“It’s been a while, Roxanne”
Roxanne was speechless by the sight of Asher staring at her with a slight glare.
Daniel, who was caught unexpected by the sudden interference of the stranger looked in Asher’s direction. He glanced at Roxanne in confusion, but after seeing her face he realized that the two must have known each other.
“What are you… How did you…” Roxanne couldn’t form words as she was overcome with several emotions gushing within her.
Asher began to advance slowly, nearing Daniel and Roxanne who stood close to each other.
“I’ve been searching for you, Roxanne.” He said slowly.
His deep crimson eyes were locked with hers and despite how hard she tried, Roxanne couldn’t look away.
“N-no, you weren’t supposed to-” Roxanne mumbled, feeling very distraught from seeing Asher.
His mere presence was causing unstable reactions within her. She had thought the next time she saw him, she would throw a fit of rage for what he did, or would simply ignore him. She had even practiced several times. But at that moment, face to face with him, she could do nothing but watch.
All her anger and hate melted, and she felt a slow wave of relief creep within her.
“No. No way… stay back!” Roxanne said, fighting her emotions.
There was no way she would hesitate now!
Asher ignored her words and kept moving closer. His call expression scared Roxanne. Even though he could have many words for her, and she clearly felt several emotions coming from him, he showed none of them.
He appeared entirely in control of himself.
Daniel, who was caught in the confusing mess occurring between the two, tried to make sense of the situation. Clearly, Roxanne knew the other guy whom she called Asher.
However, taking note of her expression and how she told him to stop, Daniel drew his own conclusions. It didn’t matter what their past relationship was.
Roxanne wanted him away from her. That was all that mattered to him!
“Hey, dude. The lady said you should leave her alone.” Daniel said, leaving Roxanne’s side and advanced to the man.
“No, Daniel stop!” Roxanne protested.
Daniel ignored Roxanne’s words and decided to face the man who appeared to be bothering her.
Asher wasn’t fazed by Daniel’s menacing glare as he approached him, he focused more on Roxanne as he continued moving forward.
“Hey, didn’t you hear me!” Daniel said, now standing in front of Asher.
“I said, Roxanne doesn’t want to-”
“Shut up!” Asher suddenly interrupted.
For the first time since he appeared, his eyes made contact with Daniel’s.
Instantly, an immeasurable amount of pressure came over Daniel. His body shook immediately as he felt like he would be swallowed by the overwhelming sense of powerlessness he was experiencing in the presence of the man before him.
He tried speaking, but nothing came out.
“You’re in the way. Step aside!”
Daniel’s body moved on it’s own accord, shifting to the side to allow Asher direct access to Roxanne.
“Asher, stop it!” Roxanne said, worried about the effects of Asher’s control on Daniel.
However, like usual, Asher ignored Roxanne’s words again.
“Asher!” She yelled.
He called his steps and glanced back to Daniel, who still trembled as a result of the [Domination] used on him.
“Leave us!”
Daniel immediately went to his car, locked the doors, and drive off without hesitation.
“Asher, you-”
Before Roxanne could say anything else, she already found herself in his arms, covered by Asher’s embrace.
His strong, large arms reached her back as he pulled her weight to rest on his broad chest. Her worries and protests died down as she melted in that instant.
His usual scent made her give a soft smile, and the way his hear beat, made her moan slightly. She wanted to push him away, give him a dirty slap and leave instantly, but she couldn’t resist.
“I missed you… Roxanne…” Asher whispered.
Her skin tingled upon hearing those words and her heart went on a rollercoaster, leaving her delirious.
“Its so good to see you, finally…” He tightened his grip, drawing her even closer.
Roxanne gave up on fighting it and let herself get lost in his embrace, closing her eyes in the moment of bliss that she had been longing for.
“Yeah… I missed you too…” She mumbled.
Roxanne did not know how much time went, or how long she remained in his embrace. They stayed transfixed on the same soot as minutes went by, seeming like hours yet not up to a second.
Finally, Asher detached himself from Roxanne, even though she wanted to hold him more. She hesitated and let go as well, not wanting to appear clingy.
As they stared passionately at each other, Roxanne gazed longingly upon his eyes, entrapped in it’s charm.
“Roxanne, lets go home…” Asher finally spoke up, waking her from the daydream which clouded her mind.
Upon hearing his words, she wanted to agree immediately and leave with him. However, Roxanne’s head became clearer and she quickly remembered everything which had vanished for some time.
“No, Asher. I-I can’t…” She replied, removing her gaze from his.
Pulling away from him, she took some steps back as she turned to another direction to avoid looking at his extremely handsome face.
“Why? Is it because of-” Asher began talking.
“No, it’s not because of Daniel!” Roxanne quickly snapped.
Seeing her with him in such a place was bound to leave a wrong impression on Asher, something Roxanne wanted to avoid though she didn’t know why.
“Of course, I know that.” Asher replied calmly.
“Wha-?!” She muttered surprisingly.
He wasn’t jealous of Daniel, even after seeing then together?
“There’s no way I would feel threatened by such a guy. Besides, I wasn’t so sure earlier, but after feeling it now… I’m certain that you only have eyes for me.” He confidently retorted.
His arrogance made Roxanne want to tell him off, unfortunately he was right in every sense of the word.
“He doesn’t matter to me, and he shouldn’t matter to you.” Asher continued, advancing closer.
Roxanne responded by taking steps back, creating even more distance between them.
“Don’t run from me, Roxanne. You know there’s no way to fight our bond. Why do you keep trying to do the impossible?” He asked.
“Me?! Asher, it seems you’ve forgotten who started all this!” Roxanne protested.
Asher suddenly remembered the misunderstanding between him and Camilla. He had to clear it up.
“About Camilla, Roxanne… I-”
“I don’t want to hear any of it!” Roxanne said.
Of course, at this point she knew that he didn’t cheat on her or anything like that. She had been wrong in her assumption. It was an honest mistake, one which couldn’t be blamed on anyone.
However, she still wasn’t going to accept everything else because of that one factor, especially with such a great opportunity finally lying in the door for her.
“I don’t want to have anything to do with you or the pack, Asher.”
Asher gritted his teeth when he heard this. He knew she was lying since he could feel her true emotions. He didn’t have time to play her farce. There was so much left to do.
“Roxanne, you need to-”
“I have made up my mind, so just leave Asher” Roxanne cut him short.
This took the last bit of his patience with her, making Asher finally burst in anxiety.
“Just listen to me, Roxanne! There’s no time to explain, but I really need you back at the Pack now!” Asher spoke, using an aggressive tone.
His impatient voice startled Roxanne a little, making him regret raising his voice in an afterthought.
“And I said no!” She responded defiantly.
The both of them stared at each other, locked in a stalemate as they took their stance.