Page 123 of Stone Temptation

He looked over his shoulder with a weak smile. “No. It’s cool. I just miss them loads.”

A wave of grief, a splash of nausea, and a whole lot of hurt attacked me at once. “When does your current rotation end?”

“Six months. You’ve paled.” Asher turned fully, water dripping from his fingers onto the kitchen floor. “Maybe we shouldn’t talk about family.”

I drove an inner dagger into my sorrow. “No. It’s fine. I want to know about your family. Unless you don’t want to talk about them?”

He turned around, finishing the last of the dishes. “They’re the embodiment of everything good in this world. My anchors.”

Envy poked at my soul. “That’s… That’s great.”

“I couldn’t get through…” He paused, drying his hands with a tea towel.

“Get through what?”

He turned to face me. “Another time. Want something strong to drink?”

“What? No…” I wanted to know more about him, his past.

“How about a hug?”

God, his sweetness was too much. “No. This is about you. A ‘get to know Asher’ moment. You can talk to me.”

“I’d rather move on to something perkier.”

I chuckled, the use of perkier tickling my funny bone—the metaphysical one, not the elbow variety.

He smiled. “Can we save this talk for another day?”

“Okay.” Disappointing, but never mind.

“And the hug is still available.” He spread his arms.

If I went into them, who knew what would happen next. The close call at the pool might have been the spark, this next part the inferno.

I stepped back, averting my gaze. “I’ll start getting ready for work.”

“Cool.”

I trotted to the stairs, glancing back at the gargoyle. He was drying the dishes now, making my core bloom with lovely warmth.

In my kitchen…

He’s in my kitchen, looking as if he belongs there.

Footsteps pounded outside my front door, breaking my dreamy drifting. Asher strode across the floor, ready to fight.

“What—”

Before I could finish, the door crashed open. Two gas mask humans with machetes launched into an attack.

TWENTY-EIGHT

Luke

Asher tackled the first human; both of them appeared to be men.

I charged at the other one, adrenaline lighting my body on fire. The masked bastard made a beeline for me, their rapid breathing like a flustered Darth Vader. He ducked my punch, grabbing me in a headlock. I stamped on his foot, freeing myself.

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