I should call after her and apologise again, genuinely this time, but then Imani is laughing hystericallyagainat something Teddy says and the familiar pull of envy threatens to take over me.
If you like her, maybe stop pretending you don’t.
My feet are pulling me across the room before I register what’s happening. One moment I’m staring at the empty space Harlow was just stood in, the next I’m standing in front of Imani and my mind is blank.
Teddy’s grin falters as soon he notices me. Sloane’s eyes go wide, like she’s watching a car crash in slow motion. But I can’t bring myself to care about either of them. It’s Imani I’m here for.
‘Imani,’ I say.
Her laughter fades into nothing and a look of confusion takes over her features as she turns around to face me.
I clear my throat and shove my hands deep in my pockets to hide how tightly they’re fisted. ‘Imani,’ I say again, my voice rougher than I intend. ‘Can I have a word?’
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWOImani
For one dizzying second, I think I might have imagined it. Asher’s voice, low and rough around the edges, cutting clean through the hum of the room. But then I turn, and there he is.
He’s standing barely a foot away, hands shoved in his pockets, dark eyes steady on mine. His expression is unreadable and it makes my pulse trip.
‘Please?’ he adds, quieter this time.
My brain scrambles to catch up. This must be part of the plan. It has to be.Cause a scene. Be difficult. Keep the tension alive. That’s what we agreed. So, I straighten my shoulders, smooth my face into polite indifference, and channel every ounce of the practised frost I’ve spent the last few months perfecting.
‘Now?’ I ask coolly, like I’m mildly inconvenienced by his very existence. I gesture towards Teddy and Sloane. ‘Kind of busy, Asher.’
Asher hesitates, and an emotion I can’t quite decipher flickers across his face. ‘It won’t take long,’ he says finally.
‘Right,’ I scoff. ‘Because the last time you wanted to talk, it wentsowell.’
That earns a few curious glances from nearby guests. Perfect. All I need now is for him to bite back and to play his part and we’ll have something juicy for Emmy to post on @TrustFundTea within the hour.
I stare at him expectantly, ready for him to quip back with some snappy barb or for him to roll his eyes in disdain, but he does neither.
He just stares at me. He looks—God, he lookswrecked. Almost exactly like how he was that evening at Top Fry now that I’m really thinking about it.
His jaw works like he’s trying to find the right words and keeps losing them. In my periphery, I can see both Teddy and Sloane frowning, and I wonder what I’m missing here.
I lower my glass a fraction. ‘What? Are you—’
He shakes his head once. ‘Nothing,’ he says, and the word lands heavily between us. He looks like he wants to say more, like the words are right there on the tip of his tongue, but he swallows them down and takes a step back instead.
I don’t know why but panic suddenly spikes inside me. Asher turns to walk away from me and I get the horrible, sinking feeling that, if I let him go, I’ll regret it.
Before I can think better of it, I’m hurrying after him.
‘Asher,’ I call, trying to keep my voice low, but the sound still carries. A few heads turn. I can practically feelthe collective gaze of half the room turning to focus on us. Sloane hisses my name behind me.
‘Imani, wait!’
But I don’t wait. Right now, I don’t care about the optics of this.
Asher slips through one of the side doors and I follow him out into a quiet corridor. When the door shuts behind me, Asher stops and glances over his shoulder. He seems genuinely surprised to see me standing there.
‘What the hell was that about?’ I demand, crossing my arms over my chest.
Asher drags a hand through his hair. He’s looking anywhere but at me. ‘I don’t know. I’m sorry.’
‘You’re sorry?’ I repeat flatly, one brow raised in disbelief. ‘Have you forgotten that this is our last chance to—’
