You Series Book 1: Until I Met You

ASHLEY

I came home to an angry-looking Emma. Shit! I’d totally forgotten about our plan to go to the mall.

“Before you say anything, I got a job and I had coffee with a cute boy,” I said in a rush.

Emma’s scowl immediately melted into a grin. “Oh my god, tell me everything. Who is he? Did you kiss? What did he say? Are you going to see him again?” She got up from the couch and pounced on me before I could even sit my ass down.

“Whoa! Slow down; let me at least breathe.” I chuckled and steered us both back onto the couch.

“I just happened to run into this guy Jake I’ve seen around campus a few times, and he invited me for a cup of coffee. We just hung out,” I replied, keeping my voice casual.

“Well, go on,” she urged with curiosity sparkling in her eyes.

“Well nothing, we said our goodbyes and left.” I shrugged and started playing with the hem of my worn-out tank top. Emma narrowed her eyes at me suspiciously. God, I could never keep anything from this woman.

“All right, he also gave me his number and told me to call him.” I smiled shyly, not meeting her eyes as she screeched in delight.

“What are you waiting for? Call him right now!” She clapped her hands excitedly, ready to play matchmaker.

“Not gonna happen,” I said firmly.

“C’mon, I haven’t seen him yet, but I can see he’s got your attention. Why don’t you put yourself out of your misery and give him a damn call?” She rolled her eyes and fell back on the couch.

“I’ve told you a million times, I’m not ready for a relationship yet.” I was talking to myself as much as to her.

“Who said anything about a relationship? Why don’t you have some fun? With him.” She winked suggestively, and I gasped.

“I cannot believe you’re even suggesting that.” I gave her a dirty look, and she giggled at my response.

“Hey, I just want you to be happy, however that’s achieved. You should definitely get laid sometime soon, my sweet little virgin,” she teased, making my cheeks go red.

“Let’s go out and have some real fun.” I tried to change the subject before she could tease me any further.

“Yes, ma’am,” she said with another wink, grabbing her purse.

***

Emma helped us navigate the subway downtown, since driving to that area would take twice as long. It smelled a little weird, but I liked the feeling of rushing through underground tunnels, safe and hidden.

After three hours wandering around Brookfield Place looking at clothes we could never afford, we were both exhausted. Back at home, I headed straight to my room for a nap.

The loud ringing of my phone woke me up. I answered groggily, not bothering to check the caller ID.

“Hey, Ashley.” I recognized the voice immediately.

“Chad?” I asked, surprised.

“Yeah, it’s me. I’m having kind of a boring Saturday, and I was wondering if I could come by your place and hang out.” He sounded hesitant.

“Uhh…yeah, sure, I’ll text you my address.” I was still sleepy. How did he get my number? I couldn’t remember giving it to him. Maybe he got it from the student portal?

I brushed the question aside; it would be fun to hang out with Chad outside of class, and it didn’t really matter how he’d managed to get in touch.

“Okay, see you then.” He cut the call, and I texted him the address before freshening up and heading downstairs. About fifteen minutes later, I heard the doorbell.

“Who is it?” Emma yelled from her room.

“Just a friend from college,” I shouted back. She came rushing to my side as I opened the door, giving me a look. I hurried to do introductions before she could assume that this was Jake.

“Emma, Chad. Chad, Emma.” I smiled and heard Emma relaxing next to me.

“Oh, thank God. Nice to meet you, Chad. I heard you were Ash’s new BFF. You’d better not usurp me.” She eyed him in a playfully angry manner.

“Stop it, Emma.” We both laughed, and Chad chuckled nervously.

“All right,” said Emma once we’d gotten Chad settled in on the couch with a soda. “I’ll leave you guys alone. Have fun.”

“Why don’t you join us?” Chad asked, adjusting his specs.

“Oh, I don’t want to intrude.” She waved her hand and gave him a small smile.

“I don’t mind,” he pressed. I was happy that he seemed comfortable with Emma. I didn’t want my new friend feuding with my old one for real.

“Okay, let’s do this.” She seemed excited and came to join us on the couch.

“So, what would you like to do, Chad? We could watch a movie or something. You can even pick the movie,” I suggested.

“All right, but you’re gonna regret that offer,” he warned. “I have very…specific taste in movies.”

We ended up in front of something confusing and French, but that was okay because I barely paid attention to the story; the three of us talked through the whole thing.

