Thank you, thank you, thank you for reading Aria's Choice! I decided not to split up the Epilogue. I hope I did the ending justice, and as much as I know some are sad to see the end of this story (I am as well), all good things must come to an end. I will have plenty more stories for you in the future! Please, don't forget to drop a Gem if you can spare it, and I would very much appreciate anyone who can go in and leave a REVIEW on the About this Book page for Aria's Choice. Thank you for all your support through this story and for sticking with it through the rough times. =)
Having a choice is not always a good thing. Take me for example. I had two choices. The first was to keep my pride and continue struggling physically, emotionally, and financially. The second was to swallow my pride and do what needed to be done in order to get through life. Door number two is how I came to be here, kneeling on the floor patiently waiting on one of my owners to arrive. Yes, I said owners. I made the choice to sell my virginity on an auction block in order to pay for my mother’s hospital bills and rent, which was already past due. It was not something that I ever thought I’d do, but when I heard bits and pieces of a customer’s conversation with their friend while I was at work and then they gave me their business card, the wheels in my head started to turn. I was supposed to keep my virginity safe for someone special, but after all the years that I waited, I decided to kill two birds with one stone. Not only would I come out of this an actual woman, but I
Life is funny. You work so hard to make a good life and then one day it all gets ripped out from underneath of you. All you can do is rebuild, but again, life throws out curve balls, and you find yourself sinking deeper and deeper. This is my life. It hasn’t always been a struggle. My life used to be great. I had family who loved me unconditionally and I made friends everywhere I went. My best friend was always there for me no matter what, he was my rock...until he wasn’t. His parents split up and they moved away at the end of Knox’s junior year. I never heard from him again. These days I am on my own, trying to make ends meet. College was a no go for me because I needed to work. At twenty-four, all I’ve been able to do is work low-paying jobs. After losing my father to a car accident my sophomore year of high school, I had to find work to help my mom pay the bills. My father’s life insurance policy didn’t pay out due to the insurance company believing that my father caused t
Working on my last house for the day, it’s the most nerve-wracking one. A married couple with three kids under the age of nine, and the wife has OCD. I know, why would anyone with OCD hire someone else to clean their house? I’ve already caught her recleaning a few areas that I’ve cleaned, but I’ve been working for them for the past two years, so I guess I’m still doing a decent job. The Morrison’s are good people, though, and they have always been really nice to me. Sometimes they ask me to babysit for them, but I always have to pass, because I don’t trust myself around little kids. I used to babysit all the time when I was in high school, but the way my attitude has changed over the years, I don’t want to take it out on any child. I like kids, although I doubt I will ever have any of my own. There’s no way I in hell I would want to bring an innocent child into this fucked up world. When I’m done with the Morrison house, I say my goodbyes, and then head to the bus stop. I
It’s Friday. Most normal people would wake up and be happy because it is the end of the work week. Not for this girl. I groan as my alarm starts blaring beside me. It takes me three tries to shut the damn thing off. Finally, I yank the plug out of the wall and the noise stops. It was a late night at the diner after some high schoolers came in and decided to have a food fight. They were sneaky little bastards, being quiet, so they would not get caught. By the time I made my way over to them with their ticket, it had looked like a war zone. I don’t think any of them actually ate. I made them pay and then kicked them out. Lucky for me, Bobby offered to help me clean it up once his kitchen was in order. We were finally locking up by two in the morning. Since it is Friday, the diner stays open until the wee hours of the morning, so the bar patrons can come in for their greasy food cravings. I offered to take Beth’s night shift so she could go out on a date with Erik, a guy she met
After the morning I had, keeping my mind off the disturbing images that are now permanently in my head, is actually not so hard while working the diner. The lunch hour rush was a doozie and now we are heading into the dinner rush. My co-workers got a good laugh at my disastrous morning, and every so often they break out to the Girl on Fire chorus. Why I thought it was a clever idea to tell Patrick and Patty about it is beyond me. I definitely won’t be making that mistake when Bobby comes on shift. “Table nine’s order is up!” Patrick yells from behind the counter. That’s me. I grab a tray and load the four plates on top of it. When I get to the table, I carefully unload the tray. I almost wear the last plate of mac and cheese when the toddler tries standing up on the bench and hits the tray. Luckily, I have been waitressing for years and can handle an out-of-control tray. It doesn’t make me any less annoyed, though. I just put on a smile, and say, “It’s okay, kids will be ki
Of all the days for it to rain, it had to pick my only day off. I usually work at the diner on Sundays, but Patrick closed it down for the day, due to the flu hitting three of the five workers at the diner, himself included. As much as I need the money, the time off is much needed, as well. I have been running myself rugged and need a little reprieve. I allow myself to sleep in until ten in the morning, and then I drag myself out of bed just to sit in front of the television for a few hours, drinking coffee and eating Cocoa Puffs out of the box. By one o’clock the rain has slowed to a drizzle, and I make the decision to visit my mom. Maybe I’ll get lucky and Dr. Hildreth will have a day off. Just once I would like to visit my mother without him accosting me about taking her off life support. I am so thankful that Mr. Sanders fixed the plumbing by the time I got home early Saturday morning. I make quick work washing my body and hair. I do spare a few minutes to shave my leg
Back in my apartment, I let myself drop to the couch face first, “Ouch!” I fumble under my hip and produce my phone. I just lay here in the silent space listening to the traffic outside. A clock is ticking somewhere, not in my apartment, but in a neighbor’s. That is how thin these walls are. There is a cat fight going on somewhere down the street, and a baby crying somewhere. “I hear you, kiddo. I feel the same way.” I realize that I am still holding the card in my hand, so I turn it over and examine it. It is matte black, but the name Scarlett is written in the middle of the card with a phone number below, all in a glossy blood red color. It is sexy in kind of a dark way. I remember the woman telling me that if I ever needed extra cash that I should contact her. I debate on whether or not I should call the number. What if she’s a loan shark? I can’t afford to pay any kind of money back. I can’t do anything illegal either, like sell drugs or be a mule. I shiver at the latt
The bus drops me off a block away from Scarlett’s Treasures at seven-thirty, so I have plenty of time to walk to the auction house and calm my nerves. I don’t know why I am so nervous. I have started new jobs plenty of times in my life. This one should be no different. Maybe it is the unknown part of it. Scarlett wasn’t clear on the phone what the job details are, so I would think anybody would be nervous in my position. The building comes into view. It looks a lot nicer than it did when I googled it. It looks like a really big warehouse except it’s made of brown stone. There doesn’t seem to be any windows in the front of the building, and there is no signage. There are quite a few cars in the parking lot, though, so that can be a good sign, I guess. I see one door at the front of the building, and there is a huge guy with a bald head standing by it, as though he is guarding it. When I walk up to the door, he literally puts his hand up to stop me. I look down at his hand th