Page 50 of Ashley & the A-Listers

Dylan stood awkwardly, eying the mirrors in the room and the weird cork floor. In the reflection, he watched Ashley push on a flat panel in the wall, which opened a small closet where apparently the mats were stored.

“Here, we’ll help,” Dylan said, and made his way over to grab the end of the mat she slid out of the closet. Her scent was smoothing out, the bitter note leaving it, and he couldn’t get the sight of her throwing that guy over her shoulder out of his mind.

“Thanks,” she said, and offered him a polite smile.

It was one she’d offer a stranger on the street, probably, but it made his chest sing all the same.

He laid the mats out where she wanted them, and soon the floor was covered.

“No coffee today?” Dylan mused once he joined River at the benches.

River shrugged. “It’s Wednesday. Wednesdays are always the intense day.”

“You can say that again,” Ashley muttered.

“But what about my sweet treat?” Cam whined, and Dylan stifled a laugh.

“Sorry, babe, you have to settle for me,” River said.

Cameron pouted, and Ashley clapped her hands together. “River did you a favor, Cam. Wednesdaysareintense, and today, even more so. Come on,” she said, and motioned him over.

Cam sighed, stripped off his jacket, and revealed the shirt underneath.

Dylan noted he was wearing a full shirt today instead of his usual tank, and wondered if that’s because he’d learned his lesson last time.

Even Ashley had struggled to focus when he’d shown up with hickies and marks all over his shoulders. River was the only one who’d looked smug about it.

He wondered how many marks warranted a whole shirt, and decided it was none of his business.

Dylan took a seat on one of the benches along the wall, beside River.

“Bring work?” Dylan asked as Ashley and Cam began.

“Yeah, they liked the changes, so I’m off the hook for now. Figured I can get ahead on the next one,” he said, and didn’t sound too happy about it.

Dylan cocked his head to the side. “Are you not happy with it?”

“No,” River said, and then shrugged. “How’s your bodyguard romance?”

Dylan shushed him and glanced over at Ashley and Cameron.

“Oh, Cam knows,” River said, not even looking up from the laptop he pulled out.

Dylan groaned and leaned his head back.

“Dude, it’s just romance. Chill out.”

With a glare, Dylan let the silence lie for just a moment, and River was oblivious the whole time. Finally, he sighed. “It was great. I loved the ending.”

“Did they end up together?”

“Of course,” he muttered. “I don’t like it when they don’t end up together.”

“Hm. Telling,” River said, tone dry.

Dylan stared at him and tried not to read too much into that comment, and… failed.

So what if Dylan didn’t like to read about the love interests not ending up together? So what if that happened to reflect how he felt about his own circumstances with Ashley?

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