Page 46 of Tailwhip
“You just made the excuse we didn’t have time to have your way with me!”
“Maybe, but I didn’t hear you complain!”
Turning my head in her direction, I say, “No complaints from me when it comes to you, ever!”
We make it to the airport right on time, because once we get to our gate, boarding has started. Ashlynn’s phone has been blowing up from Heath with reviews of her book. He is sending her just about all of them through text. Getting to our seats, she finally can read everything he sent her. I try not to look, but it gets the best of me; all I can read off her phone is nothing but good things. As Ashlynn reads, her smile is huge. But I can tell when she comes across a tough one because she makes a face and throws her hand up, as if she doesn’t know what to say. It's one of her many quirks. I don’t even think she realizes she does it. Tilting my head over to her, I ask, “All good reviews, I hope?”
Throwing her hand up, “I can’t please everyone, but for the most part, they are all positive!”
I grab her hand and give her a kiss on the inside of her wrist, “You are correct, you can’t please everyone. The good seems to outweigh the bad, though. That’s what really matters!”
Sitting on the runway for a few extra minutes, I get a text from Nick.
After almost 3 hours, we land in Denver with another drive ahead of us. I am glad Ashlynn left her truck here, so we don’t have to Uber. Once outside the airport, the cold air blasts me in the face and it is freezing. I am no longer used to it. Luckily, for some reason, I always pack a few hoodies and a beanie, which are both coming in handy now. Getting to the truck and heading to the interstate, I decide maybe now would be a good time to bring up our living situation.
“So, I’ve been thinking about what we should do about our living situations.”
Ashlynn is driving, so she barely gives me a quick glance. “What about it? Do you want to move to Frisco to live with me?” She says this with a smile on her face.
Speaking without fully thinking, I say, “WHAT?! FUCK NO! I don’t want to move back here!”
I realize what I said, as soon as it came out of my mouth, and it is too late to take back now. Shit, blame it on being groggy or the crappy phone call I got this morning with my emotional ex.
“Wow, glad that’s how you feel. I won’t be moving to Greenville, so I guess we figured out where we don’t agree!” Ashlynn says that to me almost as harsh as what I said, but she is too nice of a person to be fully harsh with me.
“It’s not that I don’t want to live with you, but you’ve never lived anywhere else. Don’t you think it would be fun to move to Greenville and live with me?” Complete and utter silence is what I am getting. Shit!
Finally getting to Ashlynn’s house, she turns the truck off and tosses her keys over to me. Catching them, I ask, “Am I not allowed to come inside?”
Opening her door and with her back to me, she says, “You can, but you should go hang out with Nick.”
She closes her door and walks toward the house; I throw my side open and run up to her, “Ashlynn, stop. I wasn’t thinking when I said that and didn’t mean for it to come out so rude.”
She’s not even looking at me and all I get is, “It’s okay, I’m fine!” I grab her hand, but she pulls away and then looks at me. “Just to be clear, it’s only okay for me to up and move my life, but you won’t even consider it for me?”
“No, Ashlynn. It's not okay for me to expect that. I am sorry. Look, you are upset. So, I am going to go hangout with Nick, and we can talk when we both cool down.” Surprisingly, she lets me give her a kiss and with that, she turns to go inside.
Jumping back in the truck, I head over to the bar Nick is at. Opening the door, I spot him right away. “Hey man! How’s it going? Sorry it took me a bit longer to get here.”
Swallowing his sip of beer, he says, “No, worries. How was Seattle? How’s Ashlynn doing? Neha said her book is getting some really good reviews!
“Yeah, most of the reviews are positive. A few bad ones here and there. Seattle was awesome; we had a really good time. As of right now, back home, Ashlynn isn’t too happy with me, though!”
Giving me a confused look, he asks, “You guys just got back, what the hell happened from leaving Seattle to getting to her house?”
Taking a big gulp on my beer, I clear my throat. “Well, I brought up our living situation and told her she should move to Greenville with me, after she had asked if I wanted to move here to live with her and I bluntly said ‘FUCK NO!’”
Tapping his fingers on the table, he says, “I can see why she is upset with you! You got to meet halfway on that shit.”
I roll my eyes because, apparently, Nick is suddenly a relationship guru. “I’ll make it up to her; not sure how, but I will. Anyway, what have you and Neha been up to?”
Once Neha’s name is out of my mouth, Nick has the goofiest smile; he is so whipped. I guess I am too, though, when it comes to Ashlynn. “Neha is doing well; she is up for a big promotion. I can’t remember the exact title. We also made ourselves exclusive.”
Nodding my head at him, I say, “It’s about damn time! I’m surprised you didn’t do it sooner.”
“Yeah, well the snap was when she told me she was talking to your guy Jax every now and then since she met him in Colorado Springs.”
Well, this is interesting. “I honestly had no idea they were talking.”