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“Right?” He grinned at me. “Just wait till you try the fries.”
“I may have to sneak one, even though it’s so not on my diet.” Amy’s giggle made my head ache. She snagged a gooey fry and popped it in her mouth, then shook her head. “Oh, Ash, you have mayo all over your chin.” She grabbed a napkin from the dispenser and dabbed at his face.
My chest ached, and I forced myself to chew deliberately as I stared down at my plate. They were just friends, huh?
Amy spent the next half hour chatting about friends I didn’t know, about things that obviously had nothing to do with me. It didn’t take a genius to see she was trying to exclude me, but playing the game just seemed too exhausting, so I focused on my amazing hamburger instead.
When Coco wandered over to check on us, I put on my best smile. “This whole meal is fantastic. I don’t think I’ve ever tasted anything like it. Will you move in with me, Coco?”
“As long as your daddy’s there, I’m packing my bags right now.” She grinned at me. “But seriously, I’m glad you like it. Next time you’re in, you’ll have to try my portobello lasagna. It’s amazing if I do say so myself. Everything else all right?”
I nodded. “I think I’m ready for my check when you get a chance.”
“I got this, Coco.” Asher waved his hand. “My treat.”
Amy kissed his cheek. “You’re the best. Thanks, Ash.”
But I shook my head. “It’s fine. I’ll pay for my own.” I stared at Coco willing her to follow my instructions.
She glanced between the three of us but finally nodded. “I’ll be back with the bills.”
Asher glared at me but didn’t say anything.
I ignored him and finished the last two fries. “I need to be getting home. Thanks for the company, guys.”
“No, I’ll drive you home. Amy, you don’t mind, do you?”
A flicker of indecision crossed her face. “Actually, I was hoping you could help me with the piece of the project I’m working on. I had a few questions. If you don’t mind.”
Asher hunched his shoulders, and I decided to put both of us out of our misery. I could not handle hanging around watching Amy flirt. “My house is only a couple of blocks from here. I don’t mind walking at all.”
He shook his head. “Amy, do you mind waiting? It’ll only be a few minutes.”
Triumph shone in her eyes, and she knew she’d won this round. “Of course not.”
I dug my debit card out of my pocket as Coco returned with the checks. “I can put it on your dad’s tab if you want,” she suggested.
“Great. I didn’t know he had a tab.”
“All the scientists do. Comes right out of their paychecks.” She winked at me. “Sometimes I think they eat here more than they eat at home.”
“Well, I know I’ll be back.” I slid from the booth. “Thanks, Coco.”
“No problem, love.”
Amy stood up as well. “Have a good night, Lexie. I’ll be waiting right here for you, Ash. Hurry back.” She waved as Asher and I left the restaurant.
We were both silent as we climbed into his car. The lights from downtown glowed softly around us, and I looked away from Asher’s handsome profile. Instead, I watched laughing couples stroll down the sidewalk.
He started the car and pulled out into traffic. “Look, Lexie…”
“Don’t worry about it. Not a big deal.” But I was lying. It was a Friday night at the end of September. The air smelled of bonfires and cider, and I’d been looking forward to hanging out with Asher instead of being trapped alone at home for a change. But now…
“I have some homework to catch up on anyway.”
“But I promised we’d do something.”
“It was just dinner. And it doesn’t matter. Amy needs your help.” I shrugged. “Do you remember where I live? Just around the corner here.”
“Of course I remember.” He pulled up in front of my dad’s house and put the car in park. He turned to me in the almost-dark, his eyes glinting. “Amy and I are just friends now. No matter what it looks like, Lexie.”
“It doesn’t matter to me who you’re dating or not. But just a suggestion about that catch-and-release game you like to play? When you release someone, you might want to make sure they know they’re off the hook.” I pushed open the car door. “Thanks for the ride. See you Monday.”
“Lexie…”
I slammed the door on whatever he was going to say and sprinted up the front walk.
15
The one good thing about Amy’s unexpected appearance at dinner was it gave me the push I needed to prove her wrong. For some reason, her sly innuendo I wasn’t good enough did more to piss me off than anything Zella had ever said. I spent the rest of the night going over the formulas Asher and I had already worked through, trying to understand them.
Unfortunately, my brain started to ache within five minutes of starting. The formulas looked like they’d been written in another language, and no matter how long I stared, waiting for something to make sense, nothing clicked. It had been a lot easier with Asher helping me through it.
I threw my pencil down on the dining room table. I was never going to get this on my own, and Dad was still out. Not to mention I couldn’t expect him to help me out at school. My classmates were already suspicious I’d gotten special favors. No, I was going to have to figure this out myself.
I started again, reading through Asher’s notes from the beginning where he’d helped me try to understand some of the theory behind Avery’s discovery.
This was impossible. I stared at the notes again, read them slowly — piece by piece — until it finally started to compute. Okay. Got it. I moved on to the next section of his notes and reread those until they made sense.
But the deeper I dug into Avery’s formula, the more confused I got. It looked good and almost worked, but there was something missing, something that squawked all wrong. Unfortunately, I wasn’t smart enough to figure it out. I couldn’t spot it; I could just feel it.
I wrote and rewrote the formula, moving it, tweaking it, playing with it until I’d filled half a notebook and my hand cramped from clutching my pencil and my eyes felt like dried-out dishrags. Whatever was wrong with the stupid thing, I wasn’t going to find it tonight.
Yawning, I turned off my tablet and made my way to my room. When had it gotten to be one o’clock in the morning? And where was Dad? He should have been home hours ago, even if he was with Jordan. I shuddered and picked up my pace. The last thing I wanted to see was him coming home all glowy from a date.
