"Oh, what an honor to be a recipient of your charm." The words tumbled out of her mouth like audible venom, a quick, though petty, jab. She should have been above letting his childish remarks bother her by now. The countless times they'd fought came rushing back to her, unpleasant and unwanted memories. None of their bigger fights had ever ended well, and this one didn't look like it would either, as was clearly evident. Already they had come to blows. Suddenly, living at Pax didn't seem like a great idea anymore. Not when her neighbor living down the hall was Julian.
Ariana steeled herself, lips set in a firm line. She'd been the one to hand his ass to him during their very last fight. She would damn well do it again if she had to--only now it was far more complicated, wasn't it? There was nothing to do but manage this as best as she could, though she loathed the idea of coming home each night, knowing his apartment was a mere short walk away from hers. No doubt it was filled to the ceiling with nothing but junk. He'd been sure to take all of his belongings when she kicked him out, and there was no way he would part with them.
But he'd parted from her easily enough, hadn't he? Ariana's hand curled tighter around the strap of her purse, a physical response from the unwelcome thought. Julian backed away, and she wondered how long it would take him to turn tail in order to save himself. Not very long, if things didn't fast change. She knew it would happen, in fact, she was waiting expectantly for it. Julian obviously hadn't changed much since the last time she'd seen him, which wasn't a surprise. Quick with the sarcastic quips, and even quicker to run away when things turned bad for him. It was only a matter of time.
She should have turned away, found her key again, and went quickly inside her apartment. But his little nitpicking comment eased its way under her metaphorical skin, irking her, causing her temper to quickly flair. Not even five minutes and already he'd reduced her to this. Of course, she wouldn't tell him the real reason why she had moved, for what would he care?
"Hardly. The only one that was kicked out of the apartment was you. Don't you remember?" The corners of her mouth quirked upwards slightly, a faint, dark sense of amusement that admittedly she did not completely feel. Ariana wanted to rant at him, to rave, to demand all the whys and whats. She wanted to see if she could get her deposit back on the morrow. But these were foolish, hotheaded desires that had been brought on by the moment. Ariana had every right to live at Pax, and, quite unfortunately for her, by all means Julian did, too.
She'd have to handle this like a grown, mature woman. A grown, mature woman who, quite frankly, was not all right with her excuse for a husband belittling her at her new place of residence. Now she felt the dark humor in the tight smile she held.
"I wonder, Julian," Ariana stated, her voice light, "if you actually do live here. Tell me you're not still napping in your office. The apartment's only used as a showcase for your junk, isn't it?"