That wasn’t the part that scared her and was making her avoid him.
Nope.
Kissing Asher was fun and exciting and a really great way to pass the time.
But what freaked her out was in that moment when she’d been mostly asleep, she’d almost told him she was falling in love with him too.
Which was not okay, because she was happily single. Even if she’d never had to remind herself of that fact so often before.
Asher brought his muscular arm up over his eyes, giving her a different angle of his octopus tattoo, this one mostly tentacles. He’d never told her why he’d chosen that image. She imagined the conversation, her trailing her fingers over each line while he caught his breath with each dip of her finger and told her the story.
She liked the image so much, it made her eyes sting with tears of longing. She could do it. Cuddle up right next to him on this couch.
She knew with full confidence that he’d open up his arms and tug her into his chest. That he’d sleepily whisper something sweet against the shell of her ear and hold her like he’d never let her go. That they’d fall asleep like that, and she could wake him up tomorrow by kissing the underside of his jaw and beg him to tell her the story of his tattoo.
The yearning she felt shook her enough to make her step away from him before she did something she couldn’t take back. She wanted Asher in a way she’d never wanted anyone else, but she would be giving up too much to be with him.
Not just her career. Her freedom, and maybe even her happiness eventually. Because wasn’t that what happened with most relationships? Look at Julia and Logan. Even they were fighting, and they hadn’t even gotten married yet.
No. It was better for her to keep her distance from Asher, no matter how much she longed to do the opposite.
Chapter 31
Itwasstilldarkoutside when Asher woke up, but Eliana was already gone. The only indication that she’d come home at all last night was that a plate and cup were in the sink.
The wedding had been stressing her out more and more as it drew closer, and he’d been seeing less of her as she worked nonstop. He missed watching a show with her every evening. It was his favorite part of the day, even as he tried to hold his heart back from falling too hard so it wouldn’t hurt as much to lose her. But it was too late.
He’d been waking up extra early to hide out at The Palms clubhouse in an attempt to catch whoever was posting the secrets. Asher needed to undo what his grandpa had inadvertently started. His grandpa never would have wanted this to happen.
Sunlight peeked over the horizon as he walked straight to The Palms. It was too early for anyone to catch him leaving his grandpa’s bungalow. Besides, what was the point in hiding anymore? He had to be out of there by Monday. And he still had no idea where he was going to live. He didn’t even have a car to sleep in.
He’d been looking at apartments, but some part of him kept hoping that something would change. That Mr. Richardson would change his mind about the new tenant, or forget he was there—though he knew that would never happen.
But the sooner Asher left, the sooner he lost that last piece of his grandpa.
And the sooner Eliana moved on, whether that was back to Boston, or back into her parents’ house since the plumbing issues had resolved this week. Either way, it wasn’t with him.
Today, he wanted to focus on Eliana and the wedding, and figure out who was spreading the secrets.
He didn’t know if the person would come in through the front or back door of The Palms, and he’d been alternating days in hopes of catching them. This time, he went to the back door, the one that led out to the pool, and found a chair to sit in that was shadowed enough that no one would see him unless they stumbled right on him.
And he waited.
Surfers trickled out to the beach to catch the amazing waves. Since he’d been coming out here to The Palms to try to catch whoever was revealing the secrets, he’d been missing surfing—and it was during the best time of year to be out there.
He was so distracted watching the surfers, he almost missed the person walking into the clubhouse. There was a slight scuffle of noise and then the door opened. He stood and followed quietly but closely. He didn’t want to scare someone who was just there for an early breakfast or quiet reading time.
As the person walked slowly to the bulletin board, she looked around cautiously, and then pulled a folded paper from her purse.
His heart raced, and he tried to calm it. It could be an advertisement for a class. Or an invitation to a tea party. Or a flier for another fundraiser.
But why would she look around so furtively if that was the case?
He stepped as close as he dared. It was a list of secrets, more than on any other day.
The woman turned around and gasped when she saw him, one hand to her heart, the other gripping the handle of her walker.
“Lydia?” His shocked gaze darted from her to the board. “Why?”
