Ash: Love Me Harder - Alien Paranormal Romance (4 page)

She looked at his lips before dropping her eyes; the kiss they shared earlier had been interrupted. The feel of his lips had been heavenly. She wasn’t one for sleeping around or just falling into a guy’s bed or arms but the tug of her soul seemed to be leading her to Ash.

He leaned over pressing her lips to his. This time he had the time to do it right. She slid out the chair breaking the connection for a moment before she pressed herself against him allowing her whole body to bask in his warmth. Her lips found his, opening up to allow him to ponder the depths of her mouth.

His arms tightened around her as he kissed her deeply, challenging her tongue, making her seek him and drink him in deeper. She groaned his name as she kissed him. The overwhelming taste of honey shook her senses, not to sweet just right. Ambrosia. She was treated to the drink of gods and she was committing the sin of gluttony as she took more in. Her head swam with the heat of his mouth. As she came up for air, there was a smile of complete contentment on her face and her eyes sparkled.

“Ash, you’re one heck of a kisser.”

“I’m rather sure that’s you not me.” He helped her back into the chair before he walked around the island to finish the prep for dinner.

“Brook, I want to ask you a question.”

“I’m listening.”

“This house has several bedrooms in it, but I would be honored if you would share mine with me.”

Share his room! Her heart fluttered at the very thought of it. What if he wanted to…she hadn’t done that in, well, centuries. What if she wasn’t any good anymore? What if she was never good at it in the first place? Maybe after being frozen all those years she wasn’t physically able to. She never thought to ask Jaz that. On the other hand, he could just be acting nice or doing what he thought she would expect. It had been years, maybe she didn’t look the same way. She sure didn’t act the same way.

“What do you mean, share your bed? Like sleep with you as friends or do more with you?”

Why did she ask? Now she would be embarrassed no matter what he said. She glanced at the floor in hopes it opened up and she could hide away for a while.

“My sisters, my brother’s wives, probably taught me the correct way to say things like this but to be honest I wasn’t paying attention. I want to hold you. Take care of you, make sure I am there if you need me. When you are ready, if you are ever ready, I would love to be honored to do more. Never without your permission.”

“Yes.” Tonight she would sleep with Ash if she didn’t die from the pounding of her heart first.

They spent the rest of the afternoon getting to know one another. Ash told her about his life, his brothers, and his role in the war. He gave her a better understanding of the new world and the changes both good and bad that occurred over the centuries from his point of view. The played a few games Hale developed that made her more familiar with what she would see as she covered new territory. Now it was evening and she was feeling a little bare.

She knew she agreed to sleep in the same bed with Ash and she wanted that badly. There was no way she was going to lie to herself but she still felt a little bit of a hussy among other things.

This was too fast; how could she decide she wanted him just like that? This kind of thing took weeks, months, years and here she was ready to put her life or at least her desires in his hands. Nope, she had no firm reason why except it felt right. In the end, that was all she ever had. This simple feeling of what was right for her life and he felt right.

Ash stood there smiling at her. His eyes were bright making her want to reach out and stroke his chin.

“Let’s celebrate. I’ll take you out to dinner.”

“I don’t have anything to wear.”

“What’s wrong with what you have on?”

“You have to change if you’re going out. Are we going to a little place, like a fast food place?”

Ash shook his head. “I was going to take you to the restaurant Dante and his brothers own. It’s a beautiful and a highly sought out place by the rare few who know of its existence. They are like family to me.”

Brook looked down at herself. The lessons of a lifetime ran through her head. There was a way you dressed, walked, even ate so as not to embarrass a man. She did those things without thinking. Always falling in line with how she was raised to behave when she was in public. Only when she was able to ditch her guards was she able to be herself for a few precious minutes or in rare cases hours.

She was tired and stifled a yawn. Tiredness should never be displayed no matter what happened the night before. Both politicians and news reporters were on you when you showed any sign of not being on top of your game.

Those were her father’s rules. Her father, the man who loved her enough to freeze her until a cure came through. Her father, the same one who couldn’t deal with the fact that his baby girl wasn’t perfect. He allowed her to stay in that prison of cold instead of letting her live her life with them.

