Page 8

Chapter 8

T he world froze in time, without the need for Troy's stupid power.

A scent of cigarettes, coupled with hints of Rum Spice and Cedarwood from his usual cologne, rocketed straight to my head, instigating a flood of sensations that I hadn't experienced for months. Security, comfort...arousal. I yanked against his arm but it held me firmly in place. How dare he whirl his way in here and derail my thoughts and my night like this. What was he even doing here?

"Still up to your old tricks?" His deep Scottish accent melted every barrier I had put up since he left.

Nausea swirled in my stomach and rage bubbled up from even deeper within. All this time I had spent trying to undo the hold Asher had on me and it turned out I hadn't even budged an inch on getting over him. The distance between us had blindfolded me to the existence of my feelings, as powerful as they had been since the day before he left me.

Gods, I wanted to knee him in the nuts so badly.

He pressed his arm a little harder into my collarbone as I squirmed an inch out from under his grip. "Give it up, Bea. You've been caught."

I pulled my fiercest face before releasing the invisibility power from my control.

"How did you know I was here?" I whispered.

Asher tapped the side of his head with one finger. "Magical night vision contacts. They're standard issue at work. Invisibility isn't so useful against them."

Dang it. I would have to consider that new development in my future plans. Magic glasses I had some knowledge of, but contacts? Technology really was bounding forward.

"No, how did you know I was specifically here?" I asked. "I didn't tell anyone."

"That's for me to know and you to find out," Asher muttered. "Stop squirming."

"No!" I hissed. "I'm working and you're in my way."

"This isn't work, Bea, this is criminal." Asher's voice lowered and his eyes bore into mine with a pleading sheen.

"You never used to care. These are crappy people. I thought you said they deserved to get knocked down a peg?"

"I'm not a kid anymore, Bea."

Ouch. That stung.

"Listen," Asher glanced at the door beside us, "I can't let you go in there and steal anyone’s powers. These people have just signed up with my company for security."

I snorted. Seriously? He was worried I'd get him into trouble at his precious job? It didn't change anything. He had a job to do and I had a job to do. What we would have to discover was who was better at theirs than the other.

"I won't tell you again, Asher. Get out of my way," I said through gritted teeth.

I eyed Hecate who, upon realising the assailant was Asher, had reorganised herself into a loaf and curled her tail around her body. She blinked sleepily as if she had just finished a saucer of cream and was ready for bed. Where was my personal attack demon when I needed her?

But Asher and Hecate had an understanding from day one. Neither one of them was particularly fond of the other, but they respected each other as most contentious creatures did, even if they never enjoyed crossing paths. Any attack was going to have to come from me, and Asher had taught me everything I knew.

"No," Asher said, his silky tones caressing my nerves.

I narrowed my eyes at him. As a siren, Asher had the vocal ability to incapacitate anyone, whether by lulling them into a daze or by reducing them to a sobbing ball on the floor, begging for the screaming to stop.

Asher had only ever used his abilities on me whenever I asked for them; like whenever I couldn't get to sleep at night and needed a hand. But sirens couldn't always control the effects of the tones of their voices. I didn't want to give him a pass, but the soothing effect of his voice reduced my will to challenge him to the size of a mouse.

"You shouldn't be here, Bea," he said. "You're-"

The start of his lecture had an inner scream brewing that I was in danger of letting out for real.

Tapping into the other power I had inside me, I stepped backward through the wall of the house. The satisfaction at the sight of his bewildered face right before I disappeared felt like a spoonful of melted chocolate on my tongue.

I whirled around, blinking to get my bearings. With Asher on my tail, I didn't have long to get the power I needed.

If the people who lived here were even remotely normal, I would find them in bed, asleep. Clutching the hope to my chest, I dashed toward the stairs as quickly as I dared. But as I ascended them, the front door lock clicked and the door swung open.

Damn it. Of course he had a key. What were the odds of picking a house that Asher of all people had to protect? My luck was thoroughly rotten.

I bit my bottom lip with my four front teeth as I hurried up the stairs as silently as I could manage. I could and would take what I needed from this place, same as I did everywhere else. The fact that Asher felt like he had some sort of stake in this place meant nothing. If anything, it made me want to succeed even more.

When I reached the landing, I shoved my gloved hand into my pocket and fumbled around for the crystal. With the tips of my fingers, I prised it from my pocket, but as soon as it came free, it slipped from my grasp and clunked across the rug.

I swore and reached down to grab it, but something curled around my wrist and snapped me back upright. Asher pulled my arm across his chest, contorting me into an awkward position. He was almost blurry, his face was so close to mine, but the fierce expression on his face had butterflies in my stomach, fire in my veins, and a high-pitched ringing in my ears.

"I know you're trying to get back at me," Asher said. "But-"

"Why do you always think everything is about you?" I asked. "I'm my own person and I've got a job to do, so get the hell out of my way."

Asher grabbed at my arm as I melted through his grasp with the use of my borrowed power. I shot to the bedroom door, with Asher on my heels, and I pushed it open. But I lurched forward as Asher crashed into me and arms flailing, I barrelled into the door and onto the fluffy carpeted floor.

