The dark-haired vampire’s eyes widened in surprise.
Growling, Asher leapt over the coffee table, claws at the ready. Slashing down, he raked across the vamp’s chest before nimbly dodging to the side to avoid a similar attack.
Vampires had claws too. They might not shift into an animal, but they were a hundred percent predator.
Hissing in pain, the vamp’s fangs descended as he turned on Asher. The vamp jumped onto the wood table with enough force that a crack rent the air. Asher flew at him, tackling him as he wrapped his clawed hand around the male’s throat.
The need he had to take this intruder down went deeper than his natural instinct. This bastard was in Ella’s home, was a threat to her. He had to be stopped.
Digging into his flesh, he held tight as they slammed against the nearest wall. A sharp pain pierced Asher’s side as claws sliced through the flesh covering his ribcage, but he was so amped up on adrenaline he ignored it and pinned the male to the wall.
With his other hand, Asher slammed his fist right through the vamp’s chest. Wrapping his hand around the vamp’s beating heart, he squeezed lightly to make his point.
Eyes wide, the male stilled, letting his hand drop from Asher’s aching ribs. He barely moved as he watched Asher. The male’s eyes had gone pure amber.
Behind him he could scent Ella clearly. He heard her sharp intake of breath, but she didn’t say anything. “Sweetheart, are you okay?” Asher tried to rein in his wolf, but his voice was more animal than man.
“I’m fine. Are you okay?”
“Never better.” He hated that she had to see this side to him, but she was a shifter too and would understand this type of violence was necessary against a supernatural who’d broken into her home. Asher focused on the vamp in front of him. “Who are you and what the fuck are you doing in here?” He fought to keep his rage contained, but each second that passed it grew more difficult. This bastard had dared to invade Ella’s home—and likely her office.
The vampire struggled to speak at first, but finally managed to. “I want what’s mine,” the male rasped out, his eyes glowing even brighter when Asher squeezed his heart a fraction tighter.
“You broke into the hotel.” A statement, not a question.
A barely perceptible nod.
Before Asher could question further, the front door flew open. He tensed, ready to do battle with more intruders but stopped when he scented Grant, Max, and other packmates.
“This vamp broke in here and the hotel, Grant,” Asher growled.
“Yeah, and I know why. You can let him go. This bastard isn’t going anywhere.” His alpha’s voice was tight, angry.
Asher flexed his grip around the vamp’s heart and neck once in warning before dropping his hands. The vamp collapsed on the floor, struggling to drag in a breath as blood spilled from his chest. The wound was already mending though and he’d be upright in minutes.
As Asher moved back to stand next to Grant, light flooded the room as someone flipped the overhead lights on. Risking a quick glance around he saw half a dozen packmates, including Max who was standing protectively next to Ella. Asher gave her a quick once over to make sure she was unharmed, before turning back to the vamp. When he turned, another of his packmates handed him a dishrag. Murmuring thanks, he started wiping the blood from his hands while keeping an eye on the vampire.
Coughing, the male glared at all of them as he managed to stand upright, but Asher could sense his fear. “I just want what’s mine.” His throat and chest were already starting to heal, but blood soaked his torn clothes.
“What exactly do you think is yours?” Grant asked, his voice a deadly blade.
Something about his alpha’s tone told Asher he knew precisely what the vamp was after. Especially since he said he knew why the vamp was there.
“I want what that bastard Marshall took and I know she has it,” the vamp spat, his gaze narrowing behind Asher and Grant on Ella.
Growling low, Asher took a step forward, only stilling when Grant placed a hand on his forearm. It took all of Asher’s restraint not to attack the vamp.
“She didn’t take anything. But I have what you want. After your break-in, I made some calls, including one to the previous owner. He stole from you,” Grant said.
“Yes. Stupid fucker, he’s lucky I didn’t kill him,” the vamp snarled.
“Why didn’t you?” Grant was still, but Asher knew he was barely holding his wolf in check.
