Asher

by Piper Davenport

  Jake was leaning up against the passenger’s door, his arms crossed, his head down. I forced down my desire to burrow against his chest and make him hold me, and closed the distance between us.

  He was blocking my entrance, so I asked, “Are you ready?”

  Shaking his head, he slid his hand to my neck and tugged me gently forward. “I’m sorry, baby. I can’t seem to bury my burning need to protect you above everything else. But I know I have to stow it, because you’re good at what you do. It’s not fair for me to try to change your life just so I don’t have to worry.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “What brought this change on?”

  “I can’t just be enlightened?”

  “Not by yourself, no,” I said.

  He sighed. “I talked with a couple of buddies. Their women are also badasses, and they set me straight.”

  “Who are these buddies? I want to meet them.”

  “You already know Ryder and Sadie.”

  “Oooh, I love Sadie. She is a badass, but quiet-like.”

  Jake chuckled. “Yeah. The other one was Hawk. He’s an officer in the Dogs of Fire Motorcycle Club.”

  I groaned. “An MC? Like the Spiders?”

  “No. They’re a clean club, but they’re dealing with some shit with the Spiders as well. And you may not know this, but Ryder’s dad was the president of the Spiders. He’s in jail, but he still has power.”

  I gasped. “I didn’t know that. I thought Ryder was a real estate guy.”

  “He is. But he also used to be a Spider.”

  “Wow,” I whispered.

  “Anyway, Hawk is married to Payton and she’s a gun-totin’, card carryin’ American much like you, so he filled me in on a few things. I’ve been holding on too tight, and I recognize that, but the thought of losing you drives me insane.”

  “I could get hit by a bus tomorrow, Jake. So could you. You don’t really have much control over life or death.” I stared up at him, itching to touch him, but stopping myself from doing so.

  His expression was tortured as he nodded. “Doesn’t make me want to cover you in bubble wrap any less though.”

  “You make me crazy, Jake. You know that, right?”

  “Back atya.” He kissed my forehead. “Will you give me a chance to make all this up to you?”

  No longer able to keep myself from touching him, I wrapped my arms around his waist and breathed in deep. Cologne and Jake...all man, all delicious, all mine. “You won’t get another chance, you know that, right? I can’t have my heart broken again.”

  “I know.” He stroked my hair. “I’m not goin’ anywhere.”

  “And I’m going to make your life hell for a little while.”

  He chuckled. “If you didn’t, I’d be disappointed.”

  I closed my eyes and burrowed deeper into his chest. “Then, yes, I can forgive you and give you another chance. Your second and final chance. But you’re going to work your ass off to please me.”

  He slid his hand into my hair and tipped my head back, leaning down to kiss me, and I virtually melted into him. Lordy, I’d missed him. I reluctantly broke the kiss and sighed. “We really need to get to Klamath before everything closes.”

  “You’re probably right. Plus, if we don’t stop, I might forget our time constraints and take you in the back seat of your car.”

  I smacked his chest. “Jacob William Parker, do not say things like that to me! This vehicle is far too small for that kind of activity. Your truck bed, maybe, but not my tiny sedan.”

  He chuckled and pulled open my door. I climbed in and secured my seat belt, expecting him to close my door, but his face appeared in front of me instead. “I love you, minx.”

  I wrinkled my nose. “I love you too, asshole. And for the record, Dylan was the one who got shot at. Me...I do the shooting when I’m in trouble. Now, let’s go.”

  Chuckling, he kissed me one more time, then closed my door and climbed into the driver’s seat.

  Dylan

  “YOUR FACE IS red,” Asher said, grabbing ahold of my belt loops and pulling me back to him.

  My cheeks only grew warmer. “Yeah. Your sister is out of control.”

  He laughed. “Don’t I know it. But I owe her big for taking off with Jake.”

  “We both do. I wonder if she’ll kill him before they make it to Klamath?”

  Asher shook his head. “She needs him for the pawnshop, so he’s good up until then. Besides, he’s a bit of a wreck, so I’m hoping they kiss and make up.”

  “And spare us the details,” I added.

