The burning ache in my throat spread straight to my heart. As the silence on Ashton’s end dragged on, I forced myself to say, “I won’t bother you while you’re picking out rings. Goodbye.”

And then I hung up.

I pressed the button so hard it felt like I was crushing my own heart along with the call.

For a moment, I just stood there, frozen.

Logan walked over, probably sensing something was wrong. But the second he got close, I dropped my head and hurried ...