Page 78 of Savage Desire

Lincoln: Are you going to make this matter worse?

Asher: It depends what worse looks like to you.

My response hangs in the digital ether once again as I leave the confines of my room and head downstairs. I poke my head in his office, but there’s no one there, so I head outside instead. Maybe if I go toward the witches’ dorms, someone might be able to help me.

Minnie: Are you the reason she’s crying over her food in the dining hall? So help me God I will beat you to a pulp, Asher. I’m going over there.

Fuck.

I take off running toward the main academy building.

Asher: No!

Asher: Please, let me get there. Give me a chance first.

Three dots dance over my screen every glance I take, and it’s only when I step into the dining hall that my cell phone lights up.

Minnie: One chance, asshole. I’m sick of all of you giving her trouble and making her sad. Did you not hear my prior lectures of what she’s already been through? Maybe Tatum should have her all to himself since he’s the only one not causing her pain! Fuck this up and I’m going to fuck you up, Asher Manning!

Double fuck.

I drop my cell phone into my back pocket as I focus on my target, taking a deep breath as I near her. I don’t bother to see if Minnie is watching me, I can feel her eyes burning into my flesh from here. My cell phone vibrates in my pocket, confirmingmore messages are coming through, but I ignore them all as I slowly stop behind Polaris.

Her silvery hair cascades down her back as she sniffles, feebly using her fork to move the food around her plate without actually eating it. Bryony is nowhere to be seen but that’s not my issue right now, the vision before me is.

My gaze darts between her and the seat beside her and the need to touch her wins out. Stroking a hand through her hair, she stiffens beneath my fingertips. She snaps her eyes to mine, panic visible across her face as I try my best to offer her a reassuring smile.

“Silver,” I breathe, her name a prayer on my tongue, and her eyes narrow into slits as she glares at me.

“Go away, Asher,” she mutters, waving her hand for me to release the ends of her hair, but instead of following her not-so-silent command, I lean forward, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head.

Fuck.

She’s intoxicating.

I don’t know how or why she has me like this, but it’s too addicting to refuse myself.

“Asher,” she pleads, for what, I can’t quite decipher, but I lean more toward the positive side as I reluctantly pull the chair out beside her.

“I’m sorry,” I breathe, the words leaving my lips easier than I first anticipated, but they don’t garner the response I’m hoping for. I reach for her thigh, but this time she physically knocks my hand away. “Silver,” I murmur, but she shakes her head dismissively.

“No, Asher. I need some space from you,” she insists, twisting her body away from me.

“Like fuck?—”

“Whatever you have to say, Asher, I don’t care. Your time for saying it was earlier, whenIneeded you, not whenyoufeel like you are available,” she snaps, rendering me speechless with the truth that hangs between us.

“You’re right. I’m sorry. Please, let me explain,” I plead, aware we’re gaining more observers despite keeping our voices low, but a wolf sitting at the witches’ table for the second time in a handful of days is sure to cause a stir on campus.

“I don’t want to hear it. My gut told me everything would crumble like this, yet a part of me clung to a sense of hope. Unfortunately for me, you proved me right. I feel like I’ve given you and your brothers, your friends, your pack—whatever you call them—enough chances to last a lifetime. But I don’t have a lifetime to deal with the shit I’m in. I have to learn my abilities, try to survive the blood kin curse, and now, on top of all that, I have your uncle to contend with. The details of which no one is interested in sharing,” she bites, each word growing harsher as she speaks, each word another slice to my gut.

I fucked up bad.

My cell phone goes off in my pocket again, but I don’t dare reach for it when the tempest before me tries to hold back unshed tears. Her eyes are already red-rimmed as it is, also because of me. I consider her words, the idea of walking away right now feels impossible, but maybe it would be in her best interest.

I shake my head. I’ve already been over this in my mind. I’ve made my decision. Whether she likes it or not, this is how it’s going to go. My brothers and Minnie will be updated later. But this? This has to be resolved first.

Reaching for her hands, I trap her fingers in my grasp, and when she tries to tug them free, I only grip her tighter. “I’m going to help you, Silver. I’m going to be with you every step of the way. I’m going to fix this, all of it,” I promise, meaning every word.

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