Chapter 2: Chapter Two

“In the shower?” Joan asked, widening her brown eyes, which appeared magnified under her glasses.

“Yep,” Aria answered, shaking her head in disgust.

“And this happened what… three days ago?” Joan said in astonishment. “Why didn’t you tell me about it before now?”

Aria shrugged. “I don’t know. When I first caught him, I was shocked. I didn’t know what to say or do. I just left the apartment and wandered around for a few hours.” She blew out an exasperated sigh. “But then I remembered that I wasn’t the one who did the cheating, and so I went back to the apartment.”

“Was he still there?” Joan asked, leaning heavily against the drink station. The two women were working the day shift at the restaurant, and as it was not a busy afternoon, Aria was taking a few minutes to update her friend on the state of her shattered relationship with Landen.

Aria nodded glumly. She brushed her brown curls away from her face and stared out the large glass window. “He was there.”

“Was the woman still there?” Joan questioned, clearly unable to contain herself.

Aria shook her head in disgust. “I don’t know what happened to her, but she was gone by the time I circled back.”

“Well,” Joan said, putting her hands on her hips. “What did Landen have to say for himself?”

“What could he say?” Aria replied, taking her hair out of the rubber band that was holding it. She shook out her curls and then began reworking the hairdo. “I caught him in the act. Nothing he could say was going to make the situation any better.”

“Okay…” Joan said slowly, “so what happens now?”

“I told him he had to leave. I don’t know how I’m going to afford the apartment on my own, but I couldn’t bear to spend one more minute in his presence.”

“Of course,” Joan said encouragingly.

“He packed his stuff the very next day, and I haven’t seen him since,” Aria concluded, letting out a massive breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding.

Joan wrinkled up her nose. “But you don’t want to see him again, right?”

Aria turned toward her friend and gave her an irritated look. “I don’t want to see him again.”

“Okay then…” Joan said, bobbing her head up and down as though she were thoroughly thinking through the situation. “What are you going to do about the apartment?”

“I’m going to keep it,” Aria responded at once. Even though it was small, it was in the perfect location. She loved that little place, and she didn’t want to let it go just because Landen wasn’t living there anymore. “I don’t know how I’ll make rent, but in a few months, I’m going to graduate with my M.B.A. I’ll find a new job, and as soon as I start earning more, I’ll be able to handle the rent on my own. No problem.”

“No problem,” Joan echoed. “You make it sound so simple.”

Aria shrugged. “It is…I guess. I mean, I know it’s complicated and I certainly didn’t love coming home and finding my boyfriend in the shower with another woman, but Landen and I…we’d been having problems for a long time.”

“Ummm…” Joan murmured, again nodding her head in a concerned fashion. “I remember.”

“So, yeah…while I don’t relish the situation I’m in now, I guess I don’t exactly miss Landen either,” Aria finished.

“Good riddance, I say,” Joan said, giving Aria a confident nod.

“Uh-huh,” Aria replied. She was trying to sound self-assured, and maybe, somewhere in her heart of hearts, she truly believed everything she was saying, but her pain was fresh. The wound that opened when she realized Landen was with another woman was excruciating, and it made her gut ache just to think of what he had done.

Joan eyed Aria closely, as if she were trying to read her thoughts. “You know what you need?” Joan asked, a small smile tickling the corners of her mouth.

“No,” Aria said, both in answer to the question and as a way to thwart Joan from making whatever suggestion she had in mind. Aria adored Joan, but they were very different people. Aria was studious, and she lived a life that was ruled by her desire to find true happiness. Joan was more carefree. She worked at the restaurant because it brought her joy, and when that wasn’t the case, she was going to happily move along somewhere else. Aria liked to plan things out, months, maybe even years in advance, but Joan liked to fly through life, embracing each new experience as it came at her.

Joan grinned wickedly. “I’m taking you out tonight.”

“No,” Aria repeated. “I’ve got an early class tomorrow. I can’t afford to go out dancing tonight.”

“Sure you can,” Joan coaxed. “And I happen to know that your first class doesn’t begin until 10 a.m. tomorrow.”

