“I, uh, made breakfast,” he tells me, then turns around and walks out—leaving me to deal with the embarrassment.
As I sit up, I realize that I’m dressed in Asher’s clothes, the dress I wore last night is folded neatly on the chair, along with my shoes and my purse. What the hell happened? I go over and dig a hair tie out of my bag. Then, once I tie my hair back and fix my makeup, I venture out of the bedroom.
The second I open the door, the smell of breakfast wafts throughout the penthouse and infiltrates my senses. My stomach growls at the thought of eating something that will absorb the alcohol and ease the pounding in my head. Hangovers always have been a bitch.
Approaching the kitchen, I’m graced with the vision of Asher cooking a full damn buffet. He’s got scrambled eggs and bacon on the stove, pancakes on a skillet, and he’s chopping some fresh fruit on the counter. My brows furrow as I wonder who the hell he’s feeding.
“Please tell me your parents aren’t coming over or something. What’s with the feast?”
He looks up, and I can tell he’s trying not to smile. “No, I was just hungry, and I figured you could use something to eat.”
I nod, sitting on the bar stool directly across from him. Looking around, however, something occurs to me.
“Where’s Lennon?”
“I had Colby take her home last night,” he grumbles.
The fact that he won’t even look my direction isn’t lost on me. I start to wonder if something may have happened last night—something he regrets. For the first time in what feels like forever, an uncomfortable heaviness consumes me.
“We didn’t do anything, did we? You and I?”
Okay, so maybe I should have waited to ask that until he wasn’t tasting the eggs. At the sound of my words, he practically chokes, coughing violently and pounding his fist against his chest. When he’s done and can breathe easily again, he shakes his head.
“No, Tessa. Drunk and unconscious isn’t exactly my type.”
Relief washes over me. It’s not that I don’t want to do anything with him, because Lord knows I do. It’s just that I’d hate for it to happen and me not remember it. I’m a greedy bitch, especially when it comes to him.
I smirk and lean forward with my elbows on the counter. “Oh yeah? And what is your type?”
His gaze locks with mine, and he slowly walks around until there’s nothing but air in between us. “Gorgeous, smart, confident...”
He pauses just inches away from me and glances down at my lips. I’m frozen in place, wondering if he’s actually going to give me what I want, until he slips a piece of strawberry into my mouth.
“…and out of high school.”
My shocked look turns to a glare as he shoots me a wink and steps back. “You’re an asshole.”
Chuckling, he grabs the remote and cuts the music off. “You’re just figuring that out?”
He plates the food and puts one in front of me before sitting down, with a full empty seat in between us. I roll my eyes as I take a bite. Could he be any more childish? Not even able to sit next to me. It’s like we’re in preschool and he thinks I have cooties. Meanwhile, I’m nearly having an orgasm over the fact that this guy can cook.
The two of us eat in awkward silence and when I’m done, he grabs my plate for me and puts it in the sink.
“Here,” he says, handing me two Advil. “Take them.”
“Yes, sir.”
It’s meant to be murmured under my breath, but judging by the way his hand tightens on the counter, he heard me loud and clear. More importantly, he’s affected by it. I file that little fact away and swallow the pills down with my glass of orange juice, then lick my lips deliberately as I watch him.
“You okay?” I tease. “You seem a little…flustered.”
He narrows his eyes to slits and shakes whatever thoughts he was just having from his head. “Do you need a ride home?”
“No, I drove here, but that reminds me.” I hop off the stool and stand in front of him. “Why did you let me sleep in your bed? Why not have Colby take me home with Lennon?”
His jaw ticks and I can see the subject of his best friend makes him angry. “Because I don’t want you anywhere fucking near him.”
“What? Why not?”
He goes to walk away. “Nothing. Don’t worry about it.”
“Why, Asher?” I press, following closely behind. “Is it because of last night? Because I knew who he was and not you?”
“Don’t.” His tone is a mix between a demand and a plea. “Don’t push me on this.”
Yeah, no. Not good enough for me. “Do you think I want him for something? Is that it?”
“You just don’t know when to stop, do you?” he snaps, whipping around to glare at me. “Drop. It.”
“No. Not until you tell me why.” When he doesn’t respond, an idea comes to mind that’s either brilliant or reckless. Either way, I’m going for it. “Fine, then I’ll just ask him. Lennon had him put his number in her phone last night. Something about getting an autograph for her dad.”
It’s a total bluff, but I keep my poker face in position and pull my cellphone from my pocket, scrolling to Lennon’s contact.
“Tessa—” He says my name like a warning, and I look up at him and smirk.
“Last chance, Hawthorne.”
Turning away for a second, he grips at his hair and groans. “Because the thought of anyone within five feet of you makes me feel like my blood is on fucking fire.” He spins back around and his eyes meet mine. “Is that what you wanted to hear? That it’s not all in your head? That you drive me absolutely insane with how bad I want you sometimes?”
His admission surprises me, but I do my best to mask it. “Then what’s stopping you? I’m right here.”
A dry laugh emits from the back of his throat. “That’s part of the problem! You’re always right there. Always looking the way you do and tempting the shit out of me, but I can’t give in, Tess. You’re my student. There are rules.”
“Fuck the rules.”
For the first time since the morning I left the hotel, he smiles brightly at me—with his dimples rendering me speechless. He runs his knuckle gently down the side of my face.
“I wish I could have that mentality, I really do, but I can’t. There’s too much at stake.” Coming closer, he presses a kiss to my forehead. “I’m going to get in the shower, and when I get out, you need to be gone.”
With that, he spares me one last look, then walks way and disappears into his bedroom. And me? I’m left standing here, wondering what the fuck just happened.
THE STREETS ARE CROWDED as I hold the phone to my ear and navigate through the mess of people. Delaney is rambling about how much she’s loving school and how well Knox is doing with his apprenticeship. It’s nice to hear her this happy, Lord knows she deserves it, but I miss her. The selfish part of me wishes I could just fly to Rhode Island and kidnap her—force her to come back and never leave without me again.
“You have to come visit soon, Tess,” she tells me. “You’ll love it here.”