Page 50 of Ashes

This Saturday. Like Saturday in two days.

“Mmhmm,” I lied, giving her a forced smile as I mentally went through every resident, trying to figure out who I could switch shifts with since I was working that day.

She flicked me over the side of the head. “Sienna, cut the shit. I know you forgot.”

“Okay, I did. I’m sorry,” I apologized, my shoulders dropping.

“Lucky for you, my wedding is actually next week, so you have plenty of time to find someone to replace you if you’re working next Saturday. Are you… bringinghim?”

By him, she meant my husband. Well, the other supposed one.

“I’ll have to ask him.”

“Talking about Mateo, how’s being married to him?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest. “He better be treating you well.”

Yeah, I still hadn’t told her or Esra about my new marital situation.

My finger mindlessly started tapping against the side ofthe bench. “Um, Kenna, about my wedding…” I trailed off, pausing and contemplating whether I should tell her the truth or not.

She glanced down and noticed I was getting more anxious by the minute. She placed her hand over mine, rubbing circles over my knuckles.

I looked up at her and she furrowed her brows at the look on my face.

“Sienna, what’s wrong?” she asked, worried.

“I didn’t marry Mateo,” I blurted out and immediately let out a sigh of relief.

God, telling her felt good. I’d been wanting to talk about everything that had happened with her and Esra, but confessing my father’s shortcomings once had already been difficult, so I’d been dreading having to do it again.

Kenna raised her brows. “What do you mean you didn’t marry Mateo?”

I unwound my hands from her, fidgeting with my ring.

“Turns out my father had already promised me to someone else,” I said, letting out a sardonic laugh.

“Please tell me you’re joking.”

“I wish I were.”

I spend the next few minutes catching her up on everything. With every additional detail I gave her, her frustration grew.

She muttered under her breath before saying, “I know he’s your father, but, respectfully, what an as?—”

Her pager buzzed, cutting her off. She glanced down atit before meeting my gaze. “I have to go, but we’ll talk more later.”

She got up and walked to the door, only to pause on her way out. She whipped around and walked back over to me, then wrapped her arms around me.

I froze for a moment.

Kenna, much like me, wasn’t really a hugger, so I didn’t know how to feel about her sudden affectionate outburst.

She pulled back almost immediately and laughed softly. “I know we don’t do this, but I love you.”

“I love you too,” I replied, giving her a small smile.

“Okay, I really have to go now,” she said, rushing out of the room.

I slid off the bench, grabbed my bag from my locker, and made my way to my car.