" Let me go !" Lia cried out , she smacked a hand onto his chest powerfully, successfully releasing his hold on her.

Asher faltered back, pure disbelief on his face. Did she just use her vampiric strength on him?

Lia bent over, clung to her neck , coughing and gagging, unable to get enough breath at a time to fill her lungs.

A human sleeping on the bed at the far end of the room awoke but only for a few seconds, he fell asleep again.

Lia breathed, relieved and clutched her chest, her pounding heart calming down slowly.

Asher noticed her discomfort and body language. Jealousy tugged at his heart but he denied it, he was just curious, why was she concerned over the sleeping figure?

So he ignored her and walked towards the bed but she was quick to cross and block his path.

" Please, don't " She pleaded, hands stretched out protectively.

An ugly scowl made its presence known on Asher's face, why was she desperate to keep this human from him.

Thanks to his height, he easily peer over her shoulder, hooking his eyes on the sleeping figure.

His improved eyesight gave him the ability to notice the distinct similarities between the sleeping boy and his ma- the girl.

They were siblings.

"What's your brother doing he-"

She suddenly cupped his mouth with her hand signalling him to shush.

The sudden contact brought a blush on Asher's face, his cheek a burning shade of tomato red.

Realizing bashfully what she just did was a little over the top, she withdrew her hand quickly as if scalded . Her face grew hot under his scorching scrutiny , so she looked away nervously, her heart a little bit out of its usual rhythm

He was conflicted, how could her touch still make him shiver? He could literally feel the spark between them but she's wasn't his mate but Daniel's, it was impossible to have two mates. So how come ?

"Follow me" he commanded, avoiding her gaze cause it did crazy things to him.

Lia didn't look up either, she just stared at her feet, gave a whisper like response and followed him out.

Lost in a reverie, she followed him at a slow pace , a lot of things were going on in her mind.

She remembered Dan telling her about their leader, Asher. She suddenly wondered, If he was the leader of the Nicoli vampires, does that mean he was her boss too? Was she having a fling with her boss

Lia yelped in pain when she suddenly bumped into a wall, no scratch that, a body - her boss back to be precise.

Asher had stopped suddenly only to feel something poke him at the back. He turned slowly, the girl was rubbing her head, a pained look on her face.

"Where is your mind? " He asked with an irritated tone.

Lia didn't hear a word instead her eyes were focused on the way his pink lips moved. A blush stained her cheeks again when the memory of their previous encounter resurfaced in her mind, she remembered it all.

Initially she thought it was a dream but seeing the dreamed character right in front of her banished such thoughts. It happened, it was real.

Asher caught the way she gnawed on her lips and anxiously looking around as if she's been caught doing anything reprehensible, gave him a clue on what she's thinking about.

Truth being told, his thoughts weren't clean either. He had this urging wish to just pin her against the wall, dig his hand into her soft silky hair, claim and worship that tempting lips of hers forever, drown his senses with her moans and finally have his way with her. It was going to be explosive

But then she wasn't his mate, this was all a manipulation from the witches. Whatever he was feeling for her wasn't real, it was just some pull, an attraction , probably a love spell casted on them unaware.

So he snapped out of such ridiculous thoughts and opened the door to his office.

"What is a mate? " Lia asked as soon as they went into some sort of office. Lia remembered Dan telling her, her mate ordered him to keep her safe.

"I'm not your mate " Asher replied in a deep guttural voice, what's the girl up-to this time.

Lia scowled "I just asked a question .I don't remember accusing you of being my mate "

She had the urge to throttle this guy, did he have bipolar disorder or what? One moment he's angry at her, the next, he's staring at her like he wants to eat her, the next, he's avoiding her, the next, he just wants nothing to do with her.

"Fine!" he snapped "You want to know what a mate is ?! " he bellowed.

Lia suddenly let out a quick cry of alarm when he suddenly scooped her up and walked a few meters forward, with his free hand, he swept clean his desk and placed her on it. She was tongue-tied, the words couldn't exactly flow out of her mouth. She just stared at him open mouthed.

"A mate " he started, his breath ragged "Is your other half, your soulmate, your companion for life, someone you're willing to catch a grenade for, someone you want to woke up to for eternity, someone you don't want to share with others! someone you love endlessly! and someone you do this to passionately! "

Asher sealed her lips with his as soon as the words left his mouth. Lia was wide-eyed, she didn't know how to respond, he took her by surprise.

When he didn't get a response from her, he growled and bit down on her lower lips. She winced from the pain but atlest it reminded her what they were in the middle of doing.

Lia began to kiss him back with a passion she didn't know she had in her. The kiss wasn't slow nor sweet, it was hot and demanding, the both couldn't get enough of each other.

"You're my mate, aren't you?" Lia asked as soon as she came up for air.

Asher replied with a growl "Just shut up and kiss "

Lia made a low sound of pressure when he pressed her to his body, he was standing inbetween her legs since she was still sitting on his desk.

She found herself wrapping her legs around him as their lips moved in sync once more.

"Where in the world are.... oh "

Dan said, he shivered when he saw the glare Asher passed him.

"I'm sorry" he apologized "Go on with whatever you both were doing, I'll just teleport back to wherever I'm came from " he gestured, persuading them to continue.

Unfortunately, the passion was already ruined. Asher felt as if a bucket of ice water was poured on him, he almost did it with another person's mate. He knew himself, if Dan hadn't come in, he would have taken her now.

The girl's existence was a pure threat to his self control.