Finding Ashlynn by Zoe Lynne Read Free Book Online Page B

before dinner, then maybe she could get out of the house for a few hours and meet Ash somewhere between their neighborhoods. First, though, she needed to make sure it was cool with Ash.
    She dug out her phone, and of course, Ash had made it to the coveted spot of number one on her speed dial, bumping Stella down to two and her parents down to three. Anyone who looked at Jenna’s phone would know by that alone how much Ash meant to her. There would totally be no question about it.
    The phone rang and rang and rang, and for a moment, Jenna doubted her newfound sweetheart would answer. Then she heard Ash’s groggy voice on the other end.
    “Were you asleep already?” Jenna asked.
    “Kinda. I think I’m getting sick.”
    “No,” Jenna whined.
    Selfishly, her first thought was not of Ash’s well-being. If Ash ended up getting sick, they probably wouldn’t get to see each other, and that would be straight-up torture. And when she realized how self-centered she was being, she face-palmed herself hard enough she could hear the smack echoing in the phone.
    “You okay?” Ash asked.
    “I think I should be asking you that question.” Jenna sighed and sat down on the edge of her bed. “I was being a brat about not seeing you instead of worrying about your well-being.”
    Ash laughed, which trailed off into a coughing fit. It lasted a good minute, and frankly, Jenna hated the idea of Ash being in any sort of pain.
    “Can I do anything for you?” Jenna asked softly.
    “Nah, I’ll be fine. I’m skipping band practice tonight. Just gonna try to sleep it off.”
    “Will you let me bring you some soup or some medicine or… or something?”
    Even through the phone, she heard Ash sigh. Then she heard the squeaking of old bedsprings and the rustling of sheets. “You don’t need to come to my neighborhood,” Ash said. “It’s not real safe.”
    “I don’t care.”
    “I do.”
    Admittedly, it was nice to know Ash cared enough to not want her venturing into the dark underbelly of a side of town that frankly scared the crap out of Jenna, but right now, where Ash lived didn’t matter. Jenna didn’t want Ash to be alone and didn’t care if she had to brave the crime-ridden Westside to run to Ash’s aid.
    “Please, let me come over. I won’t stay long, I swear.”
    There was a long amount of silence, too long, and Jenna had the feeling it really had nothing to do with the part of town Ash lived in and more to do with Ash’s pride. The thing Ash didn’t understand was that nothing would change the way Jenna felt about her. Nothing would push Jenna away unless Ash didn’t want her around.
    “You don’t want me to see where you live, do you?” Jenna asked.
    “Not really.”
    “Why?”
    “Because.”
    Okay, Jenna could let it go and accept Ash’s not wanting her to see where she lived… for now. It sort of hurt Jenna’s feelings that Ash didn’t trust her not to be judgmental, but Ash wouldn’t know she could trust Jenna completely, not yet anyway.
    “Well, um…,” Jenna said softly, hoping the disappointment she felt didn’t seep through into her voice. “I guess I’ll let you get some rest.”
    “You know it’s not that I don’t want to see you, right? I mean, I really do.”
    “I know.”
    “Maybe I can come out and meet you tomorrow night,” Ash offered.
    “Just get better, okay?”
    “Okay.”
    “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
    “Yeah, tomorrow,” Ash said, then the line went dead.
    Jenna fell back on her bed and hugged her phone to her chest. It felt completely silly to be so devastated for not being able to visit Ash while she was under the weather, but Jenna was devastated, completely and totally. She wanted nothing more than to help Ash get well, to make sure she was comfortable and taking care of herself, half because she knew Ash had no one else, half because she wanted to be the one by her side. But Jenna couldn’t be there because Ash didn’t want her to be.
    She rolled over