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I bark out, “What?” and Ari flinches. Shit.
Deep breaths. Don’t take this out on the wrong person. But of all the things I could have expected—
Forcing a calm I’m not feeling, I smooth Ari’s hair and say gently, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you.”
“I know.” Ari touches my leg and looks up at me, her gaze anxious and worried. “But I knew you’d be upset. And after today… with Brett… I hate making it worse for you.”
“Hun, no.” Corralling all my self control, I shove down my anger and focus on comforting Ari. “You need to tell me these things.” I gather her in my arms, pressing my lips to her head. “What happened?”
“I didn’t actually seehim.” She exhales a shuddering breath. “He came to the school and said he had an appointment to meet with me. That his brother was one of my students, and we were supposed to be discussing his grades.”
My stomach turns to lead. It was one thing thinking that Kyle could be behind the leak at Ari’s house, but for him to actually show up at her work… It’s clear he’s still a threat to her.
I almost growl, “They didn’t let him in, did they?”
Ari shakes her head quickly. “No. He couldn’t even name the student, and they would never let someone in without proper identification. Security made him leave, and he was pretty angry about it. He threatened to sue the school…” Her voice wobbles, and she trails off, looking miserable.
Alternating waves of fury and fear are crashing into me.
I’m fucking furiousthat he went there, to her job, trying to trick his way in—my guess is he thought he could intimidate Ari into dropping the charges, signing an NDA.
But icy tendrils of fear are snaking through me, too.
I thought the school was one place Ari would besafe. Kyle didn’t get in this time, but what if he comes back with a better excuse next time? What if he’s able to get inside, get to Ari in her classroom? If she’s caught alone with him… He could terrify her, hurt her…
“Fuck.” It pops out, low and rough.
Ari’s chin is jutting out, trembling, and she’s on the verge of tears. Fuck.
I tip her chin up. “Ari, hun.” I gentle my voice. “Don’t cry. It’s okay.”
Swallowing hard, she says, “I’m not worried about him getting into the school. But he yelled at the security guard. And threatening to sue? I’m a new employee, and—” Her voice catches. “I’m not tenured. What if they decide to fire me because I’m causing too much trouble?”
Right now, I’d be happy if Ari wasn’tworking there. She could stay here, work on her writing, and I wouldknowshe’s safe.
“Maybe you should quit,” I blurt out, not exactly planning to say it, but liking the sound of it.
“What?” Ari jolts, her brows arching up in surprise. “Quit? Why?”
Now that I’ve said it, I really like the idea. Taking her hands, I explain, “You could stay here and work on your writing. My house is safe, you know it is, so you wouldn’t have to worry about Kyle getting to you.”
“Cash,” Ari starts, frowning.
“You like it here, right?” At her stunned nod, I push on. “Think about all the writing you could do. And you’ve been under so much stress; this would take some of the burden off you, and—”
“Cash.” She says my name sharply, stopping me mid-sentence. “In this plan of yours, how am I supposed to make money? You know, for my bills and expenses?”
“I could pay for everything, Ari. I don’t mind.”
After a pause, her voice dips dangerously. “Well,Imind. I’ve been supporting myself for over a decade. I don’t needyou to pay for everything. And I likemy job. I don’t want to give it up.”
Frustration bubbles up inside me. Why doesn’t she see that this is a good idea? “What about beingsafe?” I snap. “Isn’t that important, too? What if he gets inside the school next time? What then?”
Ari jerks back, her eyes hurt, face paling. Pushing off the couch, she turns away from me. “I need to get changed.”
She walks away, and I don’t call out for her to stop. Why doesn’t she see it makes sense? Staying here, Ari would be safe.
I stew for a full five minutes, glowering at my phone, scrolling through emails without reading a word. Half of me expects Ari to come back into the living room and tell me I was right, and she’s sorry for walking away.
