Asher: A steamy contemporary military romance (Project Arma Book 3) Read online

  Asher’s anger deepened at the sight of the spray bottle. “The asshole sprayed it in my eyes. That’s how he got away. Felt like my eyes were on fire for few minutes. It was almost like pepper spray but stronger. A lot stronger.”

  Oliver turned the bottle around and inspected it. “We can send it off to have the contents tested.”

  7

  Lexie pulled up in front of Eden and Shylah’s home.

  This evening was the hospital fundraiser. Lexie, Shylah, and Evie had agreed to get ready and go together a couple months ago.

  Before Lexie had found out she was pregnant, and before she’d had the argument with Evie.

  Well, less of an argument, more Lexie getting emotional.

  Sitting in her car, Lexie took a moment to massage her forehead. The headaches were getting worse. Worse than worse, they were brutal. Not to mention the constant nausea and fatigue. It felt like her body was shutting down. Never in her life had Lexie felt so run-down and unwell.

  She had gone in to see the doctor only a week earlier. The same doctor that was located an hour’s drive from Marble Falls. But the older man hadn’t seemed concerned and didn’t seem to think any tests were required. Instead, he’d prescribed her some iron pills. Lexie had been taking the medicine yet feeling no better.

  What’s more, today was the dreaded twelve-week mark. Not dreaded because she’d reached the milestone, dreaded because that meant time was up. She needed to tell Asher.

  Lexie was usually a brave person, but the idea of sharing this news with Asher made her want to run for the hills. And she knew exactly why. Fear of him running as far and fast from Lexie as humanly possible. Or inhumanly, if Luca’s speed was anything to go by.

  Breathing in a shaky breath, Lexie pushed out of her car and headed for the door.

  Evie and Luca had gone on a holiday together for three weeks to stay in a cabin in Canyon Lake. That meant Lexie hadn’t had a chance to talk with her friend much since the diner incident.

  If tonight would be good for anything, it was giving Evie a hug and moving on. Lexie missed her friend. Needed her friend’s support.

  The stress of everything was becoming too much lately. Hiding the secret, feeling unwell, missing Evie, anticipating Asher’s reaction. It was like a tsunami of stress.

  Raising her hand, Lexie went to knock but the door was pulled open before she had a chance.

  Evie stood on the other side, a small, tentative smile on her face. “Hey. I saw you walking up.”

  Just seeing her friend made it that bit easier for Lexie to breathe. “Hey.”

  “I wanted to say sorry,” Evie rushed before Lexie could step inside. “And that I miss you and that I really, really, really want us to be friends again. I wanted to skip the trip altogether to spend time with you, but the accommodation was nonrefundable. And did I mention I’m sorry and nothing like that will ever happen again?”

  Not hesitating, Lexie pulled her friend into a warm embrace. “I know. And I’m sorry I got so mad. I’m just a bit hormonal at the moment.”

  Evie wrapped her arms around Lexie. “No, I was dumb. So dumb. I should have stood up for you and your privacy. Next time, I promise to be a better friend and put you first.”

  Pulling back, Lexie kept her hands on her friend’s shoulders. “Let’s never fight again.”

  Evie nodded her head vigorously as she took Lexie’s hand and walked inside.

  Thank the lord, one less stress on her plate. As they headed upstairs to the main bedroom, Lexie felt like a small weight had been lifted off her chest. She just needed to concentrate on that—and not the next hard conversation she needed to have.

  As Lexie stepped into the bedroom, Shylah’s head popped up. “Are we all friends again?”

  A smile stretched across Lexie’s face as she glanced down at Evie, nodding.

  Shylah let out a squeal before jumping to her feet and wrapping her arms around both women. The three of them stood embracing each other for a moment.

  Lexie soaked in the feeling, forever grateful for the women in her life.

  “It feels good to be back to normal,” Lexie murmured.

  Finally separating, she glanced at her friends to find the two women sharing a strange look between them, followed by small smiles.

  “What?”

  Shylah stuck her head out the bedroom door, looking around, then closed it. “I think he’s outside. Should we tell her now?”

