Chapter 295
Aria’s POV
“Of course,” I answered without hesitation. In all the time I’d known him, I’d never seen him this subdued, this vulnerable. Whatever was going on, it was serious.
The car started moving again, leaving the city lights behind as we drove further into the darkness. Twenty minutes later, we pulled over again.
This time I was smarter. I peered out the window first, trying to figure out where we were before making any assumptions. But all I could see was darkness-no buildings, no signs, nothing familiar.
If it had been anyone else but Aiden bringing me to a place like this, I might have been concerned for my safety. The thought made me smile a little-I trusted him completely.
He turned off the engine but made no move to get out. “Today is the anniversary of Katherine’s death,” he said quietly. “She is my godmother p>
I felt a jolt run through me as I looked ahead more carefully. Finally, I recognized where we were.
A cemetery. That explained everything.
I bit my lip, reaching over to touch his hand gently. “Should we go in and visit her p>
His lips curved in a sad smile. “It’s closed. We can’t get in p>
I studied his profile, illuminated faintly by moonlight. “What about climbing over the wall p>
The words came out before I could stop them. I could understand Aiden’s pain and anger-today Thomas Carter was celebrating his birthday with champagne and fanfare, while on this same date, his first wife had drawn her final breath.
Katherine Carter had been Thomas’s first wife, and more importantly. Unlike Thomas’s harsh, demanding parenting style, she had been like a true mother to him -warm, nurturing, protective.
Something fierce and protective surged within me. I unbuckled my seatbelt, got out of the car, and hurried around to his side. Opening his door, I tugged at his arm.
“Come on! We’re climbing that wall p>
My determination seemed to surprise him. A genuine smile broke across his face for the first time that evening. “I’m still buckled in, you know p>
“Oh! Right-I’ll get that for you p>
I felt my cheeks flush as I leaned across him, fumbling for his seatbelt release. The click seemed extraordinarily loud in the quiet car.
Standing back, I grabbed his hand again. “We’ll go in from the side entrance. The wall’s lower there p>
Aiden’s eyebrows shot up. “Mrs. Carter seems very familiar with cemetery break- ins p>
gave him a guilty look. “Just a lucky guess p>
That wasn’t true at all. Back in high school, my friend Lillian would escape to the cemetery whenever her stepmother was particularly cruel to her. I didn’t know about
it at first, until one night after we had a fight and she disappeared. I searched everywhere, panicking, until I suddenly remembered the cemetery.
“You’re a terrible liar,” Aiden said, but he was smiling now, some of the heaviness lifting from his expression.
“Fine,” I admitted, leading him toward the side wall. “I’ve done this before. But that was at Greenwood Cemetery. I hope Riverside Cemetery has the same layout p>
Thankfully, the side wall wasn’t too high-maybe six or seven feet. There were even stones stacked nearby, clear evidence that we weren’t the first midnight visitors.
“Some people need to visit at night,” I said softly. “Grief doesn’t follow visiting hours p>
I dropped his hand and bent to start moving one of the stones, but felt his arm slide around my waist, pulling me back.
“What are you doing?” he asked, sounding amused.
I turned to face him, blinking innocently. “Building a step. How else are we getting over p>
Aiden glanced at the wall, then back at me, his eyes sparkling with sudden humor. “I can reach the top without any help p>
I looked up at the wall, then at Aiden’s tall frame, suddenly aware of our height difference. “Well, not all of us are six-foot-three,” I muttered.
“I’ll stack them,” he said, already moving the heavy stones with ease.
Two blocks gave us about a foot of height, which would be enough for me to reach the top with my arms stretched up. But Aiden, ever thorough, added another stone bringing our makeshift step to almost two feet high.
It was only as I prepared to climb that I realized our predicament.
“Um, Aiden? We’re not exactly dressed for wall-climbing p>
We’d come straight from the gala—he in his perfectly tailored suit and dress shoes, me in my cocktail dress and four-inch heels.
“Second thoughts?” he asked, and I could hear the amusement in his voice.
Something about his tone made me determined to follow through. I could be stubborn sometimes, and this was definitely one of those times. This wall was getting climbed, fancy clothes or not.
I quickly slipped off my heels and, before I could reconsider, tossed them over the wall. “Well, now I have to go in. My shoes are in there p>
Aiden laughed—a real, genuine laugh that made my heart do a little flip. “That’s one way to commit p>
Gathering my dress in one hand, I
climbed onto our stone platform and pulled myself up to sit on the wall Thank goodness for all those weekend hikes and yoga classes that had given me decent upper body strength.
Perched on top, I suddenly had second thoughts as I peered down at the ground on
the other side. In the faint moonlight, I could see it wasn’t a smooth surface-there were rocks and possibly broken branches.
“I might cut my feet,” I murmured, suddenly less confident.
Aiden, seeing my hesitation, immediately stepped into action. “Don’t move,” he commanded, already loosening his cuffs and the top buttons of his shirt.
In one fluid motion, he scaled the wall and dropped down on the other side with practiced ease. I stared, impressed and a little embarrassed. Here was trying to show him how
hows
it’s done, and he moved like bed been scaling walls his entire life. Cóntent
“Where did you learn to do that?” I called down to him.
He looked up at me with a mischievous grin. “Boarding school rebellion. Now come on, I’ll catch you p>
He stood below me, arms outstretched, waiting. “Trust me, Aria p>