Page 102 of Asher Black (The Five Syndicates)
You don’t do something that big for a woman you like. You do that for a woman you love.
Oh, my God.
I think Asher loves me.
My hand instinctively reaches for his back. He’s still standing in front of me, shielding me from René, but at my touch, he leans back, pressing himself into my hand. The movement is so natural, I feel it inside of me, like he’s an extension of myself.
With my hand still on his back, I approach his side, so we’re standing next to each other.
I’m staring René straight in the eye when I say, “I’ll be getting a restraining order.”
I know nothing about law, so I don’t know if I have any legal grounds for it, but it felt like the right thing to say. Like one final jab to René in front of everyone. And then I take Asher’s hand and leave, nodding in goodbye to everyone else at the table.
I can feel thousands of eyes on us until we’re out of the room. As soon as we’re in the hallway, Xavier and Dominic appear out of nowhere. They walk us to the car, where Asher and I sit in silence until we’re back in the penthouse.
It isn’t until we’re alone in his room that Asher finally speaks.
“Why isn’t he in jail?”
“There was never any hard evidence. It was my word against his. I asked my social worker to help me leave, and she did.”
“I’ll take care of Steve.”
“Okay.”
I don’t really care anymore. I’ve risen above the pain and uncertainty Steve has caused, and I finally feel like I’m healing. But it’ll be nice to know that Steve will be taken care of and can’t hurt anyone else.
“Legally,” I add, just in case.
Asher smothers his small smile with a kiss to my forehead.
I let us simmer in silence for a moment before I say, “You love me.”
His eyes widen, but he doesn’t deny it.
So, I ask, “Why?”
When he takes a seat on the bed and gestures for me to join him, I do.
“Remember when I drove you home for the first time?” After I nod, he continues, “You were so scared of me, yet you managed to demand something in return for this arrangement. I couldn’t believe it.”
“And you loved me then?” I ask, dubiously.
He shakes his head. “No, but I’d be lying if I say I didn’t like what I saw. I started paying better attention to you after that, noticing your random bouts of bravery. Despite your fears, and there are a lot of them,”—I snort—“you’re able to overcome everything. I’ve never seen true courage like that before.
“Don’t get me wrong. I’ve seen Romano soldiers go into battle knowing they’re as good as dead, but those men aren’t afraid. They don’t have to overcome their fears in order to get the job done. But you have to, and it’s beautiful.
“And when you stuck up for me, you didn’t even have to stop and consider it. You just acted. There was something so pure about your instinct to protect me that I couldn’t help but give you a piece of my heart that day. After that, I was pretty much a goner. I fell in love with your compassion and your courage and your strength and yo—”
I cut him off with a kiss, pressing my lips against his with surprising urgency. When I pull back and say, “I don’t want to go slow anymore,” I might as well have said, “I love you.”
Because I do.
My God, I really do.
Asher is looking at me like he’s about to demand everything of me. And right now, I’d do just about anything he asks of me if it means he’ll push me onto the bed and press his lips against mine. Break my dry spell. Bare himself to me.
“Kneel,” he says, his demanding voice causing my nipples to pucker under my shirt.
