Page 20 of Ashley & the A-Listers (Sweetverse)

20. SECOND CHANCE

ASHLEY

The water rushed over the edge, rocks glistening in the light spilling through the leaves.

Below, the froth of water was white and shimmering, welcoming them into the depths.

“Ready?” she asked, and held out her hand to the alpha beside her.

Dylan’s hand was heavy in hers, and he squeezed once as he nodded. “Yep, totally.”

She smiled, glancing over at him and trying not to notice how fucking devastatingly handsome he was.

And shirtless. With… scars? Those certainly hadn’t been there when they were younger.

They were jagged, along his abdomen, and tanned a slightly darker color than the rest of his pale skin. A bolt of possessiveness struck her as her hindbrain flared. Who would hurt him?

“Who did this to you?’ she asked, and lifted their joint hands to brush the back of her index finger over one of the scars.

She was so struck with the idea of someone hurting him, it didn’t occur to her what an intimate thing she’d done, until she turned her gaze up.

A lock of dark hair fell over his eyes and it made him look younger, giving her a flash of the Dylan she knew from their childhood.

She wanted to protect him.

Her heart seized, and it was hard to take a breath.

“A job went south,” he said.

Chest tightening at just the thought, she realized once again that she didn’t know Dylan, this alpha, half as well as she once did.

He had secrets.

She wanted to know each and every one of them.

“Was it bad?” she asked, because she had to know.

“It wasn’t… good,” he offered.

Ashley frowned. Had she almost lost him for good? And she hadn’t even known?

“Where are they?”

“They’re gone,” he said, and she searched his eyes for the truth.

“On three?” he asked, shifting their hands to point over the edge.

Satisfied with what she found, she nodded and let it go… for now. “Yeah,” she answered.

Ashley made her lungs work, and sucked in a breath as they counted down.

“Two… one.”

The shouts of Cam and River followed them as they leapt off the edge, hands clutched tightly together. For a moment, she was weightless, and Ashley let her eyes drift closed as the water came up on them.

She crashed through, the water cold and perfect against her overheated skin, rinsing away the grime and sweat from the hike.

It breathed new life into her, and as their hands separated so they could swim to the surface, giddiness rooted in her chest.

She broke through the water and searched for Dylan, finding him not too far away.

“Hell yes!” she cried, joy threading through every vein in her body.

“That was fucking awesome,” Dylan said, a carefree grin on his face.

The rush of water was white noise all around them, and Ashley tilted her head up. From the bottom, the drop seemed so very far, and she couldn’t see River and Cam yet.

Ashley swam to the edge of the pool, out of the way, and sat on a cropping of rock. The water still came up to her shoulders, and it felt delightfully refreshing after sweating.

Dylan followed, and she tried not to stare as he swam, but his arms were pure muscle as he made his way over to her. With his hair slicked back, his face was totally open to her, nothing but an easy joy in his expression.

“This was a great idea,” he said, nudging her. His sun-dappled skin was warm even in the chilly water. “Maybe even better than what I had planned.”

Ashley tilted her head. “You had something planned?”

He shrugged. “I did.”

“You… remembered?” she asked. Her pulse was in her ears as she studied him.

His expression went unbearably soft. “Of course I did. I’d never forget.”

Ashley’s brain spun in circles trying to decipher what he meant. Had her birthday haunted him like it had her, considering it’d been the last time they’d seen each other for a decade? Did he replay that day more often than was healthy, like her? Analyze and regret and wish for a time machine?

Or did he just care for her so much that he’d never forgotten the date itself?

As he stared at her, both of them stuck in this frozen moment with the water rushing louder than their thoughts and the wake of the waterfall pushing him into her, Ashley was… caught.

Hooked on this moment like she’d been hooked on the same alpha her whole life.

He nudged into her again and this time didn’t lean away. He placed a hand on the rock beside her thigh, his hip brushing her knee.

“Dylan…” she warned, though she didn’t know what she was warning either of them about. Not when every neuron in her brain was telling her to lean forward.

Later, she’d blame it on the sun. Later, she’d be full of regret.

