Run, Girl (If You Can)

Violet managed to catch her dad alone after the show by cornering him on his way back upstairs after going to get a drink. She didn't think he would be as forthcoming with answers if any of her brothers were around.

She crossed her arms over her chest and raised her eyebrow at him. "So…what exactly is your relationship with Michael Gray?"

Aaron sighed and ran a hand through his hair in agitation. "Let's just say he's someone I can't afford to offend. I tolerate him the best I can."

Someone her father, arguably the most powerful man in this city, couldn't afford to offend? What kind of crazy dangerous person was this?

Violet had gotten a bad vibe off of Gray right away but that didn't mean she was afraid of him. She didn't really get scared of things normal people did and she knew her dad was the same way. He was overprotective and overly cautious when it came to his family but didn't get scared of things outside of that.

So if he thought this man was someone he couldn't afford to offend…Michael Gray must pose some sort of threat to his family. It was the only thing she could think of. Aaron Hale feared nothing except losing his family.

He never said it in so many words but he did worry a lot when little things happened. And she could never forget how upset he had been when her mother got into that car accident the day Oliver was born.

She was only five but she had been able to feel her father's anxiety every time they visited her mother in the hospital. He really thought he was going to lose her for some reason.

That was the worst instance Violet could think of but she had noticed over time that her dad preferred having her mother in his sight at all times. Aaron would almost imperceptibly relax the second she was back near him. 

He was a bit too safety conscious when it came to things like teaching his kids how to ride bikes or drive and his wife always had to talk him down. Almost all of Violet's required driving practice hours had happened with her mom as a result.

"He said you might think he was a bad influence on us and that's why you never mentioned him. Is he dangerous?" Violet asked bluntly.

Aaron shook his head at her indulgently. "You're too smart for your own good. He is dangerous, but he also really likes me. As long as I don't do anything to jeopardize that, he won't come after my family. You don't have to worry about it."

She narrowed her eyes at him but he wasn't willing to tell her anymore. He simply ruffled her hair and walked back up to bed.

Violet would have to tell Noah what her dad had said. Maybe he could make more sense of it than she had been able to. He was usually a pretty perceptive person.

She tried pushing the matter out of her mind for now. She needed to go to bed too. Two shows in a day was exhausting.

===

Jeremy was not pleased. He had texted Violet on his lunch break Monday morning to ask her to dinner and she already had plans. She claimed she hadn't been spending enough time with her friends lately.

He had her number. She was hanging out with Noah Singleton. She didn't have any other friends.

He really wondered what the appeal was there. What kept her so close to him after all these years? Most people outgrow their childhood friends over time, don't they?

Noah and Violet were so different. What could an uneducated, uncultured karate instructor have that made her enjoy spending time with him? Jeremy had looked the man up on social media after their first encounter and wasn't impressed.

She was such a lovely, interesting person. The more time Jeremy spent with her, the more time he wanted. It was so hard to find someone on his level to have a quality conversation with but Violet kept up with him perfectly now that she had come out of her shell a little.

It didn't hurt that her smile—the genuine one, not the polite one she did most of the time—did funny things to his heart either. He was definitely falling for her. And anyone falling for a woman would not want to share her with another man.

Jeremy thought they were alike; that they craved intelligent conversation. There was no way she got that from someone who didn't even go to college. So what was it?

Violet claimed she saw him as a brother and based on the way she talked it was obviously the case. But she didn't spend nearly as much time with her own brothers as far as Jeremy could tell.

Speaking of her brothers…he wanted to meet them. She was perfect girlfriend material and if he was going to be her boyfriend he would need to have an in with her brothers. He knew how important to her they were.

Since Kaleb wasn't busy during the off-season right now it might be best to start with him. Aaron had mentioned how he was loafing around the house offhandedly the other day. Getting to know her twin would likely be beneficial.

He had no desire to get to know Noah Singleton but he did need to know how his relationship with Violet worked if he was going to break it apart. Once they got into a proper relationship Noah definitely had to go.

Jeremy didn't think it would be too big of a problem. Propriety would be an issue there and Violet seemed like a loyal person. After all, nobody wanted their girlfriend to be close to another man.

It wouldn't be a weird thing for him to ask of her, especially if he slowly weaned her off of seeing Noah beforehand. All he had to do was step up his game. Everybody knew people in relationships didn't have time for their friends anyway.

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