Page 3 of Wish You Were Mine
SUMMER
As I listened to my date, Ben, explain his job—something for an accountancy firm that wasn’t actually accounting—the door at the Destiny Peak Resort’s onsite restaurant swung inward and a pretty brunette stepped through.
I took a moment to appreciate her dress, which was a classy black number, and started to turn back to my date. But then the man behind the brunette caught my attention and my stomach flipped over.
Asher goddamn Heaton.
Could I not go on a first date without the object of my unrequited affection showing up to torment me?
I sighed. Suddenly, it didn’t matter that the restaurant was warm and cozy with lovely music playing in the background and the scent of gourmet food permeating the air. Nor did it matter that Ben was good-looking in a generic kind of way, and that he’d treated me with kindness and respect.
Because if Asher was here, our date wouldn’t go anywhere. I simply didn’t have it in me to focus on another man when he was present.
I could at least try not to be rude though, so I aimed my face toward Ben and curved my lips, hoping to give the impression I was still interested. There was no reason to offend him just because I was hopelessly hung up on someone who didn’t want me.
I tuned in just in time to hear, “…and you?”
Shit. What had he been saying? Something about his job. Perhaps he’d asked about mine.
“Do you like being a vet?” he repeated, and I thanked my lucky stars he hadn’t caught me out.
“I love it,” I said truthfully. “I’ve always known what I wanted to do, and I never went through that phase some people have where they become disillusioned with their dream job. It has its downsides—I hate seeing animals in pain—but that just makes it more special when I’m able to help.”
I glanced at Asher and his companion out of the corner of my eye. Was she his date? Were they seeing each other? I hadn’t heard anything about him dating, but he wasn’t one to gossip about the women in his life as much as my twin, Toby, did.
Maybe she was just a fling. But she’d clearly gone to a lot of effort to look nice, which implied there was more to it than that.
“Do you have any pets of your own?” Ben asked.
“No. Living alone, and with my busy work schedule, it doesn’t seem practical. But hopefully when I settle down with someone, we can get one together.”
He smiled, his eyes twinkling. “Cat or dog?”
“No preference.”
The server brought Asher and his maybe-date to the table beside ours. I made eye contact with Asher, careful not to cringe. This was awkward. Especially because now all I could think about was how Ben might be handsome, but his face wasn’t nearly as interesting as Asher’s, and he didn’t have any tattoos like Asher did.
I loved those tattoos.
“I like dogs best,” Ben said.
If he noticed my distraction, he was polite enough not to mention it.
“Excuse me,” I heard Asher say to the server. “Could we sit somewhere else?”
My cheeks heated, and I wished I could disappear in a puff of smoke. The awkwardness was one thing when we were ignoring it. Making a request like that would only bring everyone’s attention to the problem.
The server wrung her hands. “I’m afraid not. There aren’t any other available tables.”
He gestured to one across the room. “What about over there?”
“It’s reserved for a group who should be arriving in ten minutes.”
“It’s fine,” I said.
Ben frowned and it took him a moment to realize I wasn’t addressing him.
“Honestly, sit down, Ash.” I forced myself to smile. “It isn’t a problem.”