“What was that?” Shaun asked.
She put her phone back in her pocket. “Nosy much?”
“Yeah, nosy a lot.” He’d never been the least bit deterred by her attempts to keep him and Paige out of her business. “You looked upset.”
“It’s nothing. Someone got back to me about a job. The position’s been filled.”
“You’re a terrible liar, Ash. And if that’s true, pull out the text and show it to me.”
He had her there and he knew it. And she hated lying, which was why she was so bad at it. She couldn’t fully commit to it unless it was something silly, like tricking Terrie into thinking the pizza had arrived.
“Reid’s been texting me.”
“What?” Shaun reacted about how she thought he would. He walked off, mumbling something unintelligible and then turned back, his teeth grinding together. “I thought you changed your number.”
“He never called after the breakup, so … I … never did.” It sounded lame, even to her ears.
“Why is he calling now?”
“You two want pizza?” Terrie hollered from the front door.
Shaun turned and smiled. “In a minute.” As soon as Terrie walked back in, he headed for his truck. “I’ll handle this. Is he still living with his brother?”
“Shaun stop. I have no idea where he’s living. I ran into him at a restaurant a few nights ago. Other than that, I haven’t seen or heard from him in over a year. And just because he was your college roommate once does not mean you have to deal with him for me. It’s time I take care of my own problems.”
Shaun ran a hand down his face, but he put his keys away and walked back. “That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. Quit being stubborn and look around you, Ashley. You’re not alone. You have friends and family who would do anything for you. There’s never a reason to suffer alone, and yet you seem to think it’s the noble thing to do. It’s not noble. It just keeps Paige up at night worrying about you.”
He had a point. Not that she wanted to admit it after that lecture. He’d make a great dad someday. “If it gets worse, I’ll call you.”
“You better.”