The door flew open and all the air left my lungs as Asher landed on me with full force. I sucked in a breath which strained against my ribs on its way in, ready to give him a hissing at. But a loud snore cut through the silence, and I craned my neck to look up.

A glorious four-poster bed stood a few feet away, the duvet on top of it made of a material so shiny that it shimmered even in the slivers of moonlight that poured between the curtains. A hairy arm dangled over the edge of the bed, its owner's face half-smushed into the pillow, but the one eye I could see of the man remained closed.

A swear word crossed my mind that I dared not utter. Then a few more followed. At the first opportunity I would direct them straight at Asher's face.

In that moment, I fully absorbed the fact that he was on top of me. All manner of inappropriate feelings of déjà vu returned to me in one violent flood that had me wanting to burrow further into him and tear myself away all at once.

But in one swift movement, Asher's weight disappeared, leaving behind a chill I couldn't quite describe. Before I could push against my hands to get up, Asher's grabbed my waist.

Desire exploded like little fireworks going off all over my body; where he touched my hips, in my core, and lower. I clenched my jaw as he helped me manoeuvre onto my knees. My reaction to his body smashed everything I had told myself every day since the break up that I was done with him. Gods, what did it take to properly move on from this guy?

The man on the bed snored again and a hand reached over and slapped him on the shoulder.

"Derrick, you're snoring again," a woman's voice said, as I crawled backward toward the hallway.

A bead of sweat trickled down my brow as the guy sniffed, but his eye didn't open. "Sorry, muffin," he grumbled.

I scrambled into the hallway, out of sight and leaned against the wall, clutching my knees to calm my racing heart. Asher stood on the other side of the doorway, glaring at me.

"Let's go. Now," he mouthed.

My jaw cracked under the pressure.

I didn't just want to take this power to spite him; I had a job to do, too. Leaving without it would mean having to track down yet another undeserving asshole with the same power and then going to get it, which could take days, if not longer.

But I had little choice. With both of them now more awake than asleep, I stood no chance of taking the power without them spotting me. Arranging the scowl of the century on my face, I glowered at Asher before turning invisible and heading back to the stairs, where Hecate waited, watching with wide eyes.

I didn't look back once I got outside and stormed, invisible, back to my bike and took off with Hecate in her carrier. If Asher had gotten here without my help, he could bloody well get home the same way.

But when I walked into the kitchen at home, hoping to make a calming cup of tea before going up to my room to seethe, Asher was waiting at the kitchen table, scrolling on his phone. I wanted to walk out again and ignore him, but the second he looked up and his gaze met mine, all the rage that had simmered all the way home boiled up to the surface.

"You've got some nerve, I tell you that," I snapped, marching over to the fridge.

"If you had chosen somewhere else, I wouldn't have cared as much." Asher returned to his scrolling. "But we've got a contract with those people now and they're expecting protection from thieves."

I wrenched a can of soda out of the fridge instead. No way was I sticking around here for a cup of tea to brew. Hecate jumped up on the counter and watched us, licking a paw.

"There he is. Mr. High-and-Mighty. Didn't take you long to appear, did it?" I cracked open the can. "Forget that you were all for taking from those less deserving less than a year ago."

"People change, Bea. Maybe it's time you did, too."

"If I do," I said, jerking a finger in his direction. "It won't be because of you and your snobby ideals, that's for sure."

I turned my back on him and dashed up to my room with Hecate on my heels. Once I was inside, I locked the door and put my can down on the vanity.

A fatigue I was all too familiar with enveloped me, and I rested my hands on my head and slid my back down the door until I sat on the floor. It wasn't the kind you could sleep off; instead, it wormed its way like a disease into every muscle and lulled them into a heaviness. Then it moved on to my soul.

Asher had transformed so suddenly it had given me whiplash. One day, he was his same old self; wanting to jump into a new, often illicit, adventure with me at his side. He had encouraged my business from its inception, when I first said I wanted to create grimoires with protective powers so supernaturals could keep their most treasured spells and potions safe. He had even helped me set it up, putting the word out to his contacts, which had given me a great start.

The next, he had solemnly announced he had a new job at the security firm and he was leaving. I had wanted to go with him, even if it meant shaking up the life I had built for myself. That he had helped me build. But he had turned me down and told me that our relationship was over. No talking about it and no answers why. We were just done.

Mostly, he had left me to get on with my life with little lecturing, even when he came home, although I tried to avoid him. But now Asher had apparently decided that his livelihood was more important than mine.

"Coward," I muttered, as a sheen of tears hazed my vision.

A smoky blob padded over to me and a moment later, I felt Hecate's paws on the back of my hand. But she said nothing. Instead, I lowered my legs and let her onto my lap. Curling up against my chest, Hecate's purrs soothed the edges of the torment roiling within me.

I wiped my eyes with my sleeve.

No matter how many times I convinced myself I was better off without him, the second Asher came back, it was like he had just broken up with me all over again. And my self worth could do nothing but shrivel under the heel of his boot.