“That woman is not my girlfriend. She’s my ex-wife.” He bit out, still holding her arm.
“Even better.” Ashleigh’s stomach plummeted to the floor in one fell swoop. That was the last thing she expected.
Chapter Eighteen
Ok, so that definitely didn’t come out the way he wanted it to. “I’m not seeing anyone, except you, Ashleigh.” He told her, trying to recover the inadvertent derailment of the conversation.
“See, that’s where you’re wrong, Alex. You aren’t seeing me. Not anymore.” She stared down at his hand on her arm before shrugging him off and walking back to the table.
Before he could follow her, Dylan walked up.
Perfect fucking timing.
“Woman troubles?” He smirked before edging up to the bar and ordering a beer.
Alex wasn’t about to go into it. Not even with Dylan.
“What’s Jessie doing at your house?” Dylan asked, surprising Alex.
“What?” How the hell did he know that?
“I called the other night. She answered your phone. Please tell me you aren’t seriously seeing her again.”
“Fuck no.” Jessie was the last woman Alex wanted to be with. If he’d been smart, he’d have cut ties with her all those years ago. Instead, he’d tried to do the right thing, and he was beginning to think she was taking advantage of him.
“You might want to let her know that.”
“It’s not like that. Her fucking boyfriend beat the shit out of her again, and she called me. I brought her home from the hospital, and now she’s refusing to leave.”
“Well, I suggest you don’t leave your phone unattended.” Dylan said, taking a deep pull on his beer. “You’ll have hell to pay if Ashleigh gets wind of this.”
Alex looked down at his glass and then away.
“Fuck.” Dylan didn’t need an explanation. “She knows?”
“She won’t let me explain. Jessie answered the phone when she called too. I have no idea what she said to Ashleigh, but your sister’s as hard headed as they come. She won’t give me the time of day.”
“That’s Ashleigh. She’s not big on second chances.”
If that wasn’t the damn truth.
Dylan sauntered off toward the table and Alex followed. Shit, he didn’t have anything else to do. Might as well get the cold shoulder while he could. By the end of the night, she’d have to hear him out.
Two hours passed, and Alex wasn’t making any headway with Ashleigh. She was still refusing to look at him, but he did notice she’d had more than her fair share of alcohol, and she was in no shape to drive. Alex had cut himself off after the drink Cole had gotten him earlier. He knew he needed a clear head if he expected to talk to her and have any chance that she would listen to him.
When Logan hauled Sam out on the dance floor, Alex decided to make his move. No way was he letting Tag get his hands on Ashleigh again. Not if he had anything to say about it.
Walking around the table, he came up beside her and took her hand when she wasn’t paying any attention to him.
“Dance with me.” He told her, pulling her until she slid from her chair. She was reluctant, but he could tell she was trying not to cause a scene.
A slow song came on, which was right up his alley. Alex didn’t do that hard core, body grinding shit. But this he could do. Within seconds, he had her pulled flush against him, and his body was fighting a losing battle not to be affected by her nearness.
Tilting her head so she had to look him in the eye, Alex held her gaze. What he saw there was so unexpected, his chest constricted. She was close to tears, and the sight of her glassy eyes hit him like a punch in the solar plexus.
Leaning in, he kissed her gently on the lips. She didn’t pull away, which was a surprise, but she didn’t kiss him back either. Sliding one hand into her hair, he cupped the back of her head and kept her face turned toward him.
“I’m not with Jessie. Or anyone else, for that matter.” He told her, hoping she wouldn’t pull away.
“It doesn’t matter, Alex. You can see whoever you want.”
“I’m having a problem on that front.” He told her, keeping her pressed against him. “The only one I want is you, and you’ve been ignoring me.”
“It’s obvious I can’t handle a man like you.” She said, but Alex barely heard the words. He didn’t think she meant to say them out loud.
“What?”
“You were right. I’ll never be enough for you.”
What the hell was she talking about? When did he ever say anything like that? If anything, Ashleigh was more than he deserved. “Who said that?”