Chapter 18
18
Aria
T he competition to win a full-ride scholarship to Cornell required an essay. Aria frowned at the submission instructions. There was no way she’d be able to get Daniel to write one if he was still adamant about not submitting a drawing.
In all the years she’d been alive, she’d never heard of such a program. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for him and it was grating on her that he wasn’t willing to see it for what it was.
Why couldn’t he simply listen to her and apply for the scholarship? If he didn’t get it, then he wouldn’t lose anything. But if he did? The doors would open for him. She’d been to college. She knew he’d be able to manage working while going to school. He might even be able to convince the admissions office that he needed to take online courses.
Aria rubbed her eyes with her fingertips and groaned. Right about now, she wasn’t entirely against writing the essay for him. She’d gotten a lot of information from him about the reasons this scholarship would make a difference in his life. He would be one of the older students enrolled, but that might be a point in his favor.
Anyone reading through the essays would see how much Daniel stood out. His background with his family was only one of the big issues she would be able to throw in. He had a terrible childhood. He was self-taught. And his views on the simple beauty of architecture had to tip the scales in his favor.
She pulled her hands from her face and gnawed on her lower lip. She’d written enough freelance articles that she knew she’d be able to make this essay shine. The only problem was the fact that Daniel might get mad at her for going over his head.
Would he hate her for it?
What if he never found out? If he didn’t win, then there was no reason for him to get contacted by the college at all.
A slow smile stretched across her face and her heart thrummed with the need to do something for him—a gift that he would find valuable. He’d done more than he even knew by simply accepting her for who she was and letting her cry on his shoulder.
She clicked through the application process. The deadline was tonight at midnight. The people in charge of going through the applications had a week. Apparently, they weren’t worried about having too many applications. One week. That was all the time she would have to wait to find out if he won.
The surge of excitement in her chest only continued to grow. She could do this.
They could do this.
Daniel could win. And if he did, he could choose whether or not he wanted to accept the prize. No one would force him.
Maybe it was all the excuses she was making to herself, but the more time she thought about it, the more she knew that this was the best thing to do for him.
She placed her hands on the keyboard and started drafting the essay portion for the application. Aria was almost done when her phone dinged. She picked up the device absentmindedly and clicked on the message.
Her blood ran cold.
Unknown: You don’t know how long it took me to track down your number, baby.
Though she hadn’t saved his number in her phone, she knew immediately who it was. Why had she thought that changing her phone number would be enough when she moved out of state? Cayden had connections. He was manipulative. Aria should have known that her freedom from the man wouldn’t last.
He’d sent her several emails, but she’d gotten used to deleting them without opening them. She couldn’t understand why this message set her teeth on edge. It was only a message. He didn’t know where she’d moved to—though it wouldn’t be hard for him to figure it out since he’d figured out her number.
She shoved her phone away from her.
Just like that, her happy mood evaporated and she was no longer in that light and airy bubble. All it took was one text and now her heart felt like it could crumble. Now that he’d found a way to contact her, she knew he wouldn’t stop. The best thing she could do was ignore it.
Aria shut off her phone and completed the application process. Cayden might keep trying to contact her, but he wouldn’t get any satisfaction from it if she had anything to do with it. She wouldn’t respond. She wouldn’t give him anything. Right now, she had Daniel and would focus on the happiness that he brought her.
Aria squeezed the reins of her horse tighter, letting the rope dig into the flesh of her palms. It would leave a mark with how hard she held it, but it was better than the sick feeling in her gut from the messages she’d been getting from Cayden.
Only a couple more days and she’d find out if Daniel won—or at least went to the second round. Was there a second round? She couldn’t remember. Oh no! What if the university required another submission.
She wasn’t prepared for that. She’d need another drawing. And if Daniel wasn’t keen on giving her a second, what would happen then?
“You… okay?” Daniel’s soft voice ripped her from her thoughts and she jumped as if he’d been able to read them.
There was no fighting the surge of heat that licked up the back of her neck and coursed beneath her skin.
The wry smile that touched his lips did nothing to ease the tension in her limbs. “Yeah,” she muttered. “Fine.”
“Really? Because you’ve been in a mood since you showed up for our ride.”
She rolled her eyes, but she knew exactly what he was talking about. Right before she showed up, Cayden had sent a message. It wasn’t exactly a threat, but he’d signed off after about three messages, telling her he’d be seeing her soon.
Just recalling the message put her teeth on edge. She hated the way he got under her skin. She was tempted to message Sophia and ask her more about Cayden’s involvement with the hearing. Had he approached Sophia for information?
Aria’s stomach knotted and twisted angrily.
