Page 40 of Unbinding the Demon
Who the hell would be knocking at this hour on a Wednesday night?
Just in case it was a burglar—or the serial killer,I ruffled up my hair to make it look like a chaotic mess and grabbed both a frying pan and a chef’s knife. I warily tiptoed into the living room and over to the door. At first, I tried to peek through the peephole, but it was too dark to see anything. A few whispered curses tumbled out with my sigh of frustration. I then flung the door open like a madwoman. The pan was held above my head in one hand and the knife in the other, ready to strike.
“Hey?” Ashton stood in the doorway with a slight smile, using his foot to hold the screen door open. He tilted his head and lifted a brow with a confused but amused look as he eyed my weapons.
“Ashton? What the hell are you doing here so late? I thought you were possibly a bandit or...the fucking serial killer!”I whispered in frustration since Lacey was sleeping nearby. The frying pan and knife softly clanked as I placed them down on an end table, trying to be as quiet as possible.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you.” He scratched the back of his head, appearing quite apologetic. “I wanted to see if you’d be willing to come back to my place tonight?” He held out a hand for me to take. Something flickered in his eyes as if he were worried I might reject his offer, but he masked it in a flash.
“Why?” My voice dripped with suspicion, and I crossed my arms.
“Well, there’s something I’d like to do with you.” A coy smile danced on his lips. “But don’t worry, it’s nothing like what we did earlier,” he quickly clarified.
I stared at him for a minute, unsure if I should give him the time of day or not. Then, in a moment of weakness or possible insanity, I glanced back down at his hand and hesitantly took it. His fingers immediately wrapped around mine as though seizing the opportunity, and a look of ease spread across his face. “Excellent, let’s go then.” He pulled me closer and kissed the top of my head.
I glanced over at Lacey’s curly black locks peeking out from the side of the couch and then followed Ashton out the door. “Okay, but nothing dangerous, please.”
The car ride had been quiet. A vise of tension squeezed my chest, making it hard to breathe. The words “we need to talk” danced at the tip of my tongue, yet I couldn’t seem to bring myself to say them. I didn’t want to string him along, but I was worried about breaking things off while alone with him. Ashton noticed my unease and tried to lighten the mood with small talk about the various Halloween decorations we passed.
By the time we walked into the foyer at Ashton’s place, I was unsure what to expect. I glanced around, feeling anxious, and waited for him to explain his plans for this odd hour. Over the past month, he had been fixing up the house, bit by bit. The walls were still dingy, but everything else looked much better and more livable.
“Come on, we’re going up to the attic.” He took my hand and began leading me up the stairs.
The fucking attic? Really?
Apprehension filled my soul as we traversed to the second floor. I stared at the back of his head, noticing how his braid swayed as he walked. His long hair was something I had grown to admire. It was a unique feature that not very many men could pull off. He always kept it clean and neat, and it added to his barbarian-like masculinity. I frowned, finding that I was going to miss playing with it once this relationship was over.
We walked into the hallway, where he struggled for a minute to pull a ladder down from the ceiling. It appeared unused for quite some time. He had to give it a few extra tugs to get it unstuck. Then, the sweet smell of incense wafted down along with a puff of dust. There was already a dim light shining down, making me wonder how the ladder might be that stuck and dusty if he’d just been up there earlier.
“After you.” He smiled and gestured for me to go up first.
“This isn’t going to be something terrifying, is it?” I nervously glanced up at the small rectangular entrance.
“No, I promise it’s not.” He caressed the side of my arm.
I gazed up again and then reluctantly began to climb. My eyes widened once I saw what it looked like up there. There was a large hexagon window on the A-frame wall where the full moon was shining in through the glass. Beneath the window was a small wooden table with an incense burner and a bunch of lit black candles. Other black candles were spread out over the various antiques that lined the room and across the thick wooden beams, lighting up the space beautifully. An elegant round carpet filled the middle of the floor. It had a black base with a red rose mandala-like design woven around it.
“Are you stuck?” Ashton asked, a playful smile on his face while he pushed on my butt.
“No, I’m just surprised how pretty it is up here.” I hurried the rest of the way up.
He chuckled as he followed behind me. I walked onto the carpet while looking around, wondering what he might have planned. The floorboards creaked as he approached, causing me to turn to look at him. “Here, this is for you.” He smiled and held up a dainty yellow chrysanthemum. “It was the closest thing I could find to a buttercup, considering they’re not exactly in season right now.” He nervously scratched the back of his head.
“Oh wow, it’s beautiful. Thank you,” I smiled, hoping he wouldn’t notice the trepidation in my eyes.
“I’m glad you like it.” He tucked the yellow bloom behind my ear and then circled behind me. His large, warm hands slid through my hair as he braided it gently. “Now, I know you enjoy yoga, but have you ever practiced tantra?”
“I’ve heard of it, but I’m not sure what it’s all about.” I gazed down at the floor.
He wasn’t making my decision easy. I considered leaving until I figured out what I wanted to do. If I stayed, that might send him the false message that everything was okay. Yet, I wasn’t sure how he would take it if I asked him to drive me home so soon. I took a deep breath and hoped that he didn’t notice my internal conflict.
“I’d like to show you then. It’s an ancient yogic practice that started in northern India over 5,000 years ago.” He finished braiding my hair and spun me around to face him. “But before we begin, I owe you an apology for what I did earlier today.” His hand tenderly cupped my cheek to hold my gaze, and the other landed softly on my shoulder.
“Ashton, I—”
“Shhh,” he gently shushed while putting his finger on my lips. “It was wrong of me to lose my temper with you like that, especially without knowing the whole story. I also shouldn’t have forced you over that cliff. It was stupid. And even though I didn’t intend for it to scare you so much, it was still wrong of me to do that. I behaved inappropriately, and I hope you can forgive me.” He graced me with a small, apologetic smile and a pleading gaze.
I gazed back into his eyes, dumbfounded, as I tried to process his words. Anytime past partners had apologized to me, it had always been some phony baloney,“I’m sorry, but this is why you deserved it,”type of thing. He didn’t use my actions to justify his own and turn them around on me. It was an honest apology, and I didn’t know how to respond.
