“It won’t be your hands, it’ll be mine.” He practically snarls at me and I turn in his arms to face him.
“No. It’ll be because of me, and I won’t have it.” I cup his jaw in my palm and lock eyes with him. “Please, Asher. No more violence on my behalf.”
He sucks the fangs that have extended, then runs his tongue over the point of one as he exhales.
“Fine,” he says, then adds a grumble under his breath. “Bastard better stay away, though.”
“I heard that.” I poke him in the side and he sends me a glare.
I beam at him, pleased he gave up his vendetta so easily.
Asher rolls his eyes, but I’m pretty sure his lips twitch before he turns away.
“Ugh, what are we going to do about work though?” I say.
Apprehension settles in my gut at the thought of goinginto the office where his parents and evil cousin will be. Asher eyes me, seeming to search for something.
“What do you think about it?” he asks.
I twist my lips. “I’m not sure. I mean, I never saw the previous CEO until that party, so I can’t imagine I’d run into your parents all that often, right?”
His shoulders tense as I talk and his face turns hard, unyielding.
“Besides,” I say, “I’m sure they all have better things to do than talk to me.”
Asher sucks in a breath, visibly trying to regain his composure.
“We should quit," he says, then nods as if it’s decided.
“What? No!”
“What do you mean no? Raya, you can’t work there.”
My body jerks back. He didnotsay that.
“Excuse me? I most certainly can.”
“No. No way. I won’t let you.” He’s shaking his head and pacing around the kitchen now. “We’ll both quit, and we’ll start our own company. Together. Yes!” He snaps his fingers and spins back to me.
My eyes nearly bug out of my head.
Start a company together? He must be joking. That’s huge. And absolutely insane.
“I mean, I guess that’s one way to piss off your parents.” I dredge up a pathetic excuse for a chuckle, but he isn’t laughing. I blink at him, dumbfounded.
“Okay. Asher, listen to me.” I step right in front of him. “I know you’re scared. I know you don’t want me to be hurt. But you also don’t get to run my life. It’smy life,not yours. I’m an adult, and I have the right to make my own choices.”
I’ve come to love this job and my coworkers, and I don’t want to give it up just because of a couple power hungry vampires who I likely won’t even see. He looks away, eyesdistant as he gazes past me with his fists clenched at his sides, and then he’s shaking his head again, so I continue.
“Yes, I do. Even in this.” My voice is steel, and he finally seems to hear what I’m saying.
The breath whooshes out of him and he deflates like a balloon.
“Raya…”
I rest a palm on his chest and soften my voice.
“I’d rather stay, see if I can make it work, but I understand if you can’t.” As I expected, he doesn’t like that idea and is already shaking his head again.
