Chapter 14
ASHER
I'm not gonna lie, Demi is one fascinating woman. I am sitting here at the dinner table, watching her babble mom's praises like nothing happened, like she wasn't just scared shitless less than an hour ago. It's the boisterous laughter for me. I love a woman that knows how to make smart decisions. She understands her place now and won't dare cross the line.
Still, something bothers me. It's the fact that though she avoids meeting our eyes, she doesn't seem rattled or scared. Even a good actress will fumble at some point but this dinner has been the liveliest I have ever seen of her. I glance at Ashely. He is also watching her with worry lines etched on his face.
After dinner, Demi joins mother in her room to finish up their conversation. Ashely tries to go after her but I grab his arm and herd him to the game room.
"What's with the sappy look on your face? You looked like a lost puppy running to its owner." Ashely yanks his arm from my grip.
"Something's wrong with Demi. I can tell. Earlier, she looked scared to death and flinched every time I took a step close to her. Now, she's acting all hysterical."
I huff out a breath. "I have eyes too, you know. It's all good."
"Good?" Ashely barks. "I told you that was a bad idea. She's got nothing to hide but you won't drop your suspicions." He roughly brushes past me to lean by the pool table. "Why did you make me do that to her? She called me a freaking monster, Ash. And she's right. I am a monster for making her go through that. The way she looked at me when she thought I wanted to rape her..."
"Don't." I warn him.
"It's the same way I looked at Tobias when he loomed over me. I hate you for making me a monster like him." The sharp bite of his words and the anger blazing in his eyes hit me hard. "You're an asshole."
"I didn't exactly force you, Ashely. If I remember correctly, I wanted to get that shit done myself but you opted to do it instead."