But now… in this moment, with Dylan leaning closer and that familiar grassy scent wrapping around her, in this little private cove by a beautiful waterfall, it felt right.

It felt like she didn’t want to get over him.

Ashley not only let him kiss her, but she met him in the middle.

If they were going to make this mistake, it would be together.

Funnily enough, Ashley couldn’t remember exactly how his lips had felt over a decade ago, not through the eyes of a teenager.

Not now that the memory had the adult version of Dylan to contend with.

His hand framed her face, cold at first from the water, but warming as their skin touched, and she melted into him. Their lips moved together effortlessly, the water pushing them closer, until their legs were slotted together and she was cupping the back of his neck to pull him closer.

He tasted like what she’d always imagined Dylan to taste of—alpha and desire–and, more realistically, mint from his toothpaste.

Fuck, it was like he’d awakened something in her, and Ashley was helpless but to fold far too easily to the whims of her pulse, urging her to?—

A high-pitched scream echoed out over the water, and Ashley pushed Dylan away reflexively. He went under the water and Ashley turned her gaze up just as River and Cam hit the foam of the waterfall.

She felt like she’d done something wrong, and dipped under the water so she didn’t look as dazed as she felt. When she came up, Cam and River were laughing as they swam closer. Dylan’s head popped up not too far away, and she averted her eyes before he could read her expression.

“I can’t believe you screamed like that,” Cam taunted lovingly.

River’s cheeks were pink, and not just from the sunburn they likely all had. “Shut up. It was really high.”

“Are you afraid of heights?” Ashley asked, taking her seat on the rock again.

If either of them had noticed the compromising position she’d been in, they didn’t mention it, and she tried to convince her pulse to return to normal.

“Maybe a little,” River said, decidedly pouty, and it was so cute she felt a pang in her chest.

“I thought you were just nervous!” she cried, afraid she’d put him in an awkward position. “You were very brave, if that helps,” she said, and tried not to laugh at his dry look.

“Don’t patronize me,” he drawled, and Ashley chuckled before grabbing his hand and pulling him up onto the rock next to her. His thigh brushed hers, skin to skin, and it was like an electric shock, despite how thoroughly she’d mapped his back just a bit ago.

“Yeah, that’s my job,” Dylan said, and floated over beside Cameron.

“It was fun, though, wasn’t it?” she asked, and she could still feel Dylan’s lips against hers, a lick of warmth in her stomach. He was acting totally normal. She was trying to. Was she managing? Was it obvious?

Did Dylan even care?

“I’d do it again,” Cameron said, and Ashley arched a brow, pushing her troubling thoughts away.

“The hike and all?” she asked. “How are your feet?”

“Oh, I’m going to be incredibly sore tomorrow. You’ll just have to go easy on me,” he said, matter of fact.

Ashley grinned evilly. “You mean you don’t enjoy the feeling of your sore muscles screaming at every move you make?”

He winced. “Not particularly.”

“You’re a masochist, confirmed,” River interjected.

Ashley shrugged. She loved feeling her muscles burn, knowing that she was pushing herself further.

“You don’t like jelly legs?” she questioned.

Cam smirked. “Only from an orgasm.”

Ashley’s mouth popped open in surprise while River snorted, looking particularly proud of himself, and she rolled her eyes.

Wouldn’t know what that was like, she said to herself.

Most people she hooked up with were intimidated by her, an alpha, and rarely did she come away from an encounter with shaky legs. They expected her to take charge, which was hot when she was in the mood, but sometimes Ashley wanted to be the one thrown around, not doing the throwing.

Anyway… what were they talking about?

Ashley kicked her legs in the water, and tilted her face up to the sun.

“We’re at the bottom of the waterfall,” she said, knocking an elbow into River.

“I like the way you think,” he practically purred, and he sounded so attractive Ashley’s cheeks flamed.

Chills sprinkled over her skin, and she told herself it was from the sun she’d gotten, the contrast of it with the cool water.

“Hold on, I’ll grab the stash,” River said.

He clumsily clamored over the rocks and walked over to their pile of stuff, rummaging through one of their bags.