  “There’s always hope.”

  “So, handsome, let’s talk about you for a minute. What brings a big-city hottie like you to a little one-horse town like this?”

  The hunger in his eyes both scared and excited me, releasing butterflies to race around my stomach. “I’m lookin’ at my motivation,” he said.

  “How did you know I needed you?” I asked.

  “You need me?”

  I nodded. Stupid tears stung my eyes again as I thought about the task ahead of me. “Serious understatement.”

  He pulled me tight against him and kissed me again, making me suspect that his presence had something to do with him needing me too. I no longer had to worry about the butterflies, because that thought pretty much melted them.

  Asher pulled back and studied my expression. “What’s going on?”

  “I don’t want to ruin our alone time by talking about it.” Truthfully, I planned to avoid telling my boyfriend that my dad was a thieving bastard altogether.

  “Okay,” he replied, letting me off the hook. “What is there to do around this town? I feel all dressed up with nowhere to go.”

  Thankful for the subject change, I checked out his threads and nodded approvingly. “This outfit is great, by the way. Where’d you get your hands on it?”

  “We stopped off in Bend. You dress up for me all the time, you know? I figured the least I could do is try to blend in while in your home town.”

  “I love you so much. Seriously, Ash, this was really sweet. You earned major points.”

  He wiggled his eyebrows. “I could have gone bigger. I wanted one of those button-down western shirts with the paisley print, but Jake said something about running me over with my own car if I bought it.”

  Just imagining it sent me into a fit of giggles that felt so good. I couldn’t believe how much better I felt with Asher here. Suddenly the task in front of me didn’t seem so ominous. With my sweet, sexy man beside me, I could do anything. I plucked his cowboy hat from his head and settled it atop my own. “How do I look?”

  In answer, he attacked my neck. Laughing, I squirmed out of his arms and grabbed my jacket.

  “We going somewhere?” he asked.

  I looked him over and grinned. “Oh, hell yeah. I’m showing you off. You’re taking me to the fair and feeding me cotton candy and elephant ears. Then we’re going to make out while flipping in the Zipper.”

  “Kinky.”

  My cheeks hurt from smiling so much. “You’re in my world now, city boy.”

  AC/DC’s song “Shook Me All Night Long” was playing when we got in line at the ticket booth, and I couldn’t suppress the smile tugging at my lips. It was amazing how some things never changed. Memories of roundups past flooded my senses, reminding me how much I’d loved the fair as a child.

  I saw a lot of faces I recognized, and a few people stopped to say hey and meet Asher. I kept introductions and conversations to a minimum, wishing I could build some sort of shield around us that deflected their advances. Even though I’d said I wanted to show Asher off, I really wanted to keep him to myself.

  We walked away from the entrance booth hand-in-hand sporting flimsy paper bracelets, and I tugged him toward the rigged games. “Hey, want me to win you a stuffed animal?” I asked.

  “Shouldn’t that be my line?” he asked.

  I shrugged. “You can try. But see that shooting game right there? And that hit the ball
oons with the darts one? I don’t mean to brag or anything, but I will own you.”

  “Is that supposed to deter me?” he asked, pulling me toward the shooting game. “Because that seems like a pretty sweet deal.”

  The way he looked at me set my entire body on fire.

  A woman shouted my name and I turned to see one of my many distant cousins approaching. “Hey, Dylan, I heard you were back.” She eyed Asher, looking a little too thirsty for my liking. “And who did you bring with you?”

  “Asher, this is my cousin, Allison. Allie, this is my boyfriend, Asher.”

  Her eyebrows rose. “Boyfriend? Does Dak know about him? The way he was talkin’—”

  “We haven’t run into Dak yet,” I said, cutting her off. “But I’ll be sure to introduce him.”

  Her gaze drank Asher in for a few more moments. “Good luck with that,” she said before sauntering off.

  “Who’s Dak?” Asher asked.

  “A guy I grew up with.” I shrugged, not wanting to discuss Dakota or any of my other problems. But I didn’t want to hide anything from Asher, so I stopped and turned to face him. “We never dated, but our parents got it stuck in their minds that we’d grow up and get married someday.”

