by Riley Storm
“I do,” he said quietly, truthfully. “If I had my treasure, I’d have your house rebuilt if I could. But I don’t, and I can’t. And it’s embarrassing for me for more reasons than I can tell you.”
He straightened. “That being said, Emma, I don’t feel comfortable with you staying here until I get it back.”
“What are you suggesting?” she asked, leaning back enough to be able to look him in the eyes. “Are you saying I should come stay with you at your place?”
Chapter Twenty
Emma
What did you just ask? His place? No, no, no! You can’t do that!
“What?” Asher yelped, panicking, eyes wide. “No. No, I’m sorry, that’s not what I meant at all.”
She forced herself to nod, to try and act calm about everything, as if she too hadn’t grown panicky and been thinking frantically about how to back out of her suggestion. Staying with Asher wasn’t a good idea. Not at all. She barely knew him, really.
“However, I will put you up in a hotel if you want. I didn’t realize you wouldn’t be able to get the house repaired, or I would have offered right away,” he said, cringing unhappily. “I feel bad it’s taken me this long to offer. You need to stay somewhere safe.”
“Here is safe,” she said quietly. “My grandfather’s house is a good solid home. I like it here.”
Asher frowned, and started to say something, but then stopped. “A hotel would be better. If the electricity is unstable like that, it could be doing damage behind the walls. Damage you might not spot or know about until it’s too late. You wouldn’t want to burn the house down by being so stubborn to stay in it, would you?”
Emma sighed. He was using her attachment to the house against her, and she knew it. The likelihood of that happening was so very small. But it was there, and she couldn’t ignore it. Not completely.
“But I thought you didn’t have any money?” she asked.
“Two million dollars to settle with you is one thing,” he said pointedly. “A few hundred a night at a hotel? That can be managed. I’ll just bill it to the family. My brother can handle that,” he said with a snicker.
“Oh. Right. I guess that makes sense,” she said, wondering why she suddenly was feeling guilty for suing him for so much. Was she starting to let her emotions cloud her judgment?
Her grandfather deserved better from her. She needed to honor his legacy, to keep it preserved. He would want that.
Stiffening her spine, fortifying her mind, Emma slipped out of Asher’s arms at long last, trying to ignore how much her body was trying to urge her back into them. I’m in control here, not you. So, stop it.
“I’ll take a look at the damage,” Asher said. “You go pack what you need, okay?”
She nodded. “Right. Um. Thank you. Again. For everything. You’re being really kind. Yeah.”
Then she fled the kitchen, racing upstairs to try and escape her growing feelings, pushing them down, suppressing them as best she could. Now was not the time for any of that nonsense. She had to get ready to move to a hotel, until her house could be fixed. Properly fixed and put back exactly the way it was.
Grabbing a duffel bag from a corner in her closet, Emma began packing. She pulled open drawers, stuffing socks, pants and shirts into the bag without a care. It didn’t matter what she had, as long as it was comfortable and practical. She opened her underwear drawer and grabbed a handful of thongs, and then some bras. Then she pushed a few aside, grabbed some from the back and tossed them in. Just in case.
“Just in case?” she repeated out loud. What the hell are you planning here, Starling?
She stared at the red lace pushup, or the deep purple see-through mesh. Why on earth did she feel the need to bring those? In case of what?
Emma glared at the empty room, realizing her body was once again betraying her, and using its urges to push aside her logical choices for more…physical ones.
“I do not have the hots for this guy.”
The instant she said it, Emma knew it was a lie. Sighing dramatically, she flopped back onto the bed, staring at the ceiling.
“Everything okay up there?” a voice called from downstairs.
“Yeah,” she said tiredly. “Yeah I’m fine.”
Dang. Dang it. She did want him. It was true. Everything about him. His looks, personality, the way he felt under her, or when he hugged her. It was just too irresistible. Then there was the kiss. The way he had kissed her! So fiery and rugged. She touched her chin, remembering the scrape of his stubble, or the pressure of his fingers on the back of her neck.
