Chapter 15

Chapter 15
Kaeleigh’s POV

I felt arms on me as Adam scooped me up off the floor. He silently carried me to the sofa and put me down. I sat watching him as he got the blanket from the other side of the sofa and placed it over me. 

“You’re working with Chase?” I asked quietly, and he nodded.

“Well, Jensen anyway,” he shrugged. “Until last week, anyway.”

“Why?” I asked, and he looked at me funny.

“What do you mean, why?”

“Well, this is your pack. Shouldn’t you be loyal to your Alpha?” Adam kneeled down on the floor in front of my seat.

“Kaeleigh,” he said, taking my hand. “The only person I care about is you, and I will do whatever it takes to ensure your safety, especially if it was my fuck up that put you in danger in the first place.” He looked me in the eye and tightened his grip on my hand.

“You are and always will be my Queen, and I swear loyalty to you, and you only.” I felt the power in his words as strong as the sincerity in his voice. I leaned forward, keeping my gaze on his eyes, and touched his cheek with my other hand.

“Are you Adam, or are you Jonathan?” he smiled sadly.

“Honestly beautiful, I don’t much know anymore.”

The door opened, and we both pulled away. Adam stood up. I looked around to see Cade walking in, carrying Dayna. She had her arms around his neck and looked drowsy.

“Found this one down the hallway,” he said, placing her on the sofa. I glared up at Adam.

“I told you to take her to the safe house.” He just shrugged.

“No one was getting on this floor that I didn’t want to. She was safe.” I shook my head in disapproval and leaned over, putting the blanket on Dayna as she fell asleep again. 

“You ok love?” Cade looked at me from the chair. I shook my head. 

“Not really, but there’s nothing to be done right now.” I could still feel the dull ache in my heart, but I put myself aside as I busied myself with looking after Dayna. I’d made up my mind to move her to my room, where I could hopefully keep her safe from Malcolm. 

I suddenly felt a mix of fear and anger and images flashed in my mind. Chase being surrounded by wolves. I ran to the window and looked down. I could see Chase in the courtyard, and just like the images, there were three or four wolves around him. He was glaring at the front of the house. What the hell? I whipped around and stormed out the door, running down the hallways and pushing the doors to the stairwell open. I half expected guards to grab me, but no one was there. I flew down all six flights of stairs, and out into the hallway towards the entrance just as I saw Asher standing face to face with Chase. A hand landed on my shoulder and I saw a red faced Cade and Adam standing next to me. I didn’t even notice they had followed. 

I looked over and saw Chase tense up and could tell by the anger radiating off him he was about to lose control. If he did that, then the waiting wolves would rip into him in seconds. I could tell that was exactly what Asher was hoping for.

“Asher, enough!” He didn’t respond, but I knew he heard me. Chase looked at me, and I felt such sadness hit me when our eyes connected.

“You hurt Chase, and our deal is off,” I state. His responding growl told me he heard me. I was ready to say something else, but he stepped back and I relaxed a little.

“First my Queen,” he called, holding out his hand. “Come to me.” I glanced quickly at Chase and knew this was all for his benefit. Asher wanted to show him up, assert his dominance. I glared at Asher, not moving. I didn’t want to play his games.

“Now sweetheart,” a clear warning rang out in his voice. He wasn’t giving up. I sighed and walked down the steps with my eyes on the ground. I could feel Chase’s eyes on me, but I couldn’t meet his gaze. I looked at Asher’s hand before putting mine in his. He immediately pulled me against him, and my free hand flew to his chest. I tried to control my breathing and closed my eyes against the spell that felt stronger when I was near him. I felt his finger on my chin as he lifted it to face him. I opened my eyes and looked directly into his. I focused on the copper flecks that decorated the dark green, and not the raw emotion that moved through them.

“Mine,” he whispered, and I heard Chase growl behind me. I closed my eyes as a single tear rolled down my cheek. 

And then I felt Asher’s lips on mine, and my defences broke and I kissed him back. I could hear something behind me, but when I tried to pull away, Asher’s hands tightened on me and pulled me against his body. He ran his tongue along my lower lip and when I didn’t respond, he bit it. I gasped, and he pushed his tongue into my mouth and found mine. His movements were slow and deliberate, and I felt dizzy from the lack of oxygen. Or was it the intense pressure from the spell? His fingertips traced down my back and sent shivers down my spine. I vaguely heard someone talking before Asher chuckled into my mouth and pulled away, and I gasped for breath. Then, where I was, came flooding back and I glanced behind me. But Chase was no longer there. I looked up at Asher, who had a lazy smile on his face.

