Sixteen

SIXTEEN

Paxton

White-hot rage coursed through me.

My blood was rushing in my veins.

It was only by some miracle that I was even standing here now. My dog, Tiny, had been barking, indicating he needed to be let outside to relieve himself.

But it was unusual for him, given the late hour. I initially thought my dog might have been sick.

Now, I wondered if some divine intervention had played a role in the events that had all just transpired. Because no sooner had Tiny come back inside, I moved to climb my stairs to go to bed.

And that's when it happened.

I saw a flash of light along the wall in my dark house, glanced out the window, and saw headlights pulling into Aria's driveway. She must have just been getting home from work at the pub.

Although I knew I'd mentioned The Steel Pub to her as being a place that she could likely find a job, I hadn't taken the time then to consider what that might mean for the hours she worked.

But that reality was smacking me in the face as I saw her pulling into her driveway at the late hour. Though I liked knowing that she'd made it home safely, I hated that it was necessary for her to be out so late.

From what I could tell when I had spoken to her about it, Aria genuinely seemed to enjoy both of her jobs. She didn't appear to be the least bit bothered by the hours she worked, but I was suddenly feeling protective of her.

Unfortunately, it wasn't my place to start questioning her. I couldn't even give my two cents, or at the very least, offer to see her home from the pub on late nights like tonight.

With one hand on the railing leading up the stairs, I continued to stand there and watch out the window. I hadn't seen her today, and I thought catching one little glimpse of her would be the perfect thing for me right before I climbed back into bed.

It was on that thought I felt a wave of gratitude for my pets wash over me. If it hadn't been for Tiny, I wouldn't have gotten this opportunity to see Aria.

Sadly, the good vibes I felt the moment I realized she was home were short-lived. Because it wasn't more than five seconds after Aria pulled in and turned off her car when my eyes shifted to the mouth of her driveway and realized a car had pulled to a stop.

Despite the distance, I could easily see it was a man who'd gotten out of the car and was making his way up the driveway toward Aria. She'd just barely stepped out of her car when she looked back at him .

My eyes went back to him, following his slow steps toward her. My gut clenched painfully, believing the worst of the situation. She'd been working at the bar. This guy had probably come in tonight, noticed just how beautiful she was, and chatted her up.

Apparently, he'd done it successfully, because she'd asked him to follow her home, and now he was making his way toward her.

Aria and I weren't together. I had no claim to her. And yet, I couldn't deny just how much I disliked thinking about what was going to happen in her house tonight. This guy was going to have the privilege of touching her, kissing her. He'd be able to taste those lips, caress her naked skin, and make her moan.

The green-eyed monster reared its ugly head. Jealous didn't even come close to describing the way I felt. My throat grew painfully tight as question after question popped into my head.

How could this be happening? Hadn't Aria enjoyed the time she and I had spent together as much as I had? Should I have acted on my attraction to her sooner? Would it have made a difference?

Nearly every encounter I'd had with her involved some level of flirting. I thought she felt an attraction to me, that we were forging a connection that went beyond that surface-level desire I had foolishly believed we both had for one another.

But apparently, I was wrong.

Maybe she only saw me as a friend, as her neighbor. Maybe I'd made up everything else in my head. Perhaps she hadn't ever actually shivered when I touched her. It was possible I imagined her gaze darkening just a few days ago, when I'd indicated I wouldn't have minded if she'd told others that we were together.

All that I thought had built between us since the day Brutus had gone yapping at her as she prepared to leave in search of jobs was a sham.

She was more than content to have experienced what we did together and still be able to invite this guy back to her house.

I could admit it—I was crushed.

With disbelieving eyes, my attention drifted back to Aria. In that moment, I wasn't entirely sure I'd gotten it right.

Because despite the darkness and the distance, I was certain she didn't appear to be very comfortable. Her body had frozen to the spot.

If this was someone that she'd invited back to her place, someone she'd been expecting, I had to believe she would have been approaching him with open arms.

I continued to watch, needing to be positive, and the closer the guy got, the worse I felt.

For a brief moment, I considered my options. I was ready for bed, wearing nothing more than a pair of joggers. If there was something truly wrong, running upstairs to grab a shirt and a pair of socks was out of the question. Fortunately, I had a pair of sneakers sitting right beside the front door.

I watched and waited for no more than a minute before I was convinced this was not a friendly encounter. No matter how much I wanted to celebrate that fact, I couldn't.

Something else took over .

Protective nature. Instinct. Regardless of what it was called, it was that force which propelled me forward.

