Chapter 22
Ryan
* * *
Ididn’t know how I was able to function.
Six weeks of wild, hot sexual indulgence had taken me to some plane of transcendence where I didn’t even know if I was coming or going.
Six weeks of Brooke and her gorgeous, perfect body—her gorgeous, perfect body I couldn’t stop thinking about.Fuck, I was certain I would end up going insane, like one of those babbling fools in the movies who’d lost their mind over a beautiful woman.
Thank God work wasn’t that busy or strenuous, and thank God my problems with Aria seemed to have worked themselves out.
Sure, I was still worried about her being with Brad, but somehow I’d gotten used to them. Brad had even started coming over for dinner some evenings, and I’d met his parents. Nice people, older, like most of his friends’ parents, but hey, I’d never cared about that. I loved my girl and that was all that mattered, not how old or how young I was.
I woke up in my bed after another night of Brooke. Most nights I stayed at her place until about two A.M then I’d come back home.
Our pipe story had lasted all of three weeks then I’d told Aria I was working on a case and would mostly be coming home late. I hated lying, but I didn’t think I could tell her about Brooke just yet, purely for the reason that Brooke hadn’t voiced any thoughts about it.
The other thing was I was totally sneaking around like I was the sixteen-year-old hiding from my parents.
I went into the kitchen to get coffee and stopped when I saw Aria sitting at the breakfast table. She normally rose early, but not this early, and on a Saturday morning—no way. It was bright outside, like it could be a little later, but it was only six.
She smiled when she saw me, and I noticed she had a folder out in front of her, along with a stack of poetry books.
“Morning, sunshine.” I moved over to her and gave her a kiss on her forehead. “Are you okay?” Maybe she was sick.
“I’m fine.”
“You aren’t normally up so early.”
“Dad, you think I’m not up this early, but I’ve been waking up at five every day to study. By the way, my report card is over there.”
I’d seen it come in the mail the day before but hadn’t opened it. Her grades had been awful the previous semester, even worse than the semester before it.
Now I opened the envelope, and my jaw about hit the floor when I saw A’s for everything—literally everything. I had to double-check the name.
“Fuck.” I hissed and covered my mouth quickly when I realized I’d sworn.
She giggled and shook her head at me.
“How’d you…?”
“How did I manage it?” she filled in.
“Please don’t think I’m putting you down in any way. I’m just shocked.” Shocked to the point where my skin was tingling.
“I know. I was too. Brooke helped me study, and she gave me her old study plan. I decided I’d implement it before prom and it worked.”
I rushed over to give her a hug, and she hugged me back. She hadn’t hugged me like that in months.
“I’m so proud of you.”
“Really? You are?” She beamed up at me and looked at me like it meant a lot for her to hear me say that.
I moved back and pulled up a chair to sit in front of her.
“Yes. I’m super, super proud of you.”
