4

Aria sighed as she felt strong arms wrap around her. She wished that it could be like this all the time. At school when she was having a bad moment she longed to be able to go to her boyfriend and have his arms wash away her worries. Of course she knew that it would never be like that. Ezra was her teacher and he loved his job; she didn't want to do anything that could make the relationship obvious to others. It was just another secret.

Secret. She felt sick thinking of that word. 'A' knew. Aria didn't doubt that 'A' would tell everyone. Whoever it was would keep it quiet for a while; then when they'd find Aria useful, they would dangle it over her head and make her jump for it. Aria knew that all she would do would be to ask how high they wanted her to jump. She'd do anything if it meant keeping what they had safe.

"Are you okay?" Ezra whispered in her ear. She shivered leaning back against him.

She wondered about telling him everything. Taking a deep breath and tell him how her best friends disappearance had now turned into the worst year of her life. She was curious to know what he would say. Could he really say anything? She doubted it.

She didn't have the luxury of being curious. "Haven't been sleeping." She whispers. Half the truth; he deserved that.

"Tonight you will." Ezra whispers. He pulls her even closer and kisses her cheek.

"Oh? What if I'm not tired?" She smiles. Easy flirtations, better then awkward conversation.

"Guess I'll have to wear you out." He whispers. Deliberately making his voice huskier.

Aria shivers, turning around straddles his lap. "Maybe you'll have to." he whimpers when she presses down slightly.

He pulls her away quickly. Remembering why she's there. She pouts and he physically has to look away and not look at her. If he looked at her he'd cave and do anything she wanted him to. "Later." He finally managed to say. "Right now, I'm going to cook you an amazing meal."

"You don't have to." She sighs. The thought of eating made her feel sick.

"I know." Ezra smiles. "But I want to." He leans down and kisses her softly. She melts against his lips and yelps when he picks her up; her legs automatically go around his waist. She sighed as he laid her on the sofa. He peppered tiny kisses along her hair before pulling away. She whimpered at the loss when he pulled away. "How about you do some reading whilst I cook?" He suggests.

Aria nods reaching into her bag she pulls out one of her text books and starts to read. Her body already missing the heat of Ezra's body near hers.

It took an hour for the dinner to cook and Aria felt more relaxed now then she had in a while. They sit across the table from each other and Aria wonders what it would be like to sit across from at a restaurant. Somewhere with fancy lighting, candles and flowers on the table. She felt her lips pull into a smile. "What are you smiling at?" Ezra asks her. She blushes cutely looking up at him.

Taking his hand, she fiddles with his fingers. "When I finish school, I want to go on a real date." She blushes even more as she talks but she doesn't stop. "Where we can hold hands in public, eat a nice meal in a fancy place together."

Ezra links their fingers holding her hand tight in his. "That sounds perfect." he kisses her knuckles softly, watching as she blushes even more. "You're perfect."

"I'm far from perfect." Aria whispers.

Ezra shakes his head and cups her cheeks, "You're the definition." He kisses her sweetly before pulling away.

They eat in a companionable silence, the food in her system making her feel sick as it had been a while since she had a proper meal. She eats half of it and feels glad when Ezra doesn't push her to eat the rest. He just smiles at her and finishes eating his.

Ezra insisted that he goes back to the front room while he cleans up. She argues but his lips can be very persuasive. Once everything is put away Ezra carries her to the bedroom.

"I believe I promised to tire you out..." Ezra whispers as he kisses along her neck.

"And you should always keep your promises." She replies, biting her lip sexily as she watches him.