Asher (Keepers Of The Lake Book 4)

by Emilia Hartley

  The delivery guy rushed back to his car, probably terrified of Asher and the house in the middle of nowhere, leaving them alone together again. Asher must have sensed that she was trying to put distance between them because he carried the containers to the table. He added forks and a bottle of orange juice to the table.

  “Whatever you ordered smells so good that I might have to steal some.”

  “Over my dead body,” she growled.

  He smiled like a fool as he sat down, like he was proud of her for some reason she couldn’t fathom. Then, his face hardened, a challenge accepted.

  “I will get you to feed me a bite of that before you leave today.”

  Inside her take-out container was a pile of fried potatoes covered with creamy hollandaise sauce. Scrambled eggs studded the mixture like airy puffs of deliciousness. It was rich and nearly overwhelming, but she enjoyed every moment of it.

  Asher had gotten the French toast sandwich. The smell of maple syrup and sausage made her mouth water even more. She was tempted to trade a bite for a bite. But Asher might enjoy that a little too much. He had said that he would make her feed it to him.

  She had to draw the line there. It was too intimate. Awkwardly pushing her container toward him, she gestured for him to take a bite. His expression faltered, like he was disappointed, but he didn’t let it linger. He quickly stabbed a potato covered in hollandaise and popped it into his mouth.

  Zara knew she shouldn’t stay, but she didn’t want to go home and face her roommate. Their argument was pointless. She never should have said the things she did. If she wasn’t going to try anything with Asher, then what was the problem with letting Chelsea try?

  Even as she thought it, her fox growled. Asher’s head popped up, his eyes wide with concern. Zara wiped at her lips with a napkin. Her cheeks grew hot. She had no explanation for the sounds she was making.

  Asher wasn’t hers. This house wasn’t her home. She couldn’t make a life here because it would be too dangerous. All she ever wanted was a life away from the power plays of the shifter world. She wanted out, to escape from men who thought they could control her and beasts who wanted to fight over everything.

  She got to her feet but didn’t go anywhere.

  “Are you alright?” Asher asked.

  No. Yes. Maybe.

  Zara whimpered. Her beast wouldn’t let her move. While Zara wanted to leave, her beast held fast. This was the most strength the beast had ever shown, and she didn’t know what to do with it. This wasn’t where she belonged. She wasn’t going to find true love here. Her dream of a comfortable and safe life couldn’t be found among dragon shifters.

  “I’m sorry,” she mumbled.

  Asher came around the corner of the table. She couldn’t stomach the way he was looking at her, so she kept her gaze on the floor. Zara told herself she should go home, lock herself up in her room, and start reading her schoolbooks. The new semester was only a week away.

  If she couldn’t make this work, then she would have to go back to California. Back to being harassed by the fox family.

  Asher cupped her cheek. His warmth spread through her and eased the part of her that was strung tight. Before she could stop herself, she leaned into him. A groan escaped him. She spared a glance up at him and found the heat in his eyes nearly overwhelming. But he blinked it away and became serious.

  “If you have any problems, you let me know. You’re not alone here. The clan will help you whenever you call.”

  “I’m not a dragon,” she argued.

  “Like that would matter. Besides, even if they won’t help you, I always will.”

  “Because you’re my friend?”

  Asher made a pained sound, one that turned into a growl. His hand fell away from her face and he took a step back. “Yeah, because I’m your friend.”

  It was like he had to force the word out. It sounded strained. She couldn’t stay and ask what was wrong. She’d already overstayed her welcome. Any longer and she would ask for his hand back just to feel his warmth again. How much further would she go? Would she ask for more? Her body certainly craved it, every inch of her skin buzzing with need.

  Before she could jump him, she ran for the bedroom, where her own clothes awaited her. It was dangerous territory because the smell of Asher was overwhelming. It beckoned her to curl up on the bed once more and stay a while longer. Comfort awaited her if only she would sink into the plethora of pillows.

