“Great.” Ashleigh stood and walked over to where he was standing. He could smell the deep notes of her perfume. “Thank you for the sweet tea,” she said, smiling at his aunt.
“You’re very welcome. It was lovely to see you again.”
He slid his boots back on and opened the door, gesturing for Ash to walk through. She took her time, lifting her head to smile up at him before sliding her body past his. She was wearing a navy dress that skimmed her slim body, her hair tied up to expose her long, slender neck. There were no freckles there, just pale creamy skin.
As soon as they were outside, she turned to him. “Actually, a walk in the yard is a bad idea. It’ll ruin my shoes. Perhaps we should sit somewhere.”
He gestured at the old bench by the gate and she shook her head. “Not in this dress.”
“Maybe standing will be better,” he said, trying to bite down his annoyance. This was Ash. the girl he’d once cared about. He owed her politeness at the very least. “What can I help you with?” he asked her.
“How’s your music career going?”
He stared at her for a moment, trying to decipher what the hell it was she wanted. “Yeah, pretty good.”
“And you’ll be leaving soon?”
“I will?”
She shook her head. “That was a question. I’m asking you when you’ll be going back to wherever it is you live.”
“I live in L.A.”
“Okay, so when will you be going home?”
His lip curled up. “You seem pretty set on getting rid of me. Should I take that personally?”
She let out a sigh. “You can take it as you want. And I’m not set on anything, I was simply making small talk.”
He glanced at his watch. It was almost lunch time. “Okay.” He shrugged. “I’ll be heading back home in a few weeks. And how are you? I hear you’re living in Stanhope. Is that going well?”
“It is.” Her voice was icy cool. “I’m very happy there. And I want to make sure I stay that way.”
“You think I might be a threat to your happiness?” His brows knitted together. “Why would that be?”
“Because everywhere I go, all I hear about is you and Maddie, and I’ve no idea what’s going on. I have people calling to tell me you’ve been spotted together in all kinds of places, and I don’t like it.” She lifted her head defiantly. “Whatever happened between us should stay between us, Gray.”
This time he couldn’t stop the laughter from exploding. “You think I’m chasing your sister to hurt you?”
“Aren’t you?”
“No.” His expression was incredulous. “Why would you think that?”
“Because we parted on bad terms.”
“I left and you were angry at me. I got over it.” Gray rubbed his chin with the heel of his hand, still trying to figure out what she was thinking. “It’s old news, Ash. More than ten years old. I’m not here to hurt anybody.”
“So there’s nothing going on with you and Maddie?”
He licked his dry lips, staring at her through narrowed eyes. “Have you asked her that?”
“Yes.”
Of course she had. “And what did she say?”
“That there was nothing between you two at all.”
He ignored the jabbing pain of her response. “Then that’s your answer.”