Aria didn’t exactly have a history of taking men home.
Ever.
“Aria? You okay in there?”
Silence.
“Ari, he’s gone. Come out, let’s talk.” Jenny drew in a breath. “Did he . . . was . . . he didn’t . . .” For Pete’s sake. She was a trained psychologist. She knew how to talk to women who’d felt pressured into . . . well, whatever had happened here.
“Honey, you’re safe here. And no judgment. Just come out. I need to know if you’re okay.”
“I’m okay.” The voice emerged stronger than Jenny would have thought given Aria’s reaction to her sudden arrival.
Maybe she didn’t know Aria as well as she thought.
No, that didn’t make sense. She’d known Aria since they’d roomed together at the University of Minnesota.
“Sweetie, I know this isn’t normal behavior for you, and I just need to know . . . um . . . just . . .”
“I’m okay!” The door opened, and Aria stood in the frame, fully dressed, her hair up in a ponytail. No makeup, her expression a little fierce. “I knew exactly what I was doing when I invited Jake back here, so in case you’re wondering if I’ve taken leave of my senses, no.”
“Then why did you—”
“Hide in the bathroom?” She came out and brushed past Jenny, yanking up the duvet from the floor and dragging it to the bed. “I don’t know. Reflexes, I guess. So many years telling myself to wait—” She shook her head. “I was just tired of waiting.”
Jenny stepped back as Aria arranged the duvet on the bed. “Okay.”
“I’ve spent my entire life waiting. First for a heart, and then love. And I don’t know what to call the spark between me and Jake, it just feels like maybe I shouldn’t listen to my head and let my heart have a little fun.”
“Fun? That’s what you’re calling this? Really?”
Aria picked up a king pillow and chucked it onto the bed. “Yep. That’s what I’m calling it.”
Okay, no, she didn’t know this woman. “Aria, you’re the one who always told me that you are worth waiting for—”
“It’s no big deal. Like you said, this isn’t church camp. We’re all grown-ups here.”
That shut Jenny down for a full moment. That and the sheen of moisture in Aria’s eyes. “It would have been a big deal—”
“What happens in Alaska stays in Alaska.”
A knock came at the door and Aria stalked past her to open it.
For a moment, Jenny feared it might be Jake. But he looked so stricken when he fled she doubted she’d see him again.
Feared that Aria wouldn’t either.
“Do you want maid service?” asked a uniformed housekeeper in the hallway.
“Later,” Aria said. “Thank you.” She closed the door. Stood with her hand pressed to the door.
“You know that’s not true, right?” Jenny said.
Aria turned and frowned at her.
“That saying. What you do does follow you.”
“It doesn’t have to.” Aria shook her head and walked over to the coffeemaker. “I’ve been saying that to you for years.”
Jenny drew a breath, not sure how to respond.
Aria filled the pot with water. “Want some coffee?”
Jenny shook her head, mute.
“Fine.” Aria filled the machine and set the coffee to drip.
Silence fell as the coffeemaker gurgled.
Finally, “Okay, fine. Of course it’s a big deal, but for the record, I was the one who invited him back here. And he . . . well, I promise he wasn’t the instigator. I was the one who walked out in a robe. He even asked me if I was sure.”
“And were you?”
Aria lifted a shoulder. “Yes.” She paused. “Maybe. I don’t know.”
Jenny said nothing.
“I . . . I think I could be in love with Jake. Which I know sounds crazy, but he’s charming and brave and sacrificial and . . .” She looked up at Jenny. “I wanted him to want me. Aria. But I always think too much. I get in my own way. So, I thought maybe if I could do what Kia would do, maybe that would be better. She was brave.”
Oh, Aria. “Honey. You don’t need Kia to be brave. And, you are perfect the way you are.” Jenny walked over to her. “Listen. I get it. It was a traumatic week, and Jake . . . he saved you . . .”
“I totally embarrassed myself.” She grabbed a mug and filled it with coffee. “It was probably good you came in when you did. Imagine what a guy like Jake would have thought when he found out it was my first time.” She turned, offered a half-smile. “You saved me, roomie.” She took a sip of the coffee. “I need to leave Alaska and get back to my real life.”
“Okay, listen. Jake . . . he lives in Minnesota, right? So maybe—”
“I don’t want to see Jake again.”
“Why?”
A pause. “I’m so embarrassed.” She set her cup down. “I’m not that woman, except now Jake probably thinks I am and . . .” She looked away, her eyes filling. “What was I thinking?”
Jenny had no words.
Aria shook her head, swiped her hand across her cheek. “Listen, really. I’m okay. But . . . no. I don’t want to see Jake ever again. I just want to go home.”
“Um, okay. Book us flights. I need to talk to Orion—he’s going to this political reception. Then I’ll be back up.”
“No. I need to be alone. Go to the party. I’ll book my own flight.” She offered a smile. “Just because I was stupid doesn’t mean you are. Orion is a great guy. What you see is what you get with him. You can trust him with your heart, Jen.”
“I promise to contend for your heart, Jenny.”
Yes, yes she could.
She drew Aria into an embrace, then got up, retrieved her bag of clothes, and went to her suite.
Ham had bought her a little black dress, leggings, and flats. It felt a little weird to be standing in the department store with him. To let him purchase something for her.
But she’d left her wallet back in storage in Copper Mountain.
Besides, he also bought Orion a pair of pants and a clean shirt.
Ham had called it a work expense. Whatever. But the idea sank inside her as she brushed out her hair. Join Ham’s search and rescue team? He’d told her about it as they left the hospital.
An international team that answered the call of the desperate and lost.
She couldn’t deny the nudge inside her to say yes. Work with Orion.
Help the world.
She pulled on the leggings, slid on the dress, and slipped her feet into the flats. Nothing fancy, but it would do. She didn’t know why Ham and Orion had jumped so fast on her suggestion of going to the reception, but she didn’t hate hearing what Isaac White had to say. She wasn’t invested in politics, but she did want a safer world.
Aria’s door was closed as she exited her room and left the suite.
She took the elevator down onto the second floor, where the mezzanine overlooked the lobby. A small crowd spilled out of open doors to a reception room. Waiters wandered in and around the crowd, carrying champagne and hors d’oeuvres. Her stomach growled.