Jake came in with Ash's sandwich and handed it to him. They spoke about condiments and then moved on to other topics, but I mostly tuned them out. I had about fifteen more minutes of work to do on the aquarium, which included making a couple of trips out to my truck. I could hear them talking, but I had my hands full with trying to wrap things up.
During my final trip to the truck, I wound the hose and made sure it was securely locked in place. I took a minute to sit in the driver's seat and check myself in the mirror. I didn't look as disheveled as I did the first time I met Ash, but I was in my work uniform again and had been dealing with fish all morning. I told myself that a good portion of my life was spent in my work clothes dealing with fish, so I should just get over it.
"Your sandwich is up," Jake said when I came back inside. "Are you ready for it?"
I glanced at Ash to find that he was almost finished with his lunch. I didn't want him to leave, but I also didn't know what to say to make him stay. "I need five more minutes," I said. "I have to check something on the tank in Greg's office and go wash my hands."
"I'll just leave it under the lamp till you get back," Jake said with a nod.
I had come to stand at the bar while I was talking to Jake. I stood close to Ash, but not right next to him. There was a barstool between us. He set his napkin next to his plate and leaned back, shifting to look at me. His face was honestly breathtaking. It was better than I remembered. He had chiseled, masculine features, and he looked way too sharp in a button-down shirt and dress pants.
We hadn't had the chance to talk while I was packing up and finishing my work, and there was a tinge of regret in both of our expressions because of it. I knew if I didn't say something to make him stay, he would be gone by the time I got back, and that just wasn't an option.
I pointed toward the right side of the bar, the empty area opposite where the small group was sitting on our left. "I'll probably sit over there and eat some lunch in a minute," I said.
Jake was standing right there on the other side of the bar listening to me, which only added to my nerves. I glanced at Jake, hoping he'd take the hint and walk away.
"Do you know each other?" Jake asked with a curious expression.
"Yes," Ash said.
I expected him to explain how he knew me or say what a coincidence it was that he ran into me. But he didn't. He just looked at me with casual confidence all over his handsome face.
"If that's an invitation to sit with you while you eat, then yes, I'd love to."
I grinned. "Okay, I'll be back in a few."
He nodded, and I turned to leave. I heard Jake ask Ash how he knew me, but I didn't stick around to listen for Ash's answer.
He was sitting at the end of the bar by the time I got back. I was breathless with nerves, but I pushed past it, putting one foot in front of the other and pretending I was calm and collected. Jake saw me coming and he left the bar, presumably to get my lunch. Ash pulled out the barstool as I approached. There was something so attractive about a man acting like a gentleman.
I wore a half-smile as I sat on the stool next to him. "Hey," I said.
"Hey."
"Thanks for waiting for me. I'm sorry I didn't get to talk much while I was working."
"I'm sorry if it's weird that I came here," he said. "I just remembered you saying you worked here on Friday mornings, and I didn’t really know how else to run into you."
His candid statement caused a warm, gushing sensation to happen inside me. I instinctually looked around, but Jake was gone and no one else was near. "It's not weird," I said, feeling otherwise speechless.
"I tried to make sure you were going to be taking care of the pond at the Foster's house, but I was afraid they'd send someone else, and—"
"It's me," I said, nodding. "I think Lance put you on my schedule for Thursdays."
"Good," he said. "I hated to be picky, but I was really hoping it'd be you."
I didn't know how to respond. The bodily sensations I had going on sitting next to this guy where extremely distracting and it was hard to stay focused on what I should say next.
Jake came out of the kitchen and set my food in front of me.
"Thank you," I said.
Jake smiled and pointed at the plate. "Victor made you some kind of special aioli for your fries."
"Aw, tell him thank you," I said.
"Who's Victor?" Ash asked as soon as Jake walked to the other end of the bar.
"One of the sous chefs," I said. "They take care of me here."
I blessed my food silently and began eating, starting by popping a few fries into my mouth. Ash watched me. I knew he was thinking about saying something, but he kept quiet.
"I have some regrets about meeting you the other day," I said.
"I don't," Ash said. "I don't regret it at all."
I let out a little laugh at that. "I mean I regret some of the things I said. I wished I could take some of it back. I didn't know you were the musician who was moving into the house."
"I know you didn't," he said.
I squinted a him. "You knew I thought a lady was moving into that house, and you didn't correct me."
He shrugged, looking slightly abashed. "I'm sorry," he said. "I was enjoying getting to know you like a normal person. I liked that you didn't know who I was. It seemed like you were a little intimidated about the cellist who would be moving in, and I didn't want to be that person."
I thought about that as I finished chewing a bite of my sandwich. I wasn't hungry, but it tasted good and gave me something to do with my hands. "I kind of liked thinking you were a normal person, too," I said. "I mean, not that you're not normal, I just, I mean, I kind of liked getting to know you as the mover that day. He was a cool guy."
"I'm still that guy," he said.
"Yeah, but I assumed you were someone else. I thought the cellist was a woman, and I said that in front of you. That's so embarrassing."
"Everyone assumes I'm a woman when they first hear my name. There aren't really many men named Ashley."
"Why don't you go by Ash?" I asked.
"I do."
"I mean, on stage. Why do all your concert people know you as Ashley?"
"I like Ashley," he said. "I don't mind it. I go by Ash with my family and friends, but professionally, I like Ashley. It's unique." He shrugged one shoulder. "I'm kind of a man's man about other things, and I guess I like the contradiction of it. People get thrown off, and I don't mind that. It gives them something to talk about. Makes me different."
