Page 50 of Emergency Exit
“That’s what canceled means,” said Harper.
“But I didn’t do it!”
“Maybe Romeo did it?” offered Harper.
“Maybe? That seems weird. Did you really think I canceled on you?”
“Well, you never texted back after the thing with your brother and… everything.”
“No, I did! I…” Ash looked at his phone and then clicked into his text thread with Harper. “Or, um, apparently, I never hitsend.”
“Oh.”
“OK, so I guess I am apologizing for being an asshole. I did not mean to do any of that.”
Only after the words were out of his mouth did he realize that their kiss could be included underany of that.
Harper heaved a sigh of relief. “Well, it did seem out of character. I was really confused.”
“Did Josh at least feed you fries?”
“Well, I got some fries. But Josh was kind of a jerk. I wasn’t trying to say his mother didn’t love him.”
Ash couldn’t stop the crack of laughter that burst out of him. “Did you unintentionally argue with him, and then he took it personally?”
“Yes! That’s exactly what happened!”
“I’m DoorDashing you fries,” said Ash, feeling the malicious glow of triumph. Arguing with Harper was a specialized skill. Josh, whoever he was, had lost.
“Really? Can they be truffle fries?”
“Uh, I think they definitely should be,” said Ash, flipping open the app.
“Oh, I’m so glad we’re not mad at each other,” said Harper. “Not just because of the fries,” she added hastily.
“But a little bit because of the fries? That’s fine. I’m OK with being forgiven because of my food-procuring skills. It makes me feel masculine.”
Harper giggled. “Well, I don’t really think there’s anything to forgive you for. Your brother got shot, didn’t he? You must have been having the worst few weeks. I’m sad I missed Halloween, though.”
Ash groaned. “Don’t bring up Halloween!”
He finished the fry order and carried his phone into the kitchen. He had leftovers tucked away for dinner. He was prettysure. Maybe.
“Oh no! What happened?”
“Forest said he was going to Rowan’s for a family thing and that I thought it meantourfamily, so then I stopped in, and it was an entire building carnival for kids.”
“Fun! Oh. But you’re not a kid.”
“Right,” said Ash, shaking his head. “And I don’t have a kid, so I’m pretty sure they all thought I was crazy. But I did meet Rowan’s new girlfriend, who was shockingly nice. And they both seem to be recovering from the whole shooting thing, so that was a relief.”
Why was talking to Harper so easy? He wished she were here in person, but he was just relieved to have her back in any format.
“I also got to spend time with Olly, which is always awesome. And I talked a bit more to Chloe, the new nanny.”
“Oh, how did that go?”
“She’s quirky AF, and that would be awesome if she were one of my friends, but I’m still not sure about her as someone for Forest to rely on.”