  She dumped the contents of her backpack onto the bed. Out fell her phone, hoodie dress, and shoes. It was easy to shrug out of Asher’s clothes and slip into her own dress, but before she could leave, her phone vibrated.

  Regina’s number flashed across the screen, asking for a video call.

  “Are you going to answer that?” Asher asked from the open doorway. His hands were shoved into his pockets like he would reach for her if he didn’t trap them.

  She swallowed her groan and pressed accept on the screen.

  “Zara!” Regina crooned. Oscar was in the background, waving. Always the strong and silent type.

  “Hey. I’m kind of in the middle of something…”

  “This isn’t your bedroom,” Oscar noted almost immediately. “Where are you?”

  Before she could stop him, Asher sidled up behind her. His warmth washed over her back. She had to stop herself from leaning into him and soaking up the heat. Asher waved over her shoulder. She glanced back to find his most television-friendly smile on his face.

  Oh my god. He’s meeting my parents. The thought danced through Zara’s mind, leaving a sense of horror in its wake. She couldn’t shove Asher out of the frame now that he’d been seen. All she could do was make this call as short as humanly possible. She would still have to field a million questions about Asher later.

  “Hi folks! Zara was just in the middle of breakfast.”

  Zara sucked her teeth. Regina looked excited, but it was Oscar who seemed skeptical. No, that wasn’t it. Oscar stared at Asher like he couldn’t figure something out. The pieces weren’t connecting for her adoptive father. Zara wanted to laugh.

  Could he not recognize Asher in the flesh? Maybe it was because by the end of every fight, Asher’s face looked like hamburger. The thought of it made her heart twist. She didn’t expect the catch in her breath that followed.

  Asher’s chest touched her back, a silent question of concern. She swallowed and tried to act like everything was normal.

  “Oscar, Regina, meet my new friend Asher Knuden.”

  A moment ticked by. Zara waited for it…

  “How in the hell did you manage to meet MMA champion Asher freaking Knuden in the ass end of Michigan?” Oscar howled.

  Zara had to hide her laugh. Asher didn’t even try. He slung his arm over Zara’s shoulder and leaned closer to her phone, putting his face too close to hers. She couldn’t lean away. Her fox wanted more, wanted her to bury her face in his scent.

  “I’m up here visiting old family and I happened to run into your daughter. Don’t worry, I’m keeping her safe.”

  Zara snorted, thinking of the monster in the lake just outside his windows. When she realized she was leaning on Asher, she spun around and plopped down onto the end of his bed. Rather late, she realized what a bad idea it was. Regina’s brows immediately peaked when she saw the bed in the background.

  Asher, like an attention hog, threw himself onto the bed and put his chin in his hand so that he was in the background. She was going to murder him after. It didn’t matter if she was just a little fox shifter and he was a big dragon shifter. He was going to die after this.

  “Well,” Regina said, nearly choking on her words. “It looks like the two of you are busy, so we’ll leave you alone.”

  “Hold up a moment,” Oscar argued, vocal for once in his life. “I need to know more. Why can’t I talk to my favorite MMA fighter? I don’t know if I’ll ever get this chance again.”

  What Asher said next was the nail in his coffin.

  “Don�
�t worry. I’ll be around for a long while.”

  Oscar stopped, going completely motionless. It was like the clues were finally setting in. His head slowly rotated back toward the phone screen, a look of murder in his eyes. Before he could say anything, Regina frantically ended the call.

  “Oscar thinks we’re fucking!” Zara cried.

  Asher rolled over, put his arm behind his head and crossed his ankles like he didn’t have a care in the world. “What’s wrong with that?”

  She got up on her knees as she faced him. Every argument crashed in her throat all at once. She couldn’t get a single word out. All she could do was throw her hands around. Asher chuckled, sat up, and grabbed her by the waist. He drew her down onto the bed beside him.

  Zara smacked him in the chest and began pushing herself up, but she only managed to put space between their chests. Her legs were already tangled with his and she couldn’t bear moving just yet. Maybe she would allow herself this moment. Just this one.

