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“I absolutely do.” She let go of his hand, and Asher felt as though everything inside him had burned away, leaving only a shell of himself behind.
“Here you are.” Patty came bustling around the corner and back toward the counter, holding two trays of food, one in each hand. “Hi, Willow. Nice to see you. I sure hope you’re going to come take some photographs of me in the kitchen this year.”
“That is a great idea, and I absolutely will. Thank you for this.” Picking up the tray, Willow smiled her thanks and then headed toward a table. Seeing the knowing glance in Patty’s eye, Asher mumbled athank youand then turned away without another word.
“You don’t mind if we sit here, do you?” Willow patted the seat beside her. “I actually spotted Jimmy over there, so I wanted to sit at the opposite end of the room from him.” Jerking her head to the left, she rolled her eyes.
“Oh, sure, no problem. I was just thinking—”
Willow’s cellphone rang.
“Sorry, I’d better get this.” A line formed between her eyebrows. “I don’t think I recognize the number.” Holding to the phone to her ear, her frown grew deeper. “Hello?”
Asher picked up his fork and began to eat.
“Oh, hi. I… No, this isn’t a bad time.”
Raising one eyebrow as Willow gave him a thumbs up, Asher’s heart sank.I’m guessing from the smile on her face that this is Ben.
“Am I into funny?” Willow’s frown drew itself down her forehead again. “Yeah, I like comedy, if that’s what you’re asking.”
Please, don’t let this be what I think it is.
“What? Furry? A convention. Sure, that sounds great. Oh, sorry, like a festival. Got it. And where is it?” She nodded. “Saint Cloud. Great.” Chewing her lip for a second, she nodded slowly. “Right, okay. And everyone who goes has a costume.” Her lips curved. “Sure, I’ve been to stuff like this before. Just not as much as some people, I guess!” She laughed, and Asher shook his head.
I know exactly what Ben is inviting her to, and it’s not what she thinks it is.His heart twisted.I’m going to have tell her. She’s going to be upset. That’ll be a third date gone wrong.
“Yes, Windy Lake is a pretty small town, we don’t get much like that around here! Mm-hmm?” Willow nodded again, glanced at Asher, and gave him a thumbs up. He didn’t return it. “Yeah, I’ve got something I can wear. I’ve got a few things to choose from, so I’ll have to decide. I…” Her eyes closed, and Asher was sure that he saw her cheeks flush pink. “Thanks, that’s very nice of you to say. I’ll see you then.” Setting down the cellphone, she grinned triumphantly in Asher’s direction.
“I’ve got another date!”
“I heard.” Setting down his knife and fork, Asher leaned forward across the table. “Listen, when you were on the call, did he ask you about—”
“Do you think my Halloween costume from last year will be okay? You heard me say it’s a costume party, right?” Shaking her head, she laughed softly. “Sorry, not a costume party, a convention.”
“Yeah, I did. It’s not a convention, though, it’s a—”
“A festival, yes, I know. Ben already corrected me on the phone. I didn’t really understand everything he talked about, but it sounds fun. I’m going to head to his place tomorrow, just outside Saint Cloud. He’ll drive in his car, and I’ll follow in mine.” Tapping her temple with one finger, Willow grinned at him, excitement visible in her eyes. “And you don’t need to worry; I’m wiser now. I’m not going to let what happened with Neil happen again.”
Asher shook his head. “It’s not that, it’s—”
“I don’t want to talk about it until after.”
I have to explain what she’s getting herself into.“Willow, I think you should know that—”
“No!” Swiping with her hand, Willow cut through the air between them. “I don’t want to talk about dates anymore. I’ve talked enough about Neil, and I made enough of a fool of myself with Jimmy. You can just wish me luck, and when I come back, I’ll tell you all about it.”
She’s not going to let me get a word in.“Still, Willow, I think that—”
“Seriously, Asher, take a hint!” Batting him playfully on the arm, she picked up her fork again. “Maybe you should check your cellphone. Maybe there’s someone out there who wants to meet you just as much as Ben wants to meet me!”
Rolling his eyes at her, Asher picked up his cellphone and swiped it open. He was just playing along, but when he opened up the app, sure enough, there was a message fromNow and Forever. “How did you know?” He narrowed his eyes, but Willow just held up both hands, laughing. Clicking on the message, Asher began to read. “It’s from a woman named Chloe. She doesn’t live too far from here—wants to meet up tomorrow.”
“Is she pretty?”
No one could ever compare to you.“Uh…” Clicking on the link in the message, he opened up her profile. “Oh, yeah, I’d say she is. Definitely my type.” Flashing a look at Willow, he wanted desperately to see a hint of jealousy in her eyes, but there was nothing there. Instead, she was smiling at him.
“Are you going to go? It would be cool if we both had dates on the same night again—means we’dbothhave something to talk about!”
