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I want to obliterate this guy. He’s fucking with something that I consider mine and that’s something I won’t allow. Poppy is mine to protect, and I’ll do anything to do just that. In general, I’m not normally a violent man, but when you fuck with something that’s mine, well, that’s a different story. Poppy is the single most important thing in my life and there’s no way I’m going to let some sick bastard take her away, harm her, or continue to scare her.
Hayes announces over the intercom that we’re ready for takeoff. Devin comes by to take Poppy’s glasses and to ensure we’re both buckled in. I almost get up to go sit by her, but she seems to be relaxed in her seat at the moment. Her head is tilted back with her eyes closed, but her hands aren’t gripping the armrests like they were on the trip here. I don’t know if it’s because of the alcohol or her mind being occupied on other things, but she’s obviously not stressing over the flight.
I try to keep my mind on other things as well as we ascend into the air, but my eyes keep straying back to her. She hasn’t moved from her position, and I wonder if she’s fallen asleep. I grab my phone and shoot an email to Eric for an update and to let him know we’re headed home early. We were originally going to miss work on Monday, but there’s no sense in it now.
I pull up and answer a few more emails, trying my best to pay attention to what I’m doing, but my attention keeps going back to the silent and still woman across the way. Her head has fallen at an awkward angle and is leaning against the window. It’s a crick in the neck waiting to happen. I unbuckle and slide from my seat. Poppy doesn’t move when I stand beside her section of seats. Leaning over, I see that she did indeed fall asleep.
Even knowing she may wake up and freak out on me, I release her seatbelt. Carefully, I slip one arm beneath her knees and one behind her shoulders, and scoop her up into my arms. She unconsciously snuggles into my chest, and I can’t help the pleasure that it gives me. I give Devin a chin lift, indicating one of the doors at the back of the jet that leads to a small bedroom. He rushes forward and opens it, and I push it closed quietly behind me with my foot. I gently lay her down on the bed, praying she doesn’t wake up. A smile touches my lips as she rolls to her side with an unintelligible mumble.
I stand there and watch he
r for several moments, knowing it’s going to be a while before I can watch her sleep again, before my need to be near her overrules my need to give her space. Now that I’ve touched her as Asher, it’s going to drive me insane not being able to. I sit on the side of the bed and slip off my shoes before carefully lying down and pulling her back against my chest. She doesn’t protest. Even in her sleep, she recognizes her body as mine and mine as hers. Her hair is pulled back into a simple ponytail, leaving her neck exposed to me. My eyes land on the mark I left on her last night. Primal need has me wanting to mark her again, just to remind her who she belongs to. Instead, I lightly kiss the exposed skin. She moans in her sleep and shifts slightly, her hand landing on the arm I have wrapped around her waist. Her ass presses against my cock, bringing it to life. I bite back my groan of pleasure.
This is pure fucking torture, but I know it’s the only way to be close to her. I know I’m courting her anger by being here, but fuck it—I need this. I snuggle my face into her hair and inhale the fruity scent of her conditioner. My arms tighten around her, and I send up a silent prayer that she forgives me for everything I’ve done.
I feel her chest rise with a deep breath before her body stiffens. I wait for her to pull away from me, but surprisingly, she doesn’t. Instead, she stays still and just lays there in my arms. We’ve been here for hours. I felt the shift of the plane descending, so I know Hayes will be announcing for us to put our seatbelts on soon. I don’t want to move. I want to stay here forever.
I take a deep breath and bring up one of the subjects I’m sure she’s worried about.
“I’m going to have someone come by your place tomorrow to take out the cameras in your house,” I say against her neck. “And the tracking device on your car.”
She stiffens more at the reminder of her invaded privacy. I silently curse myself, but know that I needed to let her know to try to ease her mind. I don’t think it works, though.
“How did you get into my house?” she asks with a wobbly voice. I squeeze my eyes shut at her heartbreaking tone.
“The key underneath the potted plant by your front door.” I cringe with my answer, knowing it sounds fucked up. “I took it and made copies.”
I wince when her fingernails dig into my arm, but I’ll take the pain. I’ll endure any pain she dishes out at me. I’m just glad she’s actually talking to me. The silent treatment I was getting before was eating me alive.
She unsticks her nails from my arm and sits up, keeping her back to me as she sits on the side of the bed. I want her nails digging back into my skin. I want her warmth back against me.
“Were you the one that went through my drawer that night?” she asks, her head lowered.
“No,” I respond, my voice hard. Memories of the video feed and what the sick fuck did play havoc on my mind.
I reach my hand out to touch her back, but drop it to the mattress right before I make contact. Her body is rigid as she sits there, and I worry I’ll make her more distant if I touch her again.
It takes her a minute to reply, like she’s weighing my answer to see if she believes me. I don’t know if she concludes that I’m telling the truth, or if she’s choosing to work around my answer.
“Since you had cameras in my place, were you able to see the guy that did?”
“No,” I sigh regretfully. “He must have known about the cameras because he knew just how to avoid them.”
She nods and stays silent. I get up from the bed and walk around it to stand in front of her. I drop to my knees, making sure to keep my distance.
“Hey,” I call, and wait several seconds for her to bring her eyes to mine. When she does, I rock back on my heels at her devastated look. I can’t hold back anymore and scoot forward on my knees until they touch her feet. I reach out with my hand, intent on taking hers that are sitting in her lap, twisting the material of her shirt, but she balls them into fists, preventing me from grabbing them. I drop them back to my thighs.
I look deep into her eyes and say with so much conviction, there’s no way she can’t believe me. “I’m going to get this guy, Beautiful. You don’t need to worry about him. I don’t know what he has planned, but he won’t bother you again.”
Her eyes flicker back and forth between mine, taking in my words. There’s no way I’m letting this guy get to her. From what I saw and the message he sent, I know he has something planned, and it’s not something nice. I may be obsessed with Poppy, but my obsession is totally different than his. Whereas I want to keep her safe, his actions prove he wants to harm her in some way.
She blinks and a single tear leaks out of her eye. All I can do is sit here helplessly and watch it trail down her face. I clench my hands into fists and feel my own eyes gather moisture. I haven’t cried since I was twelve years old and fell out of a tree in my parents’ backyard. This woman literally takes me to my knees and brings tears to my eyes.
“Why?” she whispers, her voice cracking. “Why not just come to me? Why not ask me out on a date like a normal person? Why spy on me? Why lie to me over and over again for a year? Why make me fall for you, knowing that what you were doing would hurt me? Did you even care for me at all?”
“Yes!” I say vehemently. I scoot forward more until my knees straddle her feet, my chest meets her knees, and her legs rub the inside of my thighs. I place my hands on either side of her hips and bring my face close to hers. She sucks in a sharp breath and leans back at my close proximity, but I don’t back down. What I have to say next is too important.
“There’s no way to explain my feelings for you. They’re too strong to put into words and no matter how long I live, it wouldn’t be enough time to show you how I feel. You are everything to me. Every-fucking-thing!” I stress the word. “Every breath I take, I take for you. Every beat of my heart is for you. Every smile I see that graces your face, makes my life shine so bright it’s damn near blinding. Your laugh is the sweetest sound I’ve ever heard. Your beauty outshines even the most gorgeous possessions. My need for you outweighs anything I’ve ever wanted. You are the single most important thing I would give everything up for.”