  Asher’s hands slid up her back. When was the last time someone touched her so affectionately? She couldn’t remember. Her hands were on his chest. He covered one with his own, staring up at her like she was his entire world.

  “You’re not a dragon. You’re a worm. Creeping into my life every way you can.”

  Asher laughed. The sound filled the room and drew her even closer to him. She could have listened to it forever. Maybe even every day of the rest of her life. This wasn’t right. She couldn’t mate with a dragon. That wasn’t what her tired soul needed.

  “Your father looked terrifying, by the way. I should probably let you go before he makes his way down here and busts down my door,” Asher said, but made no move to release her.

  “He’s the most terrifying bear shifter in the Monterey area. Everyone quakes in their boots when they hear his name.”

  “So, he could definitely kick my ass if I were to make a move.” His fingers slid into her hair, cupping the back of her head.

  Sensation rippled across her scalp and down her spine so that she shuddered in his arms. A hungry growl rumbled in his chest. He pulled her closer. Zara knew she should have pushed back, should have left forever ago. His magnetism was too much. He had become the center of gravity and she could not fight the laws of physics.

  Every inch of her skin ached for more. The hem of her dress was nearly around her waist. One leg was thrown over his. She could feel the press of his cock against the inside of her thigh. More, more, more her beast screamed.

  But then his hands fell away. He let himself fall back onto the pile of pillows and pressed his arm over his eyes.

  Zara didn’t know what to do with the sudden freedom. At first, she didn’t want it. She wanted Asher to take her into his arms again. Slowly but surely, her senses returned. This wasn’t where she should be. Crossing this line with Asher was dangerous.

  She rolled off the bed and scrambled to grab her things. Silence buzzed in the room, trying to smother all the things they should have said to each other. Apologies. Truths. Excuses. Neither of them said any of that.

  When Asher spoke, it wasn’t what she expected. “You don’t look anything like your parents.”

  Zara froze. She had a lie prepared, one she told everyone about how she would take after Regina if she didn’t dye her hair black. Instead, it was the truth that rolled out of her.

  “Fox families are cruel. They force their children into roles they don’t want, into marriages they don’t survive. When I ran away from it, Regina and Oscar saved me. Because of them, I’m not married to an old fox shifter twenty years older than me.”

  Asher’s growl was unmistakable. It was anger on her behalf, pure and simple. She pushed back tears. There was no reason to cry anymore. Not unless she failed her classes, which wouldn’t happen again. This semester would be different. Her future would be her own.

  “When they adopted me, I got to see what love really meant. They’re a mated pair. When I settle down, it won’t be to make more kits for my family. It will be for true love.”

  “That’s kind of romantic for a goth girl. Aren’t you supposed to be all despair and morbidity?”

  He made light of what she said, but his arm was still over his eyes like he was trying to hide them. Or maybe he just couldn’t look at her.

  “I’m grateful for your adoptive parents, then. They seem like really nice people.”

  “I got lucky.”

  Asher snorted. “Not today you didn’t.”

  She picked up the nearest pillow and chucked it at his face. Despite her annoyance with his jokes, she couldn’t help but grin. He was a great big fool, but it made life around him fun. She didn’t want a world without him. If she could keep him at a distance, then maybe they could be friends from here on out.

  Asher rolled over, yanked the nightstand drawer, and fished around inside for a moment. He came up with a white card. Zara should have been surprised that he had business cards in his nightstand, but Asher was a strange guy.

  He passed it to her. She plucked it from his fingers, careful not to touch him. If she did, she might never leave.

  Zara was gone once again. Asher hadn’t been man enough to make the move. He’d thought about it several times. There had been moments, where if he just leaned in, he could have kissed her. All he needed to do was bridge the gap. Yet, he didn’t do it.

