CHAPTER 16
“Well, what do you think?” Naomi stood in the living room and gestured to the pair of side tables Asher had made. “Didn’t I tell you they’d be great in here?”
He shrugged noncommittally, but damn if she hadn’t been right about the change being a good one. “It’ll do, I guess.”
“You guess?” She gaped at him, a broad smile breaking over her pretty face. “This looks a thousand times better and you know it.”
To him, the room’s biggest improvement was the petite spitfire standing in the center of it. She had her sleek black hair swept back in a ponytail, which only accentuated the beauty of her skin and unusual eyes. Dark jeans and a white T-shirt should have been mundane, but on Naomi it was as enticing as lingerie.
Or maybe that was just Asher’s insatiable libido talking—at least where she was concerned.
He’d finally let her out of bed around noon, primarily because they both needed to shower and she needed to eat. He had opted to keep his distance, best as he could, if only to avoid the temptation of her delicious body . . . and the equally tempting notion of her carotid.
After she had lunch, she had fallen asleep with Sam on the sofa while Asher had holed up in the workshop, alone with his guilt and indecision.
The confrontation with Cain still weighed heavily on his mind. The other Hunter was right about one thing. If Slater were to get wise about Naomi and link the string of suspicious wins to her, he’d be gunning for her with both barrels loaded. And if the bastard should clue in to the fact that she had something to do with Michael’s big win the other night?
Asher didn’t even want to consider it.
He didn’t worry that he couldn’t handle Slater or a truckload of his human goons. Hell, he would even take care of Cain if it came to that, or take the male down with him. But, more and more, the very real possibility that Naomi might get hurt in the process—physically or otherwise—was becoming a risk he was loath to take.
And he knew why, too.
That deepening, unquenchable ache behind his sternum was to blame.
He cared about her. Not the way he had in the beginning, as an obligation to shield a female who might one day bear another Breed male’s offspring, but as the woman he desired above any other.
As the mate he would never be worthy of, even if his hands weren’t stained with countless spent lives.
And caring meant he was liable to make mistakes.
To truly keep her safe, he would need every weapon at his disposal, chief among them his ability to think, act, and react with the emotionless logic of his former life. Allowing Naomi past those walls had changed everything.
She had changed him.
“Come on,” she said, grabbing his hand. “Let’s go get that armoire for the bedroom. You’ll thank me later.”
She gave him a little tug, only to draw up short when her phone’s text chime went off in her back pocket. “It’s Michael.”
Asher tensed as she tapped the display and read for a second. “The casino funds couldn’t have cleared so soon, could they?”
“No,” she said, but when she glanced at him, her face was lit with excitement. “It’s not about the money. It’s even better news. Penny’s back.”
“Penny?” Asher shook his head, confused.
“She’s one of the kids at the house, a ten-year-old girl who’s had a really shitty life so far. She’s been gone for nearly two weeks this time, the longest since she first came around. But now she’s back.”
Asher grunted. “I can see you’re relieved.”
“Are you kidding me? I’m elated. I’ve been so worried about her.” Naomi put her head down and started texting Michael back. “I have to see her. Even if it’s only for a few minutes—”
“Out of the question.”
“Do you mind if I borrow the—” She glanced up, frowning. “Excuse me?”
He gave a curt shake of his head. “I don’t think it’s a good idea. It’s too soon. Slater may have eyes on the house—hell, that’s practically a given.”
Cain’s eyes, at the very least, although not until dark. Asher was fairly certain the former Hunter wouldn’t harm Naomi now that he knew she was a Breedmate, but it was still his job to look after Slater’s money. There were a lot of creative ways to move someone out of the way without hurting them. The thought of a killer like Cain getting anywhere near her was enough to turn Asher’s blood cold.
And the idea of letting her leave during the daytime when Asher couldn’t even protect her from Slater’s human thugs was an option he refused to so much as consider.
“You’re not going, Naomi. And definitely not alone.”
Her chin hiked up. “And you can’t keep me here.”
