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Not wanting the shadow of Hunter Armstrong to ruin their evening, she changed the topic of conversation to the upcoming Artichoke Festival. Grant arrived with their food, and they all began eating with murmurs of appreciation.
When Rory left the booth to get a refill of her drink, Aria slipped out of her seat and followed her sister to the bar.
“Hey, Rory, can you really do some digging on Hunter Armstrong?”
“Sure.” Rory leaned her elbows on the bar as Grant set a glass in front of her. “There’s a crap ton of stuff out there that’s not indexed on regular search engines.”
Aria bit her lip, deflecting a stab of guilt. “It’s not illegal, is it?”
“No.” Her sister took a sip of her drink. “Are you sure you want me to, though? Blackmailing isn’t your style.”
Aria frowned. “Why, because I’m so sweet and nice?”
“Well, yeah.”
Smothering a groan, Aria poked her sister in the arm. “For your information, I can be ruthless. And in this case, maybe blackmailing is exactly my style.”
Raising an eyebrow, Rory slanted her a glance. “You’resure.”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Because you have a rather strong interest in him already.”
A flush heated Aria’s cheeks. She’d always been closer to Rory than Callie, whom she saw as another maternal figure—albeit one she could argue with more readily. As a teenager, she’d often confided in Rory about her loves and losses.
Though Rory was hardly an expert on relationships—always having preferred data over dating—Aria appreciated her sister’s logical input.
But there was nothing logical about her twisty feelings for Hunter, which ran the spectrum from intense dislike to a throbbing attraction she couldn’t escape. Their kisses were imprinted in her mind with indelible ink. She’ddreamtabout him last night.
There was no way she could tell Rory about all that.
“Do the deep search,” she told her sister. “And tell me everything you find out about him.”
“Okay, then.” Rory picked up her glass and headed back to the booth. “But be warned. Once you know something, you can’tunknowit.”
* * *
After dinner, Aria and Destiny walked back to Mariposa Street. As always, Aria’s spirits rose at the sight of her café. In the window, Jumbo was peering out into the evening dusk, his tail twitching.
“I have something for you.” Destiny dug around in her large beaded purse. She took out a hemp-cord necklace holding a red amethyst pendant. The streetlight glimmered on the rough, jagged edges of the raw crystal.
“Red amethyst bolsters your courage and heals your self-worth.” Destiny fastened the necklace around Aria’s neck. “You need a little extra help now.”
“It’s beautiful.” Aria touched the crystal. “Thank you so much.”
“You know I haven’t made my decision about the contract yet.” A shadow crossed Destiny’s features. “I don’t love the idea of a modern retail complex here, but at the same time, the money they’re offering would allow me to relocate. I could never afford to do that right now. But whatever happens, I don’t want it to come between us.”
“Neither do I.” Aria swallowed her fear that it very well could.
After hugging her friend goodbye, she entered the café. She fed the cats and picked up Jumbo before heading up the narrow staircase to her room.
Jumbo bounded onto the sofa and curled up on his favorite pillow. He was the only cat Aria would never give up for adoption. When she’d walked out on Steve, she’d had her suitcase in one hand and Jumbo in the other.
The cat had given her the courage to finally take the step she’d been too scared to take before. Jumbo had been at her side the entire time she was building her new life.
A life she had to protect.
She sat beside Jumbo and opened her old laptop. She typedHunter Armstronginto a search engine and perused the results.