  Frustration crackled in his chest like static. He couldn’t find an outlet for it, so he grabbed the bottle of cheap vodka and walked out to the end of the floating dock. He sat on the end and let his feet drift in the shifting waters. The vodka burned down the back of his throat, but it was no worse than breathing fire. If he wanted to, he could let the vodka pool in his mouth and breath a great big fireball over the lake.

  He’d done it to impress a good number of ladies, but he had the feeling that it would scare Zara. She seemed jumpy. She was always on the lookout. He worried that the fox family she spoke of would keep hounding her. If they had such strict expectations of their children, he didn’t think they would give up just because she lived elsewhere.

  If only he had kissed her. If only he could show her just how he felt, then maybe she would be safe with him. Once she left, the house felt cold and empty again. He hated it so much. He couldn’t stand being inside. It was just a reminder that he couldn’t seal the deal with the fox-girl.

  His fox-girl. No one else could ever have her. She belonged with him. His beast had claimed her and there was no going back. Asher should have committed himself to convincing her they were meant to be together, but he couldn’t bring himself to force it on her. She’d been pushed into a corner by her flesh and blood. He wouldn’t be like that with her.

  If she came back on her own, then he would be happy. Until then, Asher had Zane and the endless lake of destruction.

  “You can’t keep doing this,” Asher told the open water. “You’re hurting innocent people who have nothing to do with your predicament. Zara is just a little fox shifter. She’s not a dragon like the other girls. You damn near killed her the other day.”

  Zane probably wanted that. He wanted to watch his brethren hurt. Asher understood why, but he also couldn’t let Zane get his way. Not with Zara. He would just have to call Charlie. He could keep her nearby whenever Zane acted out. For some reason, Zane treated Charlie like she was an innocent. He refused to hurt her.

  In fact, Zane had rescued her not once but twice. Jude was a gold dragon. Buffy was the daughter of Alistair, their old leader. All these girls had advantages against the monster that Zane had become. Zara was small and fragile compared to them.

  Asher could take a beating. He welcomed the punishment. He would take whatever pain came Zara’s way from this moment forward.

  The water lapped at Asher’s ankles. He half expected it to drag him under and for Zane to have a few words for him. When no response came, Asher sighed and threw back another swig of the cheap vodka.

  8

  Zara walked home, letting the fresh air reju
venate her. She was able to clear her mind. So long as she focused on her schoolwork, then she didn’t think about Asher. She didn’t think about the way it felt to be wrapped in his arms or the growl he made when she spoke of her fox family.

  Asher had come so close to kissing her. And she almost let him.

  She shook her head. That wasn’t what she was supposed to be focusing on. She had classes coming up. Advanced Statistics and Modern Marketing were waiting for her. She’d accepted a business major with the hopes that she could become someone important, a CEO or something like that.

  As she entered town and passed by the Art Center, a wave of longing overtook her. Paintings hung in the window. Landscapes of misty mountain forests. Still lifes of blushing flowers. Art had always been Zara’s favorite class. She could even remember her early youth, before her parents saw her as a possible bride, when she would eat her morning cereal while watching a man with curly hair paint landscapes.

  Later, when she lived with Oscar and Regina, she got to hang out with the mate of another alpha. The woman was an artist and an old member of Oscar’s pack. She taught Zara everything she knew. Together, they painted in a giant barn. Sometimes, they even painted cars shifters had left in the alpha’s driveway.

  Art didn’t pay the bills, though. It wouldn’t make her someone important enough that her family would leave her alone. Zara told herself she could paint in her spare time once she got a job, whatever spare time she had. A part of her knew the lie for what it was.

  If she got a job in the corporate world, she would never be free. All of her time would be dedicated to moving higher in the company. No one got ahead by just doing their work and nothing more. She would always have to push. She would always have to fight for the distance she put between herself and the foxes back home.

  She was jealous of the art majors who strolled around campus like they had nowhere better to be. They sat on the picnic tables with their sketchbooks or crouched in the courtyard with their cameras. They were living life, but Zara’s only option was the one that would set her free.