Page 13 of Stone Seduction
“Don’t be sorry.” He gave both my shoulders a reassuring squeeze. “I’m here for you.”
“I—”
Ice. Broken glass. Poison.
Lighthouse.
I gasped, staggering back, bumping into the dining table. “God…” I clutched my throat, tremors in my veins.
Asher steadied me again.
God. How embarrassing it was to be this weak.
I drew in a deep breath, holding it in for five seconds, and released it.
“Do you need to sit?” Asher asked.
I shook my head. “I need that shower and my bed.” Big sniffle. “I’m really sorry.”
He cocked his left brow at me. “No sorrys here, cutie.”
Ooo, check me out being a blushing, snotty mess. “Stop.” I found a tissue, sorting myself out. “God, the state of me.”
He followed me into the kitchen. I grabbed a bottle of water, offering him one.
“No, thanks. And you’re not a state. You’re cute.”
I glugged water, Asher the sweetest antidote to any darkness.
“With the sexiest throat I’ve ever seen,” he purred.
Of course, I choked on the water, spluttering all over my kitchen unit.
“Shit. Sorry.” He snorted with laughter.
Was he trying to choke me?
He can choke me with his?—
No. Not now. It might be a nice distraction, but my wearied body had other ideas.
I dabbed at my face with a tissue, cleaning up the mess, my sweatiness beyond uncomfortable now.
Gross.
“Shower time,” I said, going to move past him.
He blocked me, patting me on my right bicep, smiling softly. “Not before a strawberry cream, right?”
A small giggle rippled up my throat. “Mind reader, are you?”
I stepped around him and found a packet of the chocolate-covered wonders in my snack cupboard, popping it open. I fished one out, hastily peeling back the red foil paper in afamiliar, happy ritual before placing it in my mouth, letting its magic wash over me.
Heavenly.
I closed my eyes, biting through the chocolate to expose the fondant strawberry center, the sweetness a soother of the soul. Screw the sugar content. We all needed the right tools to get through life, and these were an important component of my toolbox.
“How is it?” Asher asked.
