Chapter 141: Second husband?
Ryder stood at Ash’s door, nervously rubbing the back of his neck. He didn’t even know where to start, but he had to try. When Ash opened the door, he looked at him curiously, not sure why Ryder would show up out of the blue.
"Ryder? What are you doing here?" Ash asked, leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed.
Ryder tried to smile, but it came out weak. "I, uh...I need to talk to you. Can we go inside?"
Ash raised an eyebrow but stepped aside, letting Ryder into the apartment. They sat down, and after a moment of awkward silence, Ash leaned forward, eyes narrowing slightly. "So, what’s going on? Why are you here?"
Ryder looked uncomfortable as he rubbed the back of his neck again, clearly not sure how to approach the topic. "I need...your advice. About Noah."
Ash blinked in surprise, his suspicion immediately heightened. "Noah? Why? What’s this about?"
Ryder let out a heavy sigh. "I messed things up with him. Badly. I need to make it up to him, but I don’t know how."
Ash frowned, his suspicion quickly turning into something else—concern. "Wait. So I was right. There is something going on between you two?"
Ryder nodded slowly, his face filled with regret. "Yeah. There was something...But I screwed it up. Big time."
Ash’s eyes narrowed. "Noah wouldn’t tell me anything. Ever since I got back, he’s been...different. Sad. He stays at home all the time, hardly talks to anyone. You’re telling me this is because of you?"
Ryder winced at that. Hearing how Noah had withdrawn from everything because of him made him feel even worse. "Yeah," he admitted quietly. "It’s my fault."