Asher would never admit that there had never been a time before in her life when she had been as humiliated as she had been that day with Theo and Evelyn. She had hid it well, concealed her emotions with expertise, but that did nothing to soothe the feeling in her stomach that she had been taken for a fool and had paid for the consequences. She was angry but more than that, she was hurt and being hurt was an emotion that she was unfamiliar with. After all, people like her didn't get hurt. No one could touch her. She always kept her feelings and emotions close to her chest. She was incomparable when it came to matters of the heart. She could be cold and hard to read and her entire life, that had been the subject of most of her praise. She was calculating, brilliant and focused. There was no time for emotions.
But Theo had waltzed in with his charming smile and his relaxed demeanor and challenged all of that. Now she found herself second guessing her thoughts and her feelings and worst of all, her actions. She didn't regret what she had told Evelyn but she would have preferred never to have had the encounter to begin with. There was a small bit of shame that lingered and while that was hard to shake, it wasn't enough to make her feel regret.
After everything was said and done, Asher had told Theo where they stood. If he wanted to change things, the ball was in his court. And if he didn't, she could walk away, and walking away was something she excelled at. No one had ever accused her of being sentimental after all. But here she was, willing to at least hear him out though she was unsure what was to come out of it. When she spotted him by the lake, she felt a heaviness in her chest that was more apparent with every step she took. This was not something she was going to find pleasant but she walked anyway, When she reached him, she stood by her side and turned to face him only slightly. "Hey."