Page 53 of Until You

Aria places her hand on my knee and shakes her head. “You’re right, Riley. It absolutely was nepotism. Grayson gave me the chance of a lifetime, and I’m grateful for it every day. I’m working as hard as I can, every single day.”

He looks away, clearly feeling guilty. I get why he’s lashing out, but Aria doesn’t. She thinks he’s concerned about the quality of her work, this silly girl. She can’t see how much her colleagues admire her. How muchIadmire her.

She takes a sip of her coffee, and some of the foam sticks to her lips. I lean in and wipe it away with my thumb before raising it to my lips and sucking it off. Aria’s eyes widen, and her cheeks redden beautifully.

All the while, Riley’s expression keeps turning darker. I’m not done, though. I see the way he stares at her at work. Aria might be clueless, but I’m not.

“She’s an old friend,” I say, wrapping my arm around her shoulder. I take her coffee from her and raise it to my lip. I smile as I take a sip from the lipstick-stained cup. “She’s also my roommate.”

Aria tenses, and so does Riley. “You two… you live together?”

“When Gray offered me a job, I had no place to stay,” she says, and it irritates me she’s trying to justify why she lives with me. Is she scared Riley will misunderstand?

He glances between the two of us, and I take another leisurely sip of Aria’s sugary drink. He’s about to speak up when his phone rings. He sighs and shakes his head as he picks up. “It’s Elliot,” he says.

Aria glances at me while Riley takes the call, and I see the questions in her eyes. I’m struggling to push down my possessiveness today. I don’t know what it is, or what changed, but I’m no longer willing to risk letting her slip away. I know Noah would be furious if I make a move on her… but I’ll deal with that. I’m done sitting still and watching her slip away.

“I have to head back to the office,” Riley says, looking agitated. “Let’s catch up soon,” he adds, his eyes on Aria.

She turns to me the second he’s out of sight, her brows scrunched up in annoyance. “What was that?” I feign ignorance and shrug. “Grayson,” she says, her tone putting me on edge.

“What? It’s not like you could’ve kept us living together from him forever. With the way he continuously flirts with you, it was bound to come up.”

“He doesn’t flirt with me,” she says, her eyes wide.

I lean in and cup her cheek, my thumb tracing over her red lips. “Oh yeah? Didn’t he take you out for lunch a while ago, just the two of you? Let me guess… he took you somewhere nice and romantic? And what about all the times he hangs out at your desk, pretending to need your help just so he can be near you? You’re fucking clueless, Aria. So fucking clueless.”

“Clueless?” she repeats, her eyes flashing with anger.

I let go of her and take another sip of her coffee, irritated. “Forget it,” I tell her. “Flirt with him all you want. Date him, for all I care. I’ll stay out of your business.”

“Oh, so you won’t care if I take him home one day, then? You won’t care if I date him, or if I sleep with him?”

Rage almost consumes me at the mere thought of her with him, but I force myself to stay calm.

“I didn’t realize that was on your mind at all,” I tell her. “You can do whatever you want, Aria, but don’t you even fucking dream of bringing him into my home. I promised Noah I’d take care of you. I’m going to do just that.”

She pales and looks away. How did we get into this mess? Why couldn’t I just keep my damn mouth shut? Why did I have to crash her coffee date?

“Fine,” she says, and I know it isn’t fine at all. I might very well have pushed her into his arms when I meant to do the opposite.

She rises from her seat, her eyes flashing with anger. Her movements are rough as she grabs her bag and turns to walk away.

I’m tempted to follow her, but I’ve already done enough damage today.

39

Aria

I’m still angry by the time I sit down at the dining table, my laptop by my side. Usually I’d have waited for Gray so we could have dinner together, but today I don’t want to.

I’m strangely upset that he doesn’t care if I date Riley. Am I really nothing but a responsibility to him? All this time I thought he’d been enjoying my company, but now I’m wondering if I’ve been a burden to him all along.

It wouldn’t be the first time I misread a situation, after all. The sound of the front door opening startles me and Gray walks in, his eyes settling on me, his expression unreadable.

He walks past me and grabs himself a plate before joining me at the table. “Did you eat?” he asks, his tone rough, and I glare at him.

“I did. Not that it’s any of your business. I’m not a child, Gray. When Noah asked you to look after me, he didn’t mean literally.”

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