The corner of his mouth twitched. “What are you offering?”
“Uh-uh. I’m not crossing that line. Amy already hates me enough as it is.”
“What we do together is none of her business.” His slow smile made my knees weak, but I pushed it away.
“Really? That’s why she’s spending the night at your house and bragging about you guys getting back together? I’m getting seriously mixed signals here. If you’re not interested, just tell me and put me out of my misery already.”
Oh my god, had I really just said that? I clapped my hand to my mouth and bolted to my feet, turning away before he could see my beet-red face.
Asher grabbed my hand before I could run away and forced me to turn and face him. “Misery, huh?”
I tried to tug my hand free, but he held it tighter. I stared down at the tips of my shoes poking out from beneath my dress. I couldn’t stand to see the gloating in his eyes. It was bad enough to hear it in his voice, for him to know I’d been stupid enough to fall for him. Because I had. As hard as I thought I’d been fighting it, it had been a losing battle from day one.
“Lexie, look at me.”
I shook my head and stared past him. Across the room, I spotted Jordan dancing with another scientist. Which meant Dad and Dr. Danvers were still in Avery’s office. Maybe if I caught the shuttle home, I could escape the dreaded discussion with him.
Asher put his hands on my shoulders and forced me to face him. “Amy and I aren’t together. We haven’t been since last year. We’re just friends.”
I finally met his gaze, hating that I sounded almost jealous. “Then why all the kissing and hanging out and whatever?”
“I told you. I’ve been helping her with her homework. And we haven’t kissed, Lexie. She knows we’re over.”
My eyes flicked to Amy, still gyrating on the dance floor. “I don’t think she does.”
Asher followed my gaze. “Not for lack of me trying. Honestly, I didn’t mean to hurt anyone. Especially you.”
He looked sincere and I wanted more than anything to believe him, but what about all the other girls he’d dated? Was I going to turn into another Amy, desperate to hold on to him after he’d moved on to the next shiny new thing?
The bars of a slow song filled the room, and Asher’s grin turned suggestive as he held out a hand. “Dance with me?”
It was all I could do not to jump into his arms, despite my misgivings. I tugged at the bodice of my suddenly-too-hot dress. “I’m not much of a dancer.”
“Me either. But somehow I don’t think anyone will mind.” Asher led me out onto the dance floor. His hands snaked around my waist and pulled me against him, and I awkwardly placed mine on his shoulders. What the hell was wrong with me? I’d danced with guys before. But none of them had Asher’s sparkling blue eyes or the dimple in his cheek.
“Relax. I’m not going to bite,” he whispered in my ear. His breath was hot and moist against my skin, and I shivered.
Couples moved slowly around us. I tried to focus on them instead of on the way my fingers ached to touch his hair or how my pulse threatened to turn into a drumbeat. Slowly, I relaxed into the feeling of having his arms around me. I looked up to find him watching me with a crooked smile that made my skin erupt into flames.
“How many broken hearts did you leave back in Ohio?” he asked.
“Not nearly as many as you’d think.” I tried to keep it light, to hide how much just being this close to him made me feel. I couldn’t push away my feelings for him anymore, but did I really want to cross that line right now? I swallowed as he arched a perfect eyebrow at me. Most definitely yes.
“The guys at school didn’t usually choose brains over beauty,” I added.
“Then they’re idiots. Especially since you have both.”
He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, his fingers leaving a trail of heat against my skin.
I let out a shaky breath. “Can I ask you something?”
He nodded. “Anything.”
“Why me? You could have any girl here. You probably have. So why do you keep doing this? Why do you care if I like you or not?”
Three bars of music played before he answered, staring into my eyes. The spotlights above us shifted his eye color from blue to turquoise to twilight. “Because you’re different. And because no matter what you think, you’re special. I know you’re suspicious of me and my past, but I promise, most of it isn’t true.” For the first time since we’d met, his smile was unsure. “Let me prove it to you? On a real date? We’ll go somewhere quiet, just the two of us, and talk.”
I wanted to believe him, more than anything else I’d ever wanted. Finally, I nodded. “All right.”
“Yes!” He grabbed me around the waist and swung me in a circle.
I giggled and struggled in his arms. “Put me down! People are watching us,” I hissed, though I would have stayed like that the rest of the night.
“If I must.” He let me down slowly, our chests pressed together.
The beat of the music changed to something fast, and he slid a hand to my lower back and lowered me into a dip.
His lips were millimeters from mine, his breath caressing my face as he whispered, “But I have a feeling they’re going to be doing more than watching us by the end of the night. They’re going to be talking about us.”
21
The smell of coffee woke me the next morning, and I padded out into the kitchen. Dad lounged on the couch with his tablet, and he glanced up as I entered.
“There’s plenty left in the pot for you.” His gaze was appraising, and I wondered how many people had been gossiping about me and Asher last night. Especially after it got around that we’d been found together in Avery’s office. I had a feeling it was Asher who’d let that little fact slip.
I poured myself a cup, cradling it in my hands as I sank into one of the armchairs.
Dad raised an eyebrow at me. “Do I even need to ask if you had fun last night?”
Heat flooded my face, and I stared down into my mug. I so did not want to have this conversation with him. “Dad, we were just…”
“I know what you were doing.”
My head snapped up. He couldn’t. It wasn’t possible. Asher said he’d been careful with the scan of Avery’s files.
“I know you like the boy, but he’s bad news. Don’t get involved with Asher, Lex. No matter how attractive you think he is. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”