My sneakers were on, and I was out the door in a flash.

Now, I was standing here, chest heaving, my eyes pinned on this asshole. Although I was relatively sure when I'd left my house that this guy was trouble, the additional confirmation came when I made my approach.

I'd pulled the guy off Aria, and it was taking superhuman effort not to kill him. I'd heard her struggling against him, and for as long as I lived, I'd never forget the sound of her desperate pleas.

In an effort to settle myself down, I dared to take my eyes off the guy and look at Aria. "Are you okay?"

Her lips were parted, her eyes wide. Slowly, she nodded. "Yes."

"Did you invite this guy here?" I pressed.

She whispered her response. "No."

Without another thought, I looked away from Aria and focused every ounce of rage I felt into what I did next. I took slow, methodical steps toward the man. "What are you doing here?" I seethed.

"That's none of your business."

"I think it is. She said she doesn't want you here. She didn't invite you here. So, it seems you're trespassing on private property."

The guy took two steps back, his head jerking back slightly. "Are you the police or something?"

"Something," I confirmed, not a trace of humor in my tone. "Something you don't want to mess around with."

"She was flirting with me," he argued.

I swallowed that down, telling myself it was part of the job. The flirting she did with me wasn't the same as what this guy believed she was doing with him.

"I don't give a fuck what she was doing. You followed her home when she never invited you. Where I come from, that's akin to stalking. And I'm warning you now, you don't want to go around town stalking any woman, but especially not this one."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean? What's so special about her? Am I supposed to be afraid of you?"

I had no less than a dozen things I could have rattled off that I thought made Aria special, but none of them were things I intended to share with this guy. So, I ignored that question and answered the one I thought was most important for him to have an answer to. "It would be unwise for you to not take this seriously. If you don't ever approach her again, we won't have a problem. But if I get a whiff, the tiniest inkling, that you're even considering approaching her, you won't be able to comprehend the storm that's going to rain down on you. Don't test me, motherfucker. You won't win."

His eyes slid to the side, attempting to catch Aria's stare. I shifted, blocking his view of her. Then he pinned his eyes on her house, and I didn't like the way that made me feel.

"You've got one chance to get out of this without causing yourself any additional trouble," I advised. "Take this opportunity and be smart. If you ever come back here, it'll be your last time, because I won't hesitate to do what I've got to do to protect her from you."

He narrowed his eyes at me, like he wanted to say something but knew it wouldn't be a wise decision. Then, with a disgusted look on his face, he shook his head, turned, and walked away. I didn't take my eyes off him until he was back in his car and had pulled away.

Once he was gone, I twisted my neck and looked back at Aria.

She was still standing in the same spot right beside her car. And although there was an edge of shock in her expression, the fear was what was consuming her. I turned fully to face her, moved close, and sent a sympathetic look her way. "You're okay," I assured her.

That was all it took.

In an instant, she burst into tears. I didn't hesitate to wrap my arms around her and tug her close to my body. Her arms slid around me, her warm, soft hands making contact with the skin on my naked back.

I held one hand firmly at the back of her skull, my other hand stroking gently along her back. "Shh," I whispered. "It's okay. You're okay. I've got you."

"I've never been so scared," she cried.

"I know. But you're going to be alright. He didn't hurt you, did he?"

Her cheek was resting on the skin of my chest, and she moved her head, pressing it deeper. "No. No, he just scared me."

"Did he show interest in you at the bar?" I asked.

Aria nodded against my chest and took a deep breath. After releasing it, she pulled her face back, but kept her hold on me and stayed close. "He did. At first, it was just normal conversation when we were inside. He was seated at the bar, so Sawyer had more interaction with him than I did. But before I left, when I was walking out to my car, he approached me. He asked if he could take me out on a date, and I politely declined. I thought that was the end of it, because he didn't put up a fight."

A mix of hope and anger moved through me.

Hope , because I wanted to believe that perhaps I hadn't been wrong in assuming that Aria did feel some level of attraction to me, which is why she turned this guy down.

Anger, because she shouldn't have needed to experience this.

I hated that this had happened to her, but it wasn't entirely unexpected. Aria was a gorgeous woman. That alone was enough for a guy to be interested. If a man had an opportunity to talk with her, even for just a short time, it wasn't out of the realm of reasonable possibilities that he would want to pursue her. Myself included.

There was nothing wrong with the guy approaching and asking her out on a date. It was not taking her response as the final answer that was unacceptable. Following her home was completely out of line.

