“Oh, I don’t doubt it.” Jason chuckled. “But it’s worrying my girl, so do me a solid and either ride with her or find another ride.”
“Jason!” Felicity shrieked, mouthing a silent apology at me.
“Are we hanging at yours tonight?” Jason asked Asher.
“I guess,” he grumbled.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?”
“Nothing.” He pasted on an easy smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes.
“Schools almost out for the holidays and you’re acting like a little bitch.”
“You know what? Fuck you, Jase. I’m out of here.” Asher spun on his heel and stormed off down the hall.
“Nice, man, real nice.” Cameron side-eyed Jason who frowned.
“Am I missing something? Because I asked a simple question.”
“Jason,” Felicity pressed a hand against his chest. “Go easy on him. It’s been a rough few weeks and I think he was hurt we didn’t invite him the other night.”
“Hmm, you didn’t invite me either,” I spoke up.
“Well, yeah,” Felicity said. “We didn’t want you to think we were trying to push the two of you together.”
“I get it and honestly I really don’t care.” I did, a little bit. But I wouldn’t ever admit that to them. “But Asher cares. He’s gone from losing his two best friends and the girl he wanted, so yeah, cut him some slack.”
Jason growled while Felicity gasped. It was Cameron who spoke though. “You really think he’s upset?”
“He’s upset about something, and my money is on the fact he feels left out.”
“But we haven’t—”
“If you’re going to try and tell yourself you haven’t excluded him, you’re lying to yourself. And I get it, I do. But look at it through his eyes.”
The three of them stared at me like I’d grown a second head. “Okay, good talk. I’ll see you at lunch?” I asked Felicity, who nodded, her mouth still hanging open.
I hadn’t meant to defend Asher but something about the dejection etched into his expression had hit me right in the chest. He was lost all of a sudden, trying to find his new place in the world. Something I could empathize with.
But I didn’t want to have common ground with the football player with a dangerous smile. Because common ground connected us. I was pretty sure he already felt it. But if he knew I also felt it, he’d use it against me.
And I wasn’t sure I could resist his attack forever.
I didn’t purposefully search him out, but when I entered the library where I’d been hiding out for the last couple of days, there he was.
“Fancy seeing you here,” I whispered, dropping into the seat beside him.
“Needed some space and this seemed like a good bet.”
I smothered a laugh.
“What’s funny?” his eyes slid to mine in question.
“Where do you think I’ve been hiding the last two days?”
“Here?”
I nodded.
“No shit. Guess we’re more alike than you give us credit for.”
We sat there, in a secluded corner of the library, in comfortable silence. After a few minutes, I pulled out my jotter and began doodling.
“What are you doing?” Asher leaned over, his head almost touching mine as he watched me sketch.
“Nothing really. I just find it soothing.”
“You’re an artist?”
“God, no. Hailee is an artist. I just like to doodle.”
“It’s cool,” he said. “Reminds me of street art. You know, the kind kids graffiti on abandoned buildings and road signs?”
My pulse ratcheted. “I guess.”
“He taught you, didn’t he?” he asked quietly.
My eyes lifted. “How do you do that? Know what I’m thinking without me even speaking?”
“I know you, Mya, even if you think I don’t.”
The air around us crackled, thick and heavy and alive.
“Asher, I...” I swallowed over the lump in my throat.
“What’s his name?”
“Jermaine,” I croaked.
“Is it over between you and him?”
I nodded.
“Do you still love him?”
“I... yes.” A pained sigh rolled off my lips. “I think a part of me will always love him.”
“But you’re not in love with him?”
“N- no.”
Asher inched closer; so close I could feel the warmth of his breath. “I can work with that.”
His hand slid along my neck, teasing my curls. My head knew it was a bad idea; was silently screaming at me to stop him. But my heart, my battered bruised heart, craved the attention.
Craved his attention.
Asher’s lips hovered over mine, my heart crashing in my chest like a heavy base. Ba-boom. Ba-boom. Ba-boom.
“I can’t wait to taste you, Mya.” His voice was thick with lust, his words laced with intention.
“Asher,” my fingers curled into his hoodie. “Kiss—”
“Mr. Bennet,” Mrs. Hegarty, the librarian boomed. “This is a library, not your own personal flirt shack.”
He sank back in the chair, pinching the bridge of his nose as he expelled a long breath.
“Ms. Hernandez, I am most surprised,” she said, as if she didn’t notice it was me as she approached us.
“Sorry, Mrs. Hegarty. It won’t happen again.”
“Yeah, sorry, Mrs. H. It was my fault, not Mya’s.”
“Oh, I don’t doubt it, Mr. Bennet. Now if you’re not in here to study...” Her unamused gaze flitted to the doors behind us.
“We’ll be out of your hair in a minute.”
“Good.” She spun on her heel and disappeared behind the stacks.
“Well, that was not how I saw that going,” Asher said but I was too fixated on the librarian’s words.
“What did she mean? Your own personal flirt shack?”
“That’s what you’re taking from this?” Asher gawked at me.
“You bring girls here a lot?”
“Are you kidding me right now? You followed me here.”
“I didn’t... it doesn’t matter.” I grabbed my bag. “I should go.”
“Mya come on, we should talk about what just happened.”
“Nothing happened.” I stood up but Asher caught my hand.
“I’ll let you run, for now.” His thumb smoothed over the curve of my fingers and I suppressed a shiver. “But this thing between you and me, it’s only a matter of time.”
I walked away and didn’t look back. Even though I felt his eyes burning into me every step of the way.
Chapter Six
Asher
“Why the fuck is your house full of people?” Jason hissed.
“Nice to see you too, man.”
“I thought it was just going to be the six of us?”
My eyes went over to where Hailee and Cameron were greeting a very confused looking Felicity. “It was, but then Dad called and said they couldn’t make it home, so... party central at your service.”