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“Exactly. That’s why… I think we should stop now.”
Luke froze. “Stop?”
“The plan was always to break the stereotypes about black people. We’ve accomplished that.”
“But…”
“And about that kiss,” Ashanti looked away, “I’d like it if you just forgot it happened.”
“Ashanti—”
“Luke, it’s embarrassing enough that I kissed you when I was drunk but the fact that I didn’t remember until days later makes it so much worse. I can’t imagine what you must have been through, how conflicted you must have felt.”
“It wasn’t so bad,” he said.
“Michelle is the one you want. Am I wrong about that?”
Luke remained silent. Ashanti felt like her heart was breaking. Which was strange because she should be celebrating. Her mission was a success. Luke was free to date Michelle or any other woman he wanted.
Then, why did this victory feel so hollow?
Luke squirmed and admitted, “Ashanti, the truth is… I kissed you back.”
His words echoed in her head. Ran around and around in circles. Was he saying what she thought he was saying?
Ashanti dug her fingers into the sofa cushions. No, she couldn’t do this. She couldn’t entertain that idea with Luke.
“So what?” she snapped, adding more heat to her voice than was necessary. “Do you want to date me?”
His eyes widened. “Date you?”
“You don’t, right? Well, I feel the same way.”
He shuffled uneasily. “Still, shouldn’t we—I don’t know—talk about this?”
“What’s there to talk about?” Ashanti sighed. “You’re more than just my friend, Luke. When I lost my grandmother, you stayed right by my side. You forced me to eat when I didn’t feel like it. You dragged me out of the house when I would have happily rotted away inside it. I don’t want to lose you over some stupid mistake we both made.”
Silence fell again.
Finally, Luke said—“Then… this is really it.”
“Yeah.” Ashanti rubbed the back of her neck. “It feels more awkward than I imagined.”
He bobbed his head.
“Uh, how are things going with Michelle?”
“Michelle?” Luke rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Yeah, it’s going great.”
“She’s ignoring all your messages, isn’t she?”
He jumped back. “How do you do that?”
“Your face is the easiest thing to read.”
He pawed at his jaw. “I’ve been trying to find a way to earn her trust back, but so far I’ve come up empty. She gave up on me the same night we ki—” He coughed. “I mean, the day we met up with James and the others. I should have run out of the car and followed her that night, but I didn’t.”
“Because of me,” Ashanti whispered.