All around them, the forest was alive, birds and bugs singing while the trees whistled with the breeze.

And amongst it, she heard a small pop as River’s steps returned. “Birthday girl,” he said, and offered her a joint from a glass tube.

Ashley held the golden cone in her hand and gaped. “What the hell is this?”

Cameron snickered, looking awfully proud of himself. “It’s a 24K gold cone.”

“You do not buy gold rolling papers,” she told him, aghast.

“Told you, I like to spoil myself.”

I'd like to spoil you for your birthday, too.

She heard the words in his buttery-smooth voice, and spun the joint in her hand. It was her birthday, after all. Was it so bad if he’d spent a little extra money on her?

She lifted her gaze to him and grinned. “I guess for today, I’m spoiled, too.”

Ashley did, in fact, feel spoiled. She was about to smoke movie star weed. Recreational use was legal everywhere, especially because it was known to help omegas during heat, but that didn’t mean she could afford to splurge on the nicest strains.

Lifting the joint to her nose, she inhaled the green musky scent and arched a brow at Cameron. “This is nice.”

“Only the best for you,” he said.

Ashley rolled her eyes to disguise how pleased she actually felt.

The flame leapt to life as she flicked the lighter, and the paper at the end of the joint caught.

She inhaled, the smoke filling her lungs, and it even tasted nice, some kind of lavender flavor that lingered even after she exhaled.

“That’s delicious,” she said, and held it out for whoever wanted it next.

River took it, and he had no fucking right looking so damned good with that joint between his fingers.

Warmth licked through her just like the flame had lapped at the end of the joint.

They passed it around, and she thought it was kind of funny how they all melted into the rocks around the water, like sunbathing lizards.

They ashed into the glass tube and then stored it away when everyone was happy with their high.

Ashley felt floaty and at ease, and she slipped off the rocks to drift in the water.

Through the water lapping at her ears, she heard the murmur of their voices and opened her eyes. Above her, the sun sparkled through the trees, marbling the ground and the water, and she watched the breeze move the green summer leaves around.

It was a beautiful day, and Ashley was suddenly so thankful to be here. Even with the tangle of emotions and unresolved feelings in her chest, she was here with people she enjoyed being around.

I kissed Dylan.

She sat up and sank beneath the surface, wetting her hair once more and washing away her thoughts before joining the others at the rocky edge.

“What are you guys talking about?” she asked, propping her head on her hands.

Dylan was sitting on the rock now, and he looked so good with the water dripping off him it made her brain lag like dial-up internet.

“I’m gonna lay out the snacks,” Dylan said, and glanced up. “I don’t have service, but it is getting a bit late, and I don’t want us to?—“

“Quit being so responsible,” Cameron whined, and Ashley couldn’t help but laugh.

“Well, someone’s got to,” Dylan said.

“As long as that someone isn’t me, you can do whatever you want,” River said. He was reclined on his palms, face tilted up to the sun.

In nothing but a pair of swim shorts and sprinkled with the light breaking through the trees, he looked like a painting.

A painting she wanted to lick.

That didn’t make sense.

She didn’t care.

Dylan cleared his throat and Ashley’s gaze trailed back to him. He arched a brow at her and her cheeks flamed at being caught checking out the beta.

After kissing said alpha.

After applying a very secure layer of sunscreen to the other two.

Playing it so, so cool, she shrugged, as if it wasn’t a big deal. She could appreciate a handsome guy moments after she’d kissed her childhood crush, even if that guy happened to be dating her client.

Was Ashley… messy?

She heard the word in Kenzie’s voice and almost laughed aloud at her own thoughts.

As Dylan got to his feet, Ashley wondered if they would ever get to a point where they weren’t messy. How did they even get there?

Talking.

“Want help?” she asked Dylan, who shrugged.

“You’re the birthday girl—“ he began in denial, but caught her look, and stuttered. “Uhhh, but you can help if you want.”

Ashley rolled her eyes, tucking a smile into her cheek and getting to her feet. With careful steps she made her way out of the pool on the slippery rocks and joined Dylan by all their bags several feet away. Her sandals squeaked the whole way.