  “And...?” he asked.

  It was possible Asher knew me a little too well. Paired with his mad lawyer skills and my inability to tell a lie, I was screwed. “I’ve told him it’s not going to happen, but he hasn’t let it go yet.”

  “What’s this guy like?”

  “Nice. He’s a good guy, Ash, but there was never anything between us. I think he likes the idea of us way better than he ever liked me. He doesn’t even know me. I haven’t seen him in years.”

  “He sounds like a stalker.”

  “He’s harmless. Really.” Then, because my perfect night was falling to shit, I looked past Asher to see my dad heading toward us. “Dammit,” I growled.

  “What?” Asher looked over his shoulder. “What’s wrong?”

  “My dad’s coming.”

  “Good. I want to talk to him.”

  Before I could stop him, Asher turned to wave to my father and I found myself wishing we’d never left the motel. “I don’t, Ash.”

  “What? Why not?” he asked.

  “Because I can’t be fake, and I’ll give us away.”

  “Us?” Hurt flashed in Asher’s eyes. “Your dad doesn’t know about us? Why do you care—?”

  Before I could correct Asher, Dad had his arm draped over my shoulder. Even with the crowd shifting around us, I could smell the whiskey on him. “Hey, honey,” he said.

  I shrugged away from him. “Hey. Dad, you remember Addie’s brother Asher?”

  Dad looked Asher over and nodded. “Come with me a minute, Asher. I think we need to have a man-to-man conversation.” He waved for Asher to follow him and started walking toward the fence, away from the crowd.

  I didn’t know what Dad had planned, but couldn’t imagine he’d be too welcoming. And before Asher went anywhere near my father, I needed to set the record straight and warn him. I stepped in front of him, blocking his path. “I don’t care what he or anyone else thinks. I love you. I’ve tried to tell him about you several times, but he refuses to listen. I sure as hell wouldn’t bring you here if I didn’t want anyone to know about you. Everyone in town knew as soon as we got out of your car together. It’ll probably be on the cover of tomorrow’s paper. That’s not what I was talking about.”

  “You comin’, boy?” Dad asked.

  Before I could say more, Asher stepped around me and joined my father. I didn’t know what to do. I watched as they walked to the fence and out of earshot.

  “Still biting your fingernails, huh?” Dakota said, tugging my hand away from my mouth and inspecting the damage. “That’s a bad habit, Dylan.”

  “I only do it when I’m in this town,” I retorted, snapping my hand away from him. “Besides, it’s not nearly as bad as chewing...or meth, Lakeview’s other drug of choice.”

  He chuckled and followed my gaze. “That’s the guy?”

  I nodded. “Yeah.”

  He scratched his head. “I thought you didn’t like cowboys.”

  “He’s so not a cowboy. He’s a lawyer. He dressed like that for me. He’s...” I couldn’t find the words to describe what Asher was to me.

  “I get it.”

  Surprised, I eyed Dakota. “You do?”

  “Yeah. I’ve known you my whole life, and I ain’t never seen you look at anyone like that. But you should probably go save him from your old man.”

  I looked up in time to see Dad take a swing at Asher. Asher easily dodged and stepped back and Dad wobbled, almost falling. I ran to get between them with Dakota hot on my heels. I stood facing my father with Asher at my back, as Dakota tried to get Dad under control.

  “What is going on?” I asked, fuming.

  “This boy you brought home disrespected me, Dylan,” Dad replied.

  “I don’t care what he did. You don’t get to swing on my boyfriend, Dad. Ever.”

  “Why the hell not? He comes to me talking about how he wants my blessing to marry you, and he can’t even stand up for himself. You gotta jump in and protect him.”

  “First of all, Asher can defend himself just fine, but he’s not some Neanderthal, like you, so he doesn’t think with his fists and—” The rest of what Dad said sank in. Asher had come to ask him for his blessing. To marry me. Suddenly the clothes made sense. He’d dressed the part to approach my dad. I looked over my shoulder and asked, “Wait...what?”

