A Slow Burning Fire (3 page)

Arial had picked out the dress for the event over a month ago. She'd chosen a pale yellow chiffon cocktail dress that had a ruched bodice decorated with silver rhinestones. It was strapless with a sweetheart neckline. The soft color looked nice against her tanned skin, but what she loved the most about it was the way it made her appear a woman instead of a teenager, without going overboard. There was a fine line between conservative and boring. She was happy not to cross it and keep hold of her values.

She hummed while putting on a pair of long, dangling earrings studded with diamonds. The way they fell reminded her of a waterfall, which was the only reason she had bought them in the first place. Expensive jewelry was not something she purchased a lot. Any time she went to a special event or walked a red carpet, a designer donated a piece to display. She had gotten that particular pair of earrings herself a couple years back solely for special occasions. The after party definitely qualified as such.

Makeup applied and her silver heels on, she was ready to go. A black town car waited for her outside of her Los Angeles apartment building. Driving did not appeal to her tonight. The press would be there in droves to catch sight of all the celebrities who would be in attendance at the party. Not only had the cast been invited, but also other stars from the network, as well as some big-name friends.
Three Wishes
was going out with a bang.

As she got into the car, she pulled her cell phone out of her purse and dialed Bryce's number. The phone kept ringing.
Four, five, six. Why isn't he picking up?
she wondered. The phone went to voicemail. Scowling, she hung up and tried again. Once more, it only kept ringing, but this time he answered before the automated voice message did.

“Hello?” he drawled out, speech obviously slurred.

Arial closed her eyes, shaking her head. “You're drunk.”

“I'm having fun,” he stated. In the background she could hear loud music and lots of chatter.

Patience
, she willed herself. Taking in a deep breath, she spoke with more calm than she felt. “Are you at the party?”

“Yes.”

She sighed with relief. At least he was somewhere relatively safe. Why in his right mind did he think getting drunk at the after-party would be a good idea? Anger boiled up inside her. This wasn't like Bryce at all. She only knew of two other times she'd seen him drunk out of his mind. One being his twenty-first birthday party where he was introduced to alcohol for the first time. The second was after his mother passed away later that same year. Dread replaced the anger when she heard a new voice on his phone — a female one.

“Has anyone ever told you how hot you are?” the woman asked him. Arial didn't recognize to whom it belonged, which worried her even more.

“Bryce,” Arial said. “Listen to me carefully. I will be there soon. Stay where you are. Don't go anywhere with anyone. Just enjoy your drink. Try to eat something, too.”

He laughed. “Sure thing, Ari. I won't move a muscle, promise. See you soon.” He hung up before she could say goodbye.

A small growl escaped her lips. “Try to step on it, please,” she told her driver.

The producers had picked a new restaurant in the city to help keep the event off the radar from the adoring public. News spread fast, however, because when Arial arrived at the door some fifteen minutes later, not only was she bombarded by cameras but shouts of praise from fans. She stopped to sign a handful of autographs and to shake hands with a few lucky people before making her way to the door. One goal was in her mind: get to Bryce.

Inside, the party was hopping. Loud dance music thumped out of the stereos, giving the restaurant more of a club feel than a dining place. The entrance was elevated over a large room. White twinkling lights wrapped around the stairwell that led down, giving the whole place a classic, fancy appeal. Tables lined the edges of the room, with the bar in the center and a dance floor toward the back where a DJ played. Arial's focus remained on the bar as she searched for Bryce.

“Please be there,” she whispered. Her eyes spotted him at the far corner, and she watched him sip on a drink. Every so often his head would nod as he listened to a tall, blonde woman with the body of a supermodel. This woman put a hand on his chest, slipping her hand under the coat of his suit jacket to do so. Arial gripped the hand railing on the stairs with such strength, her knuckles were turning white. She growled as she stalked her way across the room to the bar.