He could sense his alpha’s anger. This vamp had breached their hotel, then dared to break into the pack’s compound. Cubs and females lived here. There was no way his alpha would forgive this.
“I needed to make sure he wasn’t lying first. You have my money?” He’d lowered his voice, but it still held an edge of anger.
Grant nodded. “I decided to pay Marshall a visit.”
Rick Marshall. Asher knew of the man because Grant had given him a detailed file after the break-in. But Asher hadn’t realized he’d already visited Marshall. His alpha had planned to do it later today.
“That safe Rick Marshall hid was in the wall of the office next to the one you ransacked. And it’s just full of cash.” There was a taunting note in Grant’s voice.
Asher was surprised to hear about the safe and the money, but didn’t care about that right now. Grant would fill him in on the details later. Right now Asher only cared about Ella’s safety and getting this vamp out of her place.
“Give me my money and I’ll be gone.” The vamp’s voice radiated with anger, but also a healthy dose of raw fear.
Grant barked out a laugh, the sound sharp and brittle. “I have a better idea…” He trailed off and glanced over his shoulder, down the hall to the front door.
A moment later a lean, blond male Asher recognized appeared in the doorway. Using his vampiric speed, the newcomer was down the hall in a second. Rex Serano. Vampire and bounty hunter. Asher had run across the vamp many times over the last few decades and he knew his alpha was friends with him. Still, it surprised Asher to see him here.
Rex nodded once at Asher in acknowledgement then gave Grant a grin that could only be described as lethal. He turned that gaze on the other vampire and his grin grew wider. “John Dulin, you’ve been a bad, bad vampire and my employer paid me to bring you in alive.”
The fear that spiked off the vamp was nauseating. He started to run, but lightning fast, Rex had him pinned up against the wall. The plaster cracked under the force of the move. Rex squeezed his hand around Dulin’s throat in an impossibly tight grip.
Asher might not know all the details, but he could guess why Rex’s employer wanted to bring the guy in alive. Vamps liked to torture wrongdoers. And if this guy had pissed someone off, especially another vampire, they’d want to keep him around to torture for years. Maybe decades. Brutal bastards.
“This vamp broke into my female’s place. He put her and our pack at risk,” Asher said. He wouldn’t outright defy his alpha, but he wanted to deal with this vampire. Not hand him over to Rex, even if he did like the guy.
Grant was silent for a moment, his eyes pure wolf as he looked at Asher. “The money this piece of garbage says belongs to him, he stole from someone else. There’s a large bounty on his head. We can take care of him or Rex can take him off our hands—if his employer pays for the damage to Ella’s office and home.”
“I think she deserves money for pain and suffering too,” Asher said wryly.
Grant’s lips twitched as if he was fighting a grin. “Yes. It’s up to you. Keep him or let him go?”
Asher looked back at Ella and raised his eyebrows. He was glad his alpha was giving him the choice, but when it came down to it, this was Ella’s decision. He’d flay this guy alive for coming after her. And Asher had no doubt in his mind that since he’d thought Ella had taken his money, his next move would have been physical violence against her. That alone had his wolf clawing at the surface, ready to be unleashed.
Ella’s dark eyes widened when she realized he
was silently asking her. She shook her head. “I want him gone. Let the vampires deal with him.”
“Take what’s owed you for the damage, Grant,” Rex said, never taking his eyes off the vampire he was still holding tight. “I’ll take the rest back to my employer.”
“No!” The vampire struggled against Rex’s grip but it was useless as he dragged him kicking and fighting from the room.
As they left, Grant made a motion for everyone else to leave except Ella and Asher.
“Thanks for giving us the choice,” Asher murmured.
His alpha nodded. “My pack comes first.”
“So this was really all about money?” Ella asked as she came to stand next to Asher so that they were both facing Grant.
Asher ached to wrap his arm around her, but he still had some of the vamp’s blood on his hands.
Grant’s expression was grim as he nodded. “Yeah.”
