Sam waves away my concerns. “We’ll be fine.” His gaze brightens when he catches sight of Asher standing near the exit, waiting for me. “Are you sure you don’t want me to take your car for the night?” Sam pleads, giving me a suggestive grin.
I roll my eyes. “He’s just walking me to my car so that I’m not alone in the dark.”
“Oh, we love a knight in shining armor,” Derek says, practically swooning.
“All right, goodnight,” I say, giving both of them a hug goodbye. I turn, pushing my way through the crowd and back toward Asher.
“Ready?” Asher asks as I approach him. I nod, and he holds the door open for me. We walk out into the cold night, and I pull my jacket tighter around me. The night is darker than usual, the moon shrouded by thick, foreboding clouds. We both start to pick up our pace at the threat of rain.
“Are you parked near here?” I question, breaking the silence.
“No,” he responds. “I didn’t drive because I live nearby.”
“Nice area,” I muse.
“Nice enough.”
We fall into comfortable silence again. The only sounds are the click of my heels and cars zooming past us. Asher stuffs his hands in his pockets as we continue toward the parking garage. The city lights catch his eyes, making them appear the bright green of fresh-cut grass. His head tilts and his lips purse in thought before he glances over at me. I quickly look away, but I know he caught me staring.
As we’re walking, Asher suddenly thrusts his phone toward me. “Put your number in here so that I can make sure you get home safely after this.”
I raise an eyebrow at him. “Is that really necessary?”
“It’s late, and anyone who is still out on the streets has been drinking, including yourself. Please, just indulge me.”
“I’m not drunk,” I protest.
“I know, but it would make me feel better to know when you get home. So put your number in here, and I’ll text you to make sure you made it home safe.”
I resist the urge to roll my eyes at his overprotective nature, but I decide that putting my number in his phone isn’t going to hurt anything. “Couldn’t you just pull it from the class roster information?” I tease, mostly just to piss him off. He glares at me but says nothing as he waits for me to put my number in his phone. Hecanget it off the class roster; if he had wanted it for any other reason, he’d already have it by now. I type my number in and hand it back to him with a sweet smile.
He shakes his head at me but grins, at least a little amused.
A cold splash of water lands on my cheek, and I look up, startled. I love Seattle rain. Everyone likes to complain about it, but I’ve always found it so soothing. I’m not necessarily dressed to get caught in the rain.
As more raindrops fall, I feel something warm brush along my cheek. Asher’s large hand cups my face, and his thumb gently wipes the first drop away.
He looks ready to say something, but then the sky opens up and begins to pour.
16
ASHER
“What?”Summer says in disbelief as we round the corner to see the metal gate blocking off the entrance to a parking garage, where I assume she had parked. “No, no, no!” She runs to the stairwell door and yanks on it desperately.
“Summer,” I say softly. She turns to see me pointing at a sign that indicates the parking garage has been closed for over an hour. She continues pulling on the door handle. “Summer, it’s clearly closed.”
“I can see that,” she snaps. “But I’m hoping that maybe a security guard stuck around and will be nice enough to not only let me in but also let my car out.”
The rain continues to pour around us in a torrential downpour.
“Shit!” she groans, letting her forehead press against the door’s cold metal. “This can’t be fucking happening.”
I turn from her and grit my teeth.Don’t. Don’t fucking do it.
From the corner of my eye, I can see Summer standing in the rain and pulling her jacket tighter around herself. A gust of wind blows down the street hard enough that it lifts some of her wet hair that’s plastered to the skin of her neck. She fails at hiding a violent shiver, and I let out a resigned sigh before stripping off my jacket and handing it to her. “Come on,” I say while starting up the street. “I live two blocks over.”
I turn to see her chewing on the inside of her cheek.That is a bad idea, her expression screams, and I can’t help but agree. Yet, I don’t take the words back.
