AllFreeNovel
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I sit back down and look over at her. I can’t decide if her dress is a light blue or light purple, but either way, she looks good in it. She rises from the recliner, somehow looking elegant. I think she’s the only person I’ve ever known to look graceful while getting out of a recliner.
“It’s true, he did mention a wings-and-football theme.” She tosses an amused glance at me, and for a second, I’m rendered useless, caught up in everything about her.
Which isn’t good or fair to her. She just got out of a serious, long relationship. I can’t be that guy. I can’t be the rebound.
In any other situation in the past, if a woman was looking for a rebound to ease her emotional pain, and we both knew what the expectations were, then sure, I’d date her.
But Aria? Aria’s different.
Besides, I keep reminding myself that she didn’t actually just break up. It’s been a couple of months. All that time and she didn’t say anything to me—keeping her distance under the guise of being in a relationship. That probably tells me a lot about where her feelings are for me . . . or at least it should.
But I keep thinking about last night on our balconies. If they were a foot or two closer together, nothing would have been able to stop me from jumping into hers and wrapping her in a hug. And not because I was cold.
She gives a short slide presentation to the board about the caterers, menu, and place settings. I can’t help beaming with pride at the smiles of the committee members as she wraps up. Even Newt is awake now and semi-alert.
I don’t blame him. It’s Aria. She could make a sloth feel alive enough to run a 50-meter race.
Marjorie stands next. “That all sounds fantastic. Make sure the purchase orders are turned in to the accounting people in advance.” She gestures to two people in recliners in the far corner. “If you have any questions on how to do that, just ask.”
Then the meeting is turned over to Liz, and she talks about how they’ve been measuring the success of the marketing campaign. “Our golden couple here is hitting it out of the park! Everyone loves the chemistry. I don’t want to make any rash predictions or anything like that, but if these numbers are to be believed, we might get our best turnout we’ve ever had.” Her face falls. “If we can get our sponsorships back.”
Aria flicks a glance at me, and nerves show on her face.
“Okay,” I whisper to her. “No pressure, right?”
Her brows go up and she tilts her head in concession, as if to say,Thems the breaks.Still, there’s an underlying sadness in her expression.
The rest of the meeting, I’m taking notes and trying not to get distracted by Aria. But there’s one pervasive thought that’s pulsing in my head over and over again.
She’s single. She’s single. She’s single.
“You still tasting the cheesecake bath?” Aria asks me as we head out to our cars. It’s nine o’clock and the meeting has ended. We’re puffing out condensation with every breath.
“I had to spritz cologne all over me, even with the new shirt Jesse brought me. And then I took a shower when I got home from work.”
She shakes her head and laughs. “I still can’t believe you got plastered with cheesecake.”
“Speaking of the bakeshop, I have to go over to my office and get some things. The big pro bono case is coming up.”
“Okay, well, I might see you over there,” she says, before hurrying into her car.
Just because my office is right next to her bedroom doesn’t mean I have to see her. I shouldn’t. I have work to do and not much time to do it.
But when I reach my office and grab my files, I’m not sure where my head’s at. I could check to make sure she’s okay. She wasn’t okay last night, and I’m glad I was able to help her not be so alone.
I should probably check on her real fast.
I can hear her move around in her bedroom. I screw up my face in apprehension before deciding to go for it.
“Knock, knock,” I shout through the wall.
“Hey Theo,” she shouts back.
“I wanted to check on how you’re doing.”
There’s a long pause and I’m about to repeat myself when I hear her say. “Can I come over to your office? For just a minute?”
Every emotion under the sun shifts through me. “Uh. Sure.” I start throwing papers and files around to tidy up. “I’ll let you in in like, one minute?”