“Yes. I can.” He stepped toward her. “But I don’t want to do that.”
“I want to see Michael and Penny and the rest of the kids.”
“It’s too soon. If Slater—”
She shook her head. “If Slater had any suspicions about that win the other night, he never would’ve let Michael out of the casino with the check in the first place. We’re having a good time out here together, Asher, but I’m not your property. You don’t have the right to keep me from my home.”
Her home.
Somehow, he’d actually started to forget that fact. Ironic, considering everything else he was cursed to remember in his life. Naomi belonged somewhere else. Her friend and the troubled kids they were trying to help meant more to her than anything.
Certainly more than him.
He saw her devotion to them in the determined line of her mouth, and in the mutinous sherry-colored eyes that held the power to turn him inside out with a single look. Rather like the one she leveled on him now.
After the intimacy they’d shared the past couple of days and nights, to hear her dismiss it as nothing more than a good time stung more than he thought possible.
Time to recalibrate his thinking. Not to mention his reckless cravings where this female was concerned.
“You’re right,” he said evenly. “You don’t belong to me. If you want to go home, then I won’t keep you from it. But I’m going to take you there.”
“Fine,” she said quietly, her expression softening somewhat. “Thank you.”
He stepped away from her without acknowledging her gratitude. “Tell your Michael I’ll be coming with you. We’ll head out as soon as night falls.”
# # #
The door swung open before he had a chance to knock, and Michael Carson stared up at him from his wheelchair.
“Holy fuck, she wasn’t kidding. You’re huge.” The young man gave Asher a wide grin as he rolled back and made space for him to step inside the house behind Naomi. “I’m Michael.”
He held out his hand to Asher and Naomi blanched. “Oh, Michael, wait. Asher doesn’t like—”
“It’s all right,” Asher said, shaking the man’s hand in spite of its cost.
He weathered the sudden jolt of ugly memories that hit him on contact, careful to keep his expression neutral in spite of the ugliness—and the agony—of Michael’s past suffering. The incident Naomi told him about, the one that ended with an eight-year-old boy’s jaw being smashed under his father’s fist, rolled over Asher in brutal detail.
He nodded, feeling nothing but respect for the young man who’d suffered so much but survived to make a better life, not only for himself but the kids he welcomed into his home.
“I’m honored to meet you, Michael.”
“Likewise. Now I see why Nay was trying to keep you all to herself.” His warm, smiling eyes took Asher in again from head to toe, before he slanted a wide-eyed look at Naomi. “Well, come in, you two. We don’t want to sit here with the door open all night, do we?”
“How are things?” Naomi asked, code that Michael picked up on instantly.
“Quiet so far.” He lowered his voice to almost a whisper. “I can hardly believe how smoothly it’s gone. By tomorrow this time, we should be golden.”
A sigh gusted out of her. “Thank God.” The sound of children’s voices carried from other areas of the house and she craned her neck to peer down the hall. “Lot of kids come in for the night?”
“It’s early yet so only four, but the rest will be rolling in later.”
“And Penny,” Naomi prompted, eagerness and relief in her voice. “I’m so glad to hear she’s come back.”
Michael nodded. “Me too. Apparently, her mom’s back in town from Reno. Brought another loser boyfriend with her. Penny wanted to give her a chance, but things got bad again.”
Naomi’s face pinched in sympathy. “Drugs?”
“Yep, the usual.”
“Poor kid.”
“Shitty parent,” Michael said. “But Penny’s got a good head on her shoulders. And she knows she’ll always have a place to stay with us.” He rolled toward the adjacent kitchen. “You two gonna hang here for a while?”
She glanced at Asher. “Yeah, for a while, I guess.”
“Great,” Michael said. “We all just had dinner and I sprang for that new superhero movie on cable, so everyone’s getting cleaned up before we settle in for that. Meanwhile, I’m on popcorn duty. Now that you’re here, you can help.”
Asher watched their easy communication, a bitter pang of jealousy welling up inside him. He knew Naomi and Michael were just friends, but their obvious affection toward each other made him feel like an outsider, like the intruder he was.