“You’re not allowed to actually help,” Dylan said as soon as she reached for a bag.

“What? Why?”

“It’s your birthday, so it’s against the rules. But it felt like you wanted a moment.”

Ashley crossed her arms, staring down at the alpha kneeling on the ground and rummaging through a giant backpack.

Had he really toted that thing the whole hike? She hadn’t realized how large it was.

“Well—I guess—I don’t know,” she began eloquently.

Ashley squatted down so she could be eye-level with Dylan. “We kissed,” she said.

He paused with one hand in the bag and lifted his head. His coffee-brown eyes were dark and soft and Ashley felt her breath like a punch to the chest.

“We kissed,” he repeated, and the air went out of her.

“You’re not going to run this time?” she breathed, barely able to put volume behind the words for her fear.

Dylan pulled his hands out of the bag, and they hovered in the air between them as if he wanted to put a hand on her, but he hesitated at the last second.

She kind of hated how respectful he was being, keeping himself at a distance.

Because… because in that moment, Ashley had a horrifying realization.

She wanted things to go back to normal. No matter what Dylan had done.

She didn’t want this awkwardness between them, this imbalance of what they thought should be right considering the circumstances, and what they were used to.

What she wanted was late nights on the couch throwing popcorn at each other. She wanted sleepovers with her best friend and she wanted to smoke weed together and then make out on the couch and…. and spend the night together like they never had before.

She’d missed Dylan so much, the hole he’d left in her life beyond empty, that now he was filling it, she’d let him do just about anything he wanted as long as he stayed.

And that was a dangerous, terrifying game to play.

Especially when she was still in the dark.

“I’m not going to run this time, or ever again,” Dylan said softly, pulling her out of her revelation. “And I’ll spend forever trying to prove it to you.”

Ashley sucked in a deep breath. It was her birthday, and she was with the person she’d been missing for the last decade.

“Starting with a picnic?” she asked quietly, and reached for the bag.

It was already open, and before Dylan could stop her, she saw inside.

Once she registered the birthday wrapping paper, she glanced up and found that same familiar expression on his face.

The one from that night, when he’d said goodbye for the last time. If he was so scared, was he going to run? Could she really trust him this time?

Not while she still had questions.

What is he scared of?

Ashley lifted the present out of the bag. “A present?”

“Uhh. Yeah, yes. You don’t have to open it now, maybe it’s better—” He reached for it, and she moved her hand back, brow arched.

“I’d love to open it now,” she said.

“There’s, uhm,” Dylan said, and ran a hand over the back of his head. He was nervous. “There’s something I wanted to talk to you about. Regarding it. Maybe it should wait?”

Ashley didn’t want to wait any more. Ashley wanted to get to the bottom of this. She wanted to know what he wasn’t telling her. Just… something wasn’t adding up.

He’d left… but there was a deeper reason behind it. Ashley wanted to know if her gut was right.

This is anything but casual. They were anything but just-friends.

“I’m kind of tired of waiting, aren’t you?” she asked, leveling him with a look that suggested she wasn’t talking about the present, but all the other layers they were still unwrapping from each other.

“Okay,” he said, and Ashley slipped a finger under the wrapping paper. The box was light and small, and the paper was covered in black polka dots. She stuffed the paper into a loose ball in the bag before lifting the lid of the box.

An envelope. And inside it were?—

My Chemical Imbalance. A reunion tour. Physical concert tickets.

For the exact same band that had started all of this.

It hit her like a blow, the rush of emotions. Confusion, nostalgia, regret, and— and fear, and heartbreak and loneliness and anger.

“ Why are you here?” Ashley asked, frustrated. “Why are you doing all this ?” She waved the tickets.

Dylan’s brow furrowed. “Isn't it obvious? I'm trying to make up for what I did. Trying to show you that it will be different. That I’ll be different.”

She huffed. “So you're overcompensating. Trying to make yourself feel better by earning my forgiveness, instead of focusing on how you hurt me.”

His expression fell as he stared at her, the waterfall still splashing behind them. “I just… I wanted to make this birthday so special that it would write over the last one I was there for.”