“You’re a bastard, you know that,” I snapped and pulled out of his hands and slapped him in the face as hard as I could. I saw his eyes shift in fury, but stormed past him back into the house. I heard Cade behind me. 

“Ash, leave it.”

“The hell I will. No one hits me. I don’t care who they are.” I had hit the stairs and heard the door to the stairwell slam open behind me.

“Kaeleigh, get back here now,” He shouted after me.

“No,” I called behind me and heard him growl before footsteps started pounding on the stairs. I pushed myself up faster.

“Asher,” I heard Cade call. 

“No Cade, someone needs to learn who’s in charge around here, and you can stay put, too.”

“Not a fucking chance,” I heard Adam say. 

I made it on to the sixth floor and stormed down the hall when I was grabbed and pushed against the wall, before Asher pushed himself against me. I could feel his anger pouring out of him as he wrapped his hand in my hair and yanked my head to the side. 

“I have let you get away with too much, Kaeleigh, but it stops now.” I growled and tried to twist away from him and winced against the pain in my head. He tightened his grip and leaned into my ear.

“What am I, Kaeleigh? What is my rank?” he whispered in my ear.

“A bastard” I spat back, and he growled.

“Kaeleigh, last chance, what is my rank?” his other hand squeezed my side and felt as his claws digged into my side. I hissed against the pain.

“My Rank, Kaeleigh,” he demanded.

“Alpha!” I snarled. He spun me around and slammed my back against the wall.

“Good girl,” he said, the fury gone, but the dominance was still there. 

“Now,” he said, sniffing my hair, “who do you belong to?” 

“Fuck you, Asher,” I snapped, and he caressed the side that he had just clawed.

“Mmmmm, sweetheart, that can be arranged,” and I looked up into his eyes. I realised why the fury had gone. It had made way for lust. I scoffed at him. 

“Please,” I rolled my eyes and pushed on his chest. Surprisingly, he let me push him away. So I turned my back and began walking down the hall.

“What is that supposed to mean?” he asked, and I turned around and looked at him.

“It means that you have had plenty of opportunities, Asher.” I felt Ana stir inside me, getting excited at what I was doing. I was ready to trust her and those damn puzzle pieces.

“I have been here long enough, and you insist that I am your Asher.” He stalked slowly towards me, but I stood my ground.

“But yet I don’t wear your mark on my throat, do I?” Asher was now standing right in front of me and I had to tilt my head up to look into his eyes.

“I think if I was really yours Asher you would have claimed me by now.”

Asher growled and shoved me back against the wall. His hands gripped my arms as I saw his fury and his lust fight for control in his eyes. Finally, a smirk crept across his face seconds before he smashed his mouth into mine. He started kissing me like it was food, and he was starving. And I not only allowed it, I encouraged it. If I was really going to trust Ana, then I needed to do what she said. I was sick of waiting for someone else to call the shots in my life. I was going to call my own shots. I was ready to live up to my side of the deal. 

I wrapped my hands in Asher’s hair and pulled him deeper, but he pulled away and looked at me. The look I saw surprised me. I thought I would see fury or lust. Hell, even the pure dominance of his wolf wouldn’t have surprised me. But if I wasn’t mistaken, what I saw was love. His eyes played softly over my face, searching for something. Asher smiled at me. 

“You know that I know you are doing this for him, not for me, right?” and I went to deny it. He shook his head. “I don’t care anymore Kaeleigh, I want you, I’ve wanted you since that first day in the bar.” He moved some hair away from my face. “I meant it when I said I loved you, and I know you will learn to love me too in time.” He closed his mouth onto mine again for a brief but heated kiss and then scooped me by the legs and lifted me into his arms and carried me down the hall to my room. I could feel the pressure of the spell again. It was pushing against the walls I had built. 

“Let go,” Ana whispered, and I shook my head.

“Do you trust me?” she asked, and I nodded.

“But I hold the control,” I said to her in my head, and she sighed.

“I’m sorry Kaeleigh,” I felt a pull as Asher laid me down on my bed, “but it’s for our own good.”

I tried to stop it, but she caught me by surprise and my barriers came tumbling down and with a gasp, the spell invaded me all over again.