Page 54 of Obsession on Repeat
She didn’t ask what. Instead, she nudged her drink toward me. "At least toast the end of something that mattered."
I clinked her glass gently with mine and took a sip. It burned, but not enough.
"Did you do the breaking, or did he?"
"We both did," I shrugged. "We realized ultimately it wasn’t working. I want to cry," I added. "Or break something."
"You’re not ready to cry yet. You’re in the numb zone." She sipped her champagne. "Besides, we don’t break things here. We seduce lighting rigs and kill with bass drops. It’s much more productive, and Vanessa doesn’t send us a bill."
I managed a real laugh this time. I sensed him before I saw him. Gina glanced between us, before shooting me a small smile and disappearing into the crowd. I shifted uneasily on my heels as he came to a stop next to me.
"Enjoying the party?"
I didn’t look at him. "I’m trying."
"You clean up well."
Readjusting my grip on my glass, I forced myself to look at him. "Was that a compliment?"
Asher looked calm and composed, and somehow it made the uncomfortable feeling in my gut feel worse. "It’s merely an observation, but if you want to take it as acompliment, I won’t argue." His eyes never shifted from me. "You look like you’re trying hard not to see me."
"Vanessa asked me to be sociable," I shot back.
"Right," he chuckled, something unreadable flickering behind his eyes. "Well, you’re doing a great job appearing you’d rather be anywhere else."
We stared at each other, that familiar heat rising in the silence.
"Why are you here?"
He shrugged. "Same reason you are. Pretending everything’s fine."
"I’m not pretending."
"Sure, you look totally fine."
"What the hell do you want from me?" I glared at him, cradling the champagne glass against my chest. I suddenly couldn’t stop the wave of annoyance that crashed over me, the last few weeks taking a toll on my patience. "Did you come all the way over here to hurl veiled insults at me? You’ve been ignoring me all day. As you can see, I’m fine. I don’t need anyone, especially you, checking up on me."
Something flashed across his eyes. He took a step back. "I’ll leave you to it then."
He faded into the crowd, swallowed by the lights and the sound before I could think of anything to say. I downed the rest of my drink.
16
Withtheclubclosed,an unfamiliar kind of quiet settled over the place. Only the sound of my own footsteps echoed through the building as I carried two coffees. Asher sat on the edge of the stage, reading something on his phone, sleeves pushed up, sneakers unlaced. He looked up when I approached, expression unreadable.
"I brought a peace offering." I lifted the cups.
He arched his brow. "Am I supposed to guess which one’s poisoned?"
"No, that one’s mine." I handed him the other cup. His fingers brushed mine, and I ignored the warmth that momentarily unsettled me.
He took a sip, his eyes lingering on me a little longer than necessary. I settled onto the stage beside him, and for a fewminutes, we drank our coffees in silence, side by side, like it was the most normal thing in the world.
"You’re here early."
I lowered my cup into my lap. "I spent the first part of the morning looking for an apartment. I need to borrow the printer, so I can get my employment verification for the property manager."
That made him pause. "Do you need help moving your things?"
