When she did find him, when he got her hands on him, she was going to kick him in the nuts for screwing with her. No wonder he said she could leave when she landed one hit. This was impossible for someone like her. She was too small, too slow, too ineffective.
“Why do you have to be like this?” she shouted in frustration.
Then an idea came to her. Asher appeared at the corner of her vision. He would laugh and then flicker to the other side. She watched which direction he blurred in and tried to find a pattern. Just when he was about to pass in front of her, she stuck out her foot. His feet tangled with hers.
Together, they both tumbled to the ground. Zara fell on top of him. She quickly used the chance to gently slap the side of his face. He cringed away from the hit like it was the most brutal thing ever before wrapping his arms around her waist and hugging her tight.
“Ugh, you win!”
“Damn right, I win.” She laughed, happier than she had been in months.
Around Asher, it was easy to laugh. They fired quips back and forth at one another, artfully dodging them. Or, in Asher’s case, taking them to the face.
“We should definitely do this more, though. I still want you to be able to knock a man out on your own.”
She remembered the drunks outside the bar a few nights ago and nodded. She’d felt weak and cornered. It wasn’t fun, leaving her fox in a state of frantic panic. Maybe if she had the confidence to knock one of them out, then the others would leave. It wasn’t like she could keep Asher around for protection all the time.
He wasn’t safe. Allowing herself to act like they were a couple wasn’t smart, either. She’d gotten on her knees for him in the shower as a way of saying thanks for the night before, but one thing led to another. She couldn’t stop herself. It was like she was addicted to him. Once she caught the smell of him, her fox went wild. When he touched her, all bets were off.
Even now, in public with the whole clan in the same room, Zara could feel a heat curling in her core. She quickly disengaged and got to her feet, putting space between them. Even on the other side of the ring, she couldn’t escape the lust burning brighter and brighter inside her.
Charlie appeared at the edge of the ring. “We’re going to go get food because this is boring.”
“We’ll catch up once we change,” Asher told the pink-haired dragon shifter.
Zara could feel Asher’s eyes on her while she disappeared into the women’s locker room. Did he feel the same? Was he drawn to her the way she was pulled into him? If he was, then there might never be a way to escape this. If he was her mate, then she would forever be bound to a man who used his fists for a living.
Zara should have feared the possibility, but the thought raised no concerns in her. She was oddly at peace with it. Her lips twisted to the side as she took off his pants and put on her own. Could she live with this mating pair? Was Asher right for her and she just couldn’t see it?
The universe worked in its own, unique way. It brought together two of the most unlikely shifters, Oscar and Regina, and Zara had spent the last eight years watching them fall more in love every day. There was still a bit of fear in her chest, the kind that crackled with uncertainty. She didn’t know how anything would work out.
Her ex-fiancé was still somewhere in town. If Asher wasn’t the one for her and she had to leave when he found his proper mate, then she would be alone. She fisted her hands so tight that her nails bit into her skin. Red welts appeared on her palms. The unknown was tormenting her. All she wanted was a bit of stability.
Finally, she left the locker room. Asher’s face was contorted with concern, but she said nothing as she pressed the pants into his hands. She still couldn’t find the right words during the ride to the restaurant.
It turned out that the restaurant was less of a building and more of a shack. There were picnic tables scattered around the parking lot. The clan had pulled two of them together. Zara was surprised that the bench seats didn’t give way under so many burly men.
She couldn’t believe their openness. Not one of them treated her like she was trying to weasel her way into Asher’s life for his money. To be honest, she only half expected the reaction from them. She’d spent too much time with Chelsea who honestly pursued men for their income.
The clan treated her like one of them. It was like she’d already been indoctrinated. Charlie and Buffy joked with her. Alec fixed the side of the picnic table that wobbled underneath her. The family of dragon shifters wasn’t huge like Oscar’s clan. She wasn’t the alpha’s daughter, so she wasn’t removed from their festivities. It was a whole new experience.
At the end of the night, there were no leftovers. Beer bottles littered the top of the table. Jude and Cole took their time clearing up the mess while everyone dispersed. The mated couples had eyes only for each other once the sun began to set. It was like they’d endured too much time in public and were aching to be alone once more.
She’d seen the same look on Oscar and Regina. Her biological parents had never acted so friendly toward each other. Her biological mother always made sure she was in a different room from her husband at all times.
So, when Asher laid his hand on the small of her back and asked her if she was ready to go, she allowed herself to believe for a short moment that they were a mated pair, too. They would go home, curl up in a blanket and watch the sun set beyond the broad windows.
But that wasn’t the truth.
Zara wasn’t meant to stay. Her future was different from this life. She wanted the kind of freedom that financial success could offer. She would never find that if she stayed and ignored her schoolwork. Which she would do if she spent too much time around Asher.
There was no keeping her hands off him. She could barely keep her eyes off him. He’d gone from annoying to endearing in only a matter of days. Zara should have called Regina and asked about her mating process, but Zara was unsure. Not every instance was the same. There was no promise that Regina would have anything to say that could help. There was also the risk that Oscar would get the phone from her and demand to talk to Asher.
