Ashton made no mention of the call which Bull sent to voicemail, even though she was annoyed at being jarred awake. He didn't comment either but used the interruption as an opportunity to get out of bed. After rustling through his bag, Bull held up a t-shirt and told Ashton that she was welcome to it before tossing it at her. He then announced that he would see if the front desk had a toothbrush. After he left the room, Ashton looked at his phone sitting on the nightstand and for a second considered attempting to see who had called.
Bull arrived triumphantly back at the room with a toothbrush in hand. He turned it over to Ashton who was perched on the edge of the bed. Instead of trying to spy on him, she decided to change into the t-shirt. When she re-emerged from the bathroom after brushing her teeth, Ashton marveled that he hadn't packed her toothbrush and some clothes.
"I thought about it but I didn't want to push my luck," Bull said.
"That's a switch," she replied. The slight edge in her voice caused him to look at her curiously.
Ashton climbed back into the bed and curled up on the far side of the king size mattress. Any sense of ease she had felt was gone and she replayed the past few days over in her mind as she tried to fall asleep. Bull changed his clothes and observed Ashton as inconspicuously as possible before shutting off the lights and getting into bed.
"Are we okay, Quince?" Bull asked as Ashton emerged from the bathroom after showering the next morning. She was wearing her clothes from the previous day and attempting to towel dry her dark hair as best she could with the hotel towel.
"You're the psychologist. You tell me."
"Something's bothering you since last night."
"Are you ever going to answer your phone?" Ashton asked directly.
"I came here to be with you," Bull said.
"You may want to tell her that, because it seems like you're supposed to be somewhere else."
"You're overthinking this."
"Am I? Which of us is the backup plan, in case things don't work out?" Ashton asked and tossed the towel down.
"Ashton."
"While I was sitting home alone wondering how you were going to deal with possibly losing everything, you were having a date with the person trying to take it all from you. And now you won't answer your phone. What do you want me to think?"
"I wasn't having a date. I told her to leave. What I was doing was going through my boxes, looking at that damn pillow you got me and wishing you were there," he said and brushed away a few strands of damp hair that was stuck on her cheek.
Despite her annoyance, Ashton found a smile trying to break free on her lips. "You kept it?"
"Sort of. It was in a box I hadn't opened," Bull admitted and sat down on the edge of the bed. "Give me a chance, Ash."
"You're making it very difficult."
He reached for Ashton's hand to pull her close. She sat down next to him with a dubious look on her face and watched him mouth the word please. Bull put his arm around her and upon receiving no rebuff, leaned in and nuzzled Ashton's neck. He guided her lips towards his and gently kissed her. Ashton inhaled the familiar scent of Bull's cologne mingled with soap as she pressed her mouth against his.
Bull ran his fingers through Ashton's hair before enveloping her in a close embrace. He could feel her relax in his arms as she slowly kissed him again. As Ashton's lips traced along the stubble of his jawline, a phone rang and she immediately tensed again.
"That's not me," Bull said as Ashton sighed.
Ashton extricated herself and dug her phone out of her bag. She immediately answered it when she saw her brother's name on the screen and Bull looked over with concern as she said Alex's name aloud. Not long after, Ashton was able to convince her nephew to give the phone to his father and she worriedly asked about their father. A minute or two later, she hung up.
"Everything alright?" Bull asked.
"Yeah," she replied and retook a seat next to him. "Cameron was playing with the phone. You should probably continue pleading for another chance."
Bull took Ashton back in his arms, kissed her quickly and gently fell back onto the bed. Seconds later, they were interrupted when Bull's phone began ringing. He tried to continue grazing his lips down her neck but Ashton groaned and rolled away. He reluctantly got up and walked to where his phone was sitting on the dresser while Ashton watched intently.
"It's Benny," he said and watched her half-heartedly shrug from the bed.
Bull did his best to get the lawyer off the phone. Ashton had returned to sitting on the edge of the bed and observed her ex-husband with amusement.
"Work calling?" she asked.
"No," Bull replied shaking his head. "He wanted to know if we had talked and worked things out."
Ashton chuckled mostly due to Bull's irritation. "He means well, Jason, even if his timing isn't the greatest."
"I know. Where were we?"
Before Bull retake his place next to her, Ashton stood and got her bag. She gestured for him to get his things and led the way to the door. He began to protest and reminded her that check out was at eleven. Ashton responded that things tended to happen in threes and the odds were not looking good.
When they arrived at the Catazarro home, Ashton dashed up the stairs to change after calling a quick greeting to her father. Bull chatted with the older man as they waited for her to return. When Ashton reappeared downstairs in fresh clothes and hair up in a ponytail, her father was sitting in his chair but Bull was nowhere to be seen.
"I never thought you would encourage me staying out all night with some guy," Ashton said as she sat across from her father.
"You and that guy needed time to talk. Alone."
"I think you're getting soft," she replied with a smile. Ashton then turned to look towards the kitchen where odd rattles had been coming from. In a raised voice, she called, "Put down the bacon, Jason Bull."
Seconds later, Bull walked towards the pair holding a steaming coffee mug in one hand and a half-eaten slice of bacon in the other. He offered the bacon to Ashton with a sheepish grin and tried to convince her that he was in search of teabags.
"In the oven?" she asked before popping the last bite in her mouth. Bull had apologized again when they reached the car and did his best to dispel any apprehension she still had. As a psychologist, he knew that there were many things aside from the phone fueling her uneasiness. Ashton accepted his apology and agreed to go back to the city with him.
It wasn't long before the general quiet was replaced with talking, laughter, children running around and the dog trying to hide from everyone. After enjoying a leisurely meal, Bull showed his former brother-in-law the Bentley. Ashton urged her father to go out and take it for a test drive before Bull traded it in for a new toy.
Before going back into the house, Alex pulled Bull aside. The younger man stared intently at the psychologist for a few seconds before he spoke.
"I want my sister to be happy. She deserves that," Alex began.
"Just say it, Alex," Bull told him.
"Are you screwing around on Ash?" Alex asked while staring directly at Bull with a stern look on his face. Ashton's brother had a good couple of inches on her ex and although generally good-natured, Alex knew how to use his size to his advantage when necessary.
"No. Never."
"Good. I really didn't want to have to kick your ass today," Alex said with a quick smile and held the door open for Bull to go inside.
