Chapter 53
Ashton?
04) Meny
Wasn’t he just a cab driver? How come he was also that amazing lighting tech I’d been blown away by?
Right then, I felt like I was in some weird dream.
“Mr. Drake, meet Ms. Hart,” Mr. Gray did the introductions.
He stuck out his hand. “Hey, Ms. Hart.”
He acted like we’d never met before.
I sat there, frozen. From where I was sitting, I could see his perfect jawline and that sexy Adam’s apple that, honestly, had crossed my mind a few times.
Maya gave me a little nudge with her elbow, snapping me back to reality. I reached out to shake his. hand
Our hands barely touched. He quickly said, “Don’t let me interrupt your lunch, Ms. Hart. I’ll check out the lighting setup.”
“No way. I’m coming with you guys,” I said. I was about to leave, but Ashton stayed put.
He turned to Mr. Gray and asked, “Have you eaten yet, Mr. Gray? I’m starving. Any good places around here?”
Mr. Gray smiled. “Yeah, I’ve eaten,” he said before looking my way, “We can order delivery here, right?”
Getting what he meant, I told Maya, “Maya, grab some food for Mr. Drake.”
“On it!” Maya pulled up her delivery app and asked, “What’ll it be, Mr. Drake? Want pasta? A sandwich? We’ve got all kinds of options.”
He pointed at my half–finished container. “I’ll have what she’s having.”
I was eating this super spicy aglio olio pasta that I’d specifically asked Maya to get.
Since Ashton was from down South, I wasn’t sure if he could handle this level of heat. I was pretty shocked he wanted to try it.
“Cool! That’s one of our go–to dishes here. Who knew you had the same taste!” Maya said while placing his order.
I cleared my throat awkwardly and looked at Ashton and Mr. Gray. “Should we ”
“Let’s fi
finish lunch first. Can’t work on an empty stomach,”
Ashton said as he dropped his backpack and pulled out some water. He tilted his head back for a drink.
Watching his Adam’s apple move as he swallowed, I found myself swallowing too.
His food would take about 20 minutes. He looked at me while holding his half–empty water bottle and said, “Go ahead and finish your lunch, Ms. Hart. We’ll take a quick look around meanwhile.”
Ashton walked off with Mr. Gray. Maya nudged me again saying, “God, he’s such a hottie!”
Chapter 53
People always fall for the good–looking ones. Maya had obviously been dazzled by Ashton’s looks.
Can’t blame her though – girl’s got taste.
“Don’t you have a boyfriend?” I said, taking another bite of pasta
She giggled. “Just window shopping! Besides, he’s only here for the lighting job, so nothing serious
I choked on my pasta hearing that. She always seemed so proper, so these flirty comments caught me off guard.
“You little flirt!” I laughed. Then got serious, “But remember this is work. Don’t let those thoughts distr
act you.”
“A whole month here would be so boring without some eye candy. Don’t worry, Ms. Hart I know where to draw the line,” Maya said, clearly crushing on him already
Thinking about what Ashton had told me before, I shook my head slightly.
The food took 22 minutes to arrive, and Maya spent every single minute talking about Ashton
Guess Maya proved love at first sight was real.
I couldn’t help feeling guilty if Maya ended up dumping her boyfriend for Ashton.
Plus, I had a feeling Ashton wouldn’t be into Maya.
Even though Maya was just trying to kill boredom, I knew falling for someone could hurt as bad as a fresh wound.
To keep her from getting hurt, better to stop this before it starts.
So I said, “He’s already got someone
“What?” Maya looked at me. “How do you know? You know him?”
If I said yes, that’d mean more explaining.
I was sure it’d just make things weird between Ashton and me if Maya jumped to conclusions.
Plus, Ashton had clearly pretended not to know me earlier. That convinced me even more to keep quiet about our previous meeting.
“Nope,” I said.
“Then-”
Before Maya could finish, I cut in, ‘Just a guess.”
Maya barely touched her lunch, too distracted by Ashton. Usually, she’s got quite an appetite, and she’d even ordered her favorite grilled chicken.
Guess good looks beat good food.
“A guess?” Maya was like a dog with a bone. “How can you guess that? Is it super obvious?”
I was stuck for an answer, but I knew she’d let her imagination run wild without one. Just then, I spotted a tiny keychain on his bag.
It was this super cute white bunny keychain.
“That.” I nodded toward it. “That’s proof enough.”
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“How?” Maya asked, confused.
“He’s a grown man. Why would he have such a cutesy keychain? Don’t you think that’s weird?” I asked, sipping the coffee on the table.
Way too sweet.
Maya had ordered it for me.
“Next time, just get me lemonade or water,” I reminded her.
Maya didn’t respond. Instead, she stared at the keychain, muttering, “So you’re saying his girlfriend put it there to mark her territory.”
Relieved she got the hint, I patted her shoulder and stood up, but she tugged my shirt. “Maybe not. What if he just likes bunnies?”
I went quiet.
“I’ll ask him,” Maya said. Right then, Ashton and Mr. Gray came back.
Ashton had good timing. Didn’t even need to call him about his food.
*Mr. Drake, your food’s here,” Maya said excitedly, starting to open the bag and looking ready to set everything up.
Ashton stopped her. “I got it, thanks.”
“I” Maya clearly wanted to help more, but he said, “I’m a germaphobe.”
I almost cracked up.
He’d just ordered takeout. Every part of it had been handled by others. If he were really germaphobic, he wouldn’t order restaurant food.
He was obviously trying to keep Maya from getting too friendly. I could tell he wasn’t into her at all.
But Maya was so high on her new crush, she couldn’t see it. She just chirped, “Okay!” and handed him the bag.
He glanced at my container while getting his utensils. I’d cleverly covered it though I hadn’t finished, so he couldn’t tell.
Still, he asked, “You guys done eating?”
“Yes.”
“No!”
Maya and I answered differently. After her “No,” she sat back down to eat her cold chicken.
I mentally shook my head. Love really does make you crazy.
I couldn’t stand sitting there and grabbed my container to throw it out. Then I heard Maya say, “Mr. Drake, that’s such a cute bunny keychain. Can I have it?”
My legs froze mid–step, almost making me trip.
Talk about being direct!
“No,” Ashton said firmly.
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Chapter 53
O Get 5)
No surprise there. Though I couldn’t see Maya’s face, I could feel how awkward she felt. Even I was embarrassed for her.
Then Ashton added: “I’m saving it for my girlfriend.”