"Where'd your parent's get that name?"
"It's a family name. My parents chose it for my grandpa—my dad's dad. He had a twin brother named Ashley. Ashley Jay. They called him A.J. He passed away when they were ten-years-old."
"Is your middle name Jay, like him?"
"Yep. I never went by A.J., though. Always Ash."
I stared at my plate, still feeling weird about all the things I said during our first encounter.
"I should have told you I was the person moving into the house," he said, obviously feeling the same way. "For some reason, I thought you would hang out longer, and I could tell you eventually. I didn't know you would run off before I had the chance to."
"I started putting it together that you weren't the mover, like I originally thought," I said. "So, I just assumed that you were the cellist's husband. I never dreamed you were the cellist. I didn't figure that out until Lance called me into his office the next morning and asked me to take over the pond. He mentioned you again—said his mom was a big fan of your music." I sighed. "Speaking of your music," I said. "I'm really sorry for how I acted when you mentioned classical music. I regret that. I really do wish I knew more about it. I'd probably really like it if I gave it a chance."
"What do you mean?" he asked, wearing a look of confusion.
"I hate that I said all that silly stuff about Bach—that I talked like a rich lady and told you I didn't listen to classical music."
"Would you have acted differently if you would have known who I was?"
I shrugged. "I don't know," I said with a smile. "I definitely don't think I would have talked in that fancy accent."
He laughed. "That was my favorite," he said.
"Really, darling?" I said, lapsing into that lazy drawl again. "You like it when I talk fancy, do you?" I was careful to control my volume because some of the women at the club actually talked like that.
Ash laughed and shook his head at me. "I love those Koi," he said. "I go out there every day and watch them."
"They're beautiful, aren't they? If I didn't get to work with fish every day, I'd definitely have some of my own."
Jake had returned to our end of the bar, and he overheard that last statement. "Bill and Jana would love for you to set up a pond," he said. "I'm surprised they haven't asked you to do it already."
I shrugged. "I get enough fishy love at work."
"Who are Bill and Jana?" Ash asked.
"My aunt and uncle," Jake said. "Abby's landlords. They have a gorgeous house over on San Marco Island. She lives in their guesthouse."
"Jake used to live there before my roommate and I moved in," I said.
"So, you two really do know each other," Ash said.
"We go way back," Jake said, wiping the bar. "Abby's the one who got me the job here."
"Jake's gonna be a lawyer," I said.
Ash nodded. "He told me that earlier."
"Can I get you anything else?" Jake asked. "Something else to drink, or some dessert."
"No, thanks," Ash said. "Unless Abigail wants something. I'll settle up whenever you're ready, though, and I'll take care of the lady's, too."
"Abby's is on the house," Jake said, going to the computer to print Ash's tab.
"Are you and Jake…" Ash trailed off, and I looked to him with a curious tilt of my head.
"Are we what?"
"I don't know. Are you guys… does he… are you two seeing each other?"
"No," I said. "We're friends." I took another bite of my sandwich. I had almost finished half of it, which was all I would eat.
"Are you seeing anyone else?" he asked. I was so overwhelmed with excitement that I honestly felt like I wanted to cry.
"No," I said casually.
"How about you? Is there a lady waiting for you in New York?"
"I wouldn't be tracking you down, trying to buy your lunch if there were."
"You tracked me down?" I asked, smiling.
He shrugged. "I guess maybe it doesn't count as tracking you down if you told me you were here every Friday morning. I didn't come for the tour, though, or the sandwich. I knew I might see you next week at the house, but that seemed like too long to wait."
I felt the exact same way, but I wasn't nearly as confident and comfortable saying it. I didn't know how he managed to say whatever he was thinking and come across so sure of himself.
"Do you want to come to the park with me?" I asked. "I'm meeting Sidney and her students in just a little while. I've got to go by the office first, but I—"
"Yes," Ash said. "As long as we're done by around four. I have rehearsal at five."
"Oh, we'll definitely be done by then. I usually only stay for about thirty minutes or an hour. We'll be done by two. The students have to get back to the school and everything."
"Do they get to take a field trip every Friday?"
I nodded. "Yeah. It's not really a field trip, though. It's an educational program. They are all high school juniors and seniors, and every Friday, Sidney takes them out to get practical life skills. Sometimes, they volunteer at a soup kitchen. Sometimes, they go to work at a laundry service, folding towels and sheets. She even takes them to stores so they can talk about shopping—prices, and sales tax, and things like that. She's an amazing teacher, and the students are awesome. She's doing them a real service by not keeping them stuck in the classroom. They volunteer or do some kind of activity in the morning, and then they go to the park to eat lunch before heading back to school. I usually just meet them at the park and hang out for thirty minutes or an hour."
"How'd you start doing that?"
"I knew Sidney from way back in grade school. She's a friend of my family's. I hadn't seen her in a long time, but I ran into her and her students one Friday morning a couple of years ago. They were at the library, and I was returning some books on my way here. I started talking to Sidney, and she invited me to eat lunch that day. It was just a coincidence that they had a Koi pond at the park, but it worked out. They love talking about the fish. I take food with me, and her students get such a kick out of feeding them."
"I'd love to go, if you don't think your friend would mind."
"Not at all," I said. "They'd love to meet you."