Page 140 of Ashley & the A-Listers

“Oh. Yeah. Well, I…” He’d shared such a personal piece of himself, and Ashley wanted to do the same. But it was easier to admit when she wasn’t having to meet his eyes, so she continued painting. “Ever since I found out I was an alpha, a few weeks after I graduated—” a few weeks after Dylan had left— “I got it in my head that I wanted a pack. You know, a proper one. I wanted the white picket fence and a perfect pack.” she scoffed. “Of course, I think I was just distracting myself from the fact that my best friend had left. I wanted people who wouldn’t leave.”

“You wanted a family,” River suggested.

“Yeah. And I still do.”

“You’ve got Dylan, at least,” River pointed out.

Ashley smiled softly, brushing a hand over her bite mark through her shirt. “Yeah, I do.”

“Maybe one day we’ll both get what we want,” River said, and she felt him look at her, his gaze warm.

She returned it, getting lost in his jade green eyes. “Maybe one day.”

30. JEALOUSIES

RIVER

“To two months of progress,” Ashley said, tapping her plastic cup of water against the other three.

“To making progress,” Dylan echoed, with a knowing glance at her.

“To… the future?” Cam added.

Future, huh?River mused in his mind. After his talk with Ashley, he certainly felt more comfortable with the idea it. A future with Ashley?

An omega and an alpha—it made sense, and yet his nerves still jostled inside him. Where did that leave him, a beta?

“To making history,” River said, burying his thoughts.

Their cups clanked together before they all took a sip.

“Making history is a bit much,” Cam pointed out as they sat their glasses down.

“No, it’s not,” River argued, and elbowed him. “Your franchise is one of the most successful in decades. You are making cinematic history, babe.”

Cameron tried to wave off the compliment, and River felt Ashley watching them. The four of them were tucked away in the back of a restaurant, into a cracked leather booth.

“I think the glory belongs to both of you,” Ashley interjected, motioning at River. “You wrote the damned thing, didn’t you?”

Heat traveled to his cheeks, and he ducked his head down, uncomfortable with the attention.

“He’s the one on the screen,” River argued. “The face of theHeatedfranchise. I’m just the guy hiding behind the camera.”

He tried not to look too closely at how accurate that statement was.

Cameron leaned over into him, throwing those big hazel eyes up at him, smiling. “She’s right. It wouldn’t exist without you.”

River could never resist that pretty face of his, and relented. “Fine, fine, I take all the credit. It’s my franchise; you’re just the actor.”

Cameron did not take the bait like River had expected, and instead nodded happily. “Damn right I am.”

It made him uncomfortable to take the credit, even in such a light tone. Without Cameron bringing his character to life, River’s work was just words on a page. They were a team, the two of them. Axel didn’t exist without Cameron.

One didn’t exist without the other.

A cheer from a nearby table snapped him out of his head.

Unlike their last celebration dinner, to close out the last month of training, Ashley had demanded she get her checkered paper basket of fried food.

---