It was stupid, but people, regardless of species, did dumb stuff for money and power. Asher was just glad it was an isolated incident and not part of a targeted attack on their pack. “So the previous hotel owner stole money from this vamp—who’d already stolen money from another vamp. Why did the human leave his money behind?”
Grant shook his head and muttered a curse. “He needed it hidden somewhere no one would think to look. And who would ever guess he’d leave it in a hotel he didn’t own anymore. It was behind a wall and the truth is, we never would have known it was there if we hadn’t gone looking intentionally.”
“What’s going to happen to the human?” The guy had stolen from a vampire, but that vamp was about to be punished for doing the same thing.
Grant shrugged. “Maybe nothing. Not my problem. Listen, I’ll give you guys privacy for a bit, but I’ll get some males in here later this morning to start cleaning up. It won’t take long to patch up her wall and get a new coffee table in here. The blood shouldn’t take too long to clean either. And I don’t want you worrying about a thing,” he said, focusing on Ella. “You’re also taking the next two days off. More if you need.”
She shook her head, her rumpled blonde hair swishing around her shoulders. “Grant, that’s not—”
“That’s an order. Asher, you take the next couple days off too.” Without waiting for a response, he turned and left.
After he’d shut the front door, Asher realized he’d never asked how Grant had even known the vamp was in Ella’s place.
“I texted him when I heard the commotion out here,” Ella said as if she’d read his mind. Her dark gaze tracked over him in concern, taking in the blood. “Are you sure you’re all right? Did he hurt you badly?” She reached out as if to stroke his side, but pulled her hand back.
Asher shook his head and swiped at the blood on his side, not that it did much other than spread it around. He tried to wipe the rest of it on the dishrag, but it was already soaked through so he used his boxers—which he’d be throwing away. “Most of this is his and I’m already mended.” The vamp had pierced him with his claws, but it had barely been a flesh wound. He was already healed thanks to his age. “Why don’t you join me in the shower while I wash off?” He dropped his voice to a low murmur.
“I’ll join you, but just to make sure you’re really okay,” she muttered, clearly not convinced. “I was so worried when I heard…” Her voice trailed off and the fear in her voice surprised him.
Screw it. He pulled her into his arms, holding her close. Now that they were alone and she was letting her guard down he scented her fear. It killed him. “We’re fine,” he murmured soothingly. He’d never let anything or anyone hurt her. He stroked a calming hand down her spine, savoring her warmth and luscious curves.
“I know, it’s just…I just found you. I had this crazy fear that this thing between us is too good to be true and was worried something terrible would happen to you.”
Tears glistened in her dark eyes and he almost lost it. She’d been worried about him, not herself.
“It’s real,” he said, gazing right into her eyes. “It’s real and I’m not going anywhere.” Her tremulous smile made him ache inside. Without another word he scooped her up and carried her to the shower. Once he got this blood off them, he was going to show her just how real their connection was.
Epilogue
Two months later
Ella closed the oven door and turned on the timer. One hour to go. Should be perfect timing for when Asher got home. Cooking wasn’t her thing, but luckily Asher loved to. He was always experimenting with recipes. She figured it was because he’d been roaming for so long and now that he had a permanent place he was putting down roots in a big way.
Tonight she wanted to surprise him though. They’d both been working hard the last couple months. It seemed like he dealt with one crisis after another at the hotel and Grant had given her a new position in addition to her accounting job. He considered her his liaison to all the employees at the hotel. Translation: she was his personal assistant who got to deal with the smaller scale stuff at the hotel he simply didn’t have time for. With all his regular pack business, it was a miracle the man ever slept.
It was a lot of responsibility, but she absolutely loved it. With her pride, her duties had been simple and now she realized that was part of the reason she’d been so restless. She’d been craving more out of her job and life. Now, every day was different. Not to mention she came home to Asher every night. That alone made everything perfect.
As she slid her apron off, her cell phone buzzed on the other side of the counter. She smiled when she saw that it was a message from Talia, Grant’s mate. But her smile fell when she read it. Eve is here. I sent her up to your place. Sorry, she looks so sad I couldn’t turn her away!
