Page 88 of Wish You Were Mine

Screw them all.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a flash of movement. I closed my eyes and ignored it for now. Soon enough, we’d have to face the consequences of my reckless actions. I could take this one moment with her and savor it. Who knew how long the peace would last?

41

ASHER

“What are you looking at?”

I flinched. “Damn, Liam. Don’t do that.”

He’d snuck up beside me so silently I’d had no idea he was there. Thankfully, he didn’t seem to realize I’d been surreptitiously watching his sister as she chatted with Bailey at the bar.

He laughed. “You were so distracted, I didn’t even have to tiptoe. Got something on your mind?”

“Yeah, kinda.” I waved my hand dismissively. “I’ll tell you more about it later.”

Summer and I had agreed to talk to him tomorrow, but considering that at least one person had seen us kiss yesterday, I was beginning to think it would be best to do it tonight. I didn’t want him to hear it from anyone else. But Drunken Destiny on a busy Friday night wasn’t the time or place for the conversation.

Liam smirked. “Intriguing. What do you think has got Ash so distracted?” he asked Zane, who was sitting beside me on a stool at a table on the side of the pub furthest from the door. It was warm in here, but snow was falling softly outside, beginning to settle on the pavement.

Zane glanced up, startled. “Um, what?”

I laughed. “He’s too busy daydreaming about Blair Carter to pay attention to anything.”

Zane blushed. “Can you blame me? He’s all gruff and sexy, but he can dance like magic and the way he sings…” He sighed. “And he was right under my nose. Why didn’t I make a proper play for him, guys?”

“I think we need more drinks,” I told Liam instead of answering Zane. I was an expert on coming up with reasons not to ask someone out when I was interested in them, so I was the last person who could give him the response he needed. “I’ll get them.”

I slid off the stool and weaved through the crowded pub toward the bar. Pop music from ten or fifteen years ago played quietly through the speakers, and the room buzzed with anticipation. The skiers were excited for the new snowfall.

I waited while Bailey and Eugene worked their way through the line of customers. When I reached the front, Bailey smiled at me. She’d somehow managed to maintain a conversation with Summer between serving people, and everything in her bearing said this was just another night despite the crowd and the snow.

“Three of the darkest beer on tap,” I told Bailey, and waited while she poured the drinks. I glanced at Summer and, finding her looking back, winked. Bailey set the glasses on a tray and slid it over. I took the tray and turned, then stiffened, a frisson of concern zapping through me as I spotted James Conroy pushing his way toward Liam and Zane.

I skirted around people, careful not to upend the drinks while making my way back to our table as quickly as possible. Whatever James wanted to say to them, it couldn’t be good, and the last thing we needed was a fight breaking out in Heather and Eugene’s pub.

I arrived just in time to hear James throw me to the wolves.

“Did you know he’s fucking your baby sister?” he asked Liam conversationally, smirking at me as I placed the tray on the table and wiped my hands on the front of my jeans.

“Who?” Liam looked around, baffled.

James laughed. “Saint Asher. He acts all self-righteous about other people’s choices, but all the while, he’s sneaking around with sweet little Summer.”

I gaped at him. How the hell did he know? Had Ashley told him, or had word already got around from whomever had seen us kissing outside the veterinary clinic yesterday?

Liam shook his head. “If you’re going to spread lies, at least make them believable.”

Zane’s eyes were wide as he glanced from me to James, and something like understanding dawned on his face

I was so fucked.

“Liam—”

“I saw them kissing with my own two eyes,” James interrupted, not giving me the chance to take control of the narrative. He wanted to tell this story his way. A nasty sneer curled his upper lip. “You know, you really can’t afford to stick your nose into other people’s relationships when you’ve got your own dirty laundry.”

My heart sank. I met Liam’s gaze. The trust in it wavered.

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