“We don’t need to write it over, to ignore it! We need to address it! I want an explanation. Why did you leave, Dylan?” she asked, voice rising with the height of her emotion. “I’ve spent all day pretending every moment with you isn’t reminding me of that night. And you’re just acting like everything’s normal. Casual! Like the best night of my life wasn’t followed by ten years of your absence while I presented as an alpha and dealt with my mom’s death without my best friend.” She groaned, and ran her hands down her face. “Just— what happened? Why leave on my birthday ?”

Dylan sucked in an audible breath, steeling himself. Ashley met his gaze, daring him to answer her. “That night, I realized… I was an alpha. With you. And my dad was an alpha, and I was afraid of turning out like him.”

That same night? The memory was a little hazy from the amount of times she’d taken it out of its box and replayed it. But the one thing she remembered so clearly was how weird Dylan was at the end of the night.

It had to be the kiss. That’s what changed things.

“Do you regret kissing me?” she asked, even though his actions—planning this birthday, this present— didn’t match. “Do you just want to be friends? What does your dad have to do with any of this?”

“Because—because I'm in love with you, okay?” Dylan snapped, dropping his hand from his hair. A pair of gasps sounded behind them, but Ashley couldn’t even be bothered to care about an audience as his words hit.

A dark tuft of his hair stood up and wobbled in the breeze and it was a beautiful day for a revelation as long overdue as this.

Everything slotted into place, and her anger began to fade as understanding took its place.

“I had been feeling… weird, in the weeks leading up to your birthday?—”

“How weird?” Ashley asked. She wanted to hear the words.

The heat in his cheeks as he struggled to name the emotions was worth it. “I felt… possessive, I guess. Protective, especially in the crowd, and then when we kissed, I—it clicked then, why I’d been feeling like that. Like an alpha. Because I was an alpha. And suddenly I had these grand ideas of making you mine and I was just— scared. That it was the pheromones making me imagine things. Of what that would mean. Of you saying no—or worse, you saying yes, and then us turning out like my parents.”

That one piece of information was like finding the last piece of a puzzle. Suddenly the whole image made sense.

He left. And it still didn’t excuse it, but she… understood now. And that changed everything.

“And maybe I started out just trying to make things right, just trying to make amends, but… those feelings never fade, and being part of your life even in such a small way feels so right.” He released a breath, standing up. “I love you. And I’m sorry for leaving the first time. I won’t do it again.”

He didn’t look scared now. He looked relieved, if anything.

Mirroring how Ashley felt, that relief. Finally, after all these years, he’d given her an answer, an explanation.

What teenager wouldn’t run after realizing they were in love with their best friend?

He’s in love with me.

That’s why he was so eager for things to go back to normal—just like Ashley was.

Because she loved him, too.

Part of her wanted to shout her declaration, to celebrate the fact that finally, she was on the same page as him.

Instead, she grinned, a bit feral in her excitement, and patted him on his chest. “See, that wasn’t so hard, was it? Imagine how easy our lives could have been had you admitted that on my doorstep ten years ago.”

Ashley stuffed the tickets into her bag and carefully stowed it away, leaving Dylan stumped.

“I’m starved. How about that picnic?” she asked, and reached for the plastic containers—fancier than any she’d ever owned, so they must be Cameron’s—stuffed with crackers and cheeses that were still cool to the touch, thanks to the cooler bag.

Dylan deserved to suffer for just a bit longer.

He intercepted her, grabbing her wrist gently. But his skin against hers was warm, and all Ashley could think about were other ways his skin could rest next to hers.

And in his gaze in that moment, Ashley knew he’d seen right through her. His eyes darkened and Ashley cleared her throat, pushing to her feet. “Fine, fine, I won’t help. I’ll go… be over there,” she said.

“You do that,” Dylan remarked, and she wanted to wipe that smirk off his face.

Except it was very nice to look at and, well, it was her birthday.

And he was in love with her.

She tried to compose herself before she reached Cam and River, and dived into the pool next to them.

Their grins were all-knowing, and Ashley felt the heat rise to her cheeks.

“I think there’s steam coming off her,” River mused, and Ashley splashed him.

