Asher's POV
Despite my rambunctious lifestyle, I was a man of principle.
I never lost my cool unless when necessary and I certainly never lost control for any reason. Not for a fight or booze or even women. But right now, at this moment, I'd been driven so close to the edge that I feared one more step would tip me over to my doom. My own customized doom - Caden Booker.
My personal hell was this forced proximity, this natural prison I was growing accustomed to. It was torture watching him from afar and not be able to do anything to him. To ruin that perfect image was my perfect bliss. To watch him writhe beneath me and unravel like he did 5 years ago, was my personal prayer request to God, but God in his infinite cruelty, refused to answer that.
'I am not Gay. Stop thinking like that, Asher.' I screamed that mantra in my head as I led Caden to the dining room. If no one watched the little fucker, he'll starve himself for days. I've kept tabs on him for years to notice that disturbing habit.
I pull out a chair and shove him on it. "Sit down, shut up and eat."
"Don't talk to me that way, asshole." The blonde prince crossed his arms over his chest and glared at me.
God, I like it when he does that but as much as I do, I hate the fact that I love it.
Caden - 1 Asher - 0
"Did you poison this?" Caden said as he stared at the food.
I noticed that look on his face and leaned back in my chair. "Oh really? Your eyes and mouth are saying two different things."
"Got to hell." Caden hissed.
"You shouldn't curse." I glared at him.
"Go to hell, please." He smiled sweetly, mischief dancing in those baby-blue eyes.
"You can dig in. I know you're hungry." I smiled at his cute attempts to spite me.
He crossed his arms over his chest. "Thank you but I'd rather starve."
Well, not on my watch. I'm not saying because I don't want him to starve but because it'll only cause suspicions if he lost weight.
Convincing him would turn into a battle of words and I had no time for that, especially when he's upset from the bombshell Gabriel and the others dropped earlier. So, I picked up my spoon and started eating. If Caden was truly hungry, he would've left the table a while ago. Instead, he chose to stay.
A few minutes into dinner, he picked up a spoon and joined me.
I didn't say a word to him. If I did, I'd annoy him and he'd probably go on a hunger strike for a month.
He lifted a bowl of chilli. I forgot to tell him it was still hot. His injured finger touched the bowl and he winced, dropping it.
"Son of a bitch!" He cursed in that posh accent I liked, blowing air to his index finger.
"Fuck." I reached for him. "You should've been careful."
"It's just a little sting. Don't grow soft on me now." Caden scoffed.
"More like growing annoyed. Didn't you see the steam coming out of the bowl?" I ripped the band-aid off his finger and tossed it aside.
"Look, I don't need your help. I'm fine!" Caden tried to take back his finger and I spanked him.
He froze, colour rising to his pale skin. "W - what did you just do to me?"
I didn't answer. Didn't need to because we both knew what I just did.
"Did you just spank me?" Caden scoffed.
"Yes and I'll do that again if you don't behave." I applied pressure to the finger and with my free hand whipped out an ointment from my pocket.
"You carry that around?" Caden furrowed his brows.
"For a walking disaster like you? Yes." I unscrewed the cap and applied a little portion on the finger.
"I hate you." Caden bit out.
"Likewise." I let go of his fingers and eyes locked.
For a moment, I drank him in. Shining blonde hair my fingers itched to run through, lips I'd ached to taste, and a body made for me to ruin. I drank Caden in, in all his twisted glory and I was still thirsty.
"Stop looking at me like that." Caden broke the silent spell that'd trapped us.
The air was super charged with tension or whatever the hell I felt a few seconds ago and I wondered if he felt it too.
"Like what?" I quipped, drawing closer. I needed to see him. All of him.
"Like you want to ruin me." He said softly.
Jesus fucking Christ.
I'll burst into flames if I don't touch him.
One more step and it'll all be over.
"Asher, come on, you've gotta check this out!"
Frisbee walked into the dining room. Frisbee was my best hacker and one of the guys I owe my life to, but at that moment, I was this close to killing him.
"Oh. Am I interrupting?" He slowed in his tracks.
"No." I brushed past Caden and followed Frisbee.
We arrived at the control room downstairs.
Computers, lots of them lined the walls. They were Frisbee's favourite type of thing. As guns were my poison, computers were his. It was just him in the control room. The others were guarding the exterior of the estate.
He grabbed his swivel chair and typed away at the keyboard. The windows interface appeared on the computer screen and he clicked on an untitled file.
"I found what you were looking for," he began. "But you're not gonna like it."
Like the police and practically half of the FBI, I was also investigating Caden's assassination. My job is to kill Caden but someone nearly deprived me of that. And I told Frisbee to find the fucker and he delivered. He never ceased to impress me. What I didn't like was the part of not liking what I would see.
"Open it." I ordered.
Frisbee opened the file. After spending a few seconds encrypting a secret code he'd used to hide the original content in the file, he played it - it was a video. Not just any video but footage.
It was a wide shot of a private car wash. I noticed a middle-aged man I'd seen in Caden's family mansion step out of the BMV. Was he the one who planted the bomb? Doubtful. He was talking to the carwash owner.
"Fast forward." I leaned closer, watching the footage.
My eyes zeroed in on an odd factor and I snapped my finger. "Pause and zoom in."
Frisbee did as he was told.
I looked at the grainy image on the screen and dragged my hand through my hair.
I pinched the skin between my brows. "You've gotta be kidding me."
"You know her, boss?" He asked.
"Yeah," I turned away from the office.
"Who?
An old flame?" he called behind me.
"No!" I called back. "She's my fucking niece!"
My niece tried to kill Caden.