Anger and pain filtered through Ella. She hadn’t seen her younger sister in over two months. She’d talked to the rest of her family and other pridemates, but not Eve. It had felt too weird to call her after the way they’d left things. She just didn’t know what to say and the truth was, the apology she’d been waiting for had never come. It was hard to let that go.
She texted her friend back: You suck.
Talia: You love me. Call me if you need me!
Despite her annoyance, Ella grinned. Settling into pack life had been made easier because of not only Asher and her new role at the hotel, but because the alpha’s mate had immediately befriended her.
Before she could respond, there was a knock at the front door. Knowing she needed to get this over with, she wiped her damp palms on her jeans and made her way down the hallway. Schooling her expression, she opened the door.
Eve stood there, wringing her hands nervously in front of her. She let them fall when she saw Ella. “Hey.”
“Hey… Is everything okay?” She couldn’t even force herself to smile, but she tried to keep her tone civil.
Her sister nodded. “Can I come in?” she asked hesitantly.
“Uh, sure.” Ella stepped back, motioning with her left hand.
Her sister’s eyes widened when she saw the giant rock on her left hand ring finger. She understood the surprise. The ring was gorgeous. Asher had put it on her two weeks after they’d moved in with each other. He’d said that just because supernaturals could scent him on her, it wasn’t enough. He wanted human men to know she was taken too. Possessive male.
“You’re really mated,” Eve murmured in a shocked tone, but she also half-smiled. “Congratulations, I’m glad you’re happy.”
Ella cleared her throat. “Yeah.” They hadn’t done a ceremony because one wasn’t needed. And that type of thing wasn’t important to Ella. Having Asher’s mark and scent on her was all she needed. Of course he’d still insisted they get married at the courthouse. So possessive, that male. She forced herself not to think about it because she knew she’d get turned on and right now clearly wasn’t the time for that. “So what’s up? Why are you here?” Might as well get to the point.
Her sister wrapped her arms around herself and in that moment looked imposs
ibly young. At twenty-two she was still immature for her age.
Feeling bad, Ella nodded in the direction of the kitchen. “Come on, I’ve got wine.”
Relief filled her sister’s expression. “Sounds good.”
When her sister sat on a stool at the countertop right across from her, Ella pulled out a new bottle of red she knew Eve would like. They’d always had similar taste in pretty much everything. Including men, as it turned out.
“I’m sorry for what I did!” Eve blurted as the cork popped free.
Ella looked up from the bottle and set the wine opener next to it. She placed her hands on the counter and looked directly at her sister. “What are you sorry for?”
“For…getting mated to Frederico.” Her eyes glistened with unshed tears.
Ella sighed. “I never cared about that. Not even a little bit. I see how good you guys are together and how much you both love each other. I just…why the hell didn’t you at least give me some warning that you were seeing each other, much less about to get mated? Seriously, Eve, I had to find out about it at a freaking pride meeting!” All the words came out in a rush. Words she’d been holding onto for months.
“I know and I’m so sorry.” Her tears spilled over and Ella had to refrain from rushing around the counter and pulling her sister into a hug.
“Don’t cry, please.”
Sniffling, Eve swiped at her tears. “I was too afraid to tell you. You were the one who broke up with him and a part of me worried that…” She glanced down at her hands as more tears fell down her cheeks. “I was worried that he was settling for me. That I was his second choice. Then I thought if you found out about us you might, I don’t know, decide you wanted him back or something.” She looked up then, her expression tormented. “I was a coward. I knew it then. If I could go back and change things I would. I hate what’s happened between us. Mom’s still pissed at me and Dad’s disappointed. I feel like I ruined everything!” she said on a sob.
“You didn’t ruin anything,” Ella murmured. Their relationship would take a while to mend, but it certainly wasn’t broken forever. She rounded the corner of the countertop and tugged Eve off the stool into a hug. She let Eve sob into her neck and shed a few tears of her own. They might not have been as close as Ella was with Lauren, but Eve would always be her little sister.
Tempting His Mate Page 7
