Page 79 of Queen Rose

Aria

It doesn’t go unnoticed that my parents have ignored all attempts both Detective Jones and I have made to call them. I don’t know how much longer I can continue trying to be a part of our family. The irony isn’t wasted on me. I kept my mouth shut all these years to protect them from this. And for what? They don’t care about me at all.

I’m eighteen. Maybe I should take a cue from Micah and separate myself from my shitty parents for good. We have a few minutes before our Uber reaches the Danbrooks’ house. I snuggle up against Nate’s side, scrolling through text messages that have been coming in steadily. I hadn’t had a chance to look while we were in the hospital—Nate had held onto my phone. He’d wanted me to use the time to rest and had told me everyone was sending their healing vibes my way.

I sneak a look up at him, but he’s staring out the window. I hope he’s just tired. I worry that hearing the extent of what I’ve suffered has made him look at me differently. I sigh and look back at my cracked phone screen. The phone itself is working, despite Conner throwing it to the ground. I notice right away that Lyla added Nate to our group text thread, then I look at the crazy influx of messages and my eyes begin to water. Okay, so maybe it’s tears.

Xan:We’ll be at Beau and Griff’s.

Xan:Nate, keep us posted.

Nate:Will do. She’s waiting to see a doctor now.

Max:Come back to us soon, Your Highness.

ScarJo:It doesn’t matter, whatever you tell us.

ScarJo:Or if you chose to say nothing at all.

ScarJo:We’ll be your safe place.

Lyla:I’m going to hug you so hard.

Griff:Whoa there, Tiger. Gentle hugs for the queen.

Lyla:She knows what I mean.

Griff:In all seriousness, if you want to sleep for a week, that’s okay.

Beau:Yep. You can crash here. Your room is ready.

Daphne:Do we know when they’ll get home?

Daphne:Maybe we should have breakfast ready.

Micah: Whoa. You got Daph to participate in the group text.

Micah:Good job. ;) All hail the queen.

Nate:Just spoke with the detective.

Nate:Waiting for release.

Xan:TY.

I chew on my lip for a second, trying to decide how to respond. These people all care about me. It’s time I let them all the way in. I tap out a text, then fire it off.

Me:Breakfast, please. I’m hungry. And I’ll need the strength for what I have to tell you.

Glancing out the window, I see we’ve arrived. “Thank you,” I murmur to the driver, my voice scratchy. My throat is going to be sore for days.

“Yes, thank you.” Nate pops the door open and steps out, reaching back to give me a hand.

“Sure. Have a good day.” Our driver nods at us and gives a little wave as I put my hand in Nate’s and climb out of the vehicle.

We watch in silence as he takes off down the road. I’m not sure either of us thinks we have a particularly good day ahead of us. But for the first time in a very long time, I feel absolutely safe.

I blow out a hard breath just as Nate lifts our joined hands to his mouth and kisses the back of mine. “I’ll wait here with you as long as you want. As long as it takes you to be comfortable to go inside to see everyone.”

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