Page 22 of Echoes of Us
Straightening, Dale turned his gaze back to Ashley.His voice softened.“I didn’t catch your name.”
Ashley hesitated, her mind racing.Her heart felt like it was lodged in her throat.“My… name?”
He smiled again, this time with a touch of shyness.“As I said, I’m Dale, Dale Westwood.”
Ashley’s legs wobbled slightly beneath her.Dale.
“Her name is Ashley Carter,” Sarah offered, elbowing her in the ribs.
Ashley barely noticed the jab.Her eyes locked on Dale’s face, her breath catching.It wasn’t possible.Yet here he was, standing in front of her.
“Are you sure you’re okay?”Dale asked again, his brow furrowing.
Ashley forced a nod, though the world around her felt like it was spinning.“Yeah.Sorry.I just… need a moment.”
Dale gave her a concerned look but nodded.“If you’re sure.It was nice meeting you, Ashley.”
As he walked away, Ashley turned to Sarah, who was grinning.
“You okay, or did the Westwood looks just make you lose your mind?”Sarah teased.
Ashley didn’t answer.She couldn’t.
Dale wasn’t just Cole’s brother.He was his twin.
CHAPTER7
Three days.It had been three days since Ashley had woken up in the surreal reality of her past, and she still felt like she was teetering on the edge of madness.
For most of those days, she’d been glued to textbooks and study guides, cramming for finals in a corner of the library that smelled faintly of dust and stale coffee.She cursed her 32-year-old self for being stuck in the monotony of academia, flipping through pages that blurred together in a sea of words.
The clock ticked loudly on the wall, a reminder of how little time she had to figure out this mess.But studying was a necessary evil.Even in this bizarre alternate timeline, her career mattered.She couldn’t let it all fall apart just because she’d somehow landed back in college.
Her pen hovered over her notes as her thoughts wandered.She’d been looking for Cole everywhere.Three days of roaming the campus, scanning every face in the crowd, hoping for the faintest glimpse of him.Nothing.Not even a whisper.
Dale, on the other hand, was everywhere.She’d run into him twice–once in the dining hall, where he’d politely asked if she needed help finding anything, and once on the quad, where he’d waved at her like they were old friends.Each encounter made her chest tighten and her heart ache with longing and confusion.
She tapped her pen against the notebook, her frustration building to a breaking point.Finally, she snapped.
“Where the hell is Cole?”she burst out, her voice louder than she’d intended.
Sarah jumped, nearly knocking over her stack of books.She glared at Ashley, her green eyes narrowing.“What is this weird sudden obsession with the Westwoods?Aren’t you still moping over Charlie?”
Ashley closed her eyes, exhaling slowly.She missed her husband, her life, and her baby.She missed everything.And the last thing she wanted to deal with was Sarah bringing up Charlie again.
“I didn’t remember you being so annoying,” Ashley muttered, her tone sharp.
Sarah gaped at her, her freckled face scrunching into an expression of mock offense.“And I don’t remember you being so mean.Seriously, what’s gotten into you?”
Ashley rubbed her temples, her head pounding.“I just… need to find him.”
“Find who?Cole?”Sarah scoffed, rolling her eyes.“If you’re so desperate to throw yourself at him, you know exactly what to do.Just don’t come back crying when he dumps your ass.”
Ashley stiffened, the words cutting sharper than Sarah could have intended.That was an… interesting way to describe Cole.Her Cole.
“Enlighten me,” Ashley said, her voice low.“What should I do if I want to… fuck Cole?”The word felt foreign and wrong on her tongue.What she and Cole shared wasn’t casual.It wasn’t just… that.It was love.It was a connection.It was everything.And she missed it.
Sarah snorted, tossing her notebook into her bag.“Go to practically any party.He’ll be there.”