“How do you know my schedule?” Aria asked, her eyebrow quirking suspiciously.

“I pay attention,” Joan responded nonchalantly. She picked at the blue nail polish on her index finger. “You’re always talking about your rigorous course schedule. I do my best to listen. So, I know for a fact that once this shift is over, you’ve got time on your hands.”

Aria made a dubious face. “How do you know I don’t need to study?”

“Do you need to study?” Joan retorted quickly.

“No,” Aria confessed, and a playful smile began to spread slowly across her face.

“See,” Joan replied, tossing her blue and blond ponytail over her shoulder. “A night out on the town is exactly what you need.”

“But…” Aria started to protest, but Joan cut her off.

She gave Aria a knowing look. “We both know you’re going to agree eventually. Why don’t you just save us both the trouble of arguing?”

Aria chuckled. It felt good. Her mind had been so preoccupied with Landen and his betrayal the last few days that she had hardly cracked a smile. “Okay, okay,” Aria said, holding up her hands in surrender. “I’ll go out with you tonight, but I can’t stay out late.”

“Of course not,” Joan replied, giving Aria an exaggerated wink.

What have I just gotten myself into? Aria thought as she walked away from the drink station and headed back to check on her table of customers.

***

“What did you say your name was again?” Aria shouted over the loud music. Joan had convinced her that they needed to try out a new club called Surreal. So far, Aria was not dazzled. The club was fashionable and modern. The dance floor was lit in a pale blue, and the DJ, who was seated inside a glass box, kept playing music that Aria didn’t even recognize, as it was so new. The walls were covered in mirrors, and Aria felt like everywhere she looked there was someone who was younger and prettier than her. She adjusted the hem of her jean skirt and leaned in toward her dance partner. She was dancing with a man she didn’t know and trying her hardest to figure out if his name was Trent or Kent. She supposed it really could be either as she was unable to hear him, and she couldn’t read his lips very well in the dim light.

Trent or Kent, whichever he might be, nodded enthusiastically at Aria, but just kept moving in time with the music. “I hate this sort of thing!” Aria shouted over the music, but Trent/Kent just nodded at her again. She really didn’t love the club scene. Aria liked it when she was able to have a conversation with someone else, and if she were going to dance with a guy, she at least wanted to be able to ask him his name properly. Frustrated, Aria craned her neck, trying to see if she could spot Joan in the crowd. It was practically impossible since the dance floor was completely crowded with people. As the song mercifully wound to a close, Aria nodded at her dance partner and excused herself. She walked toward the bar and slumped heavily against it, letting her elbows rest on the shiny countertop.

Aria groaned and tipped her head forward. “I know what you mean,” a deep voice said softly at her left shoulder. Aria lifted her head and swung it to look at the person who was talking to her. He was standing close enough that she heard his words clearly, but he was also not standing so close that she felt hemmed in by his proximity. Aria arched her eyebrow at the stranger and took a moment to look him over. He was tall, maybe a good six or seven inches taller than she was. He had dark hair that was combed neatly into a stylish fashion, which reminded her of the coffee she liked to sip before class each morning. His blue eyes twinkled as they reflected the garish lights that shone behind the bar, illuminating the specialty brands of liquor that were available for purchase.

He was very attractive, and Aria felt her breath catch in her throat. Her eyes coasted over his clothes, which were classic but also expensive looking. He wore a simple pair of jeans and a fitted black button-down shirt. Aria observed the way his shirt hugged his broad shoulders, and she could just detect the outline of his muscled chest underneath the cotton material. She was reluctant to tear her eyes away from him, but she also knew it was impolite to stare at him as intensely as she was. Then, making matters even more complicated, he smiled slowly at her, and Aria felt her knees go weak.

Luckily, she was still leaning against the bar, so she didn’t slump to the floor right then and there. “Hi,” Aria said weakly, reaching up self-consciously to fiddle with her ponytail. Her curls were rather unruly, and all she’d been able to do with them was coax them into a wild topknot. But now, standing next to this man, Aria felt awkward and underdressed.

