Aria
The door swung open, and I stepped into Dr. Warren's office.
The man sitting in front of the desk had his back to me, but I didn't need to see his face.
I knew those shoulders. Broad, stiff, carrying tension like he’d been born with it.
I knew that posture, spine straight as a blade, feet planted like he owned the ground beneath them.
I recognized the suit. Armani, charcoal grey, one my father favored.
It looked good on the man in front of me. If only he wasn’t so despicable.
My hand was still on the doorknob. I couldn't seem to let go.
Dr. Warren sat behind his desk, face gray, fingers gripping the armrests of his chair like a man holding on for dear life. His eyes flicked to me with naked relief.
"Miss Kealoha. Thank you for coming so quickly. Please, come in."
The man turned.
He looked even meaner than I remembered.
The years had definitely not been kind to him.
There was a scowl on his face which I was sure wasn’t for this particular event.
The man never smiled. That would explain all the angry lines across his forehead.
His gray eyes revealed all the wicked thoughts running through his head.
He’d completely lost all of his boyish charm. I almost scoffed. This was the proud boy who thought he was too good for me? Ha! If only my thirteen-year-old self could see him now. She wouldn’t have looked at him for more than a second. She definitely wouldn’t have tried to kiss him either.
It was clear my feelings toward Sebastian Dubois were mutual. Good.
Our gazes locked at that exact moment. The temperature in the room plummeted. The already cold look in his eyes dropped several degrees. I watched recognition move through him. Then his eyes narrowed, and contempt settled over his features like frost crystallizing on glass.
He rose to his feet. "Miss Kealoha." He said my name like he was scraping something off his shoe. "What a surprise."
Indeed. I’m sure he hadn’t expected to see me. We’d drifted away from the same social groups, but not before he managed to tell me how he really felt.
The Kealoha girl is exhausting. All that aggressive cheerfulness. I don’t know how you do it.
I walked into that conversation. I wasn’t the type to care what others thought about me, least of all Sebastian. The problem was who he was saying it to.
And Ethan seemed to buy it because he dumped me the next day, saying he couldn’t deal with my… how did Sebastian put it? Right. Cheerfulness.
I released the doorknob. Stepped fully into the room. Let the door fall closed behind me with a soft click.
"Mr. Dubois." I kept my voice pleasant. Good, Aria. You don’t care about him. Not one bit. "I didn't realize Evie was your daughter."
"Clearly." His eyes traveled over me in that condescending manner he’d mastered. "If you had, perhaps you would have taken greater care with her safety."
Be calm, Aria.
Dr. Warren's head swiveled between us like a spectator at a tennis match. Sweat had begun to bead at his temples, darkening the thin hair on his hairline. "You two... know each other?"
"Our families have crossed paths." Sebastian didn't look away from me. Didn't blink. "At various society functions. Over the years."
"Back when Mr. Dubois was still perfecting his particular brand of condescension. Though I see he's graduated to outright hostility. Congratulations on your growth." I lasted a whole minute before throwing an insult back at him. I’d say that’s cause for celebration.
I watched as a muscle twitched beneath his left eye.
“I want the student gone. I want her,” he pointed at me, “gone. Or so help me God, I’ll sue this entire school.”
Dr. Warren made a sound like a small animal being stepped on. “I’ll fire her right away. I’m so sorry, sir.”
I rolled my eyes. “You can’t fire me, Dr. Warren.
You’re not even paying me to be here.” I met Sebastian’s gaze head-on.
"I was the substitute teacher in Evie's class today," I continued, moving further into the room. I didn’t want to give him the chance to speak yet.
"I made sure to hold pressure on the wound and keep her calm while we waited for the nurse to arrive.
" I stopped six feet from where he stood.
"So before you continue your tirade, perhaps you'd like to hear what actually happened from someone who was actually there. "
Sebastian stared down at me, using his height to his full advantage. "I know what happened. My daughter was injured in your classroom. Beyond that, the details are secondary."
