Page 69 of Asher

“Which reminds me.” Asher slipped his hand under her shirt and cupped her breast. “Tonight, we sleep inourbedroom, inourbed.”

The need to tell him no, that she’d just changed the bedding on this massive chaise lounge and he should’ve told her sooner, wasa hard beast to suppress. But sleeping with him in that huge bed of his, err,theirs? Silly man. Did he seriously think they’d just sleep?

The doorbell rang. Darn it, Alex and Kelsey had arrived. Marlowe growled.

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Asher grinned at Marlowe’s grumpy growl, fingering the diamond ring in his workout pants pocket. No doubt about it. Today was the day. After she checked the peephole and deactivated the alarm like they’d agreed they’d do from now on, she opened the door and politely said, “Good morning. It’s so nice to see you again.” The little liar. She wasn’t happy to see anyone. Especially after yesterday, when the entire TEAM family had shown up on their front doorstep.

In came Alex with two puppies on leashes, Darling, excited to see Marlowe, and Walter, as anxious as ever. Kelsey came in with another pup on leash, an alert, bright-eyed, long-haired GSD. Asher recognized the little guy. He was one of the new additions to Alex’s family. Hmmmm. Why was he there?

“Hey, Boss.” Lifting to his feet from the couch, Asher stuck his chin at the little guy. “What’s up?”

“I know this is asking a lot, but—“ Alex crouched down and unleashed Darling, who headed straight for Marlowe. Of course. “I’ve got a little boy at home who’s—”

“Fallen in love with your Walter,” Kelsey interrupted, her eyes glimmering. “And, umm…” She looked at Alex.

Asher smiled to see these two hemming and hawing. “You want to keep Walter, is that what you’re asking? For Bradley? Sure. Love at first sight conquers all.” His gaze strayed to Marlowe. “That okay with you, honey?”

With her hands on the wiggling puppy on her lap, she nodded from the floor where she was sitting. “Sure. Walter isn’t nervous with Bradley like he is with us.”

“You do know Walter’s deaf, right?” Asher asked the Stewarts.

Alex nodded. “We can deal with that. What I can’t deal with is my son’s broken heart.”

Damn it. Now Asher’s eyes were watering. Totally non-threatening, puppy-sized Bradley was the perfect companion for that skittish pup. He brushed a quick hand over his face, just as Kelsey leaned into him and gave him a very cautious, one-armed hug. “I can never, ever, thank you enough for what you did, Asher,” she whispered. “I didn’t get a chance to tell you yesterday, but you saved my life when you saved Alex. You saved Lexie’s and Bradley’s lives, too. You made sure Alex came home to me and—” Her voice cracked.

Blinking furiously, Asher squeezed her as tightly as his injured shoulder allowed. Man, she was a tiny thing. Just like Marlowe. “I just did what anyone else would’ve done, ma’am. I did my job and—”

“Like hell,” Alex growled, his blue eyes as bleary as Asher’s. “I owe you a debt I can never repay, Ash. And now I’m here, asking for one more son of a bitching thing.”

“Walter,” Asher answered, needing a diversion from the drama. He hadn’t saved his boss for praise or glory. Only did what any decent man or woman would’ve done in the same circumstances. He’d put his teammates first, above the mission and above himself. That was all. Brotherhood was what launched him down the stairs that day. Nothing more. Nothing less.

With a deep breath, Kelsey stepped back. “Yes, Walter. We hated to ask, especially after what happened in Syria, but—”

“But Bradley’s crying because we took Walter and left him behind, damn it,” Alex continued gruffly. It was uncanny, watching the way these two finished each other’s sentences. “He and that puppy have been inseparable. He’s been sleeping in Walter’s crate with him when he can get away with it, and I—”

Asher held his palm up. Alex didn’t have to say more. “No problem, Boss. I know you’ll take care of Walter. He’s yours.”

Kelsey ran a slender finger under her eyes. “We brought one of our new boys if you’re interested.” She dropped the newcomer’s leash. “This little boy is Hercules, Herk with a ‘k’ for short.”

“Awww,” Marlowe murmured from where she sat cross-legged on the floor, snuggling Darling. “I’ve never seen a German Shepherd with long fur before. He’s fluffy.”

Herk was a long-haired, extra-fluffy, tan and black GSD. Intelligence shone in his bright, brown eyes. Then the little guy cocked his head, those big, furry ears flopped to one side, making him adorably hard to resist.

Asher snapped his fingers and commanded, “Come.”

Herk trotted straight to Asher and sat, looking quizzically up, his head cocked again and those ears way too big for the little guy.

“You can’t go wrong with any of Harley’s dogs,” Alex said.

“Did we hear anything back on Ambassador Clark?” Asher asked, still watching Herk and falling in love with him.

“Yes, he’s fully recovered and back on the job. Turned out Jamah had a harem. Six women.” Alex counted off on his fingers and thumb. “Veronica Tippetts, Sariah Sayeed, Khadija Bashir, Aziza Marabi, Zorah Hanan, and Kamisha Ramani. You already know what happened to Tippetts. As for Sariah, she was an American citizen, the granddaughter of a Lebanese couple who migrated to America in the 1950s. When she was in her early twenties, she embraced ISIL and personally sought out Jamah after he proclaimed himself to be caliph.”

Asher motioned for Herk to lie down. The pup dropped to his belly, his eyes still on Asher.

“Khadija is the driver who broadsided Beau. She’s now in FBI custody, pending DOJ’s final determination. Aziza Marabi was intercepted by Scotland Yard at Heathrow, with three metal cylinders of anthrax in her checked baggage. Among other things, she’s been charged with transportation of a Category A bioterrorism agent. Scotland Yard has her in custody at an undisclosed location outside of London. And the last two…”

---