  Seeming nervous, Evie nodded.

  Jeez. Were her friends about to tell her about a dead body? Ask her to help them bury it? Hide it some place far away?

  In all fairness, she probably would.

  “Okay, spill, what are you two up to?”

  “You tell her,” Shylah said quietly.

  Focusing on Evie, Lexie waited for the other woman to speak.

  “Shylah and I were talking…and we agree that you should know Asher’s secret.”

  Lexie immediately tensed at the mention of Asher.

  “It’s not just Asher’s secret, it involves all the guys. Shy and I are also involved, in a way.” Pausing, Evie wet her lips before she continued, “Not tonight, because Eden’s too close. We were thinking breakfast tomorrow at your place.”

  “Even though Luca and Eden will murder us when they find out, but the secret is driving a wedge between us,” Shylah added, placing a hand on Lexie’s arm.

  Evie’s eyes softened. “It’s really Asher’s place to tell you, but we’re not sure if he will anymore. And you deserve to know.”

  “A hundred percent you deserve to know.” Shylah nodded.

  Nibbling her lip, Lexie didn’t know what to say. It hurt that her friends knew and she didn’t, but she understood why they hadn’t told her.

  The fact that Evie and Shylah were willing to share the information now, even though they would get in trouble with the men they loved, told Lexie a lot about their relationship.

  “Thanks, guys.” Biting her bottom lip again, Lexie hesitated a moment before deciding to tell them what she knew. “Can I tell you something, and you promise not to tell Luca or Eden?”

  Evie and Shylah nodded, but that wasn’t enough for her.

  “No, you have to swear not to say a word.”

  “We swear, Lex,” Evie said, frowning.

  “Yeah, come on, spill,” Shylah urged.

  “I think I kind of discovered part of the secret by accident.” Taking a breath, Lexie turned her gaze to Shylah. “You know the other day when you found me on the ground in the storage room?”

  Shylah nodded quickly.

  “Before I fell, I saw something out the window. I saw Asher. Lifting your car. By himself.”

  Evie and Shylah shared a glance between them, neither appearing surprised.

  “Then I saw Luca move at an impossible speed.” At the continued silence, Lexie knew she’d hit the nail on the head. “I know I should have been shocked by what I saw, but I wasn’t. Or at least, not very shocked. I’ve picked up on things over the time I’ve been working at Marble Protection. The guys have crazy-good hearing—like, they can hear things two rooms over through double brick walls. Asher rarely gets sick, even if he’s standing in a freezer without a shirt on. He can even see in the dark.”

  Shylah shook her head, a small smile on her face. “The guys are so dumb. Do they think you’re stupid? Of course you’ve cottoned on to things. You work at the place every single day.”

  “It’s all true,” Evie said quietly. “Tomorrow we’ll spill everything. We promise.”

  Lexie breathed out a long breath. She wasn’t crazy. Witnessing Asher lift the car hadn’t been some hormonally fueled episode. Her mind wasn’t playing tricks on her. Asher was like some kind of superhuman.

  In the days since she had seen him lift a car, she’d tried to convince herself that it had been some kind of hallucination. Apparently not.

  Smiling at her friends, Lexie nodded as she took it all in. “I appreciate it. I appreciate both of you. Now, are we go
ing to make ourselves look hot for these men or what?”

  Both women laughed as they turned to start getting dressed for the fundraiser. Lexie bent down to grab her bag—and immediately grimaced at the shooting pain in her head. Her vision fuzzed and a round of nausea hit.

  Grabbing on to the chest of drawers beside her, Lexie closed her eyes for a moment and waited for the dizziness to pass.

  “Lex, are you okay?” Evie’s voice came from right beside her.

  Slowly straightening, Lexie blinked a few times to clear her vision. “I’m okay. I’ve just got a headache today.”

  Like a gigantic, splitting-my-head-open headache.

  Shylah quickly appeared on her other side. “Do you need some water? An aspirin?”