“Aw crap.” There was no point in denying it any longer. Not when the truth was so obvious if she actually took a second to stop and think about it.
Was it the mystery about him? Or maybe it was the way he always treated her like she was a priority to him. Like he genuinely wanted to make right what he’d done to her grandfather’s house. That even despite all the money she was taking from him, he didn’t care about that, he cared about doing good.
It was a shame he wasn’t interested in her in return, though.
No, it’s not a shame. You aren’t doing anything with him, he isn’t yours, you aren’t his. That’s not how this works. You sued him! He doesn’t want to hop into bed with you. Don’t believe that for a second. He probably just wants to be nice until he’s paid you, and then never see you again.
Emma wasn’t sure she trusted that thought either. But if it was true, at least he wasn’t being a dick about it. He was really being quite nice, and she felt terrible about him being robbed. That just wasn’t nice, not at all.
“Ready whenever you are,” Asher called again.
“Coming,” she said, doing up the bag and heading back downstairs.
“I figured I’d drive,” Asher said with a shrug. “Since your car…you know.”
“Has holes in it just like my house?” she joked. “I know a girl likes to match, but did you have to take it so seriously?”
Asher sputtered for an answer, but she laughed, waving him off.
“I’m just teasing you. I trust you to fix it all,” she said.
“Thank you,” he said, finally finding his voice. “I will.”
“I trust you,” she said, finding that she meant what she was saying.
She did trust him. A lot. Emma didn’t see herself changing her mind on that anytime soon.
Is that why you didn’t take anything out of the duffel bag?
She didn’t have an answer to that thought.
Chapter Twenty-One
Emma
She could feel her eyes getting droopy.
It wasn’t overly late, but they had stopped for some food. Then checking into the hotel had seemed to take forever as Asher spoke with the manager about something. By the time they got up to her room, she was growing exhausted. So very tired.
The idea of sleeping was both appealing and also terrifying. It had been a long time since she’d slept anywhere but her own bed. In her own house, where she was comfortable and knew all the noises, creaks and groans of her grandfather’s place.
Except, I wasn’t even able to sleep there last night. Nowhere makes me feel comfortable anymore.
Nowhere except for within Asher’s arms. It was the solution to her problems, but she just had to work up the nerve to ask him. That was a whole different issue, because if she went about it the wrong way, he would get the wrong idea, and that was what she wanted to avoid entirely.
She needed sleep. Eyes closed, completely passed out to the point she didn’t care if she snored or drooled. As long as she was asleep. Her body was practically screaming at her. The lids of her eyes were stinging from too much use. Her brain was feeling mushy and light. A little loopy even.
Maybe that was why she couldn’t bring herself to ask Asher.
“Are you going to be okay here?” Asher asked as she pushed open the door to her room and wandered inside.
“Why, where are you going?” she wanted to know. “So eager to get away from m
e?”
Real smooth. Way to just open up dialogue with him about your crazy need. He’s totally going to want to help if you keep chirping him.
Asher eyed her suspiciously. “Well, I thought I might, you know, go back to my place. Perhaps get some sleep. Try to come up with a new way to track down whoever has my treasure. I kind of want to get it back. I’d thought you would want me to as well. Are you backing down on your settlement?”
“Absolutely not,” she mumbled through a yawn, throwing up a hand to cover her mouth a few seconds too late. “You broke my grandfather’s house.”
Emma flopped down onto the bed. It was firm, but not too uncomfortable. Considering that there were precisely two hotels in Five Peaks, one of which was little more than a motel, she hadn’t been holding out hope for much in the way of luxury comforts. But it was clean, somewhat spacious, and would do for…however long it took Asher to get his treasure back.
She sighed. “Treasure.”
“What?” Asher was leaning on the wall near the door.
“You do understand that I find this a little ridiculous still, right? We’re on a treasure hunt. What are we, pirates from the 1500s? Arrr, matey! Ahoy! Land-ho! Scupper the sails, lower the mizzen, batten down the hatches. Fifteen degrees to starboard!”
