Billionaire Protector

by Kyanna Skye

  Ashton tracked time by the movement of the moon shifting overhead. By his calculations, it had been almost an hour and half of nonstop running. He should be there any moment. There! Just as he cleared a small bank of sand, he could see it. A larger cliff that jutted out into the landscape. The last stop off an abandoned strip of highway that most people had probably forgotten about. Which, he had no doubt, was exactly what the Rattlers wanted.

  He crept nearer being sure to stay silent and wary. At first, it all seemed empty, but slowly signs of life began to emerge. Discarded bottles of beer, garbage littering here and there. As he moved closer the large shadowy silhouettes began to take form. The big shipping container, rusted and rendered useless by time and disuse sat like sentries, dotting in a circle around a small building. The windows were dark and Ashton wasted little time shifting back to human form and throwing on the clothes he’d brought with.

  As he stood there, he heard a soft noise coming from the nearest shipping container. It was at least six foot tall by fifteen wide and as he crept closer his suspicions solidified. His super sharp hearing made it easy to discern the subdued sniffles and muffled cries of the people locked inside.

  With a softly spoken curse, he walked around to the front only to find a giant padlock barring the door closed. He grasped it with both hands, pulling at it, prying at it, using all of his strength to try and get it open. It started to creak and then bend just a little.

  “You’re not going to get it open that way, Red Hawk.” The rough, mean sounding voice said evilly from behind, making Ashton jump and spin around. His heart sank as he saw the ring of men surrounding him. At least ten. He could probably take them on, but it would be tough, even for him.

  He only had time to take a single step forward before a blinding pain shot from the back of his head where someone had managed to sneak behind him unnoticed. A second later he fell to the sandy ground and everything went dark.

  Chapter 4

  The world was black. Ashton slowly blinked his eyes open, and even for his sharp vision, it took him several minutes to be able to make out the huddled, shivering shapes trembling as far away from him as the metal shipping container would allow. Slowly, he eased himself up into a crouch. The low ceilings wouldn’t let him stand to his full height he dropped back to his knees, wincing as every bruise and wound from his attackers came rushing back, reminding him of the scuffle that had taken place just outside.

  He couldn’t exactly call it a fight, he thought with a snort. All it had taken was some scumbag gangster with a two by four to lay him low. He knew if he’d been human the blow would have killed him, but luckily for him, his skull was thicker than that. Ashton rubbed at the bloody mat on the back of his head, wincing anew at the sharp pain that stabbed through his head like a thousand tiny knives. Ashton cursed aloud this time and instantly regretted it as several tiny, fearful cries echoed back at him in the small confines.

  “Hello?” He called out into the darkness. He knew if he could barely see in the pitch black then whoever was in there with him wouldn’t be able to see him at all. “Is someone else in here? It’s okay, I won’t hurt you.” Ashton tried to make his voice as soft and non-threatening as possible, whispering the words in a gentle tone. There were a few more sniffles but that was his only response, at least until he tried to crawl closer to the shadowy silhouette. Another cry shot out, piercing in the otherwise silent container and Ashton covered his ears as to his surprise the shadow shape split to become not one but two young girls.

  He didn’t have a second to see more than that before one was launching herself at him, landing a walloping blow that landed right on an already tender spot on his side. Ashton yelped and backed away from the fierce demon facing him down.

  “You stay away from my sister!” The demon yelled at him, her voice hoarse as if crying. Ashton held his hands up to fend her off but the attack he anticipated didn’t come. He could still see her, in the dark with her tiny fists raised in the air, fury like a cloud surrounding her in the dark.

  “Listen, I already told you. I’m not going to hurt you,” He tried again, “It’s more than I can say for you.” His attempt at humor went unnoticed as the young girl refused to back down.

  “Did the Rattlers get you too?” She finally asked him after a long moment of silence. He mulled over her question, and its implications before answering slowly.

  “Yeah, I guess you could say that,” It was impossible to tell in the dark but he guessed they were no more twelve or thirteen. “Did the Rattlers get you? Is that why you’re in here?” The girl was silent for a long time before answering.

  “They stole us away when our mom was inside a gas station. We were standing outside waiting for her and they just came and grabbed us. I tried to fight, but…” Her words trailed off only to replace with wet sounding sniffles as if she was fighting back another wave of tears.

  “Hey, it’s okay. You didn’t do anything wrong. The Rattlers are bad people, very bad people.” Ashton tried to calm her, and at the same time, his mind was whirling with thoughts and ideas. The other girl sniffled a few more times before speaking.

  “I heard him say…I heard one of them say they were going to sell us, and that …that man would…would pay a lot for young ones like us.” Fury surged through him at her words. He had known some of the nefarious details, that they were kidnapping young people and abusing them, but to find out that this little girl had overheard them say that, had known what her fate would be had him absolutely livid.

  “Are you going to save us?” the question shot out of the dark from the other girl, the one who hadn’t said anything yet and it caught Ashton off guard. Here he was, this whole time solely focused on solving the case and catching the bad guys. He had never really thoughts about the actual victims, the individuals who had gone through such a terrible trauma and it broke his heart that these two young girls were going through it now.