  “Have you eaten? It might be low blood sugar. I brought some of Mrs. Potter’s cinnamon rolls home with me?” Evie added.

  Oh Christ, the mention of any form of sugary baked good made Lexie’s stomach recoil.

  “No, I’m okay.” When neither woman appeared convinced, she picked up her bag, this time not almost passing out in the process. “Come on, girls, let’s get ready. Evie, I want to hear every last detail about your romantic getaway with Luca.”

  Evie still appeared concerned, but she soon began talking about her trip. Lexie was grateful to have the attention off her as she dropped the bag on the bed and began pulling out her outfit.

  She made a mental note to call the doctor the next day. This time, she would be putting her foot down on wanting tests done. It was time to figure out if these headaches and dizzy spells were normal or not.

  8

  Asher lifted the beer to his lips as his eyes followed Lexie around the ballroom.

  She stood with Evie and Shylah. The red dress she wore pulled tightly across her chest, making her breasts appear more plump than usual. The rest of the thin material flowed loosely down her body, stopping midthigh. Asher could barely drag his gaze from her silky, shapely long legs.

  Lexie was both slender and strong. Soft and powerful. And Asher couldn’t forget sexy. The woman always looked damn sexy.

  Man, he was in trouble. Being away from her this last month, not being about to touch her creamy skin, was causing him physical pain.

  He should be thinking about Project Arma. About locating the assholes. Bringing them down.

  As it was, they’d found nothing of importance about John Roberts. But the test results for the spray had come back.

  The bottle contained a mixture of chemicals with similar properties to both pepper spray and tear gas. To a normal person, being sprayed close range in the face with the stuff would be lethal. To Asher, it simply slowed him down.

  Someone was experimenting with chemicals. Creating weapons designed to maim but not kill Asher and his team.

  That should be his focus. That should be consuming his every thought. Not the beautiful redhead who refused to give him the time of day.

  “I don’t know what the fuck you’re doing over here, Striker.”

  Asher turned his head as Mason came to stand beside him. “She’s avoiding me.”

  And it was pissing him off. He never made public displays of affection, but he was a moment away from dragging the woman into his arms and planting his lips on hers.

  Mason shrugged. “When has that ever stopped you?”

  Since she’d made him feel like he was tearing her heart out of her chest by not giving her the committed relationship she wanted. “I can’t give her what she wants.”

  Asher could feel Mason’s disapproving eyes on him even before he turned to look at his friend. “You can. You choose not to.”

  “It’s not that easy, Eagle. Look at her. She’s perfect. And happy. If I date her, I have to pull her into our world.”

  “First of all, no one’s life is perfect. That girl might look like she’s had an easy ride, but she’s tough. You only get that way from experiencing some tough shit. Secondly, she’s already in our world. The woman’s around us every single day at work. And she’s fallen for you. Who’s to say you’re not doing more damage by staying away?”

  Looking back over at Lexie, he saw her eyes flicker to him before quickly pulling away. “If something happened to her because of me—”

  “What if something happened to her because you stayed away?” Mason interrupted. “Because you weren’t there to protect her?”

  Fuck. That would destroy him.

  Mason clapped a hand to Asher’s shoulder. “Nothing in life is guaranteed. Least of all our survival. If I had a woman to love, there wouldn’t be a damn thing that could keep me away from her.”

  Asher stood there for another moment before turning to his friend. “When did you become so wise?”

  “I’ve always been the smartest man on the team, you fools were just too blind to see it.”

  Asher chuckled and clapped his hand on Mason’s back. The guy wasn’t a fool, that was for damn sure.

  Downing the last of his beer, Asher left it on the nearest table before he walked straight over to Lexie.

  He knew the exact moment she was aware he was headed her way. Her back went ramrod straight and her hand clenched her glass of water so tightly, her knuckles whitened.

  “Evening, ladies.” Even though Asher spoke the words to all three women, he only had eyes for one.

  “Shylah and I might go find our men,” Evie said lightly as she took Shylah’s hand.

  Lexie’s gaze immediately narrowed on her friends. If looks could kill, Evie and Shylah would have been in trouble. Lucky for Asher, he wasn’t deterred easily.