Asher’s mouth dropped open a little as she went on. “You watch far too many pop-culture movies on pirates,” he finally pronounced when she was done. “Far too many.”
“Don’t judge me. Not my fault Hollywood made the pirates sexy and swashbuckling, instead of scurvy and flea-filled like in real life. Can you blame a young girl for getting caught up in it?” she pouted, not impressed at having her fantasies dashed.
“You really do need some sleep, don’t you?” Asher said, shaking his head. “Is there anything else I can do for you? Otherwise, you need to climb in that bed and pass out.”
Emma craned her neck upward, looking at the pillows resting a foot or two above her head. Sleep. In the bed. In the dark.
Alone.
“Um.”
Asher tilted his head. “Yes?” he asked when she didn’t continue. “What’s up?”
“Do you really have a treasure?” she asked. “Why is it a treasure? Why not just your vault with your money in it? Why treasure specifically? Why that word, Asher, it’s not one used much anymore, you know?”
The big man shrugged, the black t-shirt bunching up slightly, revealing just a hint of his firm abs before he quickly tugged it back down. Shame, that. She wouldn’t mind seeing a bit more.
Stop it. That is not what you’re asking of him. Not in that sense. Keep it together. Look don’t touch.
“It just seems right,” he said at last. “I’m not sure I could explain, but to me, it is my treasure. I’ve worked hard to accumulate it.”
“Worked? Doing what?” she wanted to know. This was the first time he’d hinted at having any sort of job. Maybe she would get some more insights into his mystery life that he was holding back from her.
“Not tonight,” he said with a chuckle, shaking his head. “Sorry,” he added when she looked downcast. “Maybe another time.”
That was different than saying he wouldn’t tell her. Maybe she was making progress with him.
“Asher,” she said quietly. “Why don’t you trust me?”
Arms crossing in front of him, amplifying the muscles, Asher looked distinctly uncomfortable with the question. “It’s not that I don’t trust you,” he said slowly after a minute, picking his words with care. “It’s that I can’t trust anyone. It’s nothing to do with you specifically, if that makes sense?”
It might have, if her mind wasn’t half mush already. Emma nodded anyway though. She was sure her brain could parse it out. In the morning.
“Maybe,” she told him. “But that must be a lonely life, Asher. With nobody to trust? Nobody to talk to.”
“I have my family,” he said stubbornly, but she could see her points hitting home.
“Family aren’t friends though, Asher. I have family too. Mom, Dad, even an older brother, though we aren’t super close. They live on the other side of the mountains, in Kennewick Falls,” she said, naming the closest larger city, about ten times the size of Five Peaks. “But I also have friends, who I can speak to. Who I can talk to.”
“So, what you’re saying is I could have offloaded you at one of their places for free instead of paying for this hotel room?”
She glared at him. It was a weak joke, though truthfully, she could have gone there, yes.
“Sorry,” he said.
“My point is, that they serve different functions, different purposes in life. You need both, you know. Don’t close yourself off to the rest of the world,” she said softly, feeling another yawn coming on as her eyes drooped further closed. “It’s a lonely way to die.”
“I’ll take that advice under consideration,” Asher said with utmost seriousness. “Now, anything else?”
“Yeah,” she said, and now it was her turn to be uncomfortable.
“What’s up?”
Emma hesitated. Just ask him! Oh sure, just admit to a fundamental weakness that only he can solve. That would totally do wonders for her self-esteem. Admit defeat, that was always the way to get ahead. Then again, what else was she to do? Her eyes were half-closed, but Emma couldn’t close them all the way.
She was afraid to. Afraid of what would come next. Asher would leave, and then she would wake up to an empty room. Alone.
“Emma, you can ask,” he said gently. “The worst I’ll say is no, but I might say yes. What is it? What can I do?”
Sighing, she sat up on the bed, forcing herself to move. “This is super embarrassing; I hope you know that.”
