Page 66 of Lock Up the Darkness

I moaned out as Asher softly stroked my hair.

It was the final stage of his aftercare.

He’d already uttered words of praise and comfort, then treated my back with medical wipes and a soothing ointment, dressing the injuries.

I was fine with them as they were. I didn’t mind a bit of pain. And I especially didn’t mind it from him.

But he always insisted.

I couldn’t tell whether it was out of care, or because he always needed me strong.

Was it him taking care of those he loved, or ensuring his soldiers were in fighting shape?

We’d never really know.

Not until our situations changed.

Not until we were finally free.

And the tough little thing sitting across from us on the white wraparound couch that was now back and better than ever, was gonna be a big part of that.

She was perched on the edge, smoking a cigarette like Asher, watching us intently.

He’d made her into an unwitting voyeur earlier.

I wasn’t sure if she’d realized it had been far from an accident, or not.

After texting with her, he’d come to me in a worked up state, wanting to go a few rounds. Color me shocked, because it had only been a few weeks since the last time, and it was usually once every few months when he got into that headspace, where he needed to unleash so badly. Since he’d revealed the whole deal when it came to his interest in Aurora, I’d realized that the last time had been when he’d first laid eyes on her, when he’d gone to investigate her as she’d moved into that house on the edge of town, the point that had marked the beginning of this whole thing. This whole opportunity for us all to finally get out from under our fathers’ thumbs.

I wasn’t sure if he’d set up our scene for her to walk in on to try to entice her to go down that road with us, to see if she was built for that kind of sexual fuckery, if she could go beyond what she’d already done with me. Or if he was trying to get it out of his system and warn her off at the same time.

It had me worried that he might not know either.

And Asher always knew.

He was never on the fence about anything.

“Still think you can handle me?”

When he’d uttered those words right after we’d taken our fill of each other, I hadn’t been able to determine if he’d meant them as a warning or a challenge.

Because he hadn’t.

His usually clear and decisive tone had been ambiguous.

Aurora Blackthorn affected him somehow, in a way I’d never known anybody else to.

As long as he could pull it back and get a handle on it, things would be okay.

But if he couldn’t, if he faltered in any way, we would all be done for.

I’d have to keep a close eye on the situation and also covertly clue Kill in on it.

“It’s just a cover, Aurora,” I heard Asher say.

It pulled me back to the moment, as the two of them continued to shoot the shit.

She hadn’t said a word about what she’d seen.

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