“You okay?”
“Yeah, I—” My leg bounces, and Asher sits up fully, sleep falling away from his features in an instant. “I should get back. I, um, I haven’t slept yet—”
“Stay here.”
“What?”
“I have a bed, you know. You could sleep in it. I daresay it’s even comfortable.”
He’s trying to make me smile, but the thought of sleeping in his bed, of having a nightmare, waking up screaming—
Ican’t.
“I’ll take you home if you want, Quinn,” Asher says, “but they might notice and ask where you’ve been. I’m happy to tell them you were with me the whole time if that’s what you want.”
I shake my head, lips pressed together. I don’t want to lie. And I can’t face theconcern, never mind the disappointment I expect I’ll see.
“I’ll stay,” I say, and Asher nods, rising to his feet.
He helps me up like he did at the table, and I get the impression he wants to stay by my side as we go up the stairs, but the way is too narrow, so he goes ahead.
I take in the bedroom with long, slow blinks. The morning has well and truly started now, light filtering in through a largewindow. It’s not a huge room, but it’s airy, with a large double bed and one solid wardrobe.
More importantly, it smells like Asher. I close my eyes for a second, giddily inhaling his scent. Kieran’s touch soothes me now that he’s my alpha, and so does his scent, but nothing like this.
“Come on,” Asher says softly. He steers me towards the bed, then pulls back the covers. “I’ll close the curtains. It won’t be dark, but it should be dim enough.”
I drop my phone on the bedside table, absently noting that I’ll need to charge it, then climb under the covers. I’m sure it’s just my imagination—the bed can’t bethatsoft—but the mattress sinks beneath my weight and the pillow is light as a cloud.
Asher smiles at me, expression almost indulgent, and comes back over and pulls the duvet over my chest. “You’re safe here, pup. I promise.”
My stomach jolts when I realise he’s going to leave. He’s tired, too. Tired from following me around all night, sure, but I’ve inadvertently put him through the emotional ringer tonight. I grab his wrist before he can step away and Asher’s eyebrows lift in surprise.
“Stay,” I say, and my face heats because I sound like a fucking child, but I’ll be even more of one if he leaves. Already the shadows at the corners of the room are looming, threatening to creep in and suffocate me.
“Is that…” Asher trails off and swallows, then nods once. “Okay. If you’re sure, okay.”
I nod and don’t look away as he kicks off his boots. He drags off his socks, tugs his T-shirt over his head, and my eyes linger on the roses—three, all black—blooming on his shoulder, the massive antlers that cover half of his back, but mild curiosity is all I feel. I’m too tired for anything else. Even if Iwantedanything else, and I don’t know about that, either.
He rounds the bed and climbs in on the other side—the side I know isn’t his usual because the pillow under my head is saturated with his scent. I roll over to face him, and Asher reaches out and pushes my hair gently back from my face.
“You’ll sleep?” he asks. “It’s safe here. I had Maurice ward it up to the rafters, so you don’t need to worry—”
“I know.”
“About the wards?”
“No.” I shuffle a little closer, and we’re not touching, but his warmth meets me, soothes me. “I know it’s safe.”
His hand drifts down, thumb stroking over my cheekbone. “Good. Sleep, then. We both need it.”
I don’t know what time it is when I wake, but the room is saturated with light, slightly green where it filters through the curtains. Hot breath brushes against my throat and a heavy arm rests around my middle and for a moment I just lie there, revelling in the fact that I didn’t dream at all.
No. I think I did.
I think I saw my wolf.
I don’t have time to dwell on that or on the way Asher has wrapped himself around me, is still sleeping even though I’m sure his body can feel I’ve woken. I try to climb out of the bed without waking him, but he blinks sleepily up at me, eyes dark and honest.