Daniel pulled his horse up beside her, but when she wouldn’t look at him directly, he urged his steed to block the trail. Her horse made a disgruntled sound and tossed her head. This wasn’t supposed to be part of their ride. It wasn’t fair that Daniel could read her like a book. He wasn’t supposed to know her well enough to be able to do that—at least not yet.
A sigh burst from Aria’s lips and she gave him a guarded look. She wasn’t about to tell him anything about Cayden or the threats she felt he was giving her. He wasn’t going to come. Hopefully he had no idea where she was and was just trying to intimidate her.
When Daniel’s pointed stare became too much for her to ignore, she sighed again.
“I’m fine. Really. Just have a lot on my mind.”
“Such as?” he pressed.
She wanted to glare at him, to tell him to mind his own business and leave her alone. She wanted to remind him that there were simply parts of their lives that they weren’t going to talk about. She didn’t go around asking him about all the girls he’d dated or if they treated him right when they’d been dating.
So why should she tell Daniel anything about Cayden?
There was simply no reason.
“My dad,” she blurted.
His concerned expression seemed to harden and his eyes narrowed slightly before his features softened. Then he nodded. She eyed him, watching for any sign he might not believe her. The truth was, as much as she hated what was happening with her father, she knew Mateo and Sophia were handling it. She knew that she’d get any important information, and if her father actually got out earlier than they’d expected, Mateo would have a plan in place.
They’d already discussed moving her mother and sister to Copper Creek.
But this whole thing with Cayden was causing issues with the way she wanted to live her life—free of thoughts and memories of him . Why couldn’t the cretin leave her alone?
“I’m sure everything will be okay. Your father has a history of violent behavior. They wouldn’t let him out just because he was behaving in prison.”
She huffed. They both knew his statement was false. The judicial system wasn’t perfect. Far from it. Her father might actually be let out, and there would be nothing she could do about it unless he ended up hurting someone again. She’d made her peace with the fact that her father was a monster.
Aria became distinctly aware that Daniel was still watching her. He was probably trying to figure out if she was still upset about her father or if she was dealing with something else.
If only he knew.
She forced a smile—one that had his expression tightening. It was the same look he used to give her when they barely knew one another.
Shoot!
There was that talent of his shining through that showed her just how well he knew her. He could tell she was still holding back.
A laugh bubbled out of her throat, and even to her it sounded forced. “Really, Daniel. I’m fine. My life isn’t perfect, and there are a lot of issues that revolve around that sort of thing. Sometimes I’m going to have a bad day. I’m sure you can relate.” She prayed that he would accept her explanation at face value—at least for now. She needed him to drop this whole thing so she could get back to ignoring Cayden and those stupid messages.
She didn’t know why she hadn’t blocked the number. Probably because she’d been so distracted by her father’s hearing and meeting Daniel. It wouldn’t have mattered anyway. What would stop him from getting a new number and trying again?
Finally, Daniel seemed to get the hint. He straightened fully in the saddle and pulled the reins around so he was no longer blocking the trail. Her own horse moved up to walk beside his, and they rode in silence.
What she wouldn’t give to have a topic of conversation that could get them both off of this downward trajectory. The air was far too cold between them, and it had nothing to do with the chill from the autumn breeze.
She nearly asked him if he wanted to go out to that country club so the two of them could have a normal evening, but then her phone chimed again.
Daniel glanced over at her, his shrewd gaze locking on her and what she would do next. She should have silenced her phone, but she didn’t want to miss any calls from Sophia or her family.
“You gonna check that?”
She paled. There was only one person who was messaging her regularly and it wasn’t anyone she wanted to talk to.
“Aria,” he murmured, his voice tight. “Is something going on that you’re not telling me? Someone harassing you?”
She flinched. He had no clue how right he was.
Shaking her head, Aria flashed him a smile before looking away. “It’s nothing. You’re right. I’m a little on edge with what’s going on back home. But right now, all I want to do is spend time with you. No more talk about any of that.”
This big, strong man of hers, showing how much he cared about her, was eating away at her defenses. What would he actually do if she told him about Cayden? There was nothing, right? It wasn’t like he’d fly down to Georgia and rough her ex up until the guy got the hint. They were thousands of miles away from each other.
So she kept her mouth shut. When he didn’t look away, she whispered, “Please?”
Daniel thought for another long moment, and then he nodded. “Fine, on one condition.”
She tensed.
“When you’re ready to talk about it, I want you to come to me. If there’s anything I can do to help, I want you to trust that I will.”
She nodded, the lump in her throat ever growing. “I know,” she whispered once more. This was why she adored him so much. This was why she wanted to forget about her past with Cayden and everything that had happened between them.
Daniel had the potential to become her whole world, and he didn’t even know it yet.