Asher: Heartless Devils MC Read Online Free Page B

short and supremely uncomfortable, and he hadn’t yet gone to sleep. He had almost decided it was just his imagination when he heard it again, more clearly this time, the sound of a woman sobbing. He had never been able to stand the sound of a woman crying, and he knew what it was like to lose someone, to have them ripped from your life by the hand of another man.
     
    He couldn’t stand to hear her, but he wasn’t sure what he could do to make it stop. He tried to block the sound with a pillow over his head, but as her sobs became harder, he knew he had to take more decisive action. He rolled off the couch, his chest bare, and pulled his jeans back on over his underwear. His t-shirt was discarded somewhere, and he had little inclination to search for it.
     
    He tiptoed through the apartment, realizing that it was stupid since she was clearly awake. He carefully pushed open the door into the pitch black room and crossed to the bed.
     
    Setting himself carefully on her bed, he reach out to find her. He sat there a moment, hand on her side, but her crying did not ease. He turned and lay down next to her, his chest flush with her back as he wrapped her up, feeling like a giant protecting a fairy.
     
    Her back was to the door, so she was startled when her bed sagged a moment before he touched her. She tried to gather herself, not wanting him to see her cry, but she couldn’t stop. She had been strong over the past week—for her father—but her loss finally overwhelmed her. After a moment, she felt the bed move again and a strong pair of arms wrapped themselves around her. She could feel the muscles tense, as he grasped her tightly, holding her through her tears. A warm, broad chest was pressed against her back, and a deep voice whispered nonsense comforts in her ear. The arms crossed over her front, one at her waist and one at her collarbone, the hands stroking and soothing whatever they touched, and she held the one at her neck with her own hand. Eventually, after what may have been minutes or hours, her sobbing slowed and her visitor began to loosen his embrace. As he began to slip his arms from around her, she tightened her grip on the hand at her shoulder and held it tightly around her.
     
    He pulled slightly harder on his arm, but Jenny tightened her grip farther, refusing to let him go. He could easily overpower her, but he relaxed, thinking about his situation. He had done nothing to solve her problem, but sometimes all someone needed was the comfort of a human touch. When she seemed to be slipping to sleep, he tried to disentangle himself again, but once again, her grip tightened. Again he relaxed and decided that he wasn’t that inclined to leave anyway. The bed was much more comfortable than the couch, and the warm softness in his arms was nice indeed. With a slight smile and a soft snort of amusement at what he was doing, he wrapped his arms more tightly around her and settled down for a night’s sleep.
     
    ***
     
    The next morning Jenny woke with a jump, startled by the feeling of breath on the back of her neck. It took her a moment to remember that it was Asher in the bed with her and that nothing had happened. His arms were still wrapped around her, though not as tightly, and she was beginning to feel overheated. She carefully slid out of his embrace a bit, his arms loosening and allowing her to turn. She stayed in bed and under the covers, moving over just enough to give herself some room to turn and face him.
     
    It was still early, and the light in the room was dim. She could just see his face. All of the seriousness and stern expressions had left him while he slept, his skin smooth and his expression innocent. If not for the coarse growth on his chin, he would have looked sweet. She tentatively reached out a hand to stroke it, the coarse hair like sandpaper under her finger. She quickly pulled her hand away, as his eyelids began to flutter, and she closed her eyes and feigned sleep.
     
    Asher woke