10
Galen
After hearing Ariel’s story, I backed off completely. Still treating her as a friend, I stopped trying to bait her as I had with the whole fake meeting with another woman thing, which I knew would spark jealousy.
It had done that, and it had also led her to tell me about her horrible experience from when she lived on the streets of London. I couldn’t shake the feeling her story had given me.
Ariel wasn’t only a good woman with strong convictions, but she was strong and tough, too. She was so full of perseverance that it was easy to forget that she’d lived a difficult, unconventional life. There was no doubt in my mind that she would never succumb to any of the pressure or charms I laid on her unless love was a part of it.
Not knowing what the future would hold for us, I wante
