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I hadn’t seen or talked to Ash since that day when he found out about Lila and Cole’s engagement. I’d decided to move on. I just wanted to forget about how much time I’d wasted with him.
With Mark, it was better. Easier. There wasn’t a lifetime of baggage associated with him. We’d met on a dating app, which I’d thought was a horrible idea, but he was the first person who messaged me, and I got off of the thing as soon as we met. We hit it off so well over that first glass of wine. He hadn’t pushed for more that day. Just texted and called me every single day until I was drunk on him.
But I’d told him all about what had happened with Ash. The only thing I regretted about our relationship. Now, he hated Ash and went out of his way to bring him up and make me feel guilty for having anything to do with him. Even though … I had nothing to do with him.
It was so frustrating.
Have fun. I’m staying with Mark and his friends.
Come on! It’s Ash’s birthday.
I huffed. That was exactly why I wasn’t going. Ash had made his choice. He hadn’t chosen me. I’d known him my entire life. I’d put up with a lot of shit from him. But I couldn’t do this anymore. I couldn’t deal with it, and I didn’t deserve to.
“Who is texting you?” Mark asked, slinging an arm across my shoulders.
I slid the phone back into my purse. “Just my brother.”
I hadn’t told him that it was Ash’s birthday or that Derek had driven down to see him for it. In fact, I didn’t bring up Ash at all. There was no point. It wasn’t like Mark talked about his exes. I didn’t want to talk about mine … or whatever Ash and I had been.
Mark shot me a suspicious look. “What does he want?”
“Nothing,” I lied. It was easier than explaining.
The light changed from red to green at the corner of Congress, and we headed across the street toward City Market. The guys were elbowing each other and pointing out a few of the SCAD students. And then when we were past the group of college students, there he was.
Ash Talmadge.
It had only been three months since I’d officially walked away from him, and my heart made a traitorous leap at the sight of him. He’d ditched his customary suit for khakis and a polo with boat shoes. As preppy as he was.
He looked up from the crosswalk to find me walking toward him. And the melancholic look that was on his face evaporated, and in its place was joy. Like he’d been waiting this whole time to see and talk to me. Now, I was here, and his birthday weekend was complete.
Then, Mark was there with his arm around me, pulling me closer toward him. I glanced up to see the flash of fury on his face. As if this were somehow my fault. As if I’d known Ash was going to be there in that moment, walking toward us.
Derek traipsed right up to me in the middle of the street. “Mia! There you are!”
“Hey, Derek.”
“You coming with us to Lulu’s?”
“Uh … no,” I said, glancing at Mark and trying not to cringe. I shouldn’t have even told Mark about Derek texting me. He was so sensitive about it all.
“Nothing, huh?” Mark growled.
“Mark …”
He turned away from me. His smile for my brother was something out of a cartoon. He whipped it out so fast that only I realized how upset he must be underneath the veneer of charming Southern boy.
“Hey, Derek!” He held his hand out, and they shook. “We’re heading to Wet Willie’s. Y’all want to join?”
Derek looked to Ash, who was still looking at me. “We’re out for Ash’s birthday,” Derek explained. “So, I’m going wherever he wants.”
“We’ll pass,” Ash said with barely a glance in Mark’s direction.
Derek clapped Ash on the back. “If you change your mind, you know where we are.”
“Sure, sure,” Mark said with a smile.
We crossed the street, making it to the sidewalk just as the light turned red. Mark didn’t say a word as we stepped into Wet Willie’s and found his friends. Tension bristled between us. His friends pretended not to notice, but we were only in there a few minutes before Mark erupted.
“What the fuck was that, Amelia?” he snarled.
I opened and closed my mouth. “I didn’t know they’d be there.”
“Let me see your phone.”
“What?” I gasped.
“Let me see it.”
“Why?”
“Were you texting him?” he demanded, grabbing my bag at my waist and digging my phone out of it.
I looked on in shock that he would have the audacity to go through my purse, but he didn’t stop there. He punched in the code to my phone as if he’d done this before, as if he’d looked for evidence that I was still talking to Ash behind his back.
