Free Tempting His Mate by Savannah Stuart Page B

whispered, knowing she was ready to commit to this male. She wasn’t walking away from him. They might have a lot to learn about each other, but what she did know, she liked. A lot.
    Giving her a seductive smile, he met her mouth in a slow, erotic kiss that left no doubt in her mind that they’d only gotten started for the night.
    * * *
    Asher opened his eyes and immediately tensed. A quick glance at the clock told him he hadn’t been sleeping for even twenty minutes. Ella was curled up next to him, sleeping soundly. He should be too after the last three hours they’d spent in her bed, but with her next to him, he was in protective mode.
    Especially after what had happened at her office.
    Soundlessly he slipped from the bed and tugged on his boxers. The dim pre-dawn light from her bathroom window shone on the hardwood floor, illuminating his path to her bedroom door. Not that he needed it. Standing in the middle of her room, he listened quietly. He wasn’t sure what had woken him, but something had.
    The faint sound of the ocean waves gently lapping at the shore greeted his ears. But there was something else. He glanced back at Ella, who hadn’t moved. After seeing what a light sleeper she was, he knew she was probably mentally and physically exhausted.
    Letting the claws on one hand unsheathe, he opened the door with his other. His feet were silent as he stepped out into the hall.
    That was when he heard it. It was so soft, but it was almost like…glass being cut. Going into full battle mode, he let his other claws free. If he had to shift, he was ready at a moment’s notice.
    He was trained and strong because of his age and right now rage pulsed through him. Someone was in Ella’s place. Even though he couldn’t scent anything, he could feel it. He forced his heartbeat to slow, to remain steady and unaffected. If a supernatural was in her home, he couldn’t let them sense his spike of anger.
    Creeping to the end of the hallway, he pressed his back against the wall before slowly peering around the corner. A tall male stood with his back to Asher as he ran his hands along the bottom of one of the paintings on Ella’s wall.
    A cold breeze filled the room and Asher realized the male had cut a hole through one of her glass windows. Which explained how he’d circumvented the alarm system. That familiar eucalyptus scent teased his nose and he realized what he’d smelled in Ella’s office and now here.
    Vampire.

 
    Chapter 9
     
    Asher didn’t pause in his decision. He rushed across the hardwood floor on silent feet. With his natural predatory skills, he’d just moved past one of Ella’s couches when the male swiveled in his direction.
    The dark-haired vampire’s eyes widened in surprise.
    Growling, Asher leapt over the coffee table, claws at the ready. Slashing down, he raked across the vamp’s chest before nimbly dodging to the side to avoid a similar attack.
    Vampires had claws too. They might not shift into an animal, but they were a hundred percent predator.
    Hissing in pain, the vamp’s fangs descended as he turned on Asher. The vamp jumped onto the wood table with enough force that a crack rent the air. Asher flew at him, tackling him as he wrapped his clawed hand around the male’s throat.
    The need he had to take this intruder down went deeper than his natural instinct. This bastard was in Ella’s home, was a threat to her. He had to be stopped.
    Digging into his flesh, he held tight as they slammed against the nearest wall. A sharp pain pierced Asher’s side as claws sliced through the flesh covering his ribcage, but he was so amped up on adrenaline he ignored it and pinned the male to the wall.
    With his other hand, Asher slammed his fist right through the vamp’s chest. Wrapping his hand around the vamp’s beating heart, he squeezed lightly to make his point.
    Eyes wide, the male stilled, letting his hand drop from Asher’s aching ribs. He barely moved as he watched Asher. The male’s eyes