Chapter 12
12
Aria
“ I thought we were going out?” Aria sat forward and stared out of the front window of Daniel’s truck. They weren’t anywhere near the middle of town. In fact, it felt like they couldn’t have been farther from it if they tried.
She’d long since lost track of their surroundings. There weren’t any landmarks. All that spread out before them were rolling hills. Occasionally they’d pass a couple animals grazing in the tall grasses.
The uneven dirt road was clear of any signs of life. When they hit a bump, she grappled for the armrest at her side and threw him a dark look.
Daniel chuckled. “We are. This is out.”
“I didn’t mean literally,” Aria muttered, turning her focus to the road. “And while I enjoy the occasional horse ride, I tend to prefer staying where there’s civilization. Where are we going?”
He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and his grin stretched wider. He was wearing the blue shirt she’d given him. The sight of it stretched across his muscular form did something to her she wasn’t prepared to address.
In fact, she wasn’t sure she was ready to consider what it might be like to be with Daniel in any other capacity than his friend.
Seeing those scars had done something to her—changed something in her mind about him. She couldn’t explain it. Aria’s heart had ached for him. He’d been a victim just like she had. For hours, she dwelled on the memories of what his body had looked like out on the trail while she’d helped patch him up. She’d wanted to demand he tell her what had happened to him. None of the markings had looked fresh. Some were so faded she knew they would have been inflicted when he was a child.
If only she could have pulled him into a tight hug and told him that everything would be okay. Aria had held back because she knew he would have pushed her away. Daniel wasn’t the type of guy who wanted to show weakness.
Cayden was similar, but that was where their similarities ended.
Where Daniel was quiet, respectful, and soft-spoken, Cayden used his words to strike others down to show he wasn’t weak. Ironically, out of the two of them, she knew who the stronger man was—and it wouldn’t be due to their statures.
Part of her wondered what it would look like to see them go toe-to-toe.
Aria shook off that thought as quickly as it came. She wasn’t interested in Daniel getting hurt. Cayden had never lifted a hand to her, but he did work out. He was strong and capable of drawing blood if he wanted to. He simply preferred psychological warfare.
She heaved a sigh.
“I promise, you’re going to like it,” Daniel’s quiet words tore her attention to him. He’d pulled his brows together and concern shined in his beautiful blue eyes. The set of his jaw hardened further. “But if you don’t?—”
Without thinking, she placed a hand over the one he had dangling off the armrest between them. Her fingers slipped between his and she tightened her hold, smiling to show him she was just fine. “I’m excited to see what you’ve planned. I was curious, is all.”
His frown remained. “You didn’t look fine.”
Uh, oh. Whenever she thought about Cayden, she had a habit of wearing her thoughts right where everyone could see them.
Daniel pulled his truck to the side of the road. “I’ll take you back.”
Her hand tightened around his. “No!”
He stared at her with curiosity, or maybe it was more confusion than anything else. “You’re not happy. I can take you to a nice restaurant. It’s?—”
“I want to do what you planned.” She swallowed hard. Even though she hadn’t seen Cayden in what felt like ages, he was still ruining her date. Aria forced a smile at him. “I was just… thinking about something else.”
“Are you okay?”
Her lashes fluttered as she blinked at him in surprise. “Of course I’m okay.” Her past wasn’t a confession she wanted out in the world at this moment and definitely not given over to the handsome hunk of a man who could make her stomach do summersaults with one look. “Really,” she insisted, “I’m excited to see what you’ve come up with. You’re always so quiet. It’s hard to predict what you might do next.”
He cocked his head, watching her, that concern still present. Lifting his left hand, he traced his knuckle down the right side of her cheek. Shocks of pleasure hummed in the wake of his touch, and she was only able to exhale when his hand returned to the steering wheel.
Daniel gave her a short nod, then set his foot to the gas once more. The dirt road shifted into something paved, and she sat up straighter.
“That’s weird, right?”
He grunted, ever the quiet, stoic one.
“The way the road went from not being here to suddenly being here.” It was getting darker out. She couldn’t see that far into the fields around them. “You’re not taking me out to some abandoned warehouse to kill me, are you?” Her tone was light, but there was a nervous edge to her voice as she recalled all the times Cayden had manipulated her into feeling like she wasn’t safe with him.
Her heart hammered and she shut her eyes, reminding herself that Daniel was nothing like Cayden. He couldn’t be more different.
“Well, it’s not a warehouse.”
Her eyes flew wide, and she snapped them over to Daniel. “But you’re not going to kill me, right?”
Daniel chuckled and lifted the hand she still held to his lips. He brushed a soft kiss to her knuckles and goosebumps erupted all along her arms.
“That wasn’t an answer,” she insisted. “You can’t just?—”
He slowed the truck enough that he could look her square in the eye. “I would rather lie down my life than see you get hurt.” There was no humor in his voice, only pure, raw devotion. Those words sent a shiver down her spine, and she found herself wishing she’d brought a warmer coat. The autumn weather wasn’t so bad that she needed one, but at this point it might have been wise.
