“Got any coffee?” Ash pointed at Chris’ mug still in her hand.

  “Sure. How do you like it?”

  “Black is good.”

  Chris still wasn’t sure what to do. She needed to focus on the conversation, but her mind was in overdrive as she thought about the possibilities of what could happen, about the fact that Ash was back in her space, what they had already done here. Chris bit the inside of her cheek to keep herself in check. She couldn’t be thinking like that. Ash had made no inclinations that she wanted that to happen, and it had just been one night. Those boundaries were set from the start, but with all the recent discoveries, everything was a disaster.

  With Ash’s coffee poured, Chris led the way back to the couch. Then she regretted it. This had been where they’d first fucked, and the scratchy fabric of the couch against Chris’ skin was most memorable. Ash seemed to hesitate briefly before sitting down.

  “You wanted to talk,” Ash whispered, not looking at Chris. Her eyes were glued to the coffee.

  She was uncomfortable. But Chris couldn’t tell if it was because of the topic of conversation or the fact they were in the room together. Chris pressed her lips together hard, choosing her words carefully. “I wanted to listen.”

  Ash raised her gaze then, meeting Chris’. “Listen?”

  “Yeah.” Chris sipped her coffee. “Listen.”

  Blowing out a breath, Ash set her coffee on the table and relaxed back into the couch. But her entire body was still tense. If Chris didn’t know better, she’d say she was anxious. “You made junior year a living hell.”

  “How?” Chris genuinely wanted to know. She wanted to see if there was anything she needed to change for the future, something that she could be doing better than she had in the past.

  “Do you remember when you told us we could write anything? Just some fictional story, any genre, our choice?”

  Chris nodded, though she didn’t remember what Ash had written. It wasn’t that unusual for her to give that assignment, and she had done it for years before switching into an administrative role.

  “You hated my piece.”

  “Hated it?” Surely Chris would remember that. She tried to think back, tried to pull the pages from the back of her mind, but she couldn’t for the life of her remember it. “I doubt I hated it. I never hated anything you wrote.”

  Ash snorted loudly. “You put red marks over everything.”

  “That’s my job as a teacher.”

  “No one else had red marks like that!”

  “Did I say anything mean?” Chris held her mug tightly. “Did I say anything that was out of line?”

  Ash sat still for a few moments, thinking before she slowly shook her head. “You weren’t unnecessarily cruel.”

  “So how did I bully you?”

  “I didn’t want your extra attention.” Ash clenched her jaw tightly. “I wanted you to leave me alone.”

  Chris nodded slowly, trying to take that in. What was she supposed to say to that? She ran her finger around the rim of her mug as she thought. “I’m sorry I didn’t see how you were interpreting my actions.”

  Ash sighed. “But you did help me.”

  “Help?” Chris raised her eyebrow.

  “I was a full-time author until a few years ago when I stopped writing. That’s why I’m back to working in the nonprofit sector.” Ash wrung her hands together tightly.

  “You’re a published author?” Chris couldn’t stop the grin from reaching her lips. “So you actually did what you said you would do. You did it, Ash!”

  When Ash turned and looked at her, there were tears in her eyes. Again, Chris couldn’t place the cause. She wished she knew, but those weren’t tears of joy. Reaching out, Chris settled her hand on Ash’s to calm her. “Look, I know you don’t trust me, but if you ever want to talk about what that is, please, talk to me.”

  Ash’s lips parted in surprise, but she shook her head. “It’s nothing.”

  “You said you stopped writing. Why?”

  “Life.” Ash shrugged. “Life got hard with two kids and drama, and I stopped to focus on my family.”

  “That’s understandable. Will you go back to it?”

  “No,” Ash whispered. “No, I don’t think I will.”

  “Pity. You were my best student, and few have come close to your abilities since. You have an innate sense for the written word and for storytelling. That’s all I was trying to encourage you toward.” Chris squeezed Ash’s fingers and let go, not wanting to linger too long and make her uncomfortable.