****

Bryce sat at the bar listening to the blonde woman blabber on about some big underwear campaign she was modeling for, like that was supposed to impress him or something. Where was Arial? He was getting bored waiting for her to arrive. He sipped at his rum and Coke, knowing full well he probably should have switched to water a long time ago. The goal had been to take the edge off all the emotions cycling through his mind, not to get plastered and feel nothing at all. Forgetting to have a snack before arriving hadn't helped his low tolerance level much.

“It's a little loud here. I don't suppose you'd want to go some place more quiet so we could get to know each other better?” the blonde asked. He'd missed her name, but he had a sneaking suspicion she wouldn't mind too much. Her hand snaked across his chest and into his suit jacket. It trailed down his side, and he pulled away from her before she could get any further.

He shook his head. “Food will be here soon, and I'm meeting friends.”

“Dinner isn't for another twenty minutes. That's more than enough time to get acquainted.” She winked.

Cringing inwardly, he grabbed her hand before she could touch him again and gently placed it onto the bar counter. Under the influence or not, he still had some self-control left. “Let me be straight with you. I'm not interested.”

“How about another rum and Coke then?”

“Yeah, that sounds like a good idea.” He wanted it for different reasons than she, he was sure. When he got his next drink from the bartender, he took a bigger swig and slouched. He tapped his hands on the counter impatiently as he waited. The nameless blonde model continued to fawn over him, but everything she said went in one ear and right out the other.

When he noticed Arial pushing her way through the crowd, he sat up quickly. As she got closer, his breath caught in his throat. He'd never noticed how truly stunning she was before. Her pale yellow dress accented her features perfectly and put her on a level high above the other women there — including the model, who may have had a flawless body in her revealing little black dress but lacked in class. Arial projected an image and confidence that reminded him of old Hollywood. A time when it was preferable to be glamorous over seductive, regal even. She could have been a princess with all of her grace and natural beauty.

Why did she look so angry, though? While the furrowed brow and pouted lips were indeed sexy to behold, her temper could be a force to reckon with.

****

Arial forced a smile onto her face when she arrived at the bar. Even if she didn't want to look happy, she pretended for Bryce's sake. She didn't want to make him angry by acting out in a jealous rage. He wasn't hers to be jealous or protective over to begin with.

“Bryce, sweetie, thank you for waiting. I hope you weren't too bored,” she said, opening her arms to hug him.

His green eyes rose to look at her, and she saw the pure, joyful glimmer in them. Bryce had never been a guarded drunk. Some people put their walls up higher while under the influence. Alcohol had the opposite effect on him. The walls fell down and the extra security he had carefully put around himself was disabled, leaving him open, vulnerable, and easy to read. When his gaze met hers, his smile widened. He was absolutely smoking hot in his black suit as well. When he cleaned up, he did it nicely. His sand-colored hair was neatly combed and his face clean-shaven. The suit added a smooth confidence to his persona.

Without any hesitation, he wrapped his arms around her tightly. “I managed. Thanks for coming.” He rose from his stool and stumbled slightly, using her shoulders for support. The sudden weight on her almost caused her to fall.

She picked up the nearly empty glass. “How many of these did you have?”

“Three and a half.”

Arial groaned. “You're kind of a lightweight,” she teased in an effort to hide her disappointment. Getting openly upset with him would only push him further away. She'd save the lectures for when he was sober.

“Bars aren't my thing,” he mumbled. “I'm not as far gone as you think.”

“The fact that you said that like a toddler makes me think otherwise.” She pulled him to the side of the restaurant and grabbed the sides of his face, forcing him to look at her. “Be honest with me. Do you want to be here right now?”

He shook his head. “I didn't want to come at all, to deal with all the questions and speculations. I don't want to talk about her all night with people, but it would have been bad not to show up. Unprofessional.”

“More so than getting yourself wasted within the first hour?”

“I'm not that drunk!”

“But drunk enough, and one or two more of those things and you'd probably be blacking out.” She sighed. “Come on, I'll take you home.”

Bryce shook his head and pulled away from her. “At least let me have dinner, take a few photos, and try to sober up. Once I eat, I'll be fine.”

