“No shit. It better be for what it cost. Where were you going in such a rush?”
Aria shrugs, a solemn tear falling down her cheek. “Trying to run, I guess.”
I sit across from her. “From what?”
“My life.”
“Is it that bad living with me?”
“No. I just…” She swipes her tears away and stares at the ceiling, trying to keep herself from letting any more fall. She shakes her head back and forth, then looks at me, her eyes filled to the brim. “I just want… fuck! Gio…” She swipes another fallen tear and takes a deep breath. “I just want, for once, to make my own decisions. My entire life has been based on everyone else. I didn’t know my dad by his choice. I didn’t know about him by my mom’s choice. I went to the school Weston insisted on because he was paying. I even had to lie about my major because photography wasn’t an acceptable career goal. My mom made me change my last name. She moved Weston in without asking me.”
“What do you want, Aria?” I hold my breath, wondering if she’ll say me, unsure if I’ll be able to resist her if she does.
She stares at me for a few moments before she closes her eyes, takes another measured breath and swallows thickly, then reopens them, looking determined. “To be independent. I want to work at La Stella’s.”
There’s a fork in the road. I can go left and tell her no. Tell her I want her and want to try to settle down. Or, I can go right. Tell her okay and lose her before I’ve even had her. My heart says to go left, but my head says to go right. Her working for me will mean she’s off limits. It’ll mean she’s safe from the life I live and I know it’s the choice I have to make. “Okay. If you want to work at La Stella’s, I won’t stop you.”
She doesn’t smile. She doesn’t say a word. She simply nods once then stands and walks out the door, and fuck if my heart doesn’t feel like I just made the wrong choice. Like she’s not just walking out of this room but out of my life.
We ride home in silence and once we get up to the room, she begins to pack her stuff.
“What are you doing?” I ask, beginning to panic. There’s no way she’s leaving.
“Escorts sleep on the second floor.”
“So what? You sleep in here.” I snatch her clothes out of her hands, not wanting to come to terms with the fact I’ve pushed her away. That I’ve made my bed and now I have to lie in it…alone.
She takes her clothes back and sets them on the bed. “I’m going to be staying on the second floor, Giovanni. Sienna and Natalie said I can room with them.”
I watch as she continues to pack. She’s only moving one floor down, but it feels like she’s moving across the fucking continent. I don’t help her. She comes in and out of the room several times, taking all her stuff, while I sit here, frozen in my spot, unsure of how to fix this. When she’s finally done, she closes the door behind her and I sit in my same spot, staring at nothing, my heart feeling like it’s been ripped from my fucking chest, knowing this is the way it needs to be.
* * *
For the next several days I drown myself in work and getting information on Aria’s biological father. Most nights I sleep on my office couch, not wanting to go back to my room—not wanting to accept that Aria is gone.
I stay away from the main area. Cecilia updated me that Aria is being trained, but I told her I don’t want to know anything. She doesn’t update me on the other girls, so there’s no reason to update me on Aria.
My phone rings and it’s a New York area code. “Hello.”
“Giovanni Valentino?”
“Yes, who’s this?”
“This is Anthony Torino. My assistant has told me you’ve called looking for me. What can I do for you?”
“I think it’s best we meet in person.” That way I can look him in the eye when I threaten him.
“Okay, I’m assuming since you want this meeting you’ll be flying out to New York.” Smart guy…he wants the home court advantage, but a true player knows it’s not where you play but how you play, and I’ll win at this game no matter where we are. Game on, fucker.
I check my calendar. “I can be there the day after tomorrow.” We confirm the time and location before hanging up.
“Are you going to tell Aria?” Johnny asks, sitting across from me.
“I’m going to bring her with me.”
Chapter Sixteen
ARIA
It’s April in Nevada. The sun is shining and it’s humid as hell, but the flowers in the garden are blooming. I snap a couple pictures of each beautiful flower. Today is April twenty-ninth—also known as my twenty-first birthday. I’ll be spending it out to dinner with Benjamin Fields. He’s good-looking, with brown hair and brown eyes, looks to be in his mid-twenties, and is originally from New York, but travels all over opening up night clubs.