  “Avonlee likes you,” Ash croaked out.

  Chris jerked her head back in surprise. “I barely know her. That’s the downside to being principal. I don’t get to know the kids as well as I used to when I was teaching.”

  “Well, she likes you. It’s one of the few things she confessed to me last night.” Ash rubbed her palms together before grabbing her mug. “Should be some consolation.”

  “She’s struggling. All I wanted to do was to help her.”

  “Well, it worked, for now at least. She was calmer last night.”

  “You didn’t yell at her for bringing the necklace, did you?”

  “Hmm, no. I figured she felt guilty enough about it.” Ash ran her fingers through her hair, the strands loose around her shoulders today, still damp from a shower.

  Chris readily resisted the urge to touch them and held onto her mug. “I’m glad. Is the ring yours?”

  Ash nodded slowly, her gaze flicking to meet Chris’ eyes before dropping back down. “I suppose she told you what it was for.”

  Chris shrugged, a noncommittal response. “After our first kid, Katie, Andry and I struggled to have another. Nothing worked.”

  “How old is your daughter?”

  “She just turned nineteen. First year in college.” Chris finished her coffee and was reluctant to set the mug down. It was a good distraction for her hands and to keep her body to herself. She and Ash weren’t the same people who had met all those weeks ago or all those years ago, and she had to tread lightly if she didn’t want to mess this up any more than she already had. “Both Andry and I struggled, so Katie is our pride and joy.”

  Ash reached out and gripped Chris’ hand tightly, squeezing once before letting go. The touch of her fingers lingered on Chris’ skin, a ghost that was already gone and cold. But that meant Chris was moving in the right direction, wasn’t it? Chris rubbed her hands along her thighs. Why were they here again?

  “Ms. Dunja loves having Avonlee in her class, and after the incident Friday, I checked with Ms. Walsh about Rhubie, and she said she’s doing really well in class.”

  “Rhubie is my rockstar, always able to hold her shit together until the weight becomes too much and she cracks. But then she’s right back to her normal self the next day.”

  Chris raised an eyebrow in curiosity. Just what had this family gone through? She was tempted to research it, see if she could figure it out, but she also wanted to honor Ash’s privacy and the fact that this was her story to tell. Chris couldn’t force her into it if she didn’t want to share.

  “Avonlee is too much like me. React first, ask for forgiveness later.” Ash’s cheeks tinged red. “Is Katie more like you or Andry?”

  “God, I hope she’s more like Andry, but I fear she’s way too much like me.”

  “Is she enjoying college?”

  Chris paused. She wanted to be as honest as she could be, but she also didn’t want to drop too many bombs into this relationship that already seemed to be littered with landmines. “Katie and I don’t talk a lot, not since Andry and I separated. I think she’s enjoying school.”

  “Oh.” Ash turned her chin up. “I’m so sorry.”

  “Don’t be. It’s my own fault. I wasn’t a great parent for a number of years, and Katie is still suffering from that.” Chris hated admitting that, but it was true. She had done irreparable damage to their relationship, and as much as she hoped for some sort of reconciliation, she wasn’t sure it was even possible. They’d tried a number of times but had always failed after a few months.

  Ash looked shocked.

  Chris’ lips parted as she looked directly at her. “What?”

  “Most people can’t admit that, or anything close to that.”

  “I’ve done a lot of work on myself in the last few years. Sometimes it pays off to be self-aware.”

  “And other times it’s devastating with how shitty a person you’ve been?”

  “Most days.” Chris gave Ash a wry smile. “Like bullying my student.”

  “I guess you weren’t really a bully. But you were a jerk.”

  “Fair.” Chris didn’t want to stop smiling. The lightness that had entered the conversation was something she appreciated, and she wanted to keep it. “So where are the girls today?”

  “Char took them to Denver to the zoo. I’m supposed to be finishing more unpacking.” Ash shrugged slightly. “I’m so tired of boxes.”

