Total pages in book: 19
Estimated words: 17830 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 89(@200wpm)___ 71(@250wpm)___ 59(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 17830 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 89(@200wpm)___ 71(@250wpm)___ 59(@300wpm)
“Holy shit, we killed him!” Enzo cried when he too shifted into human form.
“He’s not dead, dumbass,” his brother scolded, but I missed the rest of their argument as I slid down onto the ground.
I opened the driver’s side door at the same time that Grady opened the passenger door. He reached in and put the gear in park and unbuckled Asher’s seatbelt. Hunter appeared at my side to help me pull my mate’s thick, soft body out from behind the steering wheel. We settled him onto the ground, propping his back against the side of his truck.
I felt his neck and gave a sigh of relief when I felt the steady thump of his heart beneath my fingers. “He’s okay,” I sighed. “He’s just in shock.”
“Thank heavens,” Grady said from behind me. “Is there anything we can do to help?”
I looked at my poor mate and guilt over scaring him bubbled in my gut. “I think Brandon was right; he needs some space right now. I’ll stay with him until he wakes up and I’ll explain everything to him, but I think it’s better if we’re alone.”
“We understand,” Hunter said with a pat to my shoulder. “But if there’s anything you need-”
“I’ll give a roar,” I finished.
“Best of luck,” Grady offered, and I smiled in thanks.
Talon, who was still in lion form simply because his mate loved to ride on him so much, approached me and gently butted my head with his in a show of support.
“Thanks, Tal. I’ll talk to him about everything and hopefully we’ll be home together soon.”
“You got this,” Felix offered with a thumbs up, which was copied by his brother.
I nodded and watched as my friends shuffled back towards home. If I needed them, they’d be back in a blink, but for now, all of my attention was on my mate. I brushed my fingers through his hair and hummed a gentle tune as I waited for him to wake up.
*****
Asher
Quiet humming filled my ears. It was a pretty tune that settled my swimming brain. I know that sound. I blinked my eyes open until a blurry Cedric came into view. A blurry naked Cedric.
Why is he naked? I looked around and saw that I was on the ground, leaning up against my truck. Why am I here? Was I in an accident? My truck doesn’t look damaged. But then everything clicked and came pouring back to me at once.
“You! Cedric! Lion!” I shouted. I wasn’t making a bit of sense, but Cedric nodded his head in understanding anyway.
“I am,” he replied calmly.
“Everyone! Lions!”
Another nod. “They are.”
“I…they…you…how?”
“I told you that I had an animalistic side,” he said with a teasing smile, but it didn’t reach his pretty blue eyes. I lifted my hands to my temples and massaged their dull ache. “I have a lot to tell you.” That’s an understatement. “But first, will you tell me why you left? Did I do something wrong?”
The pain in his gaze shredded my heart. “Of course not. It’s just…when I was sitting there in the beautiful home you built with your talented, wealthy friends, it was obvious that I didn’t belong there. I’m not rich. I’m not skilled. I can’t offer you what those guys can offer you. You deserve someone who is as great as you are. I thought it would be best if I left you alone so that you could find him.”
“Oh, Asher,” Cedric sighed before running his fingers through my beard. “I wish you could see yourself the way I see you. Then you’d know that I could never want anyone else.”
I scoffed my disbelief and Cedric tucked in his eyebrows in what looked like both irritation and determination. “I know you didn’t just scoff at me, Mr. Man.” Damn, I love his sass. “You’re a kind, selfless family man who makes me smile. You do your best to take care of my heart - even when it was the exact wrong fucking thing to do - and you take care of my body how I need. You’re everything I want and have been waiting for. If I have to pound the fact that I love you into your head for the rest of time, so be it.”
My heart leapt into my throat, making it difficult to squeak out, “You…love me?”
“Of course I do.”
“But we haven’t known each other very long.”
“And?” Cedric looked genuinely perplexed by my statement. “How do you feel about me? Not in your mind, but…” He pressed the palm of his hand to my chest and asked, “In here?”
It was easy to answer when I quieted the doubts of my mind. “I feel like I know you; that you’re a kind soul who I want to be with. I want to put your wants and needs ahead of my own and make you happy. I feel…I feel like I love you, but I think that you shouldn’t love me back.”