Zara couldn’t even begin to imagine family visits if she was mated to this dragon man. Oscar’s whole pack would lose their minds.
“You’re lost in thought. Everything okay?”
She was yanked back to reality, where they were driving down a winding country road. Dusk was consuming the sky outside the windshield.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
Asher grunted. “Women always say they’re fine, but it never really means fine. It means I don’t want to talk about it right now. Whatever’s bothering you, do you think you could talk about it eventually?”
She was silent. All the things she feared bubbled inside of her at once. She wasn’t sure of anything. When given the chance to make her own choices, she stalled. There were too many options all around her and she wasn’t sure which one would be the right decision. The chance that she could make the wrong one frightened her.
“Alright. I’ll take that as a maybe.” Asher nodded.
The lake house came into view. Something in her settled at the sight of it. She let out a breath and relaxed. When had this place become home? She stiffened all over again. Home was her apartment with Chelsea. Not this place. Not Asher.
Zara shouldn’t stay for another night, but her feet led her back inside where she collapsed onto the bed. Asher laughed. He shrugged off his clothes and fell beside her. For a while, sleep came and went. She tossed and turned like her mind still could not rest.
Zara couldn’t sleep. Her fitful dreams woke her up and she was growing more and more tired from them. Giving up on even trying, she rolled out of the bed and padded into the living room. The lake beyond the windows was dark. She couldn’t tell if the waters were churning or if they were peaceful. Her mind spun, though. She felt like she was trapped under those waves again.
Sleeping in the same bed as Asher felt like a betrayal. She was still unsure if this was a kind
of life she could commit herself to, and letting Asher believe that she could wasn’t right. He was happy. That much, she could tell. He wasn’t gentle and soft like she wanted in a man. There were parts of him that could be oh so sweet. Yet, there was still the beast in him that was filled with dangerous potential.
With restless fingers, she pulled the easel into the middle of the room. She removed the landscape that had dried and brought out a new canvas. Covering it with paint, a simple background, was soothing. Her hands worked of their own free will, the motions silencing her troubled mind.
The smell of paint and coffee and Asher comforted her. Her soul felt at peace while she drafted shapes and filled them in. It wasn’t until the sun started to peek over the horizon that she realized she was painting Asher. The sunlight began to spill onto the bed, onto the mostly naked man.
A three-quarter profile of him took shape. She caught the bump in his nose from how many times it had been broken and healed too fast. She caught the scars on his cheek, half hidden by his scruff. Every small detail of his face she could recall from memory. His image was ingrained in her. She couldn’t shake him.
Finally, she squeezed out a bit of red onto the palette. Here and there she highlighted his features with the brutal color. Where once his image was bright and simple, it became bold. She found the beast in him through the color.
Asher couldn’t find Zara anywhere. The house was empty, quiet as ever. All he could hear was the soft murmur of the waves outside.
In the middle of the living room stood Zara’s easel. He didn’t think much of it at first. The canvas resting on it was the same size as it had been. Only when he was leaving the kitchen did he notice the new painting.
It drew him in with its bold strokes. The closer he got, the more he could see. It was his own face looking back at him. There was something rough about this version of him. It was like the face that looked back at him after a fight. Zara had used red to make highlights and it gleamed as bright as fresh blood.
Still, he found tenderness in it. His eyes were soft, half lidded like he was dreaming. There was a part to his lips. It made his jaw not so rigid. Zara had captured him in a way he’d never been able to see before. Here was a man with many faces. He wasn’t just a fighter. There was a lover in him, a caretaker, a soul with dreams.
He dropped down onto her stool and stared at the painting for a long while. When had she done this? It hadn’t been there the day before. The only time Zara could have painted this was in the middle of the night. Which meant she hadn’t slept.
Scowling, Asher set aside his cup of coffee and sniffed the air. The scent of paint was too strong. He couldn’t find her presence under it. He scowled and made another loop through the house, overturning everything as if he would find her under a pillow.
Still, Zara was not here. His beast thrashed. It slammed against him and tried to shove him out the door. Every impact sent a vibration through his bones, one that rattled his skull and left him clenching his teeth. Immediately, his thoughts went to the fox shifter that was looking for Zara. If the man had come anywhere near Asher’s lake house, he was going to break every one of his fingers.
Asher knew how to show a man what pain meant.
The deck door creaked open. Zara appeared in the doorway with her shirt hanging crooked on her shoulders. Her hair had leaves in it. She seemed to notice them the same time he did and reached to pluck them out.
“I thought you left,” he croaked. His voice was hoarse from the tightness of his throat. He coughed to clear it, but it wouldn’t go away.
She ducked her head. Asher felt so bad that he quickly wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his body. She rested fisted hands against his chest.
“I couldn’t sleep. I thought that if I gave over to my fox for a while, then I wouldn’t be so confused.”
