She was still wide awake when she heard Lex come to their room. He went into the bathroom, and she tried to fall asleep while he took a bath. But the more she longed for it, the more awake she felt.
"Hey," he said, climbing into bed.
She got a little distracted by his bare chest, the muscles on his body, and his tan skin before responding with her own 'hi.'
He laid on his back and sighed.
"I'm letting him live. And I'm not banishing him. Isn't that enough?" he asked.
"What?" she asked, a little confused.
"Ben," he said, turning on his side to face her.
"Oh," she said, shaking her head. "Right. Yeah, uh, thanks for that."
He looked confused. "Isn't that why you're upset with me?"
"I'm not upset with you," she said, turning to face him. What the hell is he talking about?
"Oh," he said, "I just figured you were."
"Why?"
"You have a sad look on your face. You have all night."
She didn't know what to say to that. She was a little surprised that he noticed.
"Why?" he asked. His eyes were a little glassy. He must've been a little drunk.
"Nothing in particular," she lied.
"Come on, just tell me," he said.
"Why should I? You've been ignoring me for days. And-and you didn't want to talk to me when I asked. You didn't even want me to come with you."
"Yes, because I needed some time to think. And to decide on what to do with that piece of shit you call a friend," he said.
"Well, I guess I need some time to think now," she said.
"You ask because you want to know what's going on," he said. "I ask because I care for you, and I don't like seeing you sad."
Aria stopped short. Did he really just admit that he cares for her?
"And you don't think I care about you?" she asked.
"Not particularly, no," he said with a half-smile.
"Well, I do," she said, looking away.
"Okay, then. Why are you sad?"
"I'm not sad," she said, shaking her head. "Actually, I kind of missed you..." She could feel her chest and her face warming up.
He laughed.
She turned to glare at him, embarrassed. "What's so funny?"
"If you need anything, just tell me. You don't have to lie and tell me what you think I want to hear to get back in my good graces."
She felt even angrier than before. How the hell could he say something like that? " You're an asshole," she said.
"Maybe so. But at least you know I'm being honest."
That stung. And to her embarrassment, she felt angry tears, making her vision blur.
She turned back on her side, facing away from him, not wanting to look at him for a second longer. She hoped he would say something. Take it back. Apologize. Maybe even reach out.
He didn't.
Chapter 23
Surprisingly, Ben left quietly.
He said his goodbyes, promising that he'd be back soon. A few people seemed sad to see him go, but most were relieved. Aria only hoped that he learned his lesson, that he wouldn't cause any more trouble.
She was the last person he said goodbye to. And she tried not to flinch when he told her that he loved her.
"Stay out of trouble," was all she said back. He looked hurt, but she couldn't find it in herself to feel bad about it.
Two days after Ben left, she walked to town with Brent and Peter. They were chatting about nothing in particular when Peter asked her what it was like being married to Lex.
"It's not so bad," Aria said. They had gone from strangers to allies. To possibly even friends.
"He's so cool," Peter said. And then he went on to tell Aria about the night that Lex had drunk with them, the stories he told.
Aria felt a little bitter. They all seemed to like him. And it wasn't like she didn't want them to, but her own personal feelings about Lex were making it difficult to listen to Peter and Brent talk about how cool he was.
They stayed in town for a while. Aria veered off to look around alone when she came upon a book that caught her attention. The vendor was an older gentleman, and the items he was selling were totally random. He had everything from books to animal skin to candles.
Aria picked the book up and looked through it for a few minutes before purchasing it. Yeah, she was still mad at Lex. But she couldn't resist the opportunity.
That night, she waited for him in their rooms, anticipation churning in her gut.
When he came in and didn't even acknowledge her, she thought about throwing the book in a corner and never mentioning it again.
He went to their bedroom, and she stayed in the front room for a little while longer, contemplating if she should give him the gift or not.
What the hell. We have to talk eventually.
She went into their room and found him sitting on the loveseat, reading a book.
"So I went to town today," she said, standing by the fireplace.
"Yeah," he said, not looking up.
"I got you something.”
He finally looked up. He seemed a little surprised.
She went to her side of the room and got the book out of her bag. She walked back to where he was sitting and wordlessly handed it to him.
King Arthur
He studied the cover for a minute, a smile playing on his lips.
"How fitting," he said, opening the book. “Thank you," he said, giving her a real smile for the first time in days.
"You're welcome." She felt a little awkward, just standing there. She made a move to leave, but he grabbed her hand, making her stay.
"Really," he said, "thank you. You didn't have to."
"I know...but I couldn't resist," she said, looking down at his hand. Their hands were complete opposites. Hers was small, her skin smooth. His was large and rough.
"I'm sorry," he said. "About what I said the other night. It was rude. I know that I can be an asshole. I'm working on