  Taking ahold of Lexie’s hand, Asher pulled her toward the dance floor.

  “What are you doing?” Lexie asked, voice not nearly as angry as he was sure she was hoping for.

  “Dancing with you.”

  “Aren’t there a few too many watching eyes at the moment?”

  Stopping when they reached the center of the dance floor, Asher pulled Lexie into his arms, pressing her body against his.

  “Maybe just for tonight I want to bend the rules a little.”

  “But maybe I don’t want to dance with you.” Lexie’s breathy voice set his blood racing.

  Lowering his mouth to her neck, Asher pressed his lips just below her ear. He felt a shiver course down her spine as he lifted his lips to her ear. “Liar.”

  Lexie took a moment to respond. “No, that was the truth.”

  Asher almost laughed. That lie was even less convincing than the first one.

  Arms tightening around her waist, he smiled. “Your breathing hitched. Your pupils just dilated. I know when you’re being honest with me, and I know when you’re not. You’re too honest for your own good, Lex.”

  He left out the part about hearing her heart thumping away in her chest.

  “And that’s all, is it?”

  Asher paused for a moment before he answered. “Should there be something else?”

  “I think that’s a question only you can answer, Asher.”

  He pulled Lexie an inch closer. Trying to distract her from getting too close to the truth seemed the safest option at that moment.

  The entire front of her body was now pressed to his. Desire swirled in his gut.

  “You look beautiful.”

  Lexie remained silent, still rigid in his arms.

  “No alcohol tonight?”

  Lexie scoffed. “How do you know it wasn’t alcohol in my glass?”

  “I heard you ask for water,” Asher murmured as he swayed to the music. “I think the last time I saw you drink water was after you ran to work because you were running late. Your car had a dead battery.”

  This time her heart didn’t just race, it galloped.

  Asher’s brows pulled together. Why would that comment make her anxious?

  “Maybe I’m not as predictable as you think, Asher.”

  She tried to push away but Asher kept his arms around her waist, unyielding. “Maybe. Or maybe it’s not that you’re predictable, but that I know
you.”

  Fiery amber eyes lifted up to stare him down. “There’s more to me than you could possibly know.”

  His heated palm glided up her back, pressing her closer so that her hard nipples brushed his chest. He suddenly wished they were alone, and that there was no clothing between them.

  Asher lowered his mouth to her ear again. “Tell me, Lex.”

  When he glanced into her eyes, she seemed conflicted. Then she quickly masked all emotions and looked away.

  Was it possible there was something going on in her life that she was hiding from him? Something painful? Or hard?

  “You want me to tell you my deep dark secrets, but you won’t tell me yours?”

  That was a question, but Asher had a feeling it didn’t require a response. There was pain behind her words.

  He cringed. “I don’t want to lose you, Lex.” Pressing his lips to her hair, Asher could have sworn she leaned into him. “Losing you feels too painful. I’ve felt enough pain. I want to feel good.”

  “You can’t lose what you never had.”

  Asher kept quiet. He had her. He knew he did. Just not in the way she wanted.

  “You don’t talk about that—having a painful past,” she said quietly.

  “Because you’re my safe place, Lexie. The place where there’s no lies or betrayal, it’s just you and me.” And maybe if he never let her get close enough, then his shit would never touch her.

  Lexie pulled back so she could look Asher in the eye. “I want a relationship. Something real and genuine. That means we share the good and the bad.”

  He knew that. He knew exactly what she wanted, and what that would require.

  Deep down, he had always known that eventually he’d have to choose. Did he let her in and possibly risk her future, or did he watch her walk away, safe but alone?

  The thought of Lexie walking away from him, from them, was like a dagger being dug deep into his chest.

  He was a selfish bastard for what he was about to do, wasn’t he?

  Asher opened his mouth to tell her he was ready. She was his, and he wanted to let her in.

  Before he could utter the first word, Lexie’s breathing suddenly changed. Her fingers tightened on his biceps and her face paled.