Protected & Unsafe I Sequel to B&A

Chapter One

A R I E L

The summer night air was warm throughout downtown Los Angeles. Driving back to my house from my birthday dinner, I flickered my eyes over to my boyfriend- Kian behind the wheel. My lips pierced into a smile. For a moment, his eyes flickered over to me.

"What?" He laughed, focusing his eyes back on the road.

"Thank you." I whispered. "Tonight, was the best birthday I've ever had in a long time." A smile flashed across his face. With one hand, he reached over and intertwined our fingers.

"You're welcome. I know this is your first birthday without Adam around." He replied. I nodded, remembering. "But wasn't he supposed to visit this weekend?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow.

I shrugged. "He's busy working on this film for the school's annual summer festival." My head turned to him, seeing his judgmental look towards my brother blowing me off. "I get it. It's his dream school." I paused briefly. "He's certainly happy there." He glanced his eyes over at me as I smiled. "It makes me feel a little better about graduating without him."

"He's still gonna be there." Kian assured me as we pulled onto my street. "Right next to me and your aunts." He paused. "We're all gonna be there to watch you walk across that stage and get your diploma." A grin appeared on my face, my cheeks blushing. As we arrived at my driveway, he laughed at my blushing. He parked his car and switched off the engine. We climbed out and headed towards the front door.

Swinging the door open, we walked inside. Closing it behind us, Kian stashed his car keys in his jeans' back pocket. I put my purse on the end table, located between the door and the couch, before going to the kitchen for a drink.

"Hey, are you sure it's okay with Rachel and Natalie for me to spend the night here?" Kian's voice echoed from the living room as I stepped into the kitchen.

"I'm sure." I replied, then spotted something on the kitchen table with my name on it- a small jewelry box with a note attached on top to it. "They wouldn't be back from their wedding anniversary trip until tomorrow afternoon!" I added, then picked up the note. Kian came into the kitchen and stopped behind me as I turned around.

His eyebrow shot up when he saw the note and box in my hands. "What's that?" I casually shrugged and opened it up, reading it out loud.

To our favorite niece:
I found this when I was cleaning out my jewelry box. It was your mother's. I know she would want you to have it. Happy birthday, Ariel.
- Love, Aunt Rachel & Aunt Natalie.

Placing the note on the side, I carefully removed the wrapping from the gift box and revealed its contents. Inside is a stunning heart-shaped locket necklace. In awe, I delicately removed it from the box and admired its beauty. I carefully placed the small box on the table, then gently revealed the locket. Tears welled up in my eyes when I saw the photo inside - my mother.

I expected it to be empty or have baby photos of Adam and me.

"Wow." He commented, peeking over. "You look a lot like her." My eyes flickered up towards him and smiled. He gently placed it into his hands. I moved my hair to the side and faced away from him. He unclasped the tiny chain and placed it on my neck, securing it again.

"What do you think?" I asked, turning around to him.

"It's beautiful." He replied, then stepped closer. "You're beautiful." My cheeks blushed. I quickly looked down, feeling embarrassed, then glanced up at him. As he grinned, his eyes stayed locked with mine. Our eyes locked as we inched closer and closer.

Just as we about to kiss, a loud bang against the front door interrupted us, causing us to jump back startled. Our hearts skipped a beat, and we turned our heads towards the sound.