Chapter 4
4
Aria
O kay.
She’d been foolish. Her face burned hotter than she could ever remember as she all but stomped back to the house. Why was she even embarrassed? She hadn’t been trying to win him over. She wasn’t really hitting on him. She’d been trying to figure out if he was honorable.
It had been an important test in her eyes, and yet she couldn’t shake the pain she felt over being refused.
The way he’d asked her to leave—it left her feeling burned.
What was wrong with her?
She growled at herself as she continued charging away from him. The more distance she could put between them, the better it would be. The man wasn’t anything like she’d expected. He was quiet and private. He didn’t push her for anything. Instead, he watched her, studied her like she was one of the buildings in the architecture book he had on the coffee table.
She’d noticed that he didn’t have much of anything else that he’d brought with him.
That made sense, though, she had to remind herself. He wasn’t supposed to be here long. Why would he move his whole world into that small cabin?
Aria clenched and flexed her hands. He probably thought she was throwing herself at him. He probably thought he had a chance with her.
No.
No, he didn’t.
He’d brushed off her advances.
Aria shoved her fingers into her hair and groaned again. Why was she so worried about what he was thinking about her? There wasn’t any reason for her to be embarrassed or to even care what he thought.
And yet here she was, obsessing over a man she barely knew.
It was because he hadn’t shown any indication of being a bad guy.
She couldn’t tell if she was relieved or upset about it. And that understanding hit her so hard in the chest that she nearly lost her breath as she continued rushing for the house.
Daniel didn’t take advantage of her. He hadn’t shown any indication of being abusive. Beyond insisting he return her home, he wasn’t even that controlling. Had she imagined it yesterday when he’d shown up out of nowhere?
Aria refused to rule everything out. Most abusive men didn’t show their true colors until they snagged the woman they wanted.
But he hadn’t wanted you .
No, he hadn’t.
She’d made a mistake. That was the only thing that made sense. She’d been too sensitive about his offer the other night. Sophia had told her that she was too independent for her own good. Her cousin hadn’t known how bad things were with Cayden. No one did.
Aria’s frenzied marching slowed when the house came into view.
If Sophia liked Daniel, and so did Isabelle, then Aria needed to steer clear of the man. She couldn’t get involved with him—even if it was a platonic relationship.
So why did her heart flutter a little more when she thought about bringing him supper tomorrow? She’d promised Sophia that she’d help out. That meant for the next week—two weeks actually—she’d be stopping by the cabin with food.
Aria made it to the house and sagged onto the porch steps.
She couldn’t deny that she felt drawn to him. It was ridiculous. It bordered on dangerous. It was definitely wrong. Placing her head in her hands as she rested her elbows on her knees, she let the guilt wrap around her while her brain sought out any reason that would help her rationalize her infatuation.
Then her head snapped up and she stared out into the darkness with a renewed sense of purpose. He’d been closed off—too private for his own good. He was probably hiding something about himself that could come out later and end up hurting Sophia.
Aria had become a bloodhound, for lack of a better word, when it came to bad men. That had to be the reason she wanted to know more about him. If she could prevent Sophia’s heartache when it came to Daniel, it would be worth the extra time she spent with him. She’d do her own investigating, and if she didn’t find anything, then she’d give her blessing to her cousin.
She nodded resolutely to herself before getting to her feet and heading inside.
Everyone was still up. She heard voices in the back of the house where the kitchen was located. The smell of Italian cuisine filled the air. She’d told them to eat without her—letting all her cousins know that she’d been tasked with making sure the cowboy in the cabin was eating. Isabelle was the only one who seemed moderately interested.
Now, Aria needed to avoid speaking to any of them. She’d become a master at hiding the parts of her that she didn’t want others to know, but right now her abilities to shield herself had waned. She was exhausted, and all she wanted was to climb into bed.
Aria sauntered up to the corral where Daniel seemed to prefer working with the horses. There was one mare that Sophia had been training to be less anxious when the saddle was placed on her back. Each time Daniel moved closer to her with the saddle in hand, the animal bolted.
She grinned, and he caught sight of it.
“What?” he muttered, his frustration showing.
Aria lifted a shoulder, still genuinely amused.
He shifted the saddle to one arm, capturing it on his hip and sending her a dark look. “I’m sorry, is something funny?”
