22. CHAPTER 22
ARIA
T he TV noise was a distant sound in the background of my thoughts that were taking precedence.
I couldn’t believe I was doing this to myself again—letting my past get the better of me.
I promised I wouldn’t after that night, yet I had that lingering feeling that he was still there, still haunting me.
Jason Brown.
That name made me feel physically sick.
I met him not long after Sebastian left and soon moved to Leeds with him.
He was wealthy, taking me to lavish parties, buying me expensive gifts. It soon became dark when he introduced me to the world his money came from. The man who ran the county lines in Leeds.
That’s when it started.
It was subtle at first—odd comments about what I was wearing, who I was seeing.
And then I had to give up uni. Jason told me I didn’t need it; I had him to look after me.
It wasn’t just that, though. Once, he’d come to pick me up as he always did, and a guy in my class stopped to talk to me.
Jason saw red, and I felt every bit of pain after.
It was safer to stay at home after that. Well, I thought it would be.
Everyone knew I was his, and if someone tried to look at me … they weren’t the only one who felt his hand.
The only man I was allowed to be left alone with was his younger brother, Callum.
Which was quite ironic, in hindsight.
My phone buzzed on the table, and I fumbled for it, squinting at the screen.
Sebastian.
I declined the call. I didn’t want to talk to him—not after yesterday.
The phone buzzed again
This man was persistent.
He always had been.
I smiled to myself, remembering the time I’d locked my window so he couldn’t get in. It was raining hard, and it had served him right for trying to wind me up earlier in the day. I thought he’d just go back out again.
Nope.
He’d broken into the house, setting the alarm off. He’d knocked on my door, and I’d opened it to him leaning against the frame, looking all smug. I’d rolled my eyes at him, but I’d still let him in.
There was a knock at the door, and I reluctantly got up and made my way to it.
Sebastian stood there with his intoxicating smile, coffee in hand.
Why did he have this spell over me?
“I brought you coffee.” He held it out.
“Thanks.” I smiled a little as I took it from him.
“Now, let's get you out of this flat.”
The sun did feel warm through the window, and it looked nice out there. Maybe I could do with the fresh air.
“Fine.”
I opened the door for him to fully step in. We stood there awkwardly for a few seconds, when I noticed his eyes glancing down at my uncovered wrist. I quickly grabbed my fleece and put it on, then glanced over to him. I could see in his face that he wanted to ask more.
“I’m going to get ready.” With that, I shot into the bedroom, leaving him standing there.
Greenwich Park was stunning in mid-June with summer just around the corner.
The Flower Garden was exceptionally beautiful at this time of year—which was where we ended up after getting a coffee.
We sat down on the grass, our arms touching.
I couldn’t help but observe him. The loose bits of his hair fell over his eyes, making him look like some kind of model straight out of a magazine.
The way he rubbed his stubble with his fingers had me right back in the office, remembering how wet they had made me.
He must have seen me looking, because he met my eyes with a smile.
“Everything ok over there?”
I ducked my head, my cheeks burning— and I was pretty sure it wasn’t from the sun.
“Yeah, I was just admiring the flowers.”
He let out a silent laugh and tapped me with his arm. “You remember when I brought you here and you didn’t realise how big it was and made me carry you up the hills?”
“We’d literally just traipsed all around the old Royal Naval College—”
Sebastian interrupted, “You said you wanted to see where Thor was filmed, so I took you.”
“Yes, and every other place there. My feet were hurting.”
“You can’t go to Greenwich without seeing all its wonders. Besides, we found that little Moroccan restaurant that had the best briouats and vegetable tagine.”
My mouth watered from the memory. “I could eat that right now.”
He let out a small chuckle. “I’ll take you later.”
“You’d better, because that’s all I want.”
He looked over at me and met my gaze. “I promise.” Then he took hold of my hand, his fingers locking between mine.
Heat rushed through me from his touch, and butterflies started to flutter in my stomach.
“Ok, I guess it wasn’t that bad a day. Central London, though … that was a whole new level of busy.”
“How could I forget?”
Sebastian used to take me around London to all the places I’d never been, and we always had so much fun together doing it. It was like he’d never really taken the time himself to just do normal things.
He arched his brow at me. “You went around the M&M shop eating them and wondered why the security guards were following us.”
I took a sip of my coffee. “Look, if you’re going to have all that chocolate on show, then it’s inevitable.”
“You do realise the only reason they didn’t do anything was because they soon recognised my surname?”
“That famous name,” I teased.
“It stopped you getting into trouble,” he laughed, sipping his espresso.
“I’m sure it’s stopped you on many occasions …” My words trailed off as I grinned at him.
“Haven’t a clue what you’re talking about, Nyx.” He smirked, winking at me.
I let out a chuckle and we sat there for a few minutes, sipping our coffee, before he broke the easy silence.
“Nyx, can I ask you a question? How did you get your scar?”
I paused for a moment. I’d hoped he’d never see it. It was something I wanted to hide from the world. From myself.
It was a reminder of a time I wanted to be free from.
I looked up at him. “I was in an accident a few years ago.”
He looked unconvinced, but he didn’t push any further. Instead, he turned to look at the view, his thumb grazing gently over my hand as our fingers stayed locked together. Was this how it was supposed to feel when you meant something to someone?
I never knew what was coming with Jason—only fear.
But Sebastian always made me feel … safe.