6. Chapter Six
Chapter Six
Asher
Watching her face pale and her eyes widening in fear has my heart lodged in my throat. I know that look, probably as well as she does. The second the kid has his hand on the ballcap, I’m around the barrier between us and grasping her shoulders.
“Piper!” I shake her, but her eyes remain wide, fixated on the tires. She’s here, but she’s not. Her body and eyes are glued to the impending danger as her mind is experiencing the pain of being hit. The terror. The agony. I swallow hard over the lump in my throat as a similar vision presses down on me.
The door slams shut, and the pickup swerves toward us, kicking up debris that pelts us as the assholes don’t pay any attention to anyone but themselves. I memorize their license plate with the full intention of reading them the riot act when they return.
Anger swirls inside of me. It’s easier to be angry at them than to remember a blasting boom, screaming metal, and flames surging toward me. I grind my teeth together and force my shoulders to relax while blocking out the memories of pain. A pain that was so intense it no longer registered.
“Piper.” From my squatted position, I wrap my arms around her and pull her to my chest. “Baby, I’ve got you. You’re fine. Nothing is going to hurt you.” Her body shakes as she gasps for air. “You’re safe. I promise you that nothing is going to harm you.”
I run slow circles against her back with my hand, inhaling the scent of the sea salt and vanilla. She’s so small and fragile in my arms. Not that she’d ever want to hear me say that. This girl takes great pride in her strength. She was so young when her world was uprooted. How did the accident impact her relationships? Her friends? Her boyfriend?
My muscles tighten again as a clap of thunder rolls along the horizon. The thought of her with another guy is almost as painful as the knowledge that relationships haven’t been easy for her. I can sense it in the way she holds her head. The way her spine straightens at the first hint of an insult. Even if there was no insult.
I swallow hard and stroke her back again. “You’re fine. I’ve got you. You’re safe.” Lightning cuts through the sky and cracks to the ground. That’s less than two miles away. She might be safe now, but in a moment, all hell will break loose.
“Piper.” I pull back and smooth the back of her hair. “You’re safe but it’s getting ready to pour down. I need to get you inside before lightning strikes us.”
She blinks, and some of the blankness from her brown eyes vanishes. “What?” Her brows furrow as she jerks her head backward. “Oh….” She scrambles, trying to climb to her feet.
“Careful, baby.” The word falls from my lips, and I cringe. The endearment didn’t feel wrong when she was out of it, but now, it feels…. Too much. She’s not mine. I rub my palms on my thighs and stand.
“Thank you.” She rests a hand on my lower arm and licks her lips. “I’m sorry you saw me like that.”
She trails off, and I cup her cheek, forcing her to meet my gaze. “Piper, there’s nothing to be ashamed of. You went through a trauma when you were younger, and certain things still bother you. I know that better than anyone.” If I only believed the words. Somehow, it’s easier to tell her these things than believe them myself.
“You’re right.” She licks her lips again and straightens as the rain continues to fall on and around us. “I’d better get inside.”
As if on cue, the door to her cabin opens, and a man steps out onto the porch. “Piper, get your ass in here before you get electrocuted.” My arm drops to my side as heat covers my cheeks. I shouldn’t have been standing this close to her.
“That’s my brother.”
I study the man. He’s muscular, fit, broad-shouldered, dark-haired. I rotate my shoulders backward. Imposing. The man glares, and even from this distance, I feel his disapproval. I get it. We’re probably the same age from the looks of it, and I’ve been groping his baby sister in a parking lot. If I had a sister, I’d want to kick my own ass.
Rain smacks against my face, trailing down in streams of water. Fuck. I took too long. I’ll be lucky not to get struck by lightning on my way to the resort.
“Come on.” She grabs my hand and runs. I have no choice but to follow her unless I want to delay her retreat inside. Which I don’t. The rumbles of thunder crack around us as we sprint toward the open door.
If her brother wasn’t standing there with his feet braced and his hands balled into fists at his sides, I’d see the humor in the situation.
As we tromp up the steps, he moves out of the way. “And you are?”
“My instructor.” Piper grins at him with eyes that twinkle. She squeezes my fingers, lets go as if she senses her brother is about to snap, and pats his chest. “This is Asher. You signed me up for paddleboarding and kayak lessons, remember?” She winks and breezes past him and into the lit interior of the cabin. “And he’s a thorough instructor.”
Fuck. I remain rooted in place. He’s going to kick my ass. When was the last time I fought someone over a girl? Age ten? I rise to my full height and meet him eye to eye. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“I bet.” His eyes narrow into tiny slits. “You’re too old for my sister.”
I open my mouth and snap it back shut. He’s right.
“Piper.” A beautiful woman with the little boy I met earlier steps into the living room from the kitchen. “Come inside and bring your friend.”