This was what bothered her in the truck. He remembered her twisted lips and her faraway stare. Something had been up, but he wouldn’t pry it out of her. She didn’t have to say a thing until she was good and ready. Even if he was dying to know if it was about him. Even if he feared she would never want to stay with him.
He saw the painting, the red she had laid over it. Did she still see him as an aggressive monster? Would she ever feel safe with him? He didn’t know what to do to convince her otherwise. Everything he’d done up until this point had been for her. He was out of options.
Rather belatedly, he realized she was snoring in his arms. Zara had fallen asleep while he held her. The small dark circles under her eyes were striking. He ran a thumb over one and she didn’t stir. It seemed that shifting hadn’t helped her sleep, but his embrace could. It gave him some hope for their future.
He lifted her and carried her to the couch. With her still in his arms, he sat down and finished his coffee. She slept for hours, but he didn’t dare move. The one time he tried to set her down, she nearly woke. He learned his lesson and stayed where he was.
Zara couldn’t believe that after all that, she’d passed out in Asher’s arms. A part of her wondered if she could have slept the night before if only she’d cuddled into him. The whole night, she’d tried to put space between them. She told herself it was wrong to show affection if she couldn’t stay, and yet her body gave in without another thought.
Asher was an unexpected gift. The way he literally leapt into her life and took it by storm had her shaken. While Zara clung to the idea of how her life should work and what she wanted from it, Asher had changed everything. Zara had been looking in the other direction the whole time. She’d been willfully oblivious to the fact that she’d fallen for him.
The dragon shifter beneath her yawned and stretched. She felt the pull of every muscle in his body, hard and packed with potential. To think, she’d watched his career on television, unknowing of the bond that would pull them together.
She sat up. “I want you to teach me more.”
Asher blinked sleepily. It seemed he had fallen asleep with her, too.
“Yesterday, you tried to teach me how to fight. I want to give it a try again.”
Asher was silent as he processed her words. His brows were flat over his piercing eyes. He warmed her lower back with one of his hands, his thumb rubbing gentle circles. She leaned into the touch and vowed that she would never let anyone steal her away from this life.
“On one condition—”
“Wasn’t this originally your idea?” she fired back. “Why does it have conditions now?”
“Because I have what you want now, and it means I have the power.”
She wrinkled her nose, but he just smiled. When it brought out the dimple in his cheek, she tapped it with her finger and felt her heart flutter. Was this love? Could she truly be in love with this man? All her life, she thought that she would find someone simple and settle down. Probably a human man.
Asher was anything but simple. He was vivacious, so full of life that she could barely keep up. He was dangerous, in the way that a guard dog was dangerous. With her, he was gentle, but he would hurt anyone who dared wrong her. That was a fact she knew deep down in her heart. He’d proven it the day he raced to her when her ex-fiancé was bothering her.
“Change your major to something you actually want to do, and I will consider teaching you how to throw a punch.”
She jumped off his lap. He didn’t know what he was asking of her. Yet, when Zara tried to explain why she needed this business major, she came up with nothing. There was no real desire for it in her heart. She hadn’t even retained any of the information from her previous classes—the few she attended.
Zara sighed. She thought she had her life figured out. She’d devised a plan and set out to achieve it, even if she hated the trip along the way. Oh, she really hated the trip along the way. She hated her boring instructors with their monotonous voices. The curriculum was even more boring. It foreshadowed a boring life filled with dread and longing.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the paintings she’d done w
hile living here with Asher. Her hands needed to move. She wanted to hold the paintbrush and feel alive again, feel that spark of inspiration and the power it granted her. When everything in her life had been decided for her, she could create from nothing and control every aspect of it.
“Now, I’m not asking you to do anything specific. What you change your major to is all up to you. All I ask is that you do something that makes you happy for once in your life. Survival isn’t your top priority anymore. I’ve got that covered.”
“Even if I don’t stay with you?” Her voice was small. It shook with uncertainty.
He clenched his fists and the beast in him let out a low growl, but he coughed and nodded. “No matter what you do, I’ve got your back.”
It was like a weight had been removed from her shoulders. She stood taller and saw the world from a whole new angle. Freedom came not with being on her own, but by partnering with someone. Asher gave with no expectation of anything in return. She could, at least, do that for him as well.
She went back to him and straddled him on the couch. He looked up at her like she was the moon and the stars and everything else that glittered in the sky. Awe parted his lips. She grasped his jaw and stole a kiss from him. The groan deep in his throat filled her with pleasure. She couldn’t get enough of him, his kiss, his skin, his touch. Everything about it brought her to life.
Did he feel the same? She hoped she could do something for him and that she wasn’t just hanging around and leeching off him.
Suddenly, he broke the kiss. His hands were at her back, holding her tight, but she still feared whatever he was about to say.
“You never agreed to my conditions.”
She laughed, relieved.
“I’m being serious! I want you to be happy. We only have one life to live. If we waste it doing crap that means nothing, then what’s the point in living at all? Tell me that you’ll make the most of it. No matter what.”
Asher (Keepers Of The Lake Book 4) Page 11
