Always a Friend

Chapter 46

I caught my breath and hurried to the car's passenger side, trying not to look Ashton in the eyes so he wouldn't know what I was thinking. Hell, I didn't know what I was thinking. I opened the door and grabbed my phone out of my book bag. I went to put my bag in the backseat when Ashton took it from me and set it in the middle of the backseat. The second I fastened my seatbelt, Ashton stepped on the gas, and we were on the road within a couple of minutes. I wanted to text Chloe and Sarah about Ashton taking me to the beach after we get coffee, but I didn't know what I'd say to them. I stared down at the keyboard at the bottom of my phone, wondering if I was overreacting and if he was just being nice for a change. My thumbs started to move to the keyboard when Ashton asked if I wanted coffee or something else. I dropped my phone in my lap, relieved it had flipped and was resting on its screen.

He glanced down at my phone lying lopsided in my lap. "You okay, Gem?" His eyes returned to the afternoon traffic. 

"Yeah." I picked my phone up, keeping the screen turned toward the door. "An iced latte sounds great." 

"I was thinking the same thing." He smiled, keeping his eyes straight ahead. 

About twenty minutes later, Ashton pulled into Sweet Escape, and I spotted Claudia's red convertible parked in the middle row. Ashton pulled his car into a parking spot across the lot from her car. He reached for the door handle and glanced over at me. "Don't worry about Claudia and her dumbass friends." He opened the door and exited the car. It was easy for him to say because she wasn't hovering over him like a vulture waiting to swoop in and attack. 

I exited the car, inhaling as I closed the door, staring at the building where my nemesis was waiting to devour her next prey. Ashton was waiting for me at the back of the car, motioning his head toward Sweet Escape. Again, he didn't have anything to worry about. 

"What are you going to order? Your usual?" He nudged me with his shoulder. 

"I don't know. I'm feeling adventurous today." My eyes scanned the inside of the shop as we passed by the big picture window. 

"Ohh...Adventurous," Ashton winked, laughing. He opened the door for me, still smiling from my comment. "Well, Miss Adventurous, what would  you like to drink?" He looked up at the menu hanging on the wall behind the counter. 

I tilted my head to the side, debating between a new Blackberry latte or my new favorite Toffee nut latte. "Hi, I'll take a regular Iced Blackberry mocha latte with oat milk." I moved to the side, letting Ashton order his drink. The second he stepped closer to the counter, the barista's demeanor changed from halfway annoyed to full-on flirty. Her eyes lit up; a smile was now present on the resting bitch face she showed me. The barista repeated the order, leaving my drink off. 

Ashton's brows furrowed. "There were two drinks. But you were too busy flirting to pay attention to her drink." He frowned, reaching for his wallet. "She wanted a regular Iced Blackberry Mocha latte with oat milk." He inserted his card. The girl blinked as her mouth fell open. Ashton cut her off before she had the chance to give some phony-ass apology. "We're kinda in a hurry. Thanks." He pasted on a fake smile. She snapped her mouth shut, grabbed two cups, and started making our drinks, not glancing up from the espresso machine. She slid our drinks across the counter, avoiding eye contact with either of us, then turned and disappeared to the back. 

"Guess she had to go adjust her resting bitch face." Ashton handed me my drink and then turned to walk toward the door. "You coming?" He paused, turning back to face me, standing beside the counter. "Gemma?" He stepped closer

I motioned my eyes to the left of us, not wanting to draw attention our way. Ashton's eyes narrowed, looking confused. "Claudia." I mouthed, hoping he'd be able to read my lips from a few feet away. 

"What's wrong?" He asked, walking back to me. "Oh..." He glanced to the left of us after I motioned my eyes again for the third time. "Don't worry about her. We need to go." He reached for my hand, gazing deep into my eyes. "You can trust me." He stepped to the left of me, keeping hold of my hand, and proceeded to lead me to the door. 

"Ashton, I didn't know you were going to be here," Claudia said, walking up behind us. I rolled my eyes, staring at the words Sweet Escaped etched on the big glass door. "Want to come sit with us?" 

Something in me had finally snapped. I started to feel dizzy like blood was rushing to my head. All I wanted to do was spin around and throw my drink in her face, but then again, I was too busy enjoying my fantastic iced latte. I eased my hand out of Ashton's and turned around to find her reaching up to touch Ashton's cheek. "Claudia, do you not see me standing right here next to Ashton?" I waved my free hand in front of me from head to toe. 

She curled up her mouth in disgust. "Unfortunately, yes. Why are you here with him?" 

Ashton turned and grabbed the door handle. "She's here because I asked her to come with me. If you've got a problem with that. Well, that's too fucking bad." Ashton raised his eyebrow, smirking as if he was saying fuck you. "Why don't you run back over to your friends." He nodded his head toward his shoulder. "We've got somewhere we need to be." 

My eyes shifted from Ashton to Claudia, who was glaring between Ashton and me, pressing her lips together. Her eyes narrowed even more when they caught my gaze. She pressed her lips tighter, shaking her head a little. I knew that more trouble was headed my way right then and there, but I didn't feel worried or anxious for the first time ever.