“He’s not my friend.” The man’s jaw flexes as he blocks my entrance. Not that I was going to go inside. Torrents of rain pour down around us. The water flying out of the gutters cuts into the gravel by the flowerbeds.
The woman rolls her eyes. “That’s why I said Piper’s name and not yours.”
“Thank you for the offer, but I’ll stay outside. I’m sure it’ll let up soon.”
“Weston.” An older woman with the same cheekbones as Piper and Weston breezes into the room with her long skirt swaying around her ankles. “Let the man inside. Now.” She stops in front of the sofa, placing her hands on her hips.
“No.” I raise my hand, palm facing outward. The word comes out more panicked than I want to hear it. “I’m fine.” I reign in the tone of my objection to a reasonable level.
“Asher helped me through a panic attack.” Piper rests her hand on what I presume is her mother’s shoulder.
“That’s wonderful.” Her eyes dart to Piper as she clutches her chest. “I told you.”
“Stop.” Piper’s eyes widen as the color on her face blanches.
“Come on in.” The woman with the child marches past her husband, grabs my hand, and drags me behind her. “I’m Charlotte, Weston’s wife, and Piper’s sister-in-law. This is Andrea, their mother.” She inclines her head toward the older woman. “And this is our son, Gavin.”
“I’ve met Gavin.” I glance around the room. “Where’s Roe?”
“She doesn’t like storms,” Weston mutters as he shuts the door with a snap. The storm howls outside, causing the windows to shake.
“I don’t either.” Now that the worry of getting my teeth knocked out seems to have dissipated, the sounds of the thunder and wind break through. I was so preoccupied with Piper’s panic that I ignored my own.
The rumble of thunder reminds me of the motorcades we formed to and from the camp. The cracks of lightning are visual reminders of the flames as the metal of my truck was impacted. And the wind? The wind rattling the windows reminds me of the blood thumping in my ears. I hate it. The way the storms eat at me. I ball my hands into my fist, exhale slowly, and shift my stance from one foot to the other.
“I need to go.” I step toward the door.
“You’re welcome here.” Piper grabs my hand and holds it.
“No….” I shake my head as the walls close in on me. “I need to go.”
Her eyes meet mine as she strokes her thumb over my hand. “It’s fine. You’re fine. Let’s go check on Roe and see how she’s weathering the storm, okay?”
I swallow hard over the lump in my throat. “Okay.” If she could make it through a full-blown panic attack, I can swallow my swelling anxiety.
One hour later, Roe hands me a teacup. “Here you go.”
“Thank you, My Lady.”
She giggles uncontrollably as Piper watches us.
“What?” I arch an eyebrow and tip the cup to my lips. “Haven’t you seen a man drink imaginary tea from a pink cup?”
“Not imaginary.” Roe smacks my arm and glares.
“My apologies, My Lady.” I grin despite myself as Piper’s eyes rove over me, and heat settles in my groin. I should have left. I definitely should have left fifteen minutes ago when the sun broke through the clouds, but I can’t get up.
“Here.” Roe takes a pink napkin and dabs at my lips. “You spilled some.”
“Right.” I laugh and shake my head at the craziness of the afternoon. I don’t remember the last time I laughed. Or had fun. Or played. My eyes return to Piper. Or wanted a woman with so much need that it’s suffocating me. But to what end?
“I should go.” My face is tight as I climb to my feet. “My brother will be looking for me.” She doesn’t belong here. Hell, I don’t belong here, but I have no idea what I will do with my future at this point. There’s no reason to lead her on.
Roe glances up with tears in her eyes. Fuck. I led them both on.
“It was my pleasure to drink tea with you, My Lady. Thank you for inviting me.” I bow at the waist, earning another giggle.
When I turn to Piper, her face is blank, devoid of all emotion. “Thank you.” She nods, spins on her heel, and disappears into the living room. “I’ll show you to the door.”
My hands flex. “I know how to find the door.”
“I realize that,” she says without glancing back. “But I want to make sure you get to it.”
I trail behind her. “Piper….” I don’t even know what I’d say if she asked me to explain.
“You need to go.” Weston glares from the kitchen threshold, dangling from one hand is a white dish towel. “If my sister is showing you to the door, there’s a reason.”
I nod as Piper snaps open the door and eyes me up and down. “Have a good life.”
“Are you leaving?” Panic hits my chest harder than the storm earlier did.
She tips her chin upward. “I’ll leave when I’m supposed to, but I won’t see you again. Goodbye, Asher.”
My feet stay glued to the floor as I try to swallow and catch my breath.
“Go.”
Fuck. The second I’m on the porch, the door snaps shut and locks behind me. Son of a bitch.