Arial wasn't sure she believed him, but she was willing to cut him some slack. They went to share a table with the cast. Dinner came and everything seemed to be going smoothly. Speeches were given, tears were shed, and then the party went back to socializing freely. Bryce returned to the bar, despite the fact that he'd been indulging in the free champagne being shared at the table the whole time. Scowling, she went to follow him and arrived just as he was about to take a sip of what appeared to be Scotch.

She took in a deep breath and lowered his arm. “I think it's okay to leave now. The business portion of the night is over.”

He nodded at her solemnly. “Yes, take me home.”

****

Bryce lived in a small loft outside of downtown Los Angeles on the other side of the city from Arial. She seemed to be into the city life, but he'd prefer living away from all the noise. He'd contemplated buying a house a few years ago, but without a family living in it with him, it was a waste of space. Katie hadn't wanted to live with him either, so he’d kept things as simple as possible.

His Siamese cat, Pixie, rubbed against his legs when he walked inside. He leaned down to pet her, losing his balance in the process. If it hadn't been for Arial's steadying hand, he'd have toppled over.

“Stupid shoes,” he mumbled. “They've been tripping me all night.”

Arial scoffed. “Mm-hmm, the shoes’ fault, exactly. Bad shoes.”'

“Very bad shoes!” He held his arms out to balance himself as he tried to kick the black dress shoes off his feet. They didn't seem to be able to come off.

A quiet cough escaped Arial, catching him off guard. She pointed down at his feet when he glanced up at her.

“Try the laces,” she mumbled, taking off her heels. She sighed, smiling, and dropped two inches in height. Bryce did not understand heels. She was already the perfect height for him without them. Her forehead reached his lips, making it perfect for kissing. He wanted to try for real, but even drunk he knew it wouldn't have been a good decision. No matter how much he cared about her, loved her, he knew he couldn't act on it. If he didn't tread carefully with her, he might completely destroy their friendship. Just the thought of losing her terrified him.

For what seemed like the millionth time that evening, he found himself staring at her again. “Wow,” he breathed.

****

“Hmm?” She glanced up at him. “Did you say something?”

“Talking to myself.” He smiled. “Thanks for making sure I made it back okay. You can return to the party if you'd rather be there.”

“Not sure I trust you to be good,” she teased.

He rolled his eyes, the playful sparkle in them still remaining. “I'm a perfect angel.”

“Whatever you say. I'd rather be here with you anyway.” Arial shook her head. She was not about to argue with him. When it came to guys, he was indeed about as perfect as they could get. Nice, sweet, gentle, funny, and outside of a few brief lapses in judgment, he was well behaved. She didn't know what pushed him to drink so much tonight. That was not like him, and she wanted to ask. Instead she waited to see if he would say something on his own. Prying information from him never boded well.

Bryce moved closer to her. He held her bare shoulder with his large, warm hands. “You're the best friend I've ever had.”

She bit her lip to hold back from wincing. The best friend. Not a role she hated, but she also knew it sealed her fate. Guys did not date their best friends. “You mean so much to me,” she confessed.

“It's funny, because through my entire relationship with Katie, I never told her even half of the things I’ve said to you. We shouldn't have lasted as long as we did. You're right. We were too different, her and I. But me and you, we're the same,” he murmured. He pulled her arms around his neck and placed his hands on her hips. Slowly, they rocked together back and forth in a dance without music.

Her heart was going to beat out of her chest, she was sure of it. Even on the craziest of roller coasters, it had never beaten so wildly. Did he notice? What was he even doing? What did it all mean?

He spun her in his arms. “She told me I'd know why it all ended. I think she knew how I feel about you. That she couldn't take your place or ever be as close to me as you are. There's no one else I'd rather share my secrets with.”

Arial was glad when he kept speaking so she didn't feel obligated to give a reply. Words were not forming in her mind, like the whole thing had become nothing more than mush. Swallowing, she risked looking up at him. His olive eyes were wide and intense as he gazed back down at her. He leaned in towards her, his lips grazing her cheek, and for a moment she thought he was going to kiss her. Really kiss her because he wanted it and not because a script told him to. Her disappointment mixed with relief when he placed his face next to her ear instead.