Chapter 22

Ezra POV

Honest Talk…

He disentangled his body from Aria's, being careful as not to wake her up. He observed the sweet smile that played over her lips as she slept peacefully in his bed. He ran his hand lightly through her silky bangs, caressing the softness. She was very beautiful to him, his eyes lazily roaming over her newly acquired figure and generous curves. Just eyeing her body got him hard.

He loved being with her like this, able to be with her in the open. He didn't have to dwell on his father's or her mother's reaction to them together. He knew it would take more time, but he wanted Scott and Ella to get used to the idea of them. He wasn't going to hide it behind their backs any longer, Aria didn't deserve that. She deserved more, a real relationship with him.

He found that he wanted to be in a relationship with Aria. He felt he could be committed to her and only her. She was a very true and honest person. He needed that; he needed her goodness, her light of purity. He knew he could be happy with her. He already was.

Aria seemed to bring out a whole other side of him, a side that secretly scared him. He didn't know if he could be what she wanted. He was prone to make mistakes one after the other. He wasn't good at controlling himself, or expressing himself. He didn't try to delude himself; he knew some of his traits scared her.

He needed to work harder at proving himself to her, to show her he could be normal. That he could be without issues weighing him down. He would never try to be something he wasn't. He had to start by communicating with her better, to tell her all his dark secrets. He would tell her soon enough. He wasn't rushing at the moment; they had plenty time to get to that phase in their relationship.

Ezra was starting to believe there was more for him in life. That he could finally be with another human being completely. He had never dreamed it. His mind had always been filled with revenge. For the first time in his life, he could really breathe. His heart wasn't filled with as much hate as before. He finally realized it wasn't healthy to be filled with an all-consuming dark emotion that had taken its toll on him every day of his life.

He leaned over her and brushed his mouth against hers, lingering to savor the sweetness of her lips. He inhaled her scent, loving the way she always smelled. He nuzzled his face in the hollow of her neck, brushing his nose against her silken skin as she moaned airily. She nestled closer to him without waking up, her breath accelerating in a good way. He wanted her again, but he had to give her more time to recover fully. He wouldn't put her at risk.

He watched her for a few more seconds, counting every one of her dark long lashes as they rested against her pale cheeks. He had screwed up so many times with her, had been gone a long time. He couldn't see way she chose to welcome him back so quickly. He really didn't deserve her. She was too good for him.

Ezra touched her lips with his again, his tongue coming out to lick them thoroughly. They truly tasted like peaches and cream. He pulled back and licked his own lips, tasting her on him. He flipped back the covers and got up from the bed, reaching down to the floor to retrieve the clothes he had on the day before and put them on. Then he headed to the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth.

Eventually, he knew he had to wake Aria, but he would give her another hour to sleep. He wouldn't tell her that she was unwanted in his bed, because she wasn't. He would be lying if he did that. He would just have to risk Scott and Ella's reaction if they came in right at that moment and caught Aria sleeping soundly in his bed instead of her own. He preferred not to argue with either of them.

He headed downstairs to get himself a glass of juice from out the kitchen, the sound of his barefoot smacking against the floor as he descended. He came upon his father in the kitchen making breakfast and a pot of coffee. Ezra nodded towards him as he moved towards the refrigerator. His father offered him a smile as he took two plates down from the top cupboard and filled them with food. Food composed of eggs, toast, and strips of crispy bacon.

Ezra thanked him as he handed the plate to him and joined him at the table. He knew that Scott was trying. He had always loved Scott's cooking, had enjoyed it since he was a little boy. It was one of the few good memories he had of Scott. Scott had always been more domestic than Vivienne. Vivienne had never learned to cook; food had always been prepared by professional chefs.

He took his time with his food, devouring it gradually as he appreciated the silence between him and his father. Scott threw him glances from time to time as sipped his coffee and ate his own food. It was like he was thinking of something to say to his son. Scott had never been this quiet in his son's presence. Ezra set aside his plate when he was done, before swallowing down the whole glass of orange juice.

Scott broke the silence between them first.

"I think now is the best time for us to talk," he got up to refill his mug of black coffee. "There's much I would like to say to you".

Ezra nodded, willing to listen to what he had to say.

"You and me both," Ezra's voice subdued as he gave his father his undivided attention. "There are some things I want to tell you as well".

His striking blue eyes so much like his son's displayed a bit of sadness as he walked back over to the table. For the first in Ezra's life, Scott looked much older than he'd remembered.

"I'll go first," Scott volunteered, his hands gripping the cup close to him as he thought of where to start. "I can only hope we'll both be better off after this long awaited conversation".

He didn't interrupt.

"I wasn't there for you when you were growing up, I should have been, but I wasn't," Scott said regrettably as his blue eyes locked on Ezra's. "I'll always hate myself for that".

"You weren't," Ezra agreed as his father nodded his head in agreement. "I needed you, but you were never around, and I've always hated you for that. You never made me your priority".

"I admit I made some unfavorable choices back then," Scott said, his voice saddened. "I was just so enamored with your mother. I couldn't see past my love for her to offer you the support you so desperately needed from me. I'm not proud of the man I was. I was weak, allowed her to take you away from me".

