Page 16 of Forget Me Not

“So, Lo. What’s the real reason you turned me down at Carl’s?” Asher asks her, “I know it’s not because you’re not attracted to me. I saw you blushing before.” He winks at her, causing her neck and cheeks to heat once again as she reaches for her drink.

“Oh, yes.” Demi sits up straighter in her chair. “I’m curious to hear the answer to this as well.”

Logan looks at her with betrayal before directing her attention toward Asher.

“I’m just not big on dating.” She shrugs her shoulders to indicate it’s the best response she’s got.

“Who said anything about dating?” Asher smirks at her. Demi chokes on her drink, her eyes bugging out of her head. I kick Asher under the table for the second time now, but he doesn’t even flinch. He looks at me smugly. He knows exactly what he’s doing.

“Not big on sleeping around either,” Logan responds. Her cheeks are still slightly tinged pink, but she seems more amused than flustered now.

“Well, fine. Maybe I’ll just break all my rules for you. What will it take for you to say yes to going out with me?” Asher leans back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. I know he’s only doing this to mess with me, but the way Logan eyes where his biceps bulge from the sleeves of his T-shirt makes me think she may be contemplating saying yes.

I don’t think when I covertly slide my hand under the table to grip her thigh through her leggings. She tenses but, to her credit, doesn’t look down to see where my hand is wrapped around her. She doesn’t move to push my hand away but instead leaves it where it’s at. She’s quiet for a second, and I see the defiance in her eyes before she even speaks.

“Hmm.” She smirks. “Let’s say I do say yes, what do you have in mind?”

I gently squeeze her leg in warning and she involuntarily shivers. It’s subtle, but I notice it and apparently Asher did too because he raises an eyebrow at me, smiling as if he knows exactly what is going on.

“Sweetheart, we can do anything you want. There are plenty of ways that I can make you happy. On the date and when we get home.”

Demi gasps out loud at his words, her cheeks flaming red. She’s leaning forward with her elbows on the table and her hands fisted underneath her chin, looking back and forth between all of us as if she’s watching some sort of reality show. Logan looks at her like she’s trying not to laugh.

“What?” Demi asks. “This is the most entertainment I’ve seen since a couple got into a screaming fight at the restaurant last week. Answer him,” she all but yells at Logan.

Logan manages to keep herself in control and seems relatively unaffected by Asher’s words, but the glint in her eye tells me she’s still considering saying yes just to piss me off. I slowly slide my hand higher up her thigh, daring her to say yes and see what happens. She squeezes her thighs together, trapping my hand between them just before I reach where I’m secretly dying to be.

I know that I have no right to be doing this. We’ve met twice and have barely had a full conversation. But her reaction alone proves that she’s feeling everything that I’m feeling. The attraction. The connection. I stare at her as she refuses to look at me.

“As fun as that sounds, I think I’m going to have to pass.” She finally speaks. Asher shakes his head, acting let down, even though he’s still got a smile on his face. With one more gentle squeeze, I slip my hand from between Logan’s thighs and watch as her body relaxes back into her seat.

“Damn,” Asher says. “What about you, De—” He doesn’t get the sentence out before I cut him off.

“Absolutely fucking not,” I say harshly.

He laughs as I give him the exact reaction he was looking for.

“I’m not a second choice, asshole,” she says. “Plus, with the way I’m assuming you fuck around, I’d need to see a full list of test results before touching you with a ten-foot pole.” Demi smiles at him, picking up her plate and bringing it to the kitchen.

“Hey!” Asher yells. “I always wrap it up, thank you very much.” He grabs his own, following her into the kitchen. I turn to look at Logan, but she’s already rushing out of the room with her own dish in her hand before I can get her alone.

I follow them into the kitchen where Demi is already rinsing plates. Asher continues to tell her, and the rest of us, that he’s clean, severely offended by her comment. When Demi’s phone rings, Asher is closest and immediately picks it up off the counter.

“Who’s she-devil?” he asks, reading the contact’s name off her screen and Demi makes a sound of disgust.

“Fuck me,” she says, grabbing the phone out of Asher’s hand.

“I mean, if you insist,” he says, earning himself a glare from not only her but me as she walks into the other room to answer the call.

“It’s her boss,” Logan says from where she’s taken over washing the dishes. “She’s a bitch.”

Demi walks back into the room only a minute later.

“I’m so sorry, I’ve got to go. That was my manager, and my friend Mel just called out because her kid is sick.” She’s already grabbing her things off the counter. “Normally, I’d say no, but the bitch said I was her last option, and if she doesn’t find someone to cover Mel, then she’s firing her.”

“Can she even do that?” I ask, “It doesn’t seem fair to fire someone for an actual emergency even if nobody can cover. Plus, it’s already nine.”

“Yeah, I know. Mel’s shift started at eight, apparently, I really was her last call.” She laughs. “We are open until midnight on Saturdays, so she’s still short-handed for a few hours. Who knows if she can actually fire her, but I’m not going to risk it. I like Mel.”

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