“Hey!” he complained, and Ashley shrugged.

“That’s what you get.”

“Oh, come on, let her have this moment,” Cam said.

“ Thank you — wait.” She narrowed her eyes. “What do you know?”

“A whole lot more now, ” Cameron teased. “Dylan wouldn’t tell us anything and it was—“ Cam swam closer until there were scant inches between them. “— killing me, ” he finished.

“You’ll survive,” she said, and placed a hand atop his head to push him underwater.

He went with a sigh and it was just so silly she couldn’t help but laugh, her worries from a moment ago already gone.

Part of her had expected Dylan to stay that night. To make all those little fantasies she’d dreamed up come true.

But that was silly. He had a job to do, literally. Guarding Cam, an omega movie star, was a full-time, around-the-clock job. He couldn’t just abandon his client and stay the night.

Ashley gathered her bag and damp towel from the floorboard, skin already pebbling from the sun she’d gotten that day.

The same sun that was still a few hours from setting.

And even though Ashley had the best day she could imagine in a while, she’d still be spending her birthday alone.

But that was okay.

It kind of had to be, didn’t it?

“Thank you guys for an awesome fucking birthday,” she said as she got out, leaning back in to make sure and meet Cam and River’s gaze. “Seriously.”

Cam looked downright sleepy, and he stared at her so sweetly she wanted to tuck him right in. “I had so much fun with you today, even the hiking part.”

“Ditto,” River said, and winked.

Finally her attention fell on Dylan, and his eyes were dark and lovely and knowing .

He loves me.

“We’ll see you tomorrow morning,” he said, as if to say we won’t be apart that long.

Ashley nodded. “Bright and early.”

She closed the car door with a smile and kept it pasted on her face as she made her way to her house, fishing out her keys. They jangled as she unlocked the front door and pushed it open.

Silence met her from within, and the hum of the car engine filled the driveway.

She turned to watch them pull away, and found the car still sitting in the same place.

She waved them off, but they didn’t move.

Just as she was about to retrace her steps back to them, thinking she’d forgotten something, Cameron appeared out of the sunroof, a grin on his face.

“Do you want to have dinner with us?” he called out. “It’ll be low-key. Takeout, even! We’ll have it delivered to my place!”

Ashley’s very first instinct was yes.

It felt… wrong for them to leave. For her to be here by herself while the three of them drove away.

Especially knowing that Dylan loved her. That she loved him. That she finally had all the information she needed. That she was the one holding them up now.

Ah, shit. Was this crazy?

Was Ashley absolutely fucking losing it?

“Give me five minutes?” she asked, knowing at the very least she needed to get out of her damp clothes.

“Take as long as you need!” he said. “We’ll be here!”

“Five minutes,” she called out, and spun around to dart into the house.

Her feet thundered up the stairs, and she felt giddy, excited, eighteen again as she ran around and gathered a fresh change of clothes.

It took a single minute for her to overthink, and she paused in the hallway.

If they were waiting to drive her, did they intend to bring her back? Or was this a sleepover situation? Could she use Cam’s shower? Or should she shower here?

She should probably drive so she could meet them at the gym the next day. But if she was driving, why were they still in her driveway?

Low-key , Cam had said.

Ashley could do low-key.

She hopped in the shower for less than three minutes, soaping up the loofah in record time and rinsing the grime of the day off. She didn’t dry off as thoroughly as she could have, so tugging the leggings on took an annoying amount of time.

She grabbed her keys and wallet out of the backpack, stuffed them in her tote small enough to be mistaken for a purse but packed with clothes, made sure she had her phone, and grabbed her favorite trusty water bottle before sliding out the front door.

As she approached the SUV, the windows closest to her rolled down, and she was greeted with three smiles.

“Should I follow?” she asked, waving her keys.

Those three smiles dipped for a split second, and Ashley had her answer.

They intend for me to spend the night.

I want to spend the night .

“If only so I can drive myself to the gym,” she added, testing the waters.

The gym, which she wouldn’t have to return to until the next morning.

“Just follow me,” Dylan said.

Ashley followed.