“Isn’t it like, two or three there?”
Asher chuckled softly. “It is. Mom gets insomnia. She said it felt like a good time to call, knowing I wouldn’t be busy.”
“How are they? Your parents, I mean.”
He gave me a soft smile. “They’re good. They still live in Port Grandlin, but they travel a lot.”
“Are you… close to them?”
He shrugged. “Not especially. Nothing dramatic happened, no big falling out. I just… I don’t know. We see the world differently, I guess. I still see them regularly, though.” As I watched him, his Adam’s apple bobbed and he cleared his throat. “We should probably get going.”
“Tired?”
He lifted one shoulder in a half-shrug. “Getting there.”
“Then let’s get you home.” I couldn’t help but wonder what was going through his mind, what had happened on the call that the vibe between us was lessthis is hotand moresomeone dropped a wet blanket on usall of a sudden.
Chapter 15 - Asher
It wasn’t that I didn’t want Micah. I did. Ireallydid. But talking to my parents had definitely dampened my spirits, cutting through the haze of lust and desire, reminding me there was a whole real world out there I’d have to face if things went much further than they already had. Mom had asked me about my healing, of course, but she’d thrown in a few questions about my dating life—as usual. I pinched the bridge of my nose to fend off a headache as we walked back to his car. By the time we’d made it to my house, the headache was in full bloom and I reallywasready for bed.
The next morning was Saturday and before I even got out of bed, Jackson was texting me, begging for some best friend time. I agreed, and we decided to meander around downtown Port Grandlin, get ice cream, and window shop.
We met near the Radiance, the old movie theater that had been renovated a while ago, beforeHeartland Overhaulhad evenheardof Port Grandlin. After we both parked, we wandered and chatted.
“So,” Jackson said suggestively as we turned onto Main Street. “How arethings?”
I rolled my eyes and gently shoved his shoulder. “Bythings, do you mean, ‘How’s your healing, Asher? How does your shoulder feel? Is your hip okay? How about that concussion?’ Becausethoseare reasonable questions to ask.” I said it hoping to redirect the conversation away from my sex life, such that it was.
“How’s your healing, Asher?” he parroted. “How does your shoulder feel? Is your hip okay? How about that concussion?”
With a sigh, I ran my fingers through my hair, stalling before giving him what he really wanted. It was no use. I was as ready to tell him as he was ready to hear it all. “We hooked up.”
Jackson’s grin was enormous as he turned to me. “Tell me you’re not fucking with me.”
“I’m definitely not fucking with you,” I assured him.
“That’s amazing. Tell me everything.”
“Jackson!”
“What?” He put on an innocent face and batted his eyelashes at me. “I’m justwondering, that’s all.”
“Don’t you think I probably shouldn’t kiss and tell?”
“Please, like that’severbeen a policy between us. I tell youeverything.Spill.”
I closed my eyes for a second, remembering how it felt to come by someone else’s touch. Afriend’stouch. A friend who happened to be a guy. It had been a long, long time since I’d been with anyone and it felt both foreign and natural at the same time. “I don’t know,” I confessed. “We were in the kitchen, kissing, and the next thing I knew, our dicks were out and we were touching each other.”
“Hot,” Jackson said. “Are you going to hook up again?”
I shrugged and looked at the sidewalk. “I don’t know.”
Jackson stopped walking and stepped in front of me. “Are you freaking out?”
When I looked at him again, my stomach ached from anxiety over the whole situation. “Maybe a little.”
“Hey,” he murmured. “It’s going to be okay. Do you like him?”
