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Chapter Two

Our driver pulled into the underground garage of the apartment complex Sasha and I were staying at. Sasha and I sat in the back of the Escalade while Luke occupied the passenger seat. There were a few cars that I was positive were paparazzi trailing behind us but they dropped off when we were approaching the hotel were we would be spending the next six months due to the filming of Deal.

Luke helped both of us out of the Escalade and we walked towards the elevator. I pressed the button that would lead us to the top floor. Luke, Sasha, my other bodyguard Clark, and I lived in a stylish, modern apartment that overlooked the Upper East Side of New York. It's the penthouse of course. According to Sasha, we had to have the best that NYC could offer. When we had first found the place it was all beige. Everything was beige. The next day, we covered the sofas in throw blankets, threw cushions and bean bags around, added shaggy rugs, art, plants and candles galore. We even brought in painters the following weekend, after we claimed the apartment, to add colors to the blank beige walls.

There were separate living quarters upstairs for Luke and Clark, my other bodyguard, who had taken a few days off and would return soon. Sasha's bedroom and mine were on the bottom floor with an additional bedroom that would serve as a guest room. We also had a beautiful balcony along with a garden that was home to tulips. It had soon become our home away from home.

"Take the rest of the day off, Luke. I know I won't leave the penthouse tonight and you could use a night to yourself." I said to Luke.

He had been working almost twelve hour shifts along with my shooting schedule and the skin that was below his eyes began to turn dark grey making him appear haggard. I know that he had been drinking caffeine more than usual and I felt guilty that I was the cause of it. The least I could do was give him the night off before another long day of shooting began.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Aria." He said.

I smiled and bid him a good afternoon and night.

Sasha was in the living room, sprawled out on the couch with her phone in her hands and I sneaked away to my own bedroom to rest like I had planned to do since the day before. I grabbed a tank top and some black material shorts that were extremely cozy and headed to the bathroom to change. Kicking off my heels and unzipping my dress, it pooled onto the floor and I stepped into my shorts and slipped into my tank top.

Studying my reflection in the mirror, I took notice of how my skin had turned a golden shade due to the hot New York Sun - it was the middle of June and the heat was intense.

My hair had grown to my waist and it was a wave of cascading brown waves, framing my heart-shaped face quite nicely. Most of my facial features were ordinary with my small button nose, high cheekbones and full pink lips. My eyes were the feature that got the most attention. They were a pale grey with brown speckles around my black irises along with my tan skin tone it made my eye color pop dramatically.

I had gotten my eyes from my father who was American and my darker skin tone from my Hispanic mother. My parents had met in the mid 80s when my mother had moved to East Los Angeles from a small city in Mexico right across the border. My father had just begun his career as a police officer when they met at a seedy bar by complete accident. He had been nursing a broken heart and my mother had been working as a bartender to pay for nursing school. After confessing his troubles to my mother, they had swapped numbers and soon grew close, within a year they were in love and happily married. A few years later they had me.

Exiting the bathroom, I turned off the lights in the bathroom and grabbed my laptop that laid on the bedspread. My mind kept racing back to the handsome stranger at the restaurant with his broad shoulders and bright brown eyes. I had never laid eyes on someone as beautiful as him and the image of him staring at me was seared onto my brain. His eyes were captivating and enchanting and they left me completely speechless. The waiter had mentioned that the owner of the restaurant had requested the VIP room for his lunch hour and the stranger had been right outside in the hallway as we exited the room.