The big man frowned, coming over to sit down on the bed. He was next to her, but there was still a gap between them. Enough that she wasn’t overwhelmed with his presence, his woodsy smell and the warmth that seemed an integral part of his being. As if he was perpetually hotter than a normal person.
“Will you…” she trailed off, shaking her head. “Never mind, it’s okay. I’m good. Thanks.”
She would rather suffer in embarrassment than ask.
“Not good enough,” he rumbled with a bit of force. “What’s going on?”
“I want to sleep,” she said, pushing the words out before her brain could engage and stop her mouth.
Oh crap. Uh oh. Now he was thinking that she was going to say she wanted to sleep with him. Nope. That was even worse!
“But I can’t,” she added quickly. “Will you…will you stick around for a bit? Let me fall asleep?” She didn’t want to admit that his presence made her feel better, made her feel safe. Emma didn’t want just anyone there, she wanted Asher.
“Of course,” Asher said quietly, his lips turning upward in a half-smile. “Not a problem.”
“Thank you,” she said, getting up, grabbing her pajamas—not sexy ones!— and heading for the washroom. “I feel like an idiot,” she added.
“Why?” Asher called through the mostly closed door as she changed and washed her face.
“I’m a grown woman, Asher. I’ll be thirty-five in three months. But now I’m afraid of the dark? Can’t you see how embarrassing that is?”
“You’ve had a lot of stress on you lately. It’ll fade,” he said, getting up from the bed as she came back out and climbed under the covers. “Trust me.”
“I do,” she said absently, her brain already shutting off. “Still…kinda embarrassing.”
Asher chuckled, getting up and pulling a chair near to the bed—and also positioning it between her and the door, as if he knew what would make her feel most comfortable.
“Don’t worry about it.” There was a long pause. “Everyone has things that affect them differently, Emma. We can’t always control it, despite what others think or say.”
Something about his tone caught what remained of her attention. “You sound like you know what that’s like?”
Asher plopped i
nto the chair, half-facing her, half-facing the door, the light switch in range of his arm. “I do. Did I ever tell you that I’m the youngest of four?”
“I think so. Maybe? I knew you had brothers though,” she said.
“Right. Well, I am. And the other three, well, they found their mates long ago,” he said quietly. “But not me. Something I am endlessly reminded of.”
Emma’s eyes closed. “Mate? What’s that?”
“Their mate,” Asher said, as if that explained everything. “You know, their soul mate. Their other half. I, I have yet to find mine.”
“Oh, I see. Well don’t sweat it,” Emma said, stifling another yawn—barely. “There’s still time.”
“Maybe,” he agreed. “But then again, I’m not getting any younger either, Emma.”
“You know how it is, Asher. You’ll find what you need the most, in the place you expect it the least.”
“Maybe I will, Emma,” he said quietly.
Sleep took her swiftly, though she did hear him speak again, but couldn’t make out the words.
“If I haven’t already…Sleep well, Emma. I’ll keep you safe.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Emma
When she awoke in the morning, Emma felt like she could have run a marathon, boxed with a world champ and solved world hunger all before she got out of bed.
Let’s just slow it down a sec there. Maybe we start with finding a source of coffee, and go from there?
Either way, she was refreshed, well-rested and ready to take on a new day. It was amazing what a full night’s worth of sleep could do to the body and the brain. Thanks to Asher, she’d gotten it.
Asher!
Emma rolled over in bed, keeping the blankets pulled over her chest, more for vanity than anything else, as she was wearing a shirt. To her surprise, Asher was still there. In the chair.
Except he was the one passed out now, arms splayed to the sides, back arched and his head hanging over the back of the chair. She watched him for a few moments, smiling at just how adorable he looked, despite the awkward pose.
He had stayed there all night to keep her safe. Emma had only asked him to wait until she fell asleep, hoping that would be enough. Yet for some unknown reason, he had taken it upon himself to stay. To put himself between her and the door until morning came and she awoke on her own.