I completely enjoyed Chad’s company. He explained that he was in a long-distance relationship with a girl named Tracy. He was totally in love with her; I could sense it from the way he talked about her.

After the first movie was over, we cued up a mindless action flick and ordered pizza. Chad left around nine. “Thanks for being chill about me inviting myself over,” he said at the door. “I’m really glad we’re becoming friends.”

“Me too,” I said. “We’ll have to do this again sometime. Maybe I can come to yours next.”

He grimaced. “I’m in the dorms, so there’s not a lot of space. And it kind of smells like feet all the time.”

I laughed. “I guess I’m pretty lucky with my living situation.” I was pretty lucky, full stop. Today I got a job, a coffee date, a day out with my bestie, and a really fun evening with a new friend. What more could a girl ask for?

In bed that night, I got to thinking about what Emma had said earlier about having some casual fun with Jake. It wasn’t such a bad idea.

The one thing Alex never took from me was my virginity. I’d love to give it to someone as gorgeous as Jake. And casual sex would probably be a lot less scary than an actual relationship—even if Jake somehow wanted one.

But was I that desperate? Slut, whispered that ever-present Alex-voice in my head.

No. I couldn’t do that. I would just have to fight this attraction or whatever I was feeling toward Jake. My life was good. No reason to risk everything just for a pair of beautiful brown eyes.

***

After classes on Monday, I headed to the coffee shop for my first day of work. My new boss, Grace, was happy to see me and started to teach me how to work the espresso machine.

Since it was a weekday, it wasn’t crowded yet and I had time to figure out what to do. The first hour flew by as I practiced pulling shots and steaming milk.

“Ashley, dear?” I turned away from carefully pumping vanilla syrup into a latte at the sound of Grace’s voice.

“Your phone has been ringing for a while; why don’t you take a break? It’s not crowded.”

“Okay, Mrs. Willow.” I gave her a small smile and headed into the shop’s tiny breakroom. Sure enough, I could hear my phone buzzing where I’d left it in a locker.

My heart fluttered when I pulled it out and saw the caller ID. It was Jake. But I wasn’t gonna pick up the call. I’d made up my mind. I put my phone on silent and headed back to work.

The rest of my shift went by pretty quickly. I was walking home when I got a text.

I tried my best to shut him out of my mind and didn’t reply.

***

The next day, after American lit, I had some free time and decided to check out the library. It was huge! I knew I could easily get lost wandering through the maze of stacks.

I’d always wanted a bookcase of my own, but there wasn’t enough space in my room at Emma’s, let alone enough money to buy that many books. I was going through the shelves in awe, lost in my own world, when a voice came from a few feet away.

“Done avoiding me?” I literally jumped, hitting my back against a shelf and almost knocking everything off.

“Jesus Christ, you scared me, Jake.” I held my hand against my heart.

“Why aren’t you picking up my calls?” He looked at me, confused, scrunching his eyebrows. He looked so damn cute. Okay, focus, Ashley.

“I—I was busy. I had to work,” I stuttered.

“Do I make you nervous?” He looked like he was trying to hide a smile as he came closer. I could feel my heart beating so fast I thought it would jump out of my chest.

“No. Now, if you could please excuse me, I have some studying to do.” I tried to dodge around him.

“Wait.” He caged me with his arms and locked his eyes with mine. I swallowed hard and felt myself gazing deeply into those beautiful brown eyes.

“You feel something for me, don’t you? Why are you trying to escape me? Unless you already have a boyfriend…” He looked genuinely curious. Damn, he smelled like fresh mint and coffee.

“I—I wasn’t trying to escape you,” I stuttered, embarrassing myself again.

“I realize we don’t know much about each other, but I meant what I said that day. I really enjoyed spending time with you, Ash.” He grinned, showing his dimples. Dear lord. How could I say no to this?

“Maybe…we can be friends?” I suggested weakly.

“If that’s what you want. But trust me, we can never be just friends.” He smirked and leaned closer. If I had moved just one inch toward him in return, our lips would have touched. My breath hitched, and I noticed how tall he was.

“I’ll be waiting for your call.” He moved a strand of hair from my face and placed it behind my ear, setting my entire body on fire. Then he finally stepped back, let out a breath, and walked away.

Fuck. Was it too hot inside the library or was it just me? I was already thinking about calling him.