Alpha Asher and Lola novel Chapter 187

Read Alpha Asher by Jane Doe Chapter 187

The conversation between Giovanni and I replayed in my head as I traipsed upstairs and collapsed into bed. Even after it had run its course, I fought the sleep that tried to claim me and focused on mind-linking Asher.

Another hour had passed, one without any success.

I’d considered reaching out to Zeke, but after pouring all of my remaining energy into getting through to Asher, I had nothing left to expend. In a haze of utter exhaustion, I slipped away into a restless, dreamless sleep.

I wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but the sun had yet to risen when I was yanked from sleep. The bedroom was cloaked in absolute darkness, even with the beams of moonlight streaming through the curtains. Luckily, I didn’t need light to tell who was hovering over me, their hand pressed firmly over my mouth.

It was his eyes I noticed first, the sight of them telling me that something was very, very wrong.

They were entirely gold, practically glowing in the darkness as they stared at me with a heat that belonged solely to a predator. When Asher would battle with his wolf, often flecks of gold would swirl in his dark eyes, but rarely were they completely overtaken.

I grew still beneath him when his chest began to rumble, a growl building in his throat. He didn’t seem to register my mumbling against his hand, trying to coax him off whatever ledge he managed to stumble onto.

There was nothing soft about his face. Every inch was cast in sharp angles and harsh planes. Not an ounce of recognition flowed through him, but without a doubt in my mind, the man hovering above me was in fact my mate. Even if he couldn’t see that himself.

I tried not to show fear, but it was hard when the other half of your soul looked at you with such ferocity.

He leaned in close, pressing his nose against my neck. A gasp lingered in my throat, but I kept the sound at bay. What I couldn’t control was my heart, which stammered as a momentary blip of fear took hold. His mouth was uncomfortably close to my throat, bringing on the realization that I had never, not once been afraid of Asher harming me.

Why was this time different?

Breathing deeply, he ran his nose up my neck, stopping at the base of my throat. I was warring with my mind and with Maya, both of which telling me to do opposite things. Maya trusted Asher and his wolf with every fiber of our being, but the instinct to protect ourselves was growing stronger with each passing second. It was my mind, the part of me bonded to Asher that told me not to fight, to let my mate do as he pleased.

I’d run out of time to make a decision when he pulled back, his face contorting into something terrifying and feral.

His jaw was locked tightly, his teeth exposed and chest still rumbling as he tore through the front of my t-shirt with his claws. The fabric was torn to shreds, falling away like cheap ribbon, and leaving me entirely exposed.

I was torn between terror and the start of arousal, neither of which I could fight. My body always had a mind of its own when it came to Asher, and no amount of training had been able to change that.

He pressed his claws against my bare chest, right above my left breast. As he dug the tips of them into my flesh, a sharp sting of pain took hold. The longer I lay frozen beneath him, the more disbelief began to take hold, numbing my nerves until all that was left was the shocking realization that Asher was actually going to draw blood.

He might be rough and punishing, but he’s never made me bleed before.

Instinct took hold inside my head, and I shoved past the block in his head, racing down the bond between us until I was forced to stop. I was slammed back into my own body with enough force to make the world around me spin.

Asher wasn’t in there.

The only thing I could feel from him was this never-ending sense of hunger, a murderous need that consumed ever facet of his being until even his vision was tinted in a sickly shade ofred. There was no human emotion, no trace of recognition as he stared down at Maya and me.

Despite every instinct in my body protesting, I needed to protect myself.

I had no choice but to fight my mate.

Bucking beneath him did nothing but incite anger, but it was the one emotion he seemed to be showing, one I knew could be used against him. Sure enough, the more I thrashed, the more his snarling seemed to build. When he reached for my hair, I found my opening.

I continued to deny the obvious, ignoring the full extent of that endless hunger l’d felt, a hunger that would only be satiated by flesh and blood-by death.

There wasn’t a chance in hell I was going to use magic against him, not without knowing the full extent of what I could do. I didn’t care what Asher planned to do to me, killing my mate was absolutely out of the question. Even the shadows seemed confused, almost reluctant to get in between whatever was going on.

A dull sting of pain radiated across my scalp, but hair-pulling wasn’t exactly new between us. He’d shifted his weight, spreading his legs wide enough for me to maneuver my leg and plant my foot against his chest. I kicked with every ounce of strength I had, a feat that was all but useless when he snared my ankle with one of his meaty hands.

I readied myself for my next move, or for his retaliation when he froze in place. His eyes glowed in the dark, skewering me where I lay beneath him. The quiet huff of him sniffing the air hit my ears, but that wasn’t the only thing that happened.