“I do love you, Hailey,” he murmured. “I’ve tried to be patient with you, but I can no longer tolerate seeing another put his hands on you.” His voice was gentle, and Hailey’s blood pressure came down. A little. “And I believe I’ve frightened you. Am I right?”
“Yes,” she breathed.
Now she couldn’t hold back her tears, and they gushed forth. Asher brought his lips to her cheeks and kissed each teardrop as it escaped her eye.
“Forgive me.” He was doing it again. Gazing at her with those hypnotic eyes.
“Asher, I’m sorry,” she sobbed.
“For what?” He asked between kisses.
His heat against her face was divine. This was a new side to her monster she’d never experienced before. He was sensual…and loving.
“For disappointing you,” she whispered. Suddenly, she felt horribly guilty for kissing Fin when all this time Asher was protecting her, waiting for her.
He kissed her left eyelid then her right and ran his thumb along her jawline. Then he kissed her lips again, unleashing his warmth inside her mouth.
Was he giving her another gift? Invading her mind?
Oh, hell. She didn’t care.
She grabbed two fistfuls of his luxurious hair and pulled him into her. He responded by pressing her into the wall, and once again she was putty in his arms.
“Shall we dance?” he asked in his smooth, seductive voice, and Hailey had to get her bearings. She wasn’t sure she could stand on her own after that kiss, let alone dance.
“Okay,” she breathed.
“I’m going to let go of you now, Hailey,” he whispered to her ear. “You’re trembling. Can you stand?”
She nodded, but as soon as he let her go, her legs crumpled, and he caught her again.
She clutched his white shirt and willed her legs to stand. “I did that on purpose,” she said with a soft giggle, “so you’d hold me tight again.”
But the Envoy wasn’t amused.
Envoys don’t laugh. Fin’s voice rang inside her head.
Chapter thirty-eight
Torn
“We're fools whether we dance or not, so we might as well dance.” - Japanese Proverb
Asher stepped away and held his hand out to her like a perfect gentleman. “Let’s have that dance, my dear.”
She took his hand. What choice did she have?
“I wish you could laugh,” she said almost to herself, but a slight turn of his head let her know he’d heard.
As he led her across the room, she noticed many turned to look at them. The girls of Bear Towne seemed enchanted by Asher’s charm, but their dates sure weren’t. The non-humans, of course, avoided him, and the entire hall was a mix of disgust, worry, and adoration.
Asher swooped across the floor, holding her tight, making it easy for her to follow. The dim light, the poignant melody of the strings, the heat from his body, the feel of his hand against her bare back—skin to skin—it was intoxicating. He was so strong, so powerful, and she felt safe with him as she glided across the room.
As the music reached a crescendo, he pulled her tight against his body and kissed her slowly, deliberately, his fingers trailing tickles across her back, and she was lost to the world, lost to him. The music, the lights— they were dizzying. She badly needed a break, needed to catch her breath.
Before she could ask him, Asher was leading her back to the table.
“Giselle.” He nodded curtly, and she nervously flicked her eyes at him then back to the floor. “You’re looking well.”
