prepares her words carefully. “As fearful as I was of Trent and Kate finding out, I was so angry.” My brows furrow slightly as I look at her. “It made me so angry to realize I’d never be able to fully enjoy my happiness because of other people’s opinions.” Aria shrugs. “I guess I just wanted to take some control back.”
“How do you feel now?” I ask.
Aria stays quiet for a few seconds before responding. “Like a weight has been lifted. But-”
“There’s still more to go.” I finish her sentence for her.
“Yeah,” she whispers.
I turn my head as I wipe a palm down my mouth, trying to think of how to proceed with this conversation. I can read the subtext she’s giving me, and I almost wish I wasn’t that intuitive with her. It seems like the more I can read her mind, the less I want to know. On the other hand, maybe now is the time to confront my fears head on. Maybe if I get her to open up to me, I can feel more comfortable with the complexity of our situation, and it’ll make us that much stronger.
Or maybe it won’t, and maybe it’ll make me feel even less secure than I already do.
But here goes nothing.
“Sometimes I look at you, and I can’t tell what you’re thinking. It’s the worst unknown,” I ask as I stare out in front of me.
Aria looks between us and places her hand on my thigh. When she gets up on her knees, I shift so Aria can straddle my hips, and I tentatively grab her hips as she rests her palms on my shoulders. Aria leans her forehead against mine as she whispers, “Let me help ease your mind.”
I forget what I even wanted to talk about when Aria suggestively grinds against the growing erection underneath my jeans as she undoes the buttons of my button down. When she reaches the button at my hem, her elegant hands slide under the collar to drag the shirt off my broad shoulders and rest it on my biceps. Aria bites her bottom lip as she visually drinks my chest and stomach in, and my heart rate picks up as blood rushes to my groin.
When I feel her soft palms press against my bare chest, I breathe against her lips. “Ari, wait.”