There was a time, not long ago at all, that his discomfort wouldn’t even have registered. Nor now, if the woman in question had been anyone but this one, that is.
While the friends discussed some of the other kids and speculated on who had yet to report in for the night, he glanced around at the comfortable, if modest, house. The large sectional had seen better days, but it was clean and tidy, like the rest of the cozy living room. A flat-screen TV was the obvious focal point of the space, but there were also bookshelves filled with easily hundreds of novels and non-fiction books, along with a small study desk with a computer on it.
Everything in the place had a sense of home and family—things Asher wouldn’t have been able to recognize or appreciate if he hadn’t met Ned Freeman all those years ago.
Things the kids who came to stay with Naomi and Michael probably wouldn’t experience if not for the generosity of both of them.
And the love.
Asher felt it as he listened to the pair talk. And then he saw that care in action a moment later, when the sound of lightly padding feet came up from the hallway.
“Penny!” Naomi’s face lit up with unabashed joy as the lanky blonde girl dressed in a long nightgown raced into her open arms.
Penny hugged Naomi close. “Michael said you were away for a while and he wasn’t sure when you were gonna be here.” The girl glanced at Asher and grew quiet, a wary curiosity stealing into her sky-blue gaze. “Who’re you?”
Naomi gave him an awkward glance. “Asher is . . . a friend of mine.”
“Hi,” the girl said, her arms still wrapped around Naomi.
Asher nodded briefly, and at the same moment several more kids strayed in from the hallway. Four boys, two of them dark-eyed identical twins, the others a short, chubby kid with a crown of bright red hair and a sullen, round-faced Latino boy. The kids stopped in their tracks and gaped at Asher.
“Who let the giant in?” This from one of the twins.
Michael smiled. “Guys, this is Asher.” He shot Asher a wry look. “Allow me to introduce the rest of the welcoming committee this evening. We’ve already heard from Max, and that’s his better-looking brother, Billy.” A joke, considering there was virtually no difference between them, but the other boy snickered even as Max playfully cuffed his shoulder. “The strong, silent one here is Juan, and that other little rascal is Tyler.”
“Are those tattoos on your arms?” Tyler blurted, pointing at Asher.
The spokesman for the twins, Max, gave the kid an eyeroll. “He’s Breed, genius. Those are dermaglyphs. A whole lot of them.”
Asher nodded at the boy. “I’m Gen One. That’s why I have so many glyphs.”
Juan perked up, a guarded curiosity in the glance that met Asher’s gaze. “So, you’re, like, an actual vampire?”
Asher smirked. “More or less.”
“Cool!” Tyler hooted, his young voice pitched high and squeaky. “Can we see your fangs?”
“When you’re hungry, do people look like food to you?” Billy chimed in.
“Guys.” Michael waved his hands at the group of kids in a corralling gesture. “We’ve got a movie to watch, remember? Maybe Asher will let you hooligans interrogate him later.”
“Aw, man!” The protests came mainly from Billy and Tyler as Michael shooed them to the sectional.
“Sorry about that,” Naomi said, giving Asher a gentle look. “I doubt they’ve ever seen someone like you before.”
“It’s all right.”
“Hey, Nay,” Michael called from next to the sofa, remote in hand. “You mind handling the popcorn while I get things cooking with the movie?”
“Sure.” She glanced at Asher. “Want to help?”
He knew about as much about making popcorn as he did anything else when it came to a kitchen, but he nodded and followed her out of the room. As much as he wanted to pretend he could keep his distance from her, she drew him like a magnet. And if her pull was this strong without the tether of a blood bond, how bad would he have it for this female if she truly was his?
He didn’t allow the thought to linger. It was pointless imagining, anyway.
This was where she belonged. If he hadn’t seen it before, he did now.
He stood back, watching her open the cabinets by rote as she collected a big box of popcorn, napkins, and several large bowls. “You’re happy to be home.”