“I would love to go.” Following all the rules she learned as a child had reaped her heartache and misery. It was time to do something different.

“We can wait until tomorrow after you go shopping. That way you will be more comfortable.”

“Please,” she placed her hand on top of his, “I want to go and meet the friends who are like family to you.”

He gave a small nod of approval making her heart jump. “I would like to take a shower first.”

“Follow me.”

He led her towards the front of the house and up the wide staircase. He stopped at a door at the top of the stairs.

“This is my bedroom. I wanted it to be at the front so I would hear anyone trying to sneak up the stairs or even inside the house. When I had this house built my brothers had theirs built also. All of our houses are a duplicate except for the things that were important to each of us.”

He opened the door and walked in There was a small living room area with a love seat against the back wall. Beside it stood a tall lamp in case overhead lighting was too much. There were two recliners each with a small end table on the side and a lamp as well as a huge screen on the wall in front of the love seat. The room was comfortable making her want to sit down and cuddle into the love seat and watch a movie.

“I like this room.”

“Thank you, I designed it with you in mind. I was hoping you would like it.”

She gave him a twinkling smile and followed him into his bedroom. He had a king size bed against the back wall. It was made of thick wood. It would take a lot to crack that bed. There was a walkin closet that was nowhere close to being full. She could help him with that. A night stand on either side of the bed, a large chest of draws and a multitude of pictures on the wall completed the room. None of them were of family, instead they were nature shots. A magnificent water fall. A shot of the ocean as a huge wave came in. Then there was the huge animal she had seen earlier.

She walked closer to the picture. “Is this you?” The fact that he was an alien sent a fissure of both fear and excitement through her. It was hard to believe that Ash, her Ash. Yes, he was hers, too many years of dreaming about him for him to be anything other than hers, was an alien.

“Yes. It took me months to finally get the picture.”

“You’re beautiful.” Her voice was quiet as she looked at the picture in awe. His beast was magnificent. He stood tall with the same flame colored hair covering his body that the male had covering his head. The hair on his body wasn’t long, it was short. His thighs were thick and muscular while his chest was something out of a wet dream, all hard and cut letting her see every muscle. She shook her head. No mere six-pack for him, her alien was packing some incredible abs. She licked her lips. What appealed to her most was that even in his other form he attracted her, made her want to jump his body. She shook the thought away.

“Where’s the bathroom?”

“Right here.” He opened the door looking at her.

He sniffed just a little as she went by. She smiled and walked into

the bathroom wondering if he could smell her desire.

*~*~*~*

He watched her as she went into the bathroom. She was warm like a simmering pot of water just on the verge of being hot as hell but not quite there yet. Tell that to the musky smell rising from between her thighs. That smell made him want to pick her up, toss her on the bed, and touch her until she was screaming, begging for him to be with her. She was too sexy and sweet for her own good.

             
“Ash.” He answered the mental call.

              “I sense distress has something changed?”

Of course, Aran picked up on what he was going through. Even light years away he was still the one in charge of their family and he had a direct line to each of them.

“I found my mate.’

“You found a second mate?” The confusion in Aran’s voice was clear.

“No, it’s Brooklyn. She was placed in a Cryo sleep; her parents sent her away the day I met her. She’s been asleep all this time and was thawed a couple of months ago.

There was complete silence from Aran as Ash laid on the bed reveling in his good fortune.

“I’m so happy for you. I will be telling the others so expect to get calls or at least a huge group call.” They had discovered new abilities over the years. The ability to stay in touch no matter where they were in the galaxy and to all be on the same mental frequency at the same time proved invaluable.

“I’m looking forward to it. Is that all there is?”

“Someone tried to kill her. When they failed, they called her frequency to tell her life was over unless she wanted to turn herself in and they would parcel out what she could do every day.”

“I assume that didn’t go over well with you or your beast.”

The growl torn from Ash’s throat answered that question.

“I was wondering if Hale or Rena would be able to look into this for me.”

