Page 17 of Flawless Aria
“You’re too sweet for your own good. Okay, down to business. Even though you both think it’s too early for wedding plans, an engagement party is a must. We won’t take no for an answer. Unless you want us to pick a date and venue, you best let us know what works for the both of you. Since you reminded us about the tour, it needs to be before July.”
“Aria and I will check our calendars and look into a few of our favorite venues, and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible. Promise.” No, he didn’t just promise her something he can’t deliver.
“Thank you, Jax.” Glaring at me, she says, “See how easy that was, sweetie? From now on, I’m going to ask my future son-in-law.” And with that, she leaves me standing there with my mouth open.
We spend the rest of our night eating and catching up with our relatives. Thank God the wedding plans are shelved for now. Then I think… the next time I see them could be at our engagement party.
Once the night is over, we both breathe a sigh of relief. Still, we both know there’s more to come. Our parents were on their best behavior, but their gloves will come off when they have us all alone.
11
March:Present Day
JAXON
“This has gone too far,Jax. We need to put the brakes on before our parents are too invested in our engagement.” I don’t have the heart to tell Aria it’s too late for that now.
“I agree, but if we tell everyone it was a ruse, you still run the chance of losing your column. Maybe more so ifGlamifygets wind that our fake relationship was staged so you could keep your job to begin with.”
“If that happens, then it’s on me for agreeing to do it in the first place. You caught me at a weak moment, and it sounded like a great idea until Stephanie posted everything on social media. I’m not speaking to her at the moment, but what’s done is done.”
Reaching out, I grab her hand. For the first time, she doesn’t pull away. It’s a start. Right?
“Look, I know you’re worried that our parents insisted on footing the bill for the whole kit and kaboodle.” There’s that smile. I inwardly chastise myself for all the quirky phrases that I use on any given day. In my defense, it’s an endearing part of my personality. I’ve been told that we all have our little quirks, and phrases just so happen to be mine. “If we go the distance, I will personally pay everyone back and then some.”
“You can start by paying for the engagement party that’s happening next month.” Ouch. She’s been on a roll ever since leaving the engagement reveal. If I’m being honest, we both need to get laid. When I mentioned it last week, she informed me it wasn’t a problem. And told me to worry about myself. I hate that she planted that little seed in my brain. Does she have a friend with benefits?
“I’ll gladly pay for the party, the shower, the wedding, and the fucking honeymoon if it comes to that. Enough about the money, Aria. That’s the least of our problems right now. The band has a meeting with Caleb tomorrow and that’s what I need to focus on since we’ll be getting our tour schedule. I do have my own career. Not just you.” Damn right I’m frustrated because this isn’t turning out like I thought it would.
“Sorry. I’m so frustrated and it doesn’t have anything to do with you. It has everything to do with Mom. She keeps hounding me and I’m running out of excuses. Maybe once I give her your tour schedule, she’ll get off my back.”
This deception is spiraling out of control. If we don’t stop the ball from rolling, we won’t be able to stop it before it crushes us to death.
“Did you ever ask yourself when enough is enough? I mean, how far is too far? Do we break up before the engagement party or after the fact? How far are we willing to take this before we slam on the brakes?” Sighing, she leans her head on my shoulder.
“I think about it all day at work, when I get home, and it keeps me awake at night. I have nightmares about falling into a deep ravine with no way out.” And it’s all my fault she’s feeling this way.
“The only way to end your nightmares is to come clean, Aria. Tonight. Let’s go to your parents right now and tell them the truth. Then we’ll go to my parents’ house, tell them and it will be over. Once we explain why we did it to begin with, they’ll understand. I’ll cancel all plans and send everyone a check. They love us and won’t say a word. Wear the ring to work or give it back. I’ll leave that up to you to decide.”
She buries her face in my chest, wrapping her arms around me. How could something feel so right and turn out to be so very wrong?
“I’ll fix it. I promise, baby. Whatever it takes, I’ll fix it. Don’t cry. Please don’t cry.” She’s breaking my heart, and I wasn’t sure if it was there anymore. “Shh, don’t cry. We don’t need to figure it all out tonight. Okay? We can wait until I get my schedule and go from there.”
When she pulls away, I reluctantly let her go. She walks into the kitchen and blows her nose. Several minutes pass before she sits back down, handing me a bottle of beer. I notice she’s clutching one in her hand as well. This girl never drinks beer. Something’s up.
Tipping back the bottle, she takes a big gulp. The grimace tells it all. “I have a confession to make. It’s not something I’m proud of but need to get off my chest.” Now she’s piqued my curiosity.
“Is it the real reason you’re crying?” Taking a swig of my own, I wait. Using my finger to wipe off the condensation on the bottle.
“I was sleeping with Rex, and when I broke it off, he was upset. I just found out he’s the reason for the gossip going around the magazine. How I was too cold to write about love and relationships. I sucked in bed, and he’d ignore all of that if I wasn’t afraid to commit. Rumor has it that Maggie’s his new friend with benefits. Since they’ve hooked up, I’ve been their topic of conversation. Now that I know he’s the one that fueled the fire, I could have avoided this whole damn mess altogether and gone straight to Silas for harassment. He’d be long gone and Maggie too. Had we waited, we could be living our best lives. Instead of being stuck with each other for god knows how long.”
I’m not sure how I feel about this new turn of events. On the one hand, it would have saved us a bunch of aggravation if she had mentioned she slept with Rex. Why? Hello, I too know what it’s like to be dumped by a beautiful woman. Not only is it a blow to our ego, but it’s also a direct hit to our heart. Some men will never recover and turn into bitter, angry men. Second of all, I’m really getting pissed that getting stuck with me is some big tragic ordeal that she’s had to deal with since we started this. Could I be that horrible of a person that not one but two women have kicked me to the curb in a matter of months?
Please stop me because I’m about to do something very stupid…
ARIA
I might have openedmy mouth and inserted my foot. Again. I’m far from stuck with him. I love the fact that he’s in my life again and we’re really getting to know one another. One on one with no interference.