Page 21 of The Jilted Lovers Club
Jordy
Ashton sticks around while I sketch ideas on my tablet, experimenting with colors for the shop. He’d asked if it was okay, and I’d shrugged like it was no big deal. But inside, I’m relieved to have him here. The picketers outside are getting louder, their voices an unsettling backdrop. Having Ashton close—chasing a squealing Lottie around the empty space—is both comforting, and admittedly, a little entertaining.
But more than that, I feel an unexpected closeness to him—protective, even. Maybe because he let his guard down, sharing so much with me when we’re still practically strangers, or maybe because he’s the only one who took me in last night when no one else would.
Honestly, though? Just these few hours with him, and I’m realizing just how kind Ashton is; a wonderful dad to Lottie, still close to his ex’s parents, and even after everything Sasha has done to him, after all the ways she’s wronged him, he still reserves some grace for her.
I don’t understand it, but some part of me clings to that forgiving nature—because, whether I like it or not, I’m going to need it. This town hates me. Sasha may have been the one who started this mess, and Ashton and the Felixes finalized it. But I’m the easy target.
Not that I enjoy being the scapegoat for their family drama, but I’m a temporary resident of Lahoma Springs. I’ll be gone in a few weeks. Ashton and the Felixes are here forever … and the only ones who have been nice to me in this whole town.
If taking the brunt of the town’s anger means they get to dodge some of it, well … I suppose I can take the bullet with a tight smile.
I shut my laptop and push to my feet, brushing the dust off my ridiculous sunflower jeans. The fact that I’m still wearing that bitch’s clothes just about kills me.
“All right,” I announce, “I’m tapped out for today. Time for plan B—finding somewhere to stay. Any ideas? Airbnb? Couch Crashers dot com?”
Ashton scoops up Lottie before she can bolt, expertly tucking her into the stroller and handing her a sippy cup before she even has the chance to protest. It’s so smooth, so second nature, that I catch myself staring. I’ve never thought of myself as someonewho was impressed by parenting, but I have to admit it’s a skill—and Ashton has it down.
“We could ask Bob and Bec if you could stay in Sasha’s old room,” he says, buckling Lottie in. “Bec already offered.”
I snort. “Yeah, I’ll pass on that.” Staying in Sasha’s bed, in Sasha’s house, while wearing Sasha’s clothes? Hard no. “What else you got?”
He hesitates, then says, “You can stay with me.”
I freeze for half a second. I mean, it’s an option. It’s convenient. Close to the store. Hassle-free.
So tempting…
But I’ve already taken more than enough hospitality from this family. They owe me nothing, and the last thing I want is to feel like I owe them anything back.
“I’ll just stay here,” I say, sweeping my hands to indicate this huge, empty building. “There’s electricity, a bathroom, and a heater, plus a whole street of restaurants.” Restaurants that won’t serve me, but he doesn’t need to know that.
“And a cushiony spot on the concrete floor while the whole town watches you sleep from the windows.” He rolls his eyes. “Come on, Jordy. My house is big enough for the three of us. Plus, you’d get to enjoy Bec’s home-cooked meals. Which yes, I eat almost every single night, and you should too. Do you really want to say no to that?”
There are plenty of reasons to say no—starting with the fact that he’s already done so much for me. I can’t take more of his generosity.
Plus, he smells so fucking good…
No. Nope. Absolutely not. I did not just think that about him.
No way am I getting snowed in by his charm and hospitality. No way am I letting myself admire his solid jawline, his broad shoulders. No way am I inhaling his scent after he works thefields all day. And absolutelyno wayam I entertaining the thought of tasting the salt on his skin…
No. Fucking. Way.
I can’t stay with him because I know myself. I’ll get too wrapped up in how much I want him, and it will make me forget my number one rule: no dating guys with kids.
I’m already struggling to ignore the way he looks at his daughter. How he treats her—not as an interruption, but as an addition to everything he does. How happy Lottie is, even without a mom, because Ashton and her grandparents have created a life where she’s safe and wanted.
I’ve never known what that feels like. And I want to.
“I don’t want to burden you,” I say.
Ashton shakes his head. “You wouldn’t be a burden. If anything, this is my way of making it up to you. The way this town treats you is my fault, and I’ll tell everyone as much if it gets them off your back.”
“Don’t do that.” The words are out before I can stop them. But I mean it. “Bec and Bob have been through enough. You too. And Lottie. I’m just a temporary citizen here to do a job before I leave again. It doesn’t matter if they hate me.”
It really doesn’t—I’m not here forever. But I also do need a place to stay, and arguing with him was getting us nowhere.