And now that I was staring into her beautiful but frightened face, I felt resolve steel my spine. I wanted to be the man who looked after Aria in all the ways that mattered.

I wanted to protect her, keep her safe, and make her feel good.

I wanted it to be me who was kissing and touching her, like I thought she was going to allow this guy to do tonight.

I wanted to be the one who made her squirm and moan.

But what I wanted right now wasn't the priority.

"And you didn't see him follow you home," I stated the obvious .

"Is that stupid? Maybe I should have been checking in my mirror," she reasoned.

Shaking my head, I insisted, "You are not stupid, Aria. That guy was an asshole."

She held my stare a beat before she asked, "How did you even know what was happening? It's so late. I thought you'd be sleeping."

My arms tightened around her. "When did you think that?"

She bit her lip, realizing she'd inadvertently shared something she might not have shared under different circumstances. "On my way home."

I lifted my chin slightly with understanding, feeling more hope flourish. "Tiny needed to go out. It's not common for him, for any of my dogs, to need to go out so late, but I guess it was perfect timing for this situation. I'd just let him in and was about to head upstairs when I saw your headlights."

"And you didn't climb your stairs?"

I laughed. There it was. We both had inadvertently shared more than we intended to tonight. "I didn't."

She tipped her head to the side, her eyes searching my face in the moonlight. "Why not?"

I couldn't lie to her, but I wasn't sure I should tell her the full truth, either. "I didn't see you today, so I thought I'd catch a glimpse of you before I crawled into my bed."

She licked her lips, her eyes drifting down away from my face. Her fingertips absentmindedly stroked along the skin on my back as her gaze settled on my chest. Aria's eyes closed briefly, something I couldn't read washing over her, and when she opened them again, she spoke. Her voice was throaty as she said, " Thank you for stepping in to help me tonight, Paxton."

"I'd do it again in a heartbeat."

"Let's hope you never have to, though."

I couldn't disagree with her there. As much as I liked having her wrapped up in my arms right now, I would have preferred it to be for a different reason. "Are you going to be okay tonight?"

She nodded. "Yeah, I think I'll be alright once I get inside."

I smiled at her and jerked my head toward her house. "Come on. I'll walk you there."

Hating that I had to do it, but knowing it was necessary, I loosened my hold on her and instantly felt the loss. To ease what I was feeling, I took her by the hand and led her to her front door.

Then she looked up at me and smiled, sending that dimple my way.

God, I wanted to kiss her.

Maybe, if she hadn't just experienced what she had, I might have done it. But I didn't want to take advantage of her being vulnerable right now. So, I smiled back and gave her hand a squeeze.

I could have sworn I saw disappointment flash in her expression, but it happened so fast, I might have been mistaken. Aria looked away and focused her attention on opening her door.

Once she pushed it open, she looked back at me and said, "Thank you, again, Paxton."

"Don't mention it."

"Okay. I'll… I guess I'll see you tomorrow, maybe."

"Do you work? "

"Yeah."

"At the deli and the bar?" I asked.

"Yes. But I'm working the later shift at the deli, so I get to sleep in a bit tomorrow morning."

Damn.

I had hoped she'd be off from the bar so I could invite her to do something with me. "Alright, I'll let you get inside and get to bed, then."

Her eyes remained locked on mine for several long beats, neither of us uttering a single word. But eventually, she broke the silence. "Goodnight, Paxton."

"Goodnight, Aria."

With that, I stepped back and walked away, preparing myself for the fact I'd be staying up tomorrow night until I knew she was safe at home again.

Aria

There had to be something wrong with me.

A man had been friendly and pleasant with me while I was at work and followed me home.

He'd done it uninvited.

I'd just crawled into my bed following a quick shower, and I should have been terrified. I should have been here with the blankets pulled up to my throat, shaking with fear.

But I wasn't .

Because even if what happened in those first few moments after I'd pulled up at home and gotten out of my car had the power to lead me there—or someplace worse—what happened from the moment Paxton entered the scene quelled my fears.

Maybe it was because I was entirely too shocked by what I'd witnessed.

That man had stepped in and stepped up for me in a way I hadn't realized I needed. It wasn't about the physical way he'd protected me; it was everything he'd said.

No hesitation. No second thoughts. He just did it.

So, it was an impossibility for me to feel fearful. At least, not yet. Not now.

Maybe I'd feel differently in the morning. But for now, for tonight, I was going to fall asleep with a smile on my face as a vision of a half-naked Paxton defending me replayed in my mind.