Page 33 of Ferocious Nightmare

I caught her smirk right before I shut the door behind me. I checked my phone as I made my way to the entranceway, reading the message from an unknown number.

We have a problem. Call me tonight.

Frowning, I deleted the message and slid it back in my pocket, then made my way towards the kitchen, where Marisol had breakfast waiting.

"Fucking finally," I growled, an hour later, when I heard Aster's footsteps towards us, then swallowed down the rest of my complaint.

She had taken the time to actually get ready today, with a sleeveless velvet purple dress that showed off her slender shoulders and sexy collarbones. Her hair cascaded down over them in waves, and I suddenly wanted to fist it in my hand. She was wearing heels that made her incredibly sensual legs look even longer, and a light touch of makeup that brightened her eyes.

She strode into the room with the confidence of a bear in a fox den, and I had to turn away from her to make sure my cock, which had hardened like concrete at the sight of her, wasn't too obvious.

"Ready?” my voice came out a growl. I hated that even after everything, I still wanted to fuck her. And I wasn't even halfway sorry that I'd forced her into an engagement with me.

I forced down the rest of my coffee to distract myself, while Marisol put Aster's food in a bowl with a lid on top. It was something she’d made specially for Aster—called picadas—along with homemade salsa.

Aster ate it in the car, replacing the smell of the new upholstery with the pungent smell of her salsa.

We pulled up to a discreet building and when we went inside, the look of shock on Aster’s face was worth every annoyance it took to get her this appointment.

"What did you do?" she squeaked.

I ignored her question and walked to the receptionist. "Aster Valdez, here to see Dr. Karina Sandoval."

By the way the receptionist scrambled to pick up the phone, nodding vigorously, I knew she recognized the name.

Good. I didn't pay an enormous rush fee to have to make Aster wait nervously in the waiting room.

Dr. Sandoval came out immediately, a smile on her face. "Aster Valdez?"

Aster fidgeted beside me, and for the first time ever, she actually looked nervous. "Si. That's me."

The doctor switched to Spanish, something I expected, assuming that Aster would want to have a doctor that spoke her native tongue about something so important. They spoke for a little while and I waited by Aster's side patiently. Suddenly, they both turned to me, and the doctor's gaze was firm.

"I'm going to take her back now, but I would like to speak to Aster alone, if that's okay with you."

She said it like a question, but her tone clearly relayed that she wasn’t giving me the option.

She was treating me like I was forcing Aster into doing this, and Aster acting all nervous about it wasn't helping things.

I looked to Aster, and she nodded. "I'll be okay."

"Fine," I grunted, pulling out my phone, already distracted. "I'll wait for you here."

Dr. Sandoval led Aster away and I slumped into an uncomfortable, overpriced chair. There were a few other people waiting in the room, and I tried not to make eye contact. I was here for Aster, not to make friends. Most people ignored me, though a few women eyed me curiously. A small kid playing with a toy truck on the plush carpeted floor was so focused on it that it took several tries of his mother to get him to notice they were supposed to go into the back.

I concentrated on my phone, working, and Aster reappeared about an hour and a half later, a bright smile on her face. I stood, waiting patiently as she told Dr. Sandoval goodbye. Then she turned and ran towards me, jumping up into my arms. Flinging her arms around my neck, she flashed a grin so wide it stretched across her whole face.

"She said we can do an operation to fix my eyes!" She hugged me, gushing," Thank you! You have no idea what this means to me."

I was so surprised, so unfamiliar with the wave of warmth that washed over me, I froze.

Was this what normal people felt? Love and affection and tenderness around the people they loved.

After a while, I put her down. “It's nothing."

“It’s not nothing, Coulter."

As I led her out, I wished she'd stop grinning because it was catching. I had to force it down, thinking about how much I wanted to kill my father to keep myself from looking like a lovesick puppy.

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