“I am.” The smile she turned on him was unguarded, filled with pure contentment. “Do you see how special they are? And those five in there are only a few of the ones who’ll likely be coming to stay tonight.”
He nodded. “They all seem like good kids.”
“They’re amazing,” Naomi said. “They all have so much potential, you know? All they need is one person to give them a break. Just one fucking person to show them they matter, that they’re loved.”
He stepped closer, barely able to resist touching her. “Then those kids in there are luckier than most. They’ve got two people offering them a chance. Two people who care.”
She bobbed her head tightly, holding his gaze. “Michael and I can’t save them all. We won’t be able to save them all, and when I think about that it kills me inside.”
“You’re doing what you can, Naomi. That’s more than a lot of other people would do. Including those kids’ parents.”
“I know. That’s the really awful part, isn’t it? Parents who won’t, or can’t, straighten themselves up even for the sake of their own children. As much as I love my mom, the fact that she chose someone like Leo Slater over me time and again hurts worse sometimes than losing her to death.”
She turned away, busying herself with a package of popcorn. Asher moved in close and reached out to stroke the side of her face. “Your mother wasn’t as strong as you are. You were stronger, braver than her even when you were that eight-year-old girl begging her to stay.”
Naomi swiveled her head toward him, hauntedness in her dark gold eyes. “I hate that you saw me like that.” She swallowed hard, then exhaled a soft curse. “I hate that you know how afraid and hurt I was. I’ve spent my whole life pushing that hurt down, trying to deny that deep inside I’m still that terrified, angry child. And now you . . . you’re the one person I can’t ever hide from, Asher. I can’t ever be strong around you because you’ve seen me at my weakest.”
“No.” He curved his fingers around her bare nape, her satiny black ponytail brushing the back of his hand. “You don’t have to hide or pretend to be anything. You can be weak or strong and it’s not going to make a difference to me. You’re always going to be the most extraordinary woman I’ve ever known.”
She drew in a breath. “Asher, what I said to you today, before we came here—”
“You were right,” he said, cutting her off at the pass. “You don’t belong to me. You belong here, with these kids. They need you, Naomi. Michael does too.”
For a long moment, she only stared at him, her gaze searching. “What about you? Tell me what you need.”
“I need to know you’re safe. That you’re happy.” He pulled his hand away from her before he gave in to the urge to hold on any tighter to something he didn’t deserve. “I need to know Slater and those who serve him can never hurt you.”
“That’s all?”
“It’s enough.” He stepped back from her, putting her out of his reach. “I promised to protect you until we’re certain Slater can’t hurt you. That’s what I intend to do. Then you can resume your life here and I’ll go back to mine.”
She went utterly still, silent. God help him, her gaze looked so bleak he felt as shamed as if he’d just struck her. For an endless stretch of time, neither one of them spoke or moved or even breathed.
Bare feet slapped the linoleum behind them. Then Tyler’s squeaky voice demanded, “Where’s the popcorn, you guys? The movie’s about to start!”
“It’s coming,” Naomi said, greeting the boy with a happy smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Why don’t you give me a hand now that you’re here? You can open the packages for me and set out the bowls.”
She turned her back to Asher and hastily got to work with Tyler at her side.
Asher faded back into the other room without her notice.
When the corn was popped and brought out from the kitchen, Michael started the movie for the eager group of kids. They were all piled into the living room, each of them gravitating to a certain seat. Max took the recliner, with Naomi on one end of the sectional where Michael had parked his chair. Penny was nestled up close to Naomi’s other side.
“Is Asher sleeping here tonight?” Billy asked from his spot at the other side of the sofa.
Michael chuckled. “Not tonight, buddy. Asher’s got his own place.”
Now Penny turned a curious look on Naomi. “Is that were you’ve been?”
She nodded. “I’m staying with Asher for a little while, but I’ll be back soon.”
“Oh.” The girl shrugged. “You gonna watch with us or what?”
It took a second for Asher to realize she was talking to him. “Yeah, sure.”
