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“Wait, I’m missing something,” Asher said, his voice breaking their eye contact. “You two know each other?” His hand darted back and forth between them.
“Yeah, you could say that,” Blythe said softly. “He…um…well, I don’t really know what to say.”
“The apartment she’s living in?” Finn asked. When Asher nodded, he went on, “It used to be mine.”
“What do you mean? You two were, what, dating?”
“No,” Blythe said, probably too quickly.
“Our timing was never right,” Finn told him, though he was still looking at her. “But anyway, I’m really happy for you two.” He looked back at Asher. “Really. And it’s good to see you, man. I hear you finally got that office at Finer Things. Your dad’s been keeping me up to date. He didn’t mention her, though.”
Asher nodded, obviously thrown off. “Yeah, I, um, I did. He didn’t tell me you two were still in contact. I thought you’d fallen off the map.”
“I just needed some space, you know?”
“Ten years is a long time,” Asher said.
Finn reached for Asher, pulling him into another quick hug and patting Blythe’s shoulder. “Anyway, I’ve gotta run to town. It was great to see you, Ash. We’ll catch up soon.” As he rushed down the stairs, he turned one last time and met her eyes, but she forced herself to look away.
He’d walked away before, and he’d keep on doing it. She gripped Asher’s hand firmly. “Come on, let’s get our bags put away.”
Chapter Eighteen
Once they were in the room and the bags were set down, Blythe shut the door.
“So…how do you know Finn?” Asher asked. “Really.”
She sat down on the edge of the bed, avoiding eye contact as she ran her hands over her thighs nervously. “When I moved to New York, Finn was the first person I met. I can’t believe you know him.”
“Yeah,” he said softly, sitting down in the desk chair across from her. “Finn was my best friend growing up. I mean, I guess he still is. We were in the same grade and inseparable. But about ten years ago he disappeared, and today’s the first time I’ve seen him since then.”
“What do you mean he disappeared?” Blythe asked, cocking her head to the side in confusion.
“Literally…hedisappeared.Like, he was here one day and then…gone. I tried calling and texting him, but his phone was disconnected.”
“Why would he disappear?” She stared at her hands, trying desperately to piece together what seemed to be Finn’s biggest secret.
“I have no idea,” Asher said. “I thought maybe he’d been recruited as a spy.” When she looked up, she noticed the smirk on his face, telling her he was only joking. She would’ve been lying to say that wasn’t one of the possibilities on her mind as well.
“I’m serious, Asher. Why would he be here? Why wouldn’t he have told you he was home, but he told your parents?”
“My parents took care of Finn his whole life. He was like a second son to them. Honestly, it doesn’t surprise me that he went to them when he resurfaced. And I can’t say I'm surprised he didn’t look me up right away. I’m sure he knew our reunion would be…awkward at best.”
“That’s a bit on the nose, isn’t it?” Blythe teased.
“Were you two…a thing?” Asher asked hesitantly, and she knew the jealousy in his voice was only mildly being kept at bay.
“No,” she said. “Like he said, our timing was never right. We went out a few times, I won’t lie to you, but I’m not even sure they were even dates.”
“But he left you his apartment.”
“He said he had to clear his head.”
Asher scoffed. “You’d think ten years would be long enough to do that.” He paused, chewing nervously on his bottom lip. “Look, be honest with me, do I have anything to worry about with you two?”
She took a breath. She wasn’t going to lie to him. He deserved to know the truth, if only she knew what that was. “When I found out you’d been seeing other people, I went to Finn. I don’t even know how I ended up there, but I did.” She twisted a finger in the palm of her hand, a nervous tic of hers. “And, for just a moment, I thought we might become something. When you came back to me, I told you I wasn’t sure I could be exclusive.” She took a deep breath, preparing herself for her next words. “That was because of Finn. Because I wasn’t sure what either of us wanted.”
“So, what are you saying?” he asked, his voice raised slightly.
