Page 17 of Forbidden Mischief
Our eyes lock, an intense stare that sends heat rushing through me. My heart pounds; everything’s been different sinceAsher showed up. I’m questioning everything—him, myself. But right now, none of that matters. I can’t ignore this pull between us, like he needs me here, like we’re connected in a way I’m just beginning to understand.
CHAPTER 9
ASHER
My wolf is in full control right now. All my primal instincts are screaming at me.
He’s my mate. He’smine.
All I want to do is pin him to the ground and sink my teeth into him, marking him as mine.
Get a hold of yourself, Asher.
“I don’t know what's got you so worked up, but whatever it is, we can talk it out, okay?” Zayne tries to coax. “Just shift back. You have your mother worried. And to be honest, me too.” He licks his lips, running a hand through his hair. “I don’t understand any of this,” he whispers more to himself, rubbing the spot over his heart. “It hurts, you know?” He looks back at me with wide, confused eyes. “To see you hurting. I don’t know why.”
The same reason seeing him worked up and upset makes me want to rip the world apart.
Mine. Mine. Mine.
The wolf inside my head screams. We might be one in the same, but right now the shifter blood inside me is trying to take full control.
Ripping my gaze away from him, I pace, my paws pressing against the cold earth below me. All I want to do is run. To take off through these trees and run until my legs give out on me. To get out of my head and let the wolf take control.
Only I know if I did, all I’d do would run right back to him.My Mate.
Fucking hell, my stepbrother is my mate.
“Asher, please.” The anguish in his voice has my steps faltering. Attention snapping back to him, I let out a low whine.
My body starts to shift from wolf to man and a moment later, I stand before him. With my chest heaving, naked as the day I was born. I lock eyes with Zayne.
His eyes drop to where my cock is inconveniently hard, thanks to the hormones racing through my body right now.
The way his cheeks turn bright red, my wolf can’t help but preen over the attention of his eyes on my body.
“Ah…” He blinks rapidly, clearing his throat as he averts his gaze from me.
“It’s a naked body,” I grunt. “Can’t tell me it isn’t something you haven’t seen in the locker rooms before, can you?”
“Yeah.” He clears his throat again. “But this… this isn’t the same thing.”
Now I’m just pissed that he’s refusing to look at me.
What is wrong with me?
“Asher, love.” Mom steps out from behind the tree, a hand over her eyes and a stack of clothes in her other outstretched hand. “Here’s a change of clothes.”
“Thanks,” I mutter, stepping forward, eyes still on Zayne, who continues to avoid looking at me, as I take the clothes fromher, pulling them on. My fingers fumble with the buttons of my jeans as I try to dress myself with shaky hands.
It fucking hurts, and I hate I feel this way. It’s because of all these new damn emotions overwhelming me. My wolf is taking this as rejection, but the poor damn guy doesn’t even know what he is to me.
Then my mind races. How is he going to take this? Is he going to panic, call me a freak, hate me? He’s not even into men. I’ve seen how he is with the girls at school. He’s never looked twice at a guy.
Just my fucking luck to be mated to a straight man.
My heart aches so damn much, but I ignore it as I roughly put my clothes on.
“Zayne, love, do you mind waiting in the car? I need to talk to Asher. If that's okay?”
