The Kidnapped Heiress

“f**k!” The shout woke Aria from her slumber. Ruger and Remington whined as the bed suddenly lurched, and she was almost tossed out of bed. Groggily, she sat up, clutching the blanket to her bare chest to see Theo pacing the room. “A bit late for that,” Theo scoffed, unimpressed with her grasp for modesty. “Wh-what is wrong?” Aria asked. She wasn’t an early riser like Caden, and her mind was still half-asleep. “Wrong?” Theo demanded. “Look at yourself! You’re in my bed—naked.” “Well, yeah,” Aria tried to be nonchalant, but she blushed. They had been dating for several years, if it could be called dating. It was difficult since she spent half the year in Paris, but they spent as much time together as possible. Last night, they decided to hang out in his condo watching movies. If it got too late, Aria would sleep in the guest room. It wasn’t the first time she had done that, but last night had gotten heated. Their playful kisses became hungry, insatiable. Aria wasn’t hesitant and eager for them to take the next leap in their rather stagnant relationship. It was perfect timing considering her news. She was excited to tell him they wouldn’t have to suffer through long distance anymore. Aria had been making plans and applied to the Metropolitan. If they accepted it and offered her an audition, she would be moving to New York, confident that she could impress them. Maybe that’s why she didn’t hold back last night. “This was a mistake,” Theo declared. “…Mistake,” Aria repeated, frowning. It felt like a bucket of cold water had suddenly been dumped over her. Theo ran a hand through his hair, “We shouldn’t have done this. This-this isn’t working for me, the long-distance. I was going to tell you we need to be done.” “Are you…breaking up with me?” Aria quietly asked. He couldn’t be serious, right? “Th-this isn’t working. You agree, right?” Theo said. No. She didn’t agree at all. They had a good relationship, but to take the next step they needed to be in the same city. She knew asking him to move to Paris was impossible with him poised to take over their family’s company alongside his siblings. She had far fewer obligations and had been planning to move to New York permanently. Leaving her siblings would be difficult, but it wasn’t as if they would never visit. And Caden was already planning to move. Caden had already lined up an audition for the Philharmonic, reminding her that there was more to living in New York than just finding a place to stay. Her parents had instilled enough work ethic in her that simply living off an allowance was not enough. She needed to pursue a larger ambition and forge a path for herself as her mother did. Since she lacked business acumen, she decided to pursue music by applying to the Metropolitan Opera. Getting an audition was not easy, but she had a good feeling that her reputation would attract their attention even without an extensive resume. She knew they made exceptions to some of their usual requirements. Even so, she hesitated to tell anyone until she had good news. Aria planned to enlist her aunt to help her find a place of her own while she packed and prepared for her move. Even if she couldn’t find her own place immediately, she could always stay at the family home in Soho. But now Theo wanted to break up without any sort of discussion? “You’ve been planning to break up with me?” Aria asked, trying to understand. “Then, what was last night? I thought we were…” “Last night was a mistake.” “A mistake,” Aria glared at him. “So, I am a mistake.” Theo fell silent, finally realizing how deeply his words were affecting her. Her gaze filled with rage but also brimmed with tears. That was not his intention. He thought they were on the same page. Surely, she knew a long-distance relationship couldn’t last. They had to move on, grow up, especially since he and his siblings were about to take over the family company. He didn’t expect the look of devastation on her face. s**t, he messed up. “Y-you, you,” Aria sucked in a breath, willing herself not to break. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. “Aria…” She lurched out of the bed, clutching the blanket around her nude form. Spotting the clothes she had haphazardly flung aside the night before, she grabbed them and rushed to the ensuite bathroom. Shoving him aside, she slammed the door before he could follow. “Sac à merde! Enfoiré! Tête de noeud! Roi des cons!” Aria shouted from behind the door, making him wince.[1] Aria never lacked for colorful language, multiple languages, but when she was really angry, she usually fell back to French. Normally, he found it amusing, but then, he wasn’t usually the subject of her insults. Theo leaned his forehead against the door. This was not what he wanted. When he woke up and found her in his arms, he panicked and now, he wasn’t sure what he should do. Aria fought tears as she leaned over the sink. She was shaking in rage and couldn’t stop the sobs from wracking her body. She thought they were in love. She thought she had been lucky to find her forever so close. But he had been planning to break up with her, maybe from the very beginning. He used her, and now he was tossing her aside because she was inconvenient. