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●ARIA POV●

I needed a whole day to rest after the bachelorette night . So much happened and so much liquor was consumed that I was suffering the consequences the morning after . When I woke up I realized I was not at my parents but instead , in my bed . I slightly remembered how I got here . So i shuffled out of my room to the living room and there he was . Sleeping with his arms crossed while on his side.

"Warren," I whispered . He didn't move or stir , so I quietly moved closer to him . It was probably a creeper move but I couldn't help but admire the handsome features on him . He really was the kind of man that just made other men look small in comparison. Sure Alex had this boyish charm about him, and even that playboyesque quality that made women salivate but Warren had a commanding presence, even while he slept.

I got up and began to walk towards the kitchen when his big hand grabbed a hold of my wrist and tugged me lightly, "where are you going?" He asked while his eyes were still closed.

"I thought you were still asleep," I tell him.

"I was but then I felt you near me ," he opened his deep grey eyes that were now a little brighter , "how are you feeling?"

"I'm okay, a little too much to drink last night," I admit .

"Do you remember anything else?" He asks as he sits up , wiping the sleep off his eyes.

I look at him and all of the events from last night began to rush in . I nod and he brings himself closer to me , placing his hand on the side of my jaw , stroking me with his thumb. Our breathing slowed down and became heavy as my memory brings me right back to the kiss we shared on the dancefloor .

"What do you remember?" His tone was deep with a hint of gentleness .

"Us, dancing ," I begin to recall as I wrap my arms around his neck , "being close to each other," he pulls me in tightly , "and a kiss to end all kisses," I say as he lifts my chin up so that he can place an innocent yet heart melting kiss on my lips .

"Aria," he says outloud while touching his nose to mine , "do you still feel the same as you did last night?" He asks almost as if he were begging me to remember.

I tilt my head to the side , "every single bit." With that he engulfs my mouth with his as he lays on me the fiery passion that had been waiting to come out . My toes begin to curl back and my stomach flips, Warren Wells is kissing me and for the first time in my life everything felt whole, everything felt like it settled into its proper place.

We remained glued to our lips for a little while longer until my phone began to come alive . My sister had texted me , telling me to take a rest today and to bring the man I really wanted by my side . I love her and I can't believe she is so understanding about all of this . I smiled at my phone and then stared at Warren, "did you want to spend the day with me?" I ask him .

"More than anything but I have to go to work. There are some things I need to take care of, but I promise I'll be back here," he says and I believe him .

"Okay. I'll be waiting."

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●ALEX POV●

To say I was heartbroken and angry was a complete understatement. Did I really just stand in the way of Aria and Warren. How about me ? What of my feelings ? Last night was a blur, but one thing I knew was how strongly I felt for her . More than I did about any woman .

Was it foolish of me ? Yes, even after I warned her not to fall for me . Yet here I am , doing just that for her . I watched them drive away in his car and I felt helpless . Even her own sister knows. Hell, MY sister knew . Once they were out of sight, Dylan approached me .

"So you guys aren't together?" He asked still clearly confused at the events that transpired tonight .

I shook my head , "No, it was just a ruse," I admitted.

"For what? Why?" He asked, fishing for answers.

"You. She couldn't bear to show her face at the wedding," I tell him and then remember Brittany , "by the way, your ex-fiance has applied for a position at our company. Know anything about that?"

He looked surprised, I'm guessing he didn't know , "she left. Took all her things and changed her number. I assumed she left town," he says to me .

"Don't hire her," he says firmly , "she's using you . Thinking that she can ruin Aria again . I don't know why she's so bent on hurting her and only her."

I look at him curiously, "that story you told her, is it true?"

"Yes, that's what she said to me," and then the slow realization finally dawned on him , "unless she made it up."

"Do they know each other , from before?" I ask him .

"I don't think so ," he answers.

"Can you get me your yearbook ?" For some strange reason I felt as if the answers were right there . And the story she gave was just to throw us off.

"Sure." We then exchanged phone numbers . I hope my gut is right about this because if it is , my plan may just work and we can finally set it in motion .

The following morning Dylan had texted me that he had the yearbook , so I asked him to meet me at the coffeeshop near our office . I know I'm going to see Warren later and as much as I want to punch his face , we agreed to fix this Brittany problem first.

He handed me the book and we drank some coffee while I flipped through the pages. It was so nice to see Aria in a lot of these photos . She was actually quite popular belonging to every single club and participating in a ton of school events. As I kept looking at each photo , I noticed one girl on particular. One that seemed to try to blend into the background . And that's when I saw it.

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●WARREN POV●

Today was going to be a long day . For one, I didn't want to leave Aria , now that we expressed our feelings towards each other. And second, I knew Alex will be in the office today . After what happened last night, I don't know what he will do or if we're going to be in some terrible grudge that he won't be able to get over .

At some point Alex will have to accept that Aria and I are in love with each other . The promise I made to her when we were little is still a promise I held onto until now . I knew then and I know now , she was always the beginning and always will be my last love .

When I got in the building I went straight up to the top floor . I got the usual greetings from the employees and as I got into my office , Alex was sitting in the seat across from my desk , holding a book. Curiously I looked at what was in his hands and sat down while putting my briefcase on the desk. "What's that?" I ask him.

"Our answer to get Brittany to back off of Aria , once and for all," he says .

"Okay, enlighten me."

He explained to me what he discovered and how he had been tracking several people down that went to high school with the Lawson sisters. Some of the people vaguely remembered a girl that used to follow Aria around but none of them knew the name Brittany Hickson . Over and over again they kept mentioning someone named Brooke Hudson , an unpopular girl who seemed to be obsessed with the sisters, mostly Aria.

I looked at Alex and asked if he looked into that name and when Brittany Hickson became an official legal name change . I have friends in high places so I made a call asking if they can look into any criminal history as well as finding her actual parents. What we thought was an angry daughter product of an affair was quickly turning into a story of sci-fi horror proportions.

We agreed , for now, to set aside our rivalry and work together to protect Aria . We knew at some point we would tell her about this but not before we get everything confirmed . We don't know what this girl is capable of but we knew she had an unhealthy obsession with someone that didn't even know she had a target on her back.

I called Cass in and we gave her the resumes of the final three candidates . She was confused because she thought we would've both picked Brittany . Without giving anything away , we told her that we checked her background and references and found several discrepancies that wouldn't bode well for this position . She didn't ask any more questions and left the office.

All day long we kept getting more and more information until we were sent a long case file on Brooke Hudson from Shady Meadows Hospital. One for the clinically insane . Inside those files we saw notes that made us both shudder . I immediately called our attorney to relay our findings and see what he recommends.

We now had everything in motion , including the contact information for her parents, Kate and Arnold Hudson.

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