Page 101 of Asher Black (The Five Syndicates)
I finally turn to Steve, whose eyes are still riveted by me. “My last night living with you… was that the only time you snuck into my room?”
It’s a loaded question, and only the two of us know what I’m really asking—did you just touch yourself? Or did you touch me, too?
I make sure we’re making eye contact, because I have to see if he’s telling the truth. I have to look him in the eyes for this.
His cheeks are red, and his eyes look warily around the table at everyone else but me, until they finally return to me. “That was the only time.”
Oh, God.
I hear a whimper, and I think it’s mine, but I’m too busy absorbing everything to care.
Relief like I’ve never known floods through me. I sag in my chair, wondering how to process this, whether or not I should believe him. Maybe it’s wishful thinking, but for some reason, I do.
And then, I see a blur of movement, and in front of his whole company, the board, and IllumaGen’s board, Asher punches Steve across the face, sending him flying onto the floor.
Chapter Thirty
Wisdom, compassion, and
courage are the three uni-
versally recognized moral
qualities of men.
Confucius
The entire ballroom is eerily silent. When I look on the floor, I see Steve, sprawled out on the dark hardwood planks with his eyes cemented shut.
Holy shit.
Asher knocked him out.
When I finally manage to glance at Asher, he’s shaking. I don’t know if it’s from rage or not, but it’s hitting me harder than seeing Steve again.
A screech of a chair is the first sound to break the silence, and everyone turns to watch as René hauls himself out of his chair and heads my way. Asher immediately springs into action and cuts him off before he reaches me, but René still manages to lean deeply to the right and jab a finger in my direction.
“You,” he seethes. “You ruined everything.”
I’m not sure why he’s complimenting me like that, but I am sure that his behavior is extremely unprofessional and public, for his whole company to see.
But then again, so was Asher’s.
Oh, God.
The vote.
I don’t believe René will still be with Black Enterprises after tonight, but I also don’t know if Asher will either. He punched a guy in front of his company’s board, his employees, and the IllumaGen board. That’s not something a CEO fit to lead a billion dollar company does. If it happened any other way, this would certainly have been the victory René was looking for—Asher, acting violently, fueling the mafia rumors.
But it didn’t happen another way.
It happened for me.
And Asher might suffer for it.
It dawns on me what a sacrifice this is. I ma
y have pushed aside my dignity and confronted my demons for Asher, but I didn’t lose anything that I can’t gain back. Asher, on the other hand, risked his company for me. A company he loves enough to ask a complete stranger to marry him. He jeopardized that for me.
