Chapter 175

Asher stilled. His eyes went wide for a second or two. His jaw slackened.

“What?”

I sucked in a shaky breath and asked again, “Did you punch Lamar?”

“Cynthia.”

I braced myself. Was he about to tell me what I feared most: that he had hit Lamar, and I was all wrong about him?

I held my breath as he spoke.

“I have no idea what you are talking about,” he said.

“You didn’t punch him?” I asked again.

“Punch him? I haven’t even seen him.” He inched closer to me. “What’s all this about? Did something happen to Lamar?”

I wanted to believe him. I almost did. But those bloody knuckles weighed on my mind. Would Asher work out so hard that he’d hurt himself?

It just seemed so unlikely.

“He has a black eye,” I said. “Whoever did it knocked him unconscious. I saw him in the hospital.”

“Well, that sucks for him,” Asher said, not the least bit sympathetic. “What does that have to do with me?”

I watched him, ready to track every twitch of reaction, as I said, “He said you punched him.”

Asher’s brow lowered in anger. “And you believe that? I told you I wouldn’t hurt him. I didn’t even see him!”

“If you had hit him, you wouldn’t want to tell me because that would mean you broke your promise.”

Asher stretched himself to his full height and glared down at me. “I do not break my promises.”

I knew that. I did. It was why I had doubted Lamar’s story in the first place. But, “Why would Lamar lie?”

“I have no idea.” A twinge of annoyance hardened Asher’s voice. “Did he say anything else? Did he give a reason for my supposed attack?”

I blushed. I really didn’t want to tell him what Lamar said, but he deserved to know.

“He said he wanted to get you to back off of me. He said he went up to you and told you…” I cleared my throat, stalling. “’Cynthia’s mine.’”

A growl escaped Asher’s throat.

I pointed at him in accusation.

He bit off the noise. “So what? I don’t like him saying that. That doesn’t mean I would hit him.” He crossed his arms. “I thought you knew me better than this.”

“I do! But you aren’t making this easy on me. How did you really hurt your hand?”

“Like I told you. I’ve been going to the gym a lot, to take out my frustration.”

I still wasn’t sure I believed that. “You wouldn’t hurt yourself…”

Asher looked away, somewhat sheepish. “I have had a lot of frustration lately.”

“Frustration about what?” I couldn’t understand it. Asher was the son of an Alpha and Captain of the hockey team. He had good grades. The hockey team was doing well.

What could he have to be so frustrated about?

He looked back at me. The intensity of his blue gaze held me prisoner. He was trying to tell me something that I couldn’t fully understand, but it made my heart ache, much like the pain from our breaking mating bond.

The longer we watched each other, the more it hurt. I half wanted to claw out my own heart and hand it to him, just to get the pain to stop.

Was he… no. He couldn’t be frustrated because of me.

I shook my head, clearing it. I had to think of something else, or I would spiral. I would fall into him and never let go.

I couldn’t do that. He didn’t want me.

“I don’t understand,” I said, forcing my thoughts away from how much I wanted him. “Why would you invite me over here if it wasn’t to talk about Lamar’s attack?”

He continued to watch me. I had to avoid his gaze or risk falling back under his spell.

“I went to the hospital last night and talked with Nurse Irene,” he said. “I wanted to scope out the investigators. See what they knew, and how they were going about collecting their information.”

I tensed, remembering the investigators from this morning, and the way that third one had stared at me. “I saw them myself, when I was at the hospital this morning.”

Asher’s hands curled into fists. “You… what?”

“I was in the lobby and they were talking to one of the nurses at the nurses’ station.”

“Did they see you?”

I swallowed down my growing fear. “One of them did.”

Asher half-stepped forward, toward me, but he quickly stopped himself. “You’ll have to be careful. Things are getting really dangerous. I… I don’t want to frighten you, but you need to be aware.”

He was building up to something. I hugged my arms around my waist and waited.

“Irene said the investigators confiscated a vial of your blood from her lab,” Asher said, voice too calm for the horrible things he was saying. “It wasn’t labeled, but they can use DNA testing to find out it’s yours.”

A chill stretched through my body, making my fingers numb.

“Irene gave them some story about how that blood was for something else, so they can’t directly connect the blood to projection. But once they find out the blood belongs to you, they are going to watch you.”

I didn’t trust myself to speak. I nodded.

“I had to tell you in person, Cyn. I know this is scary, I –”

“Asher.” Terror clawed at my throat. I didn’t know what I wanted from Asher exactly, but I knew he was the only one who could help me. “Asher, please.”

My body trembled.

Asher inched closer, but it wasn’t close enough. He still wasn’t touching me.

“I-I don’t want to g-go to the… research facility.” I covered my face with my hands.

“You won’t. They might not find out the truth, Cyn. But even if they do, I swear to God I won’t let them have you.” The words came out rough, coupled with a soft growl. This was a promise made by both Asher and his wolf.

He took another step. I could feel the warmth radiating off of him as he stood just in front of me.

“I’ll keep you safe,” he said. “No matter what happens. You and your baby will be safe.”

“Oh, Asher.”

He held his arms out at his sides. “I know all the reasons we shouldn’t touch each other. I don’t want to cross any lines. But I can’t stand to see you hurt, Cyn. Please. Let me hold you.”

If I was stronger, maybe I could have turned him away. If I loved him less… If I cared for Lamar more…

But as it was, my world was shaken. I was terrified. And the only person I wanted to touch me was a breath away.

I closed the distance myself. Leaning forward, I pressed my forehead into his chest. Immediately, his arms came up around me and brought me closer.

Heat spread through me, chasing away the chill. When I trembled against him, he held me tighter, holding me together with his strength.

I breathed in his scent of leather and pine. Even Lilith, inside of me, sighed in relief.

I missed him. I missed this.

If I could stay forever in this moment, I would. I would freeze time to keep his arms around me.

Like this, I could almost pretend that nothing had happened, that nothing was wrong.

Asher was holding me and all was right with the world.

I snaked my arms around his waist, and clung as tightly as I could, bunching fistfuls of his shirt in my hands.

“Don’t let go,” I begged. “Please don’t let go.”

He pressed a kiss to the top of my head. “Never.”