  He thought of his own unborn baby. What if it was his child? He couldn’t even stomach the thought. It had his lion half raging inside him, and he knew if he wasn’t careful to keep him under control he would snarling and clawing just like he was doing on the inside.

  “Yes,” The word was roughly spoken as he forced it out past his rage, “Yes, I am going to save you.”

  He turned to run his hand around the shipping container, looking for the weakest part, looking for where he could use his supernatural strength to break them free. He was glad of the darkness because he knew if the girls saw the murder shining in his eyes they would be terrified. Because no matter what, he was going to save them. And then, he was going after the people responsible.

  Neva awoke with a gasp. Something was wrong. She was jumping out of bed and tearing through her closet for clothes before she even had a chance to stop and realize what she was doing. But he was there, in the back of her mind, his rage and pain like palpable things glowing like an ember, leading her…somewhere. She wasn’t even sure where. It had been like that almost from the beginning. It was like she could tell what he was feeling, thinking, especially when they were intense emotions, as they were now. Almost overwhelmingly so.

  She didn’t know what had caused them, only that he need her. And she needed to save him. She knew she had been in love with him since the moment he had flashed her that smile of his. And now, he was in trouble. She still didn’t understand it, but there was an urgency that had her flying out of the trailer and into the old pickup truck before her common sense could get the better of her. Within moments, she was off down the long dirt and gravel road, led by the thoughts searing her mind.

  She drove for hours in the night, Neva wasn’t even sure how many. Her eyes were glued to the road ahead of her, seeming to leap out of the pitch black darkness surrounding her. But she could feel him drawing closer and that was all that mattered. Something very bad was happening, and she needed to be there more than she’d needed anything else in her entire life.

  Dawn was just breaking a golden re
d over the desert horizon when she saw it. It wasn’t much and for a moment she doubted her own mind, but she could still feel him there, like a beacon. There were rows of large rusty shipping containers and a broken down shack and little else. She didn’t see him anywhere.

  Finally, Neva stopped the truck and closed her eyes, trying to focus on him and him alone. There! She could see him, like a movie playing behind her eyelids. And he was being attacked! With a muffled scream, she jumped out of the truck and ran in the direction she had seen him, only to be drawn up short by the sight.

  Where in her mind she had seen the man she loved, there stood a gigantic lion! Her brain struggled to make sense of what she was seeing, but there was no doubt it was a lion that leaped from one of the containers, taking down several guards at once until none remained standing. The beast turned to look at her and she felt it ricochet all the way through her like a nuclear explosion. The strangest thing was, she wasn’t afraid. Not even the slightest hint of fear. She could still see the man in her mind, overlaid like a transparent image on top of the lion.

  After a moment, the air around the animal seemed to shift, turning in on itself a second later stood a man. Her man. Suddenly, she felt lightheaded. Everything, the events of the night overwhelming her and she crumpled in a heap to the ground. She just had time to see him running towards hers before unconsciousness claimed her.

  Ashton thought his heart would stop as he watched Neva hit the ground. A million thoughts and worried crashed through him. Was she okay? Was the baby okay? Had he caused this? How in the hell had she even found him? They were all a jumbled mess and he couldn’t make sense of anything. The only thing he knew was that he had to get to her and get her out of there, but he also knew there was one thing he had to take care of first.

  He gestured for the young girls to come out of the container and it took them several minutes to work up the courage, both squinting at the unfamiliar dawn light. It had taken him hours of hammering against a weak spot in one of the walls to break them out, but finally, he had done it. Never had he experienced the level of rage and heartache as he had those long hours.

  Quickly, Ashton called in his team to take care of the cleanup and arrest the gang members that had been a part of the despicable business. It was an interminable wait as he cradled Neva’s still unconscious form and prayed they would get her soon. He could tell that she had fainted because of their connection. She wasn’t used to experiencing that level of intimacy and intense emotion, and honestly, neither was he. Although he knew he shouldn’t be shocked, he was. She continually surprised him, and it only reinforced his knowledge that they were true mates. That they belonged together.

  Finally, his team arrived, taking control of the situation, and he gently placed Neva in the passenger seat of her truck and drove the long road back to town. Hours later they arrived and still, Neva was unconscious. Ashton couldn’t help but worry, but knew that all she needed was a few hours of sleep and her body would be fine.

  He carried her into his small apartment, laying her down on the bed as if she were made of porcelain. Because to him, she was the most precious thing in the world. As she lay there, he couldn’t help but admire her beauty, but even more than that, her fire and her strength.

  Sudden exhaustion hit him and it was all he could do to kick off his sand-filled boots and take off his dirt stained shirt and jeans before crawling into bed next to her. Ashton pulled her close, his arm wrapped tightly around her and immediately fell asleep.

  Chapter 5

  Ashton felt the heat first. It was like his body was a furnace, desire burning him up like a wildfire and the mouth trailing butterfly soft kissed down his body certainly wasn’t helping to cool him down. In fact, it was doing just the opposite until he thought he couldn’t stand it anymore, and still, she continued her sweet torment.