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. “Aria, let me in,” Theo said from the other side of the door, but she refused to acknowledge him. Last night he had been so caring and sweet, like always. She hadn’t suspected anything was wrong. But it had all been an act, and she fell for it. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Splashing water on her face, she tried to wash away the shame, but it remained burning in her cheeks. Her body ached, reminding her of what they had done, as if she could ever forget. First thing was first; she had to get dressed and get home. Nothing else mattered. She could figure out the rest from there. Stepping into the shower, she hurriedly rinsed away last night’s activities before drying and pulling on her clothes. Unfortunately, it seemed her underwear hadn’t been in that particular pile. Yet she refused to step out of the bathroom without clothing, and she wouldn’t ask for his help. Grimly, she pulled on her pants and shirt. Looking in the mirror, she found her hair a wild, tangled nest, and she wasn’t going to waste time trying to find her scrunchie in the sheets. Angrily, she yanked a brush through her hair, hoping to tame it somewhat before tying it back with a rubber band she found on the counter. It would hurt pulling it out later, but she would deal with that. Aside from the flush of her cheeks, she was pale and looked like she had just been raised from the dead. It was good enough to get her home and that was all that mattered. She took a deep breath, steeling her nerves. She could do this. Turning away from the mirror, she flung open the door to see Theo standing in all his glory. She had always admired his trim body, carefully shaped by years of training and workouts. But right now, she was full of disgust. “Aria, let me explain.” “Aller se faire cuire un œuf!” she shoved past him.[2] Theo stumbled back more in surprise than by her actual strength. Remington yelped as he tripped over the anxious Rottweiler. Normally, both canines would rush to their master’s defense, but both were familiar with Aria. They were also used to her late-night visits, which usually ended with a relaxing late morning with a special breakfast she made and cooked by hand for them. She lavished them with attention and now their loyalties were split. They weren’t sure what they should do as Aria rushed out of the bedroom. In the living room, she found her phone and hurried to the front door, shoving her feet into her shoes. Running down the hall, she reached the elevator, desperately tapping the call button. She had to get out of there. Theo lurched to his feet even as Remington hovered around him, whining. He gave the dog a soft shove as he hurried to follow Aria. The bedroom door refused to open. In her haste to leave, Aria had slammed it and caused it to jam itself. It was one of the few things he had to be wary of, and now he didn’t have the time to jimmie it back into alignment. Cursing, he gave it several shakes and a few kicks before it finally burst open. He rushed through the rest of the condo, not really seeing it, as he ran to catch up with her. Without a thought, he yanked open his front door only to meet the blood-curdling scream of his neighbor. Belatedly, he realized he was very much still naked. Slamming the door closed, he rushed back to his bedroom and pulled on the first pair of sweatpants and a teeshirt he found. Not caring if they were clean, he again headed for the door with the dogs at his heels. “Bleib!” he commanded before rushing out of the door.[3] Thankfully, his neighbor was nowhere to be seen. Reaching the elevators, he tapped the call button, however it was on its way down. With a frustrated shout, he turned to the stairwell. Taking the stairs two or three at a time and hopping the rail, he hoped to catch up to the lift. Theo’s mind raced with one apology after another. He should have approached the matter differently, calmly. They could have talked about the state of their relationship and where they thought they were headed before he dropped such a bombshell on her. Reaching the first floor, he burst into the lobby and tried to catch his breath. Several people paused to stare at him, mostly in disgust at his disheveled appearance, but he didn’t care. He looked at the elevator to see it was headed upward again. Forcing his body forward, he ran to the doors and out onto the sidewalk. Desperately, he scanned the crowd for her familiar red hair, but Aria was nowhere to be seen. Traffic was a sea of yellow cabs and there was no telling which one she was in. Dejected, he turned and stumbled back into the building. Reaching the elevator, he hit the call button and waited for it to return. Fuck.