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“Deal.”
As I hit the play button, Cash’s arm comes around my shoulder, tugging me into his side. My breath catches.
He tilts his head, looking down at me. “Is this okay?”
“Yes.” Relaxing against him, my head resting on his shoulder, my heart fills. “It’s perfect.”
Chapter 8
CASH
I keep remembering the expression on Ari’s face when I came home yesterday.
Scared, but trying so hard to hide it. Her chin jutting out, lips trembling, her features shadowed and strained. All wrapped in those blankets, tucked in the corner of the couch, almost like she was hiding. And her voice, so small and frightened.
And then the worst of it. Ari sobbing in my arms, shaking, telling me about the flashbacks she was having, her fear—
All of it, so wrong.
Except holding her. That felt right. Even though I shouldn’t have been thinking about it, not when Ari is so vulnerable and hurting.
Although, last night… Before the movie, when Ari looked at me with so much emotion in her eyes. It seemed like more than friendship, but—
Do I wantAri to think of me as more than a friend?
What about my insistence on not doing relationships? On not wanting to chance losing another person I love?
But then there’s the way I feel around her. The flame that was always there, now strengthening. At least, it is for me.
But what if I do something, and it’s not what she wants? Will I lose Ari?
She didn’t pull away when I put my arm around her last night. I told myself it was just to comfort her, and that was partly true. But feeling her body tucked against mine, the soft swells of her curves, her slight weight, the silk of her hair on my neck—I didn’t want to let her go.
But my feelings are secondary to keeping Ari safe. Which is why we’re meeting with Cole Mitchell, my friend and founder of Blade and Arrow Security, to find out what he thinks our next steps should be.
I’m not thrilled that Ari is going to be at the meeting, even though I understand why she wants to be there. Of course, she would want to be involved, to learn everything she can about the man who drugged and abducted her, about the potential dangers she’s facing.
But all my protective instincts are flaring, and I’d do anything to not see that same frightened look from yesterday.
Maybe we’ll get good news from Cole. Maybe Kyle Morgan is cowed, secluding himself at home, not likely to be a threat to Ari.
Or maybe it will be bad news, which is what the pit in my stomach is telling me.
It’s the same gut instinct that insisted I hold right before entering a burning building, seconds before the ceiling caved in. The same instinct that told me there was a child hiding in that kitchen cabinet, where there were a dozen other places he could have been. My gut instinct isn’t usually wrong, but I’m really hoping in this case, it is.
But I’m not letting on that I’m worried.
I’m picking Ari up from school so we can head straight to our meeting, and as I wait in front of the building, I keep a smile plastered on my face.
Once I see her come through the front doors, my smile becomes more genuine. She looks so pretty, her hair swinging as she walks, cheeks flushed from the cold, and she lights up as soon as she spots me. Picking up her pace, she hurries to my car and tugs the door open, tossing her tote on the back seat and sliding inside.
After an exaggerated shiver, she asks, “How do I always forget how cold it gets? And it’s only November.”
Eyeballing her thin fleece jacket, I say, “Maybe it’s time for a warmer coat.”
“Probably.” Her brow wrinkles. “They’re all at my house, though.”
“We can go there soon, pick up whatever you need.” As I pull away from the curb, I silently curse myself for not thinking of it sooner. We made one trip to her house the day after she went to the hospital, and Ari hasn’t been back since. But of course she needs all her sweaters and winter coats and boots, especially considering I don’t know how long she’ll be staying with me.
