Page 9 of Ashley & the A-Listers

Steeling himself, he waved his guest card at the glass door.

A beep sounded, then the lock unlatched and he pulled the door open, feeling like he was facing a firing squad as his gaze fell to the front desk, to…

Not Ashley behind the desk.

Fuck.

“Hey there,” Nic, the owner of the gym, greeted.

“Morning,” Dylan responded, trying not to let his disappointment show on his face.

“I get that look from everyone when Ashley is off,” Nic teased.

Dylan’s cheeks flushed, but before he could apologize, Nic waved a hand.

“Don’t fret. I know she’s a kinder sight than me.”

Dylan chuckled, the awkwardness eating at him despite Nic’s casual demeanor. It made sense that Ashley wouldn’t be at the gym every single day, but he just figured…

Well, he didn’t know what he thought, but the disappointment was a stone in his chest, and he wasn’t one for small talk.

“I’ll just… be over here, waiting for Cameron.”

“Sure thing!” Nic said in that jovial voice.

He trailed across the gym to the area beside the hallway leading to the room they’d used the day before, and waited. To kill time, he pulled out his phone and found a text from Cameron.

Wow, improvement?—

Getting coffee. Be there eventually.

Ugh!

How was he going to spend the next six months protecting the little shit if he didn’t bother communicating? Only a few weeks on the job, and Dylan hadn’t seen any progress, except in the impressive way Cameron constantly slipped away or strung together new insults.

If anything happened to this omega…

He let his eyes shut as memories threatened to manifest, shaking his head to dismiss them.

This was a different kind of client, and if Wes trusted him to keep this omega safe, then Dylan could trust himself.

You trusted yourself last time, too.

Dylan bit the inside of his cheek and forced his thoughts in a different direction.

At least Cameron’s location was shared, so he could keep an eye on him. But thiscooperationwas coming at a cost. What was Dylan going to tell him? The truth?

Rolling his eyes, Dylan ran through some stretches of his own while he waited. He felt the beta glance at him a few times and Dylan averted his gaze each time.

It sucked that Ashley was off today. It was no secret he was looking forward to seeing her, though she didn’t seem to feel the same way.

Not that I blame her.

He was going to have to figure out a way to talk to her. It used to be so easy when they were younger, like second nature. They’d tease each other and accidentally hit a little too close to home. Then they’d wrestle about it or dare the other to do something stupid to make up for it.

But it was different now. They’d be in the same gym for a while—surely he could find a way to bridge the gap between them? He could start with an apology. Preferably without an audience.

“How’s it going?” Nic asked, and Dylan startled from his seat on the floor, one hand grasped around the toe of his shoe. When the fuck had he left the desk?

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