  Neva kissed him lower and lower, across his chest and down his rib cage, his length growing hard and hot against her stomach as she moved even lower, laying the tenderest of kisses across the large bruise that covered much of his left side. A gift from the Rattlers, no doubt. But he couldn’t feel it at all, couldn’t feel any pain except the one growing further south.

  He almost jumped when she flicked the tip of her tongue against his most sensitive part, and she laughed in pleasure at his reaction. Well, maybe he did jump, but the next moment her wet mouth closed around him and it was all he could do to hold on, let alone be embarrassed about his reaction to her.

  And he held on for as long as he could before he finally had to stop her.

  “Neva, sweetheart. Come here,” Ashton held his hand out to her and she took it, letting him draw her up until she was kneeling in front of him. “God, you’re so beautiful.” He could only marvel at this amazing woman that fate had led him to, sometimes kicking and screaming. But he couldn’t help but feel like every decision he’d made had led him to this spot, and this woman.

  He tried to bite back the curse at the pleasure that shot through his body as she climbed on top of him, her hips straddling his in a way that had all the blood traveling south. Neva lowered her body down his inch by excruciating inch until he didn’t think he’d be able to take it anymore. She was killing him. Slowly, gloriously killing him.

  “Neva…”

  “Hush, my love.” She whispered the words hotly against his mouth and all he could was obey. She kissed him them, slow and sensual, building the heat impossibly higher. He needed her, now. He couldn’t wait anymore. Ashton reached up, grasping her hips and guiding her over his thick erection. He didn’t think he had ever been that hard before. She teased him for a moment more before finally giving him what he wanted. What he craved. Her. The woman he loved more than anything else. His true mate.

  He cried out at the pleasure as she enveloped him, sinking deep inside her heat. Ashton growled, deep in his throat and he could feel the lion inside of him do the same. Finally, they had found their mate, finally, they had found the one woman who was their perfect match.

  It was all he could do to take things slow, and soon he was losing control. But going by her ragged breath and flushed cheeks and the way she was moaning his name he knew that Neva was too.

  He grasped her hips, thrusting into her over and over again, trying to hold back. Finally, she screamed out as the pleasure overwhelmed her and her body tightened around him as she hit the crest and flew over, taking him with her. Sensation burrowed through him and there was no escape as his climax hit him, throwing him into bliss.

  It was a long moment before he came back to himself and He cushioned Neva against his side, just breathing in her scent, the scent of them together that pervade the small room, filling with love until he thought he might burst with it.

  Reality came crashing down like a bucket of ice water thrown over him. He took a deep breath and then spoke.

  “Neva, I…” He paused, his words trailing off and not knowing even where to begin.

  “Begin at the beginning, of course,” Neva whispered softly at his side and he wondered anew at the incredible connection they shared.

  “Okay.” And so he did. He told her everything, talking until his voice was hoarse. About how he was born to a tribe of people with special abilities. How he could transform into a lion at will and had supernatural abilities that came with it. He glanced over at her to gauge her reaction but her face was tilted down as her head was resting on his chest. He took a deep breath and continued.

  “Growing up, I was spoiled. Spoiled rotten, actually. I was the only son of the tribe’s leader, of the chief.”

  “So, you were like a prince?” She said the first words since he had begun his tale. And he nodded.

  “Yeah, you could say that. Whatever I wanted, I got. Nothing was a challenge for me. I also had the wealth of my father and the tribe behind me. Billions of dollars in the hand of a teenager.” He shook his head this time, picturing himself as he used to be, so arrogant, so full of self-confidence, and so sure he could never be wrong.
r />   Neva snorted softly in laughter. “Well, it’s good to know that at least some things don’t change.”

  “Hey! That’s uncalled for,” But he couldn’t help but laugh along with her. In a sense, she was right. He grew up a lot but at heart, he was still the same person. But so much better for having met her. Having Neva in his life made him want to change for the better.

  “Anyways,” He cast her a mock censorious look, even though he knew she couldn’t see it and continued, “After a few years, I started to grow restless, I knew needed to change my life I just wasn’t sure how.” He shrugged, remembering those troubled years. To anyone else, it probably had seemed like he’d had everything he could ever ask for. But his life had lacked meaning. He wanted to do something that mattered.

  “My friend had joined the special forces a few years back, and he said it had given him something to live for, more than just himself. That he was helping people, saving people. So I joined.”

  “Just like that? Turned your entire life around?” Neva asked softly.

  Ashton just shrugged. It had been as simple as that for him. He wanted it. He had gone after it. It was only much later that he realized it wasn’t about finding meaning for himself, that it really was about putting other people first, risking your life for them. It was a lesson hard learned for him.

  He continued to tell her his tale, and she continued to listen in pensive silence. He told her all about fighting for his life, fighting for other people’s lives and how it had led him to this case, searching for who was behind the missing victims and eventually to Neva. Well, he had certainly never planned on her.

  “You’re not scared of me, are you?” He finally asked, his words soft but serious. She propped herself up on her elbow and turned to face him, looking him straight in the eye.

  “Luke, I could never be scared of you. I knew you were different…something more, from the very first moment I met you.” He sighed in relief at her answer, but something stuck out at him. He cast her another chagrined look.