t h i r t y - n i n e

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A S P E N ' S P O V

Things have been going well ever since Livi's wedding. I haven't been happier.

Dalton and I have been happier.

School is almost out.

Yet, there's one thing that has still been bothering me.

I keep receiving those creepy messages from this mysterious person with no idea who it was.

Dalton doesn't know that I know but I figured out a few weeks ago after the wedding that he was receiving the messages too. He never mentioned anything to me so I was waiting until he said something to me.

As of right now, we were on the way to his parent's house for dinner while Livi and Cole were still on their honeymoon. His mom had been asking for me to come back over and I missed Micah.

We had stopped at Starbucks to get some coffee before we got there. Dalton held my hand tightly as he pulled up to the speaker at the drive-thru.

He pulled up after ordering our drinks, he looked over at me and puckered up his lips for a kiss. I leaned over and happily gave him one, smiling as I pulled away.

"I love you." He grinned, leaning over and nuzzling his face in my neck.

"You're so clingy." I laughed, taking my free hand and running my fingers through his hair. "I love you."

"I'm so happy I met you when I did." He whispered into my skin, caressing the back of my hand with his thumb.

"I didn't know I was dating a big teddy bear." I laughed, kissing the top of his head before he moved away to pull forward.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you. Scarlet said she wants to talk to you when you get there." He told me as I took his sunglasses from the cupholder and put them on.

"Why?" I asked, hoping it wasn't anything bad.

"I don't know. She just told me to tell you." He shrugged, pulling up to the window.

He paid and thanked the lady at the window before handing me my drink. He put his in the cupholder as he drove off in the direction of his parent's house.

Thankfully, he stopped at a Starbucks close to their house, so it only took about 5 minutes to get there. He parked in the driveway, unbuckling his seatbelt before getting out and making his way over to my side of the car.

He helped me out as I handed him his drink, he closed and locked the car before we began making our way over to the door. Before we could even knock, Micah threw open the door and hugged my leg.

"Hey, Aspy." He grinned, looking up at me as he held a toy in his hand.

"Hey, little man." I smiled, leaning down and hugging him back.

"Scar-Scar is mad. She's been yelling on the phone outside for a long long time." He explained as I looked back and shared a look with Dalton.

He stepped passed us as I stood up and grabbed Micah's hand. I shut the door before walking down the hall with Micah. We stepped into the kitchen where his Mom was busy putting something in the oven, his Dad standing off to the side.

"Hey, guys." I waved as Dalton waved briefly before stepping out to the patio.

"Aspen!" His mom smiled, tossing a small dishtowel on the island before coming over and hugging me. "I've missed you. How was the wedding?"

"It was fun. My sister is pregnant now." I told her, stepping back from the hug and going over to sit at the island.

"Well, make sure to tell her I said congrats. Her wedding has all Scarlet has been talking about ever since it went public." She rolled her eyes, handing a bag of vegetables to her husband.

"Yeah, I've been bombarded about it quite a bit. Thankfully, it's over now." I breathed out, playing with the bracelet sitting on my wrist.

"Dalton told me you got your brace off. How did that even happen?" She frowned as my gaze drifted over to my knee.

"Oh, I'm just clumsy. It didn't hurt too bad." I answered just as Dalton came back in from the patio with Scarlet behind him.

"I swear to god, I'm this close to firing that whole department." She mumbled, stuffing her phone in her pocket as she rubbed her temples. Then, her gaze drifted over to me and I froze.

"Aspen, thank god you're here. I need to talk to you." She suddenly said, her mood changing as she smiled at me.

"Uh- okay?" I looked at her confused as I admired her outfit secretly. She was wearing a black pantsuit paired with a red lace top.

I got up and she led me into the living room as we sat down on the couch. I looked around the room, avoiding her gaze before she turned towards me and smiled.

"I have a proposition for you." She spoke, raising a brow as if asking me if I wanted her to continue.

"What is it?"

"I was wondering if you would like to be a brand ambassador for Scar Serenities. I would've asked you to be a model because you are totally perfect for the position but I wanted to wait until you were done with your last year in school." She explained, smiling as my jaw dropped at her words.

"You want me to be a brand ambassador for your super successful and popular company?" I gasped, staring at her wide-eyed.

"Yeah, I mean you're perfect. You got the great looks to model everything, a perfect amount of followers, and you already have a good bit of fame from your parents and your sister and her fiancé." She rambled on, listing why I was perfect for it. "So, what do you say?"

"Uh, of course, I will." I grinned, pulling her into a big bear hug. "Thank you so much, Scarlet. I'm so happy."

"You're welcome. Just make sure to stop by my office so we can work out all the details. And if you really want you can sign the paperwork to start modeling as soon as you get out of school." She smiled, rubbing my shoulder.

"Scarlet, thank you so so so much." I smiled, tearing up as I hugged her tightly.

