I glance up.
Ash is staring at me.
Staring. Like I just announced I’m marrying someoneelsenext month for a different PR stunt.
“You’re going on a date?” he asks, voice low and weirdly flat.
I laugh. “It’s not a date. Just coffee.”
“With an ex?”
“Not an ex,” I say quickly. “It was never like that. We were just friends. Study buddies. And he’s in town, so...”
“So you thought you’d catch up,” he finishes for me.
I blink. “Yeah. Why?”
His jaw ticks. And for a second—just a second—I get this weird flash of something in hiseyes.
Possessiveness?
No. That’s not it.
He’s just watching out for me. Like Liam would. Like any guy would for his best friend’s little sister slash fake fiancée.
Totally normal.
Totally not personal.
“How well do you even know this guy? And where are you meeting him?”
“We haven’t seen each other in a while—he moved away.”
“So he could basically be some creep taking advantage of you?”
I scoff, indignant. “Matt’s not a creep. He’s my friend. Why are you being so weird?”
“I’m not being weird,” Ash says, scowling. “I just don’t want some random guy—who could be literally anyone—dragging you into some dark corner and having his way with you.”
I blink. “Wow.”
He doesn’t even flinch. “You still haven’t answered me. Where are you meeting him?”
I throw my hands up. “Café Noir. It’s public. It’s safe. There will be coffee and croissants and absolutely no dragging into dark corners.”
He crosses his arms.
I raise an eyebrow. “What?”
“How well do you even know this guy?”
“We were close in college,” I say slowly, eyeing him like he’s lost it. “He moved away after graduation, we lost touch, and now he’s visiting. It’s not a crime.”
“What does he want?”
I stare. “Coffee?”
Ash narrows his eyes like that’s a suspicious answer.