They continued until they reached a grove of trees that had grown over the road that disappeared behind them. In the growing darkness, Aria’s eyes narrowed and she leaned forward in her seat. “We’re not going in there, right?”
Daniel chuckled again. “That’s where the road leads.”
“And you… do you own this?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know who owns it.”
“ Daniel !” She jumped and faced him. “We’re trespassing?”
“Where’s your sense of adventure?”
She swiveled her head around just as he drove under the tree branches that scraped across the top of his truck. Then the world opened up to them.
The building was enormous—well, compared to most of the homes in Copper Creek. It was completely surrounded by trees and a stone wall. Vines wrapped around and tangled with other forms of foliage. But it was the structure that took her breath away. It had to have been built ages ago, and yet it was still standing. The windows weren’t boarded up, nor were they broken, but you could tell no one had been here in a while. It was as if the outside world hadn’t been able to touch this place.
Innocent.
That was how she’d describe this place.
In the darkness, the house appeared to be white, the bricks either white-washed or simply made differently than the standard red ones. The roof was covered with leaves from the tall trees surrounding them. There was no sign that people lived here, but it did look as though they kept up with the needs of the house so it didn’t completely get overtaken by nature.
There were two stories. One side of the house looked like it was meant to be a tower—shaped like a hexagon all the way around. But connected to it was the rest of the house that stretched toward the back. Beside the tower was a covered porch in a similar shape as it wrapped around the other side. Columns held up the awning, leaving it open for someone who might like to come out on a Sunday morning with their coffee and watch the sun rise.
It was the perfect escape.
“You like it?”
She glanced at him with wide eyes. “It’s gorgeous. I don’t think I’ve seen anything like it.”
“It was built in the early nineteen-hundreds. They don’t make them like they used to.” Awe tinted his tone as he stared at the building as the sun set behind it. “I was out riding one day and came across it. The doors were unlocked and so I couldn’t help but take a peek inside. You want to see?”
Aria was drawn in by his excitement. They had to literally be breaking some laws simply by being on this property, and yet she couldn’t find the words to decline his request. “Is the inside as good as the outside?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know that I would design it that way, but you could go inside if you want.”
“Is that part of our date?”
Daniel craned his head down and pointed to something high up on the house. “Technically, I wanted to take you up to that little outlook. You can see the lights from town up there. And when it’s clear out like tonight, you can get a good look at the stars.”
Her pulse thrummed with excitement. She pulled her lower lip between her teeth. “You sure we won’t get caught?”
He tossed her a devious grin. “I can’t make any promises.”
Who was this man and what had he done with the quiet, unassuming giant she’d grown accustomed to?
Aria swallowed back that fear and nodded. “Okay, let’s go.”
She’d never seen him so alight with excitement. The way he jumped out of the truck and practically ran around the front before getting to her door to open it for her made her heart sing. There was this distinct feeling that he was sharing a part of his soul with her that he’d never shared with anyone else, and she couldn’t help but feel lucky to be the one he chose.
Daniel took her hand in his and tugged her toward the house. The whole way, he rambled on about the choices the architect had made when designing the house. He pointed out things she’d never noticed on regular buildings or things she might have taken for granted.
The interior was dated, as was to be expected. There was a fireplace in the sitting room, and it was closed off from the rest of the house. They walked through the kitchen, and he turned a corner to guide her up the stairs.
Still, he chatted on about one thing or another regarding the home. He probably said more in the last five minutes than he’d said the whole time they’d known each other. It wasn’t only the way he spoke about the building; it was the animated way he seemed to come alive when he did.
“You really like this sort of thing, don’t you?” she murmured.
He paused. Even in the dark house with barely any light coming through the windows, she could see she’d embarrassed him.
Aria tightened her hand on his. “I like it—like you—” She took a deep breath, fighting her own embarrassment and tried again. “I like that you like this. It’s nice to see this side of you.” Aria could barely keep her voice above a whisper.
When she was with him—like this—she felt safe. It was a strange sense of security. Beyond his promise never to hurt her, she simply knew she could trust him. She might even be able to let down her walls and allow someone access to her heart again.
Daniel moved closer to her, his eyes smoldering with a mixture of excitement and longing. They were both high on this feeling they were sharing.
Their eyes locked, and the only sound she could hear was that of her strained breathing. His gaze searched hers as if asking a question she didn’t have the answer to. Then his focus shifted to her mouth, and she knew what he wanted.
Her heart leaped into her throat.
No.
She wasn’t ready for that.
As much as she wanted to be, she couldn’t surrender.
Not yet.
Aria turned her face and stepped back as she cleared her throat. “Where is this special tower you promised me?” She hated the way she croaked when she said the words. Would she ever be ready to offer her heart? If she couldn’t bring herself to give it over to Daniel, then would it ever happen at all?