  Laughing again, Chris relaxed back into the couch and stretched her arm out along the top edge of it. “I swore after I moved out of the house when we separated that I’d never move again.”

  “And did you?”

  “Three times already, and moving Katie into her dorm.” Chris rolled her eyes. “Never say never. Isn’t that what they always say?”

  “Yeah.” Ash’s tone turned breathy, a look of longing crossing her features before she masked it.

  Good, so they were both on the same page there. Sex between them wouldn’t ever happen again. This was simply putting water under the bridge, which was something they both needed to do.

  “Why do you volunteer at Hope in Action?”

  Chris hummed, debating once again on how honest to be. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to share everything with Ash, but Ash was still a parent at her school. She had to keep some sort of boundaries between them, and it was her job to do it. “It keeps me out of trouble, and I like giving back to my community. Truly. Some of the kids who have been through the house have been my students, and they need as much support as they can possibly get.”

  “That’s admirable.”

  The compliment was unexpected. Chris wasn’t sure what to do with it, so she remained silent. What were they supposed to do now? They’d talked, though Chris wasn’t entirely sure they had gotten everything out of the way yet, but one conversation wouldn’t accomplish that.

  “Are we…okay?” Chris finally asked, stumbling over her words.

  Ash jerked around to face her. “Okay?”

  “With each other. With everything that’s happened…” she trailed off, not quite sure how to even begin to put all of that into words. “I just want to make sure that we’re okay.”

  With a slow shake of her head, Ash stared, dumbfounded. “Why wouldn’t we be okay?”

  “Ash, you called me your high school bully.”

  “But…but I was wrong, okay? I was wrong.” Ash leaned in closer, her eyes so sincere. “You weren’t my bully.”

  Relief washed through Chris. “So are we okay, then? I don’t want to make this any more difficult than it already is.”

  Ash’s lips parted like she was going to object again, but Chris stopped her with a quick shake of her head.

  “You can’t deny that this is a complicated situation.”

  “It is.” Ash sighed. “My life is complicated.”

  “Whose isn’t?”

  Chapter Ten

  Ash wasn’t supposed to be here. But with the girl’s at her parents’ house for the day and night, she had nothing else to do. As soon as she opened the door to Hope in Action, she was surprised to see Chris sitting at the kitchen table. Chris had spent the entire last weekend at the house, but since then, Ash hadn’t seen her. Not at school during the week, and certainly not any time after school hours. Not since the conversation in Chris’ living room. Not since she’d asked the question, Are we okay?

  A question that still haunted Ash every day. Chris’ voice echoed in her mind as she heard her ask it, over and over again.

  Because no, they weren’t okay. Every time Ash was in the room with her, she wanted to know more, she wanted to touch and feel and go back to that night of bliss when she’d been able to forget those pesky complications for a few hours. The complications of pain and hurt and grief and devastation.

  “What are you doing here?” Chris asked from the kitchen table, pulling Ash right back to the present moment.

  Cold rushed over her. “I thought I’d get some work done.”

  “Boundaries are a thing for a reason, Ashton.”

  That firm voice, the commanding tone, sent a shiver through Ash, straight between her legs and settled into the pit of her stomach. God, what Ash would give to hear that tone again in an entirely different way.

  Stop.

  She had to stop thinking that. One night of happiness was all it could ever be, and she knew that. Why was she thinking otherwise?

  “Ash?”

  “What?” Ash jerked her head up, her cheeks red as she’d been caught with those thoughts in her mind.

  Chris pushed out from the table and came over, concern lighting her gaze. “Everything okay?”

  “Uh…yeah. Just wanted to get some work done.”

  “Where are the girls?”

  “Grandparents. I honestly didn’t think they’d be gone this much with family.” In all honesty, it made Ash uncomfortable. She hated being alone, and the last two years, she had been with the girls almost every waking second she had with them.

  “The novelty will wear off, I promise you.” Chris skimmed her hand down Ash’s arm and then dropped her hand to her side.