"The details are everything." I crossed my arms over my chest. "But I wouldn't expect you to understand the nuance. It requires actually listening to people, which has never been your strong suit."
"My strong suit is protecting my family. Something I take seriously, even if you find it inconvenient."
"I find your methods inconvenient. There's a difference.
" I tilted my head toward Warren, who looked like he might actually be sick.
"You've been in here, what, ten minutes?
Fifteen? And you've already threatened to sue the school, demanded multiple terminations, and reduced the principal to a puddle. Very productive."
He gritted his teeth. "I don’t care what you think."
"Really? You don’t want to understand the situation before you start issuing orders." I took another step toward him. "But that's not really your style, is it? You're more of a bulldozer. Just flatten everything in your path and sort through the rubble later."
"You don't know anything about my style."
"I know you haven't asked a single question about what actually happened to your daughter. You haven't once asked how she's feeling, or what she needs, or whether she's scared." I held his gaze. "She is, by the way. Scared. In case you were wondering."
His eyes flashed dangerously. His hands, which had been hanging at his sides, curled into fists. I knew I'd baited him. I’d pushed and poked the bear. But damn it. The man brought out this raging anger in me. It wasn’t my fault he turned me into this mouthy monster.
"Don't presume to tell me about my own daughter."
I lifted my chin. "Someone has to."
We were too close now. I hadn't realized I'd kept moving, but suddenly there were only three feet between us. I eyed him up and down. He was big, sure, but one strategic positioning of my foot and he’d be on the floor.
Or maybe I could take him. Tackle him to the ground.
If I put my full weight over him and pressed my elbow over his chest, then I could…
God, Aria! What is wrong with you?
I stepped back, giving myself enough space to regain my senses.
Dr. Warren cleared his throat. "Perhaps we should all sit down and discuss this calmly…"
The door burst open.
Evie stood in the doorway with tears streaking down her face. She looked smaller than she had in my classroom. The white bandage on her forehead stood out stark against her pale skin, and her eyes were searching the room, red-rimmed and wide.
Behind her, the nurse hovered anxiously, hands fluttering.
"I tried to keep her in the office," the nurse said quickly. "But she heard your voices and she just…"
"What's going on?" Evie's voice was thin, trembling slightly. Her gaze moved between her father and me, trying to read the tension she'd walked into. "Why are you yelling at her?"
Sebastian's entire demeanor transformed. The ice thawed. The rigid posture softened. He moved toward his daughter with something almost like tenderness, his hands reaching out.
"Evie. You should be resting. You hit your head…"
"I heard you through the wall." She sidestepped his reaching hands. Moved toward me instead. "Are you being mean to her? To Miss Kealoha?"
Sebastian’s eyes widened for a fleeting second, but he quickly replaced it with his signature scowl. “I’m being critical of her.” His eyes flickered over to me. “Which she deserves after what she caused.”
"Don't be mad at her, Daddy. It wasn't her fault."
He ignored her. He didn’t look away from me. He didn’t speak for a long time, obviously weighing his daughter’s words.
Was he trying to intimidate me with his silence? Tough luck.
"Here's what's going to happen…" Sebastian’s focus locked on me. "You're going to tutor my daughter for the rest of the month. Privately. At my residence. If you do that… I’ll drop the lawsuit."
I stared at him. Then I laughed. Did he really just say that? His words were so absurd, I wasn’t sure I’d heard him correctly.
"I'm sorry." I pressed a hand to my stomach, still laughing. "Did you just give me an ultimatum?"
"I'm offering you an opportunity to correct your failure."
"My failure." I shook my head, the laughter dying into disbelief. "You’re serious?” He didn’t blink. “You march in here, threaten everyone in sight, insult my competence, and now you're demanding I work for you? In your home? Like some kind of hired help you can order around?"
"If you prefer to frame it that way."
"I prefer to frame it as delusional." I uncrossed my arms, letting them fall to my sides.
My hands were trembling slightly. From anger.
Only anger. "You don't get to snap your fingers and watch me fall in line, Sebastian.