“Hi,” he returned and gave her a small nod. “You waiting for a drink?”

Aria shook her head. “I just came over here to get some air.”

The man gave her a quizzical look. “You came to the bar to get some air?”

Aria felt a blush creep up her neck and onto her cheeks. “Uh…yeah. There are so many people here…I just felt stifled.”

The man smiled at Aria understandingly. “I know. This place is awfully crowded.”

Aria felt herself relax a bit. “Do you come here often?” She wanted to smack a hand over her forehead. This was such an overplayed line, and she knew it. But to be fair, it had been a long time since she had been out in the club, mingling with other single people. She and Landen had been together for years, and even though they sometimes went out for a drink or a dance, she didn’t usually make casual conversation with handsome strangers while she was on Landen’s arm.

The man didn’t seem to notice Aria’s discomfort, nor was he thrown by her mundane question. “I come here from time to time.” He nodded to the bartender, and in just a moment, the man behind the bar placed two tall glasses of clear liquid in front of them. “Did you want a drink… I’m sorry, I don’t think I caught your name.”

Aria gulped. “Aria, my name’s Aria.”

“Like a song?” The man asked, taking a sip of his drink.

Aria chuckled. “I wish. My parents loved to visit Las Vegas and they decided to name me after the casino out there.”

“The Aria Casino?” The man questioned, his blue eyes alight with mirth. “That is original, I’ll give you that.”

“And what’s your name?” Aria asked, leaning closer to the man.

“I’m Ethan,” he replied, pushing the extra drink toward her.

“Thanks, Ethan,” Aria said quickly, scooting the glass back in his direction. “I’m really not up for drinking tonight.”

“It’s just water,” he said smoothly, lifting his own glass to his lips and taking a long sip. Aria watched him as he moved, finding herself transfixed by the way he held the glass and how it looked when it touched his lips. She felt her cheeks color again, and so she pulled the glass back and took a small drink. The cool water was refreshing, and it helped Aria get a grip on herself. She didn’t even know Ethan, and yet, she felt mesmerized by his every word and movement.

When Aria put her glass down, she noted that Ethan had been watching her coolly. It made her pulse jump excitedly to think that he was paying as much attention to her as she was to him.

“Do you want to dance?” Ethan asked casually.

“Sure,” Aria returned. He held out his hand to her, and she took it. A jolt of electricity raced up Aria’s fingertips, and she widened her eyes at Ethan. He gave her a small smile, and she was sure he must have felt the same thrill run through his own body. Ethan led Aria across the entire dance floor, and they finally came to a stop near the VIP area.

“I hope you don’t mind dancing here,” Ethan said, raising his voice a little while also leaning in closer to Aria.

Aria shook her head. “This is fine,” she said, scooting into him so that very little space existed between them.

“I’ve found this is the only spot in this place where you can have a conversation while dancing,” Ethan told her as their bodies began to sway in time to the music.

“Oh?” Aria asked, feeling his hands move upward toward her waist. She kept her feet moving and lifted her hands in the air, waving them rhythmically to the beat.

“That’s the only thing I hate about places like this…” Ethan said, as he pulled Aria closer to him. “You can get close to people, but you can’t ever talk to them.” Aria gulped nervously. She had been thinking almost the same thing just before she met Ethan. The coincidence startled her, but it also made her feel emboldened. Here was a guy who was saying and doing all the right things. Boldly, Aria lowered her arms and wrapped them around his neck.

As the two moved along with the thumping music, they spoke quietly to one another. To Aria, it felt like a bubble had been built around them. They talked and whispered, laughing at things they had in common. As the night continued, Aria began to relax completely. In Ethan’s arms, she felt appreciated. She couldn’t remember the last time Landen made her feel so special. So, when the bartender announced that it was last call, and Ethan leaned forward and said, “Do you want to get out of here?” Aria didn’t hesitate.

“Let’s go to my place,” Aria whispered in her most seductive tone. She held out her hand to Ethan, and with a slow, easy smile, he took her hand and followed her back to her apartment.