I looked up just then as Dalton walked into the room and looked at us confused. I pulled away from the hug and smiled at him as I got up to go hug him.

"What happened?" He asked, confused as he hugged me back.

Before we could reply, his mom called us into the kitchen and we both went in. She was asking if we could help her with dinner as Mr. Rivers went to go play with Micah.

♤♤♤

"Wait, he actually fell in a flamingo pen when he was a baby?" I laughed, placing my hand against my stomach as Dalton rolled his eyes.

"Yes! We got kicked out because he wouldn't come back." Mrs. Rivers laughed as everyone except Dalton laughed.

He placed his arm around the back of my chair as we moved on to a different topic. I complimented his mother on the food as did everyone else.

"Hey, Aspen. My assistant said my schedule was cleared for you to stop by next Tuesday at noon if that works for you." Scarlet told me, smiling as she read something off her phone.

"Her assistant?" Dalton questioned, raising a brow as he looked at me confused.

"Um, yeah.." I smiled nervously, just remembering I hadn't told him yet.

"You didn't tell him?" Scarlet asked confused, putting her phone down on the table.

"Tell me what?" Dalton asked, turning my attention to him.

"Maybe we should talk outside.." I told him, grabbing his hand as we stood up and began walking to the patio.

"Mommy, are they about to fight?" Micah asked as we were walking outside.

"Of course not, sweetie. Now, eat your food." She told him, their voices fading away as we stepped outside.

I stood uncomfortably, crossing my arms as I tried my best to avoid his gaze no matter what. I could feel the tension growing between us as he took the initiative to speak first.

"What was Scarlet talking about?" He asked, coming closer to me and lifting my chin up.

"Um-" I paused, wondering why I was so nervous to tell him. "Scarlet asked me to be a brand ambassador for her and she offered for me to start modeling when I graduated."

"What?" He whispered as some type of emotion flashed through his eyes which I couldn't decipher. "She just asked you to start modeling after you graduate?"

"Yeah, I'm so excited. I never thought I would want this before." I smiled, reaching up and wrapping my arms around his neck.

"I never thought you would want this either." He mumbled, avoiding my gaze as he fiddled with the hem of my shirt.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, confusion laced in my tone.

"There's nothing else you want to do after you graduate? I mean you are majoring in fashion design." He suggested, sounding disinterested in his tone.

"Hold on-" I paused, placing my hand up as I stared at him. "Are you not happy?"

He hesitated for a moment before answering, keeping his eyes set on anything that wasn't me. I was harshly staring at him, wondering why he wasn't happy about the opportunity that was set straight up for me.

"Not really." He muttered, backing up as my arms slipped from around his neck.

"Why? Is there something wrong with me modeling for your sister?" I frowned, crossing my arms as I stare at him.

"No, there's nothing wrong with it. It's just.." He trailed off, turning around and rubbing the back of his neck.

I kept my glare on him, wondering what was so wrong about this amazing opportunity that was smacking me straight in the face. He bit his lip as he turned around and looked at me worriedly.

"I got a call the other day." He lowly spoke, coming over and grabbing my forearms. "I was drafted to a team in New York."

"Holy shit, that's fucking amazing!" I cheered, jumping on him as I wrapped my arms and legs around him.

I smiled, covering his entire face in kisses as he held one hand on my thigh and the other on my lower back. I could tell he was happy but there was something else holding him back. Suddenly, everything started clicking in my mind.

"Hold on." I paused, slowly getting down as I looked up at him. "You got drafted to a team in New York?"

He slowly nodded, avoiding my gaze as he fiddled with my bracelet. I tried to wrap my head around everything, hoping I was just hearing him wrong.

Fucking New York.

"But wait—that doesn't help me understand why you weren't happen about me and Scarlet." I frowned, the gears in my head beginning to turn. "Unless.."

I looked up at him with a hopeful look in my eye, but not for the same reason. I was hoping that I was wrong and that he was about to deny my next sentence.

"Unless, you wanted me to come with you?" I whispered, staring him in the eyes as he finally snapped his gaze up to mine.

His silence only answered my question as I shook my head at him. I couldn't believe he just wanted me to up and leave with him, especially after I had my whole life here.

I kissed my teeth and shook my head, walking away from him. I stormed back in the house with Dalton hot on my heels, chasing after me. I grabbed my stuff as his family watched the two of us.

"Aspen, wait-" He tried to catch up to me, grabbing my wrist as I snapped my head and glared at him.

"Just take me home." I huffed, snatching my wrist out of his grip and walking out the front door.

While I was waiting on him, my phone buzzed which only made my mood worse. I pulled it out of my pocket, rolling my eyes at the message.

trouble in paradise?

I would fix that soon if I were you
wouldn't want something to happen :)
sent at 8:05 pm

things are falling in to placee 😍

hope yall enjoyed cuz this book is coming to a end- we got at most 15-20 chapters left <3

see you guys in the next onee


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