"You never fought for me," Ezra said angrily as he eyed his father with hardened eyes. "Never once did you protect me. It was the time I needed protecting the most".

Scott released a shuddering breath as he listened to the words coming from his son. He could hear the anger, the hurt, and the pain he'd inflicted. It killed him, absolutely killed him that he was partly responsible for his son's pain. He had never been aware of all the hurt he had caused his son. It was an eye opener. A simple apology wouldn't be enough.

"Ezra, son, I never intended to cause you so much grief," his words choked him up as he focused on his son's face. A face that resembled his own, the one that stared back at him in the mirror every day. "At the time, I was way older than your mother. I didn't want to lose her, and I neglected you in the process. You didn't deserve it, not from me, nor your mother".

"Growing up I always felt that I was to blame for you and Vivienne not loving me enough," his voice was quiet, but spoken clearly as some of the anger faded away from his eyes. He paused in thought as he took a deep breath and unveiled his facial features, showing is father his vulnerability as Scott showed him his own. "The whole time I thought something was defective in me. You guys couldn't seem to love me the way that other parents loved their children".

"I never wanted you to feel that way," Ezra could see the tears glistening in his father's eyes. He didn't fault him for it. It was the realest his father had ever been with him. "But giving me and your mother's poor choices, how could you not think that?"

"I struggled with many past addictions," he decided to be honest with Scott; to finally lean on him as a son would to a father. "Addictions that still try to consume every day even now, even with all I have gone through. I'm filled with an impending darkness that always strikes at me during different parts of my life, darkness I have overcome so many times that I have lost count. Even now, at this very moment, I'm still consumed with hate and revenge, but I'm not going to let them define who I am anymore".

"I still wasn't there for you during those dark times," Scott allowed the tears to flow uncaringly as he reached across the table to grasp his son's arm and his body shook. "I still wasn't a father that you needed".

Ezra hesitantly squeezed his father's hand, offering them both comfort. He had never witnessed this side of Scott, to see him filled with much regret. Ezra was growing less angry at him.

"I had some bad stuff that happened to me when I was with Vivienne, "Ezra wasn't explicit. "Things I probably won't ever share with you, just because you're my father, and I want to spare you from the sick acts that were forced upon me. Things that I'm ashamed of, hurt to even mention, and angry at what happened to me".

"I think a got the picture without you explaining in so many words," Scott voice had a rawness as his tears came faster as got up to hug his son, kissing his head. "I should have been there to protect you, to keep you from having to go through something like. I should have fought harder for you, took you away from your mother. I was blinded; I thought that she loved you. She never loved me the way I loved her. I don't think she's even capable of loving someone other than herself. It has taken me this long to realize it".

Ezra hugged his father back as Scott held him fiercely. This was the first time he was truly comfortable with another man so close to him. This was his father, a man that showed how much he loved him and cared about him. He was willing to offer Ezra the things he'd never had, love and his unwavering support. It was exhilarating, to be this open with his father.

"I want to start anew," Ezra said as he released his hold on his father. "I want to rebuild that father and son relationship we used to have with one another".

"I would like that very much, son," Scott said as he reclaimed his seat opposite him. "This can be a whole new start for us".

Ezra intended to try his best. He wanted very much to forgive his father.

"I know that you and Ella don't approve of me and Aria, but I want to have a relationship with her," Ezra wouldn't back down from this. "She deserves that much from me".

"I may not have approved of you and Aria in the beginning, but I can see how much she loves you," Scott admitted. "I won't stand in your way, but try to give Ella more time to come to grips with it".

"I don't know why she loves me, but she does," Ezra spoke as though it was a mystery to him. He never imagined a girl as beautiful as Aria could love him for the person he was. "I don't want to come between Aria and Ella, but I can't turn my back on her. I need her, dad".

"She sees that there's some good in you, even when you don't show it," Scott said as he brought his mug up to his mouth and gulped down some coffee. "And don't think about it, Ella loves Aria far too much to let this come between them.

"I'm selfish, because I know Aria's too good for me, but I can't let her go," Ezra shared that bit with his father. "Like Dr. John Hill said, she's my anchor, and I believe that".

"Do you love her?" Scott couldn't help asking his son. He had never met any of Ezra's past girlfriends. "How would this work? What about LA? What about your college education?"

"All I know is that I really care about her. I've never experienced love, so I don't know what that feels like, but I do know I want to be with Aria," that was his only answer. "Obviously I'll move from Long Beach and come live here, in Rosewood. I'll move out and get my own apartment to make things less awkward for Ella, and you. And I can always transfer to Hollis to finish up my education".

"You seem like you have everything under control," Scott said with a smile. "And I know that you love her. You don't see it at the moment, but you do. I've never known you to sacrifice anything for someone other than yourself. Aria has changed you, made you question everything you've ever known. You are taking some really big steps, and I know she's going to love you even more because of it".

He got up to leave, mulling over his father's words. Did he really love Aria? He was taking risks to make their relationship work, but he was doing all that for her. He wanted to make her happy. She had been through too much with him and his issues. He hastened his steps to join her back in his bed.

I really enjoyed writing the scenes between Ezra and Scott. I thought it was long overdue. What did you guys think? Please review and let me know! And I'll be updating regularly from now on :).