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Chapter16
LANDON
Was he breathing?
Where had the oxygen gone? And why was it so goddamned hot in this house?
His mind raced.
His throat grew dry.
It was as if the ground beneath his feet was about to give way.
He struggled to steady himself.
Calm the hell down.
She couldn’t know what he was hiding. She was grasping at straws to get under his skin.
That was a lie.
Harper wasn’t attacking him for the hell of it.
Sure, fury welled in her hazel eyes. He’d stormed off like a giant douche nozzle. That alone would have set off his firecracker of a wife.
But this was different.
She’d put it together. She’d figured out the truth. He’d feared this from the first time he’d laid eyes on her. If anyone could see into his soul, it would be her.
Behind the sass, the attitude, and the general air of complete Harper Presley insanity, empathy and a deep compassion lived in her heart.
And that emotion came to life through music.
After he’d searched the trail for his niece and doubled back, he’d heard the rise and fall of the notes dancing in the air as he approached the garage. There was no way to fight it. The melody had called to him.
And then two voices accompanied the tune.
Hearing Aria sing with Harper had eased the twisting anxiety that drained his creativity and left him a husk of a man. And just like on their wedding night, when they’d agreed to make every reckless choice and throw caution to the wind, a lightness had taken over. A euphoric bliss captured him and drove him to grab his old guitar and join them.
It was the first time he’d heard Aria sing since Trey and Leighton’s passing. Despite clamming up the minute he coaxed her to continue, her spark had returned—even if it was only a brief flicker. The whole moment felt surreal like he straddled two worlds. One with Harper and Aria and the second with his sister and best friend. It was as if Trey and Leighton were with them in the garage. Their spirits were woven within the notes.
And that sense of belonging had lulled him into an unfamiliar contentment.
He’d never pictured himself living with anyone. Still, with Aria’s spirits lifted and as Harper his wife, at least for the time being, he’d figured, what the hell. It was better than carrying a kicking and screaming Aria into his Crystal Hills mansion. Still, a more compliant and upbeat niece wasn’t the only reason a sense of calm had washed over him when Harper had pointed to a welcoming two-story house with blond brick and a shady oak in the front yard and announced they were home.
Home.
He could try to deny it, but a part of him wanted to be with her, wanted to play house, wanted to know she was close by. For the first time in a long time, he wouldn’t be alone, and the part of him that craved connection couldn’t help but see the Baxter Park living situation as a kind of respite.
But Harper was no fool.
That woman saw everything—or maybe he just couldn’t hide from her.
Here’s the thing. He understood Harper’s impulse to help.
But that kind of shit would only draw more attention to Aria.
And to him.