“I am sure they will insist on looking into it. Have Raphael look into it also. Hale and Rena took him under their wings and taught him everything when we first started talking about our galactic walk about. Ash, stay safe; remember if you need us we will cut our walk about short and come home. We won’t let anything happen to your mate.”

Ash closed his eyes and allowed a smile to steal over his face. His brothers and his sisters would come ready to go to war if he called them. They protected each other; to them that was what family was about. They had come so far from the sterile mechanical wombs from which they were born. They started out as nothing but a jug of mixed up DNA the scientists threw together to see if it would form a viable life form. They had no idea what they were getting when they created them

“If we need you, I will call.” Brooklyn was now a part of the Dare family, she just didn’t know it yet.

“Stay in touch.” His brother broke off contact.

Ash didn’t move he laid on the bed counting slowly to ten. He was on seven when Amber called.

“Is he treating you right?” Ash’s growl rolled through as a greeting to his daughter.

“Dad,” she was laughing, “you ask me that every time I call you.”

“I want to make sure that boy is treating you nicely.”

“That boy,” Amber snickered, “treats me like a queen.”

Ash grunted. “It’s a good thing, because if he didn’t…”

“Dad!”

Ash could see her sitting there with that smile on her face that told him she was up to something and he better be careful.

“Is it true, dad? Did you finally find her?”

“I finally found her and the timing is perfect. You’re all grown up with a mate to watch over you or is it the other way around? You’re also gone and haven’t given me any grandchildren.

Ash teased her although they both knew there wouldn’t be any more children born until he fathered a child or was no longer breathing. He had raised the subject before thinking aloud that maybe Aran should take care of him. Aran had taken him up on his offer. But he called it beating sense into his baby brother. After the fourth time, Ash learned how not to think aloud.

“Will you show me what she looks like?”

Ash sent Amber several mental pictures of Brooklyn.

“She’s beautiful, Dad.”

“She is, but she is even more beautiful on the inside.” He told his daughter how they met for the second time and told her about someone trying to kill Brooklyn. “Amber, be careful. I don’t know how long this person’s arms are or where he will reach. Warn that boy to take care of you.”

“His names Alexei, Dad and I will tell him.” She laughed because she knew her dad loved to tease her about her mate. “I love you, Dad.”

“I love you, Amber. Don’t worry daughter, Brook will not steal my love for you. My heart is big enough, I can love you both.”

“I know, Dad. I will be getting in touch with you in a couple of days.” She disconnected.

Ash lay on the bed rubbing the hole in his chest. He missed his family, he missed his daughter. He wanted to take Brook and leave. They could wander around space as one big happy family unit. It wasn’t time for that yet. There was an assassin to find and whoever was pulling his strings. Once they were dead, then he would talk to her about joining his family.

Brook came out of the bathroom with the towel wrapped around the top of her generous chest leaving just enough undone to mesmerize him. He loved the swell of her chest as it was pushed a little up and out by the towel.

“I’m willing to help you dry off.” He offered his help with a look of anything I can do let me know.

She simply grinned at him. “I thought it might be better if I came out here so you could take a shower and not be waiting on me.”

“Thank you.” He got off the bed; it was too much temptation as she stood in front of him in nothing but a towel.

She trusted him; the words sang through his brain. He spent enough years with Amber in the house to have picked up a few things. Earth women didn’t just walk around with a towel on in front of anyone.

“Come with me. Please.” He added it as an afterthought, remembering his sisters didn’t like to be ordered around.

They walked into the hall way and he moved to the room next to his He opened it to reveal a woman’s space.

“This is Amber’s room. She said if you found anything in here you could use feel free to help yourself.”

He backed out and went to jump into the shower. He finally had a mate. A chance to have what his brothers had. A chance to have what he spent years longing for. He sniffed as he got into the shower. Joy burst through him again. His mate was more than attracted to him, she had taken care of her pleasures while in the shower. He stroked his finger over his large protruding cock and sucked a breath in as it jerked.

He thought of her soft hand holding him and let out a rough sound. Squeezing a dollop of soap in his hand, he wrapped it around his cock and stroked until his breathing became ragged. He could see her standing before him going down on her knees and taking him into her mouth. He shot his wad, growling her name.