  Ash shivered. She could blame it on the cold from outside if she needed to, but she knew the real reason. They both probably did if they thought about it. Ash hummed to herself. “I’m going to get some work done.”

  “Your choice, but there is such a thing as overworking.”

  “Speaking from experience?” Ash stared directly into Chris’ dark brown eyes.

  “Always.” Chris ducked her chin before backing away. She went to the table and slid into the chair, pulling over a notebook that one of the current residents had been writing in.

  Just what was Chris doing? Ash wanted desperately to go see, but she restrained herself, barely. It was a bit of her business, but she also had that new pesky word in the forefront of her mind. Boundaries. Why did Chris have to put it like that?

  Ash stood at the door to her office, watching Chris as she tutored. She was kind and gentle in her approach. Was this Chris’ true passion? She’d said something about missing connections with the kids. Did she find that here? Sliding into her office for safety and comfort, Ash collapsed into her desk chair.

  Ash had been on the receiving end of that attention from Chris so many times in her life. It surprised her to realize that she wanted it again. She wanted to feel Chris over her shoulder, reading whatever she had written, and commenting on it—good or bad. Ash bit her lip and closed her eyes. She hadn’t felt that pull to write something since Mari had died.

  She’d assumed it was gone. Vanished. Never to return. Maybe the move hadn’t been in vain for everything. Then again, she wasn’t sitting at a computer typing. Nope. She was daydreaming. About Chris’ breasts against her shoulder, the scent of her hair, the scent of her arousal, the taste of her pussy. Ash’s breathing increased. Closing her eyes, she felt Chris against her. Those soft caresses. The feel of her fingers curled around her neck, just enough pressure to make Ash wonder what she would do next and know that Chris was in complete control.

  “Ash?”

  Startled, Ash jerked upright with a start. Chris stood in her doorway, a curious look on her features, as if she knew what Ash had been thinking about. But she couldn’t have known, right? “Uh…yeah…what’s up?”

  Chris crossed her arms and leaned against the doorframe. “Donald has his GED test in a couple weeks. I was wondering if I could come in and tutor him until he takes it.”

  “Sure.” Ash choked on the word. That meant they would see even more of each other, and while Ash was fine with that on one hand, on the other, she wasn’t. She needed to keep her distance, because Chris was pulling things out of her that had long remained buried.

  “Thanks.” Chris nodded and turned back around to leave.

  “Chris?” Ash called, not sure where she was even going with the conversation, but she knew she didn’t want Chris to leave yet.

  “Yeah?” Chris once again leaned against the doorframe, looking like she owned the building. She belonged there more than Ash did.

  Ash panicked. She had to come up with something to say now because just staring at each other wasn’t an option. But Ash couldn’t drag her gaze away. Chris looked so sexy standing there, her semi-professional workwear, her hair haloed around her, and her eyes bright with brilliance.

  “Um…never mind. You’re welcome to tutor here whenever you want.”

  “Great.” Chris flashed her a beautiful smile. “You should call me if anyone needs something that I can help with.”

  Ash nodded, choking on more words. She was completely lost. When she didn’t say anything else, Chris stepped into the room and shut the door behind her. She moved around the desk and sat on the edge of it, her knees parted. Ash swiveled her chair slightly so she was very nearly planted between Chris’ legs. There was so much she could do in this position if she wanted to, but they were in her office in a house with a dozen other people in it. And Ash didn’t want that, did she?

  “Is everything okay?”

  “Yeah. Why?” Cold washed through Ash. How could Chris tell so easily when she was off-kilter?

  Chris quieted, holding the tension between them. Finally she placed her hands on either side of her and leaned down slightly. Her voice was quiet, as if anyone could hear them. “I don’t want to overstep.”

  “Overstep what?”

  “This line we’ve formed.”

  Ash wanted to tell her that she should overstep. That the thing she wanted the most was for Chris to lean down and kiss her again and take away all the worries and fears she had rampaging through her brain. Ash wished Chris understood that the line had already been washed away.