  “You heard me,” Dad said. “A boy like that doesn’t deserve you. You tell him, Dak.”

  “I don’t know. He seems like a decent fellow.” Then Dakota turned his attention onto Asher and said, “You got my blessing, but you damn well better take care of her. I don’t care if you are some hotshot lawyer, you hurt her and there won’t be a city big enough to hide you.”

  “Noted. I won’t hurt her,” Asher said. “You must be Dakota. Nice to meet you.”

  “Pleasure.” They shook hands.

  I was too in shock to move or say anything.

  “Well, he doesn’t have mine!” Dad shouted. “You and your uppity family stole my girl from me and I’ll be damned if I give you my blessing for it.”

  That loosened my tongue. “You can’t pin my moving on Asher or Addie. I didn’t even know them when I left. I just wanted out of here and away from you.”

  Dad staggered backwards like I’d slapped him, but I was too pissed to care.

  “Don’t you dare pretend like you’re some kind of victim in all of this. You say you love me, but we both know whiskey is the only thing you’ve loved since Mom died, and I could never compete with that bottle. It’s eaten away whatever heart you had left. And clearly your brain, too. I can’t believe you called me about the jewelry. What the hell were you thinking?”

  He stiffened. “I wanted a recommendation.”

  “You know, Dad, Addie and I are really good at what we do. Did you think we wouldn’t find out who did it? Or that I’d turn my head and let it happen?” I had to look away because my eyes were burning, but the feel of Asher’s hand on my back strengthened my resolve. “When I saw those videos... You put me in this position, and I will never forgive you for it.”

  His expression changed, telling me he knew exactly what I was talking about. The worst part about it was he looked surprised that Addison and I had figured it out. He hadn’t expected us to solve the crime, and that hurt.

  He looked almost sober as he raised his chin and said, “You don’t know everything, Dylan, and it’s not safe for you to keep digging. You and your friends should get out of this town before you stumble over what’s really going on.”

  Not only did he think we were incapable, he refused to believe that we’d learned of his guilt through honest detective work. I glared him down. “We’re not leaving until this case is solved.”

  He frowned, shaking his head. “I never should have
brought you into this mess. I’m sorry.”

  I had nothing more to say to him, so I grabbed Asher’s hand and tugged him away.

  “So...your dad is the one stealing the jewelry?” Asher asked.

  Nothing got past him. “Yes. Can we leave?”

  “The fair or the town?”

  Tempting. I shook myself. “The fair. I have to stick around and see this through.”

  “You really don’t,” Asher replied as we walked toward the car. “Nobody’s paid you guys to investigate, and you’re not cops, so you have no moral responsibility...” He opened my car door and I climbed in and waited for him before arguing.

  “Yes, I do, Ash. My father is stealing jewelry from little old ladies. If Addie and I do nothing, he’ll get away with it. Nobody in this town will ever solve this case.”

  “What about the cops?” he asked. “Can’t you just take whatever evidence you have to them?”

  “You’re so cute with your justice and integrity. Will you please drive back toward the motel? We’re going to take a detour, though.”

  Asher pulled out of the fairground parking lot. “Dylan, I’m serious. That thing your dad said back there sounded a lot like a threat or a warning. Maybe you’re too close to this case. Perhaps it’s time to back off.”

  “I would if I could,” I groaned. “Dad’s related to the DA and at least half the police force. I’ve known those guys my whole life, and I can guarantee you they will not make him pay for this. At the most, he’ll get a slap on the wrist. Hang a right here.”

  “Where are we going?” he asked.

  “The nursing home. You’re going to have the distinct displeasure of meeting my grandmother. Let me apologize now for anything she says. I was hoping to shield you from her forever, but the truth is...I need you beside me right now.”

  He reached over and grabbed my hand. “Of course.”

  I stared at our intertwined fingers, thinking about the conversation Asher had tried to have with my plastered father. Marriage. Asher wanted to marry me. At least, he did before my dad tried to beat him up. And now he was going to meet my grandmother. I wondered if he’d still be hearing wedding bells by the time we finally made it out of this town.