She snickered. “Looks like you can’t win over every female.”
He stiffened, but his blue eyes darkened slightly. “I already knew that.”
“Oh?” She laughed again, climbing up onto the ledge of the fence that separated them. “How is that, now?”
“You clearly don’t like me very much.”
Her amusement faded. How did he know? She’d been just as nice and flirtatious with him as she was with everyone else. Granted, he was more guarded than the others, but she hadn’t treated him any differently.
The triumphant look that filtered through those stormy blue eyes left her feeling angrier than she had a right to be. He wasn’t wrong. While she was intrigued, she was also certain that he wasn’t the kind of man that Sophia deserved.
Aria folded her arms and lifted her chin. “Well, not everyone has to like you.”
“I never said they did.” He arched a brow at her. “Have you heard something to the contrary? Or are you making assumptions about someone you don’t even know? You’re not exactly a local. But I wouldn’t be surprised if you’ve heard your fair share about me.”
She could have fallen from her perch if she wasn’t holding onto it as tightly as she was.
“What is it now? Cat got your tongue?” he muttered dryly, adjusting the saddle in his grasp once more.
“No. That’s just… you haven’t spoken much since we met. I’m fairly certain that’s the most you’ve said to me in one sitting.”
He cut her an annoyed look out of the corner of his eye. She could practically hear him make excuses as to why he deserved his privacy, much like he’d said the night before.
Her focus shifted to the horse. “She doesn’t like the saddle.”
“Really? I thought we were just playing a game of tag,” he said while focusing on the horse.
She snorted, earning a smirk from him at the same time. Aria tilted her head, watching as he continued prowling toward the animal. Then she sighed. “You’re doing it wrong.”
Daniel stopped and glanced at her over his shoulder. “And I should take your word for it? I’m sorry, but do you have some special experience with skittish animals that Sophia wasn’t aware of?”
Aria rolled her eyes and hopped down from where she sat. She could have told him she didn’t have experience with skittish animals, but rather skittish women. But she opted to keep that to herself. Instead, she motioned for him to place the saddle on the upper corral post. “Put it there.”
He stared at her like she’d suggested he wear it as a hat.
“Just do what I tell you. I promise it’ll pay off.”
Daniel groaned and plopped the saddle where she’d suggested.
She moved closer to the horse, speaking softly. “Hey, beautiful. Yes, I’m talking to you, sweet thing. Don’t worry about that brute. He doesn’t know what he’s doing.” She inched closer and closer until she could get ahold of the animal’s reins. Then she walked away from the saddle.
“You’re going in the wrong direction,” Daniel called out.
“You’re not being very open-minded,” she cooed, still using the tone she chose for the animal. Slowly, they made the rounds until she came right up to Daniel and the saddle beside them. “I know Sophia has been able to get this beautiful creature to wear her saddle when it’s placed on her within her stall. She’s working on it out here, to increase her trust. This horse doesn’t like seeing it coming.”
“Clearly,” Daniel said, his focus shifting from the horse to the saddle.
“You need to get her used to seeing it head-on in a non-threatening way.”
“I thought you said you don’t work with animals.”
“I didn’t say anything. And no, I don’t work with animals.” She rubbed the horse’s nose. “I just know how to help someone overcome their fears.” She pressed her face against the horse’s neck and smiled. “Now, walk her around a few times so she can see the saddle coming closer to her. Then work up to bringing it closer to her. One step at a time.”
Daniel gave her a funny look.
Aria watched as Daniel took her advice. When he was done, she followed him into the barn. He muttered something under his breath when she did, and she huffed a laugh. “Let me guess, your girlfriend wouldn’t like that I’m spending so much time with you.”
“I don’t have a girlfriend,” he gritted out.
She folded her arms and laughed again. “Okay, then why were you so jumpy last night? I’d like to think a guy would appreciate the touch of a beautiful woman.” She cringed inwardly even as she said it. She hated being this manipulative. Flirty? Fine. But pressuring Daniel? Something didn’t sit right with her. Still, she pushed onward. “Maybe not a girlfriend…” she drawled. “But you like someone else.”
He shook his head, avoiding her gaze. “Wrong again.” Daniel continued working, his expression like stone.
Fine. If he wasn’t going to give her any information about himself up front, she’d have to find another way to unearth the man he truly was.