Page 38 of Coerced
But since I already knew what to expect when I sunkmy teeth into this morning’s breakfast, I wanted to pay attention to Aria’s reaction. She lifted her doughnut to her mouth, took a bite, and chewed. It was like I was watching in slow motion as the flavors hit her tongue.
And while I thought the most important thing that could come of this would be Aria immediately declaring she wanted to stay in Steel Ridge forever just to have these doughnuts whenever she wanted, I couldn’t say it bothered me to wait. Because I got to keep my eyes on her mouth. Her undeniably gorgeous mouth with those perfect lips, beautiful smile, and single dimple.
I was lost in the sight of her mouth that I nearly squashed my doughnut in my hand when I heard the moan escape from her. “Oh my God. I feel like I could spend the rest of my life cleaning your house or mowing your grass for you, and I’d never come close to repaying you for introducing me to this place. This is the best thing I’ve ever put in my mouth.”
I cocked a brow, unable to ignore the unintended innuendo, and quickly brushed it off. Instead, I forced myself to focus on what was right in front of me. This had been another victory. “I’m thrilled to hear you like it. And for the record, I don’t expect you to come to my place to do any chores to thank me. I’m simply happy to have you here. Plus, we’re patronizing a local business, so we’re doing a good deed there, too.”
Right before she took a second bite, Aria warned, “I hope you weren’t expecting me to be shy about eating in front of you, because even if I was, I would not be holding back this morning. I intend to eat more of what’s inside that box.”
I laughed. “Have at it. That’s why we bought them.”
For the next few minutes, I simply sat back and ate my breakfast while I watched Aria enjoy hers. And once we’d both gotten through a second doughnut, I thought it was time to broach the subject that had been on my mind since she opened her door to me this morning.
“If you don’t want to discuss it, I understand, but I was curious if you wanted to talk about what happened this morning,” I said, keeping the tone of my voice casual.
Aria dropped her gaze from mine, sadness washing over her expression. Instantly, I wished I could take back my words.
“I got an unexpected call from home this morning,” she finally confessed. “It was my dad.”
As soon as she said it, I understood. “Ah. You’re feeling homesick.”
Her lips parted as she offered a slight shake of her head. “No. It’s not that. I… well, I didn’t exactly leave on great terms with my family. They don’t even know where I am right now.”
Okay.
So, I’d gotten this all wrong.
Not in a million years would I have anticipated Aria would share what she just did.
“I’m so sorry to hear that. Where do they live?”
“Birch Creek. It’s about two and a half hours southwest of here.”
“I’ve never been. Did something specific happen this morning that led to you feeling upset?” I asked, hoping I wasn’t pushing for more than she was willing to share.
“I’m sorry. I really don’t want to ruin our day today with all of this,” she lamented.
I reached out my free hand, placed it on her arm, and gave her a reassuring squeeze. “You’re not ruining anything. I’d rather sit and listen to you talk about what’s upsetting you, so you can work through it. We can still have a great day together, and at least you will have gotten it off your chest.”
Aria’s eyes shifted to my hand still resting on her arm. They lingered there for a bit, and I considered pulling away. But something told me to keep my hand where it was, and when she didn’t yank her arm out from beneath my hold and lifted her gaze to mine instead, I knew I’d made the right choice.
“There are some things that happened that I’m far too embarrassed to talk about, but here’s what I don’t mind sharing. Five years ago, my parents, my sister, and I received the biggest shock of our lives when we found out my mom had cancer.”
My fingers twitched on her arm. “I’m so sorry.”
“Thanks. She’s okay now, but it was very difficult for a long time. For just over a year, we all struggled. Between the illness, the treatments, the fear, and the costs, it was a lot to deal with. My mom and my sister, Jasmine, have always been the two who tend to fall apart in the family. My dad and I were the opposite. But that cancer diagnosis scared the crap out of my dad.”
Somewhere in the midst of her sharing her story, I’d started stroking my thumb along her arm. I continued to do that when I asked, “What about you? Weren’t you afraid?”
“I was. But I tend to keep things bottled up all the time anyway. And since everyone else in my family was falling apart, someone had to step up and get us through it.So, I did what I could do to make sure everyone was taken care of.”
I wanted to ask who was looking out for her in the process, but I had a sneaking suspicion I already knew the answer. There was no need for me to throw salt on an open wound.
“It must have been really hard to take all of that on your shoulders,” I reasoned.
She shrugged. “I managed okay. And in the end, my mom beat the cancer.”
I smiled. “That’s what matters most, right?”