I'm not one of your employees. I'm not one of your board members.
I'm not impressed by your money or your name. "
I gestured toward Warren, who had pressed himself back against his chair like he was trying to disappear into the leather.
"You want someone to intimidate? Try someone who actually has something to lose."
Sebastian's eyes narrowed. "If you refuse, I'll pursue legal action against the school and you.” He lifted his fingers and counted. “Negligence. Failure to provide adequate supervision. Hostile learning environment. My lawyers will find additional charges. They always do."
"So you'll destroy this school's reputation to punish me?"
"I'll protect my daughter by any means necessary."
“Dad! Stop,” Evie said. The room went very still. “Stop yelling at her. It’s not going to change anything. It wasn’t her fault. I fell. That’s all that happened.” Evie tugged on her father's sleeve. "Dad, did you really mean what you said? About tutoring?"
Sebastian's jaw worked. "Yes. It’s the least she can do. This environment isn’t safe for you anymore until the culprit is…"
Evie's whole face lit up. "Really? Like, one-on-one? With just me and Miss Kealoha?"
"Yes, but…"
"Dad, that would be amazing!" She turned to me, practically bouncing. "Would you really do that? You're so much better than my regular teacher. She just reads from the textbook and…"
"Evie," Sebastian said firmly. "Let me finish."
The light in her face dimmed. Just like that. One word from him and she folded back into herself. I watched it happen and felt my blood pressure spike.
"I would love to work with you, Evie. But your father and I have very different ideas about how that should happen."
"Because Miss Kealoha apparently believes she knows better than everyone else," Sebastian cut in.
"No, because your father tried to give me an ultimatum." I smiled sweetly at him. "I don't respond well to those."
"Clearly, you don't respond well to reason either."
"It's hard to respond to something that wasn't present in the conversation."
Dr. Warren stood up. "Perhaps we could all just…"
"Stay out of this," Sebastian and I said in unison.
Warren sat back down.
Evie looked between us, her excitement curdling into embarrassment. Her cheeks had gone red. "Can you two just... stop? Everyone can hear you."
She was right. The door was still open. Warren's assistant was probably getting an earful. Fantastic.
I took a breath. Recentered. This wasn't about Sebastian. It was about Evie. Don’t forget that, Aria. "Evie, have you ever thought about volunteer work?"
Sebastian went rigid. Warren blinked like I'd started speaking another language.
Evie tilted her head. "Volunteer work?"
"I run a nonprofit. The Kealoha Foundation.
We do community health education, programs for women and girls, and mentorship.
" I watched her face, looking for interest. Found it.
"School's almost out for summer break. If you want to come see what we do, maybe help with some projects, you'd be welcome. "
"That sounds..." Evie's eyes went wide. "That sounds really cool, actually."
"Absolutely not." Sebastian's voice could have frozen water. "She's twelve."
"So?"
"She's not doing manual labor for your…"
"My what?" I raised an eyebrow. "Choose your next word carefully."
He paused. Smart man. "Your organization."
"The organization that's provided health education to fifty thousand women? Built three clinics? Funded two hundred scholarships?" I crossed my arms. "That organization?"
"Dad." Evie tugged his sleeve again. "I want to do this."
"Evie…"
"Please." Her voice was quiet but firm. "I never get to do anything real. This sounds real."
Sebastian looked at his daughter. Really looked, maybe for the first time since he'd stormed into this office. He turned to Warren. "Can't you stop her? She's a volunteer here. You must have some authority."
Warren swallowed hard. "Miss Kealoha is also one of our most generous donors. I'm afraid I have no authority over her extracurricular activities or..." He trailed off under Sebastian's glare. "I'm sorry, Mr. Dubois."
Sebastian's jaw clenched. “No. I’m not having it.”
“Dad!”
He shook his head. “No. And that’s final.”
I shrugged. "Suit yourself." I turned to leave. Paused at the door. I looked back at Sebastian. "And Sebastian?" I held his gaze. "Don't threaten me again. You won't like what happens."
I walked out before he could respond.