She patted the space beside her and offered him a tentative smile which he was certain had everything to do with her trust in Naomi and her taste in friends and nothing to do with him personally. He made his way over and sat, careful not to encroach on the girl’s personal space.
Still, she stiffened involuntarily in a way that made him feel queasy as he tried not to think of all the reasons why she might have to fear him, least of all the fact that he was Breed.
The first few minutes as the credits rolled were spent in awkward silence, all of his awareness centered on Naomi’s unblinking, stoic face as she stared at the large screen. Soon enough, they all got lost in the movie. Asher never watched TV or movies, but there was something comforting in the shared silence within the room, nothing but rapt faces and the rhythmic crunch of popcorn being stuffed by the handfuls into tiny mouths.
At some point, Penny relaxed, sagging against his shoulder. Her soft snores vibrated through his arm as she nestled against him as innocently as a kitten. He watched her for a moment, and when he glanced up his gaze collided with Naomi’s tender regard.
“You should take her,” he murmured. Before he realized what he was doing, he reached down to move the child close to Naomi. As soon as his fingers touched Penny’s bare arm, he was buffeted with the immense force of her memory—transported from his seat on the big sectional to a dusty floor beneath a small bed as he peered through a torn pink bed skirt. Terror clutched him, sucking all of the breath from his lungs.
No, not his lungs. Penny’s.
Her terror seeped through him like acid.
In an instant, her memory imprinted itself on him before he could pull away.
He was here. She could hear him, mouth-breathing. Could smell the stench of whiskey and sour sweat pouring off him. The only question was whether he was too drunk to think of looking under the bed or if he would—
Fear closed around his heart like an icy fist as dark shoes entered her room. The bed skirt fluttered and a pair of watery gray eyes peered through the darkness.
“There you are, Penny-girl. Whassamatter? Come out and give your step-daddy a kiss goodnight.”
Asher rolled to his feet, powered by pure, unadulterated rage. Penny stirred, blinking up at him sleepily from her peaceful drowse. Somehow, as he looked into that little girl’s eyes, he managed to keep his voice even.
“Sorry. I’m not really into the movie after all. I need to get some air.”
He stalked from the house onto the porch and sucked in great gulps of warm Nevada air.
When the door creaked open a few minutes later, he expected to see Naomi. He had his apology lined up, but he paused when he realized it was Michael.
“You okay?”
“Yeah,” Asher replied brusquely. “All good.”
Michael nodded, his concerned gaze steady. “It’s hard to process sometimes, even for me, and this has been my normal since before my accident. Some nights when a new kid comes through, I lie in bed so full of anger and pain for what they’ve endured. They don’t even need to say the words a lot of the time. When you’ve known pain, you know how to see it in them.” Michael stared out into the night, his hands resting lightly on the wheels of his chair. “Nay’s so much better at all of this than me. She never lets them see her anger for what they’ve gone through—the rage that comes along with this work. I, on the other hand—” He glanced back at Asher with a wry look. “Let’s just say there are a lot of times when it gets so heavy I need to walk away for some air too. Or roll, as the case may be.”
Asher chuckled. “You do just fine, from what I’ve seen tonight.”
Michael gave a dismissive wave. “Anyway, that wasn’t the reason I came out here. I just wanted to thank you. For helping Naomi. She’s the most loyal, selfless person I know. Impulsive and hotheaded, too, but I probably don’t need to tell you that.”
Asher felt a grin tug at his mouth. “Just a few of her finer qualities.”
Michael nodded. “My friend is independent as hell, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t need someone to lean on now and again.”
“She’s got you,” Asher pointed out.
“Not what I’m talking about. I guess what I’m asking is, does she have you now too?”
He didn’t know how to answer that. Part of him wanted to reassure the man who loved Naomi like a brother that nothing would ever happen to her so long as Asher was breathing. But he didn’t know how he could make that promise when he didn’t have the right to feel so protective of her, so possessive.
“I will keep her safe,” he vowed solemnly.
Even if that meant keeping her away from himself.