"Aria, you had me hooked the moment you stood in front of me in the VIP booth back at Volt. Then you had me whipped when you were sprawled across my desk a panting mess." His lips brush mine and I want nothing more than to lean forward and close the...
"My god Aria. Are you okay?" Kayla gently rubs my back with one hand and holds my hair back with the other as I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand. My once-empty stomach is even more empty and bile now sits at the bottom of the small office bin.
"Yeah. I'm okay." Groaning, I run my other hand through my hair, then dig the heel of my palm into my eyes. "I'm so sorry you had to witness that. That was... so gross."
"No, don't speak about it. I'm just more worried that you're not okay. Have you eaten anything today?" Her voice is always so damn calming. She would make a great Mother one day. Or a shrink. Hiccupping, I shake my head.
"No, it's not that, well I guess it could be, but I only got nauseous when I... smelt the lilies." My voice trails off as I look over at the white flowers sitting innocently on Kayla's desk as if they didn't just make me throw up my whole stomach.
A knot of dread formed in my stomach. An uneasy thought drifting into my head. "You don't think you're, you know." Kayla motions something with her hands.
"I think we should get out of here," I whisper, slowly getting to my feet and ignoring Kayla's previous question.
"I still have some work to do." Kayla motions to her desk behind her.
"You can take your laptop with you and do some at our house. I'll just tell Enzo something came up. He'll be okay with everything." The knot is getting bigger, tighter and heavier.
"You mean mansion. Castle." Kayla gathers her laptop and some papers, as well as the files and invitation I brought.
"Yeah, I guess the De Luca estate is pretty big," I mutter mindlessly under my breath as we walk to the elevator. The ride down is short without any interruptions. When the doors slide open we both walk together through the lobby.
"Kayla, I thought you still have 5 more hours." That fucking dick. The receptionist has his arms crossed over his chest and an unimpressed look on his face.
"Sorry Derek but something came up." She doesn't stop walking, keeping with my pace.
The moment we step out into the warm air of New York I feel like I can finally breathe.
"So we take one of Enzo's cars and I'll have someone arrange to pick yours up later?" I place a hand on my stomach, hoping to calm it down.
Kayla looks down at her simple black heels shyly, then meets my eyes, biting her bottom lip. "I don't have a car." She says quietly, clutching her belongings to her chest.
"Then how do you get here?" Frowning at the small girl in front of me.
"I take the bus." She says quietly.
Sighing, I give her a sympathetic look. "How have you not been killed or jumped yet?"
"Dumb luck?" She suggests. I give her a small, quick laugh but quickly stop and I groan instead. More bile threatens to rise, the lilies pollen still present in my nose.
