I frown. I don’t like sharing anything about myself. But I guess it’s only fair.
“My parents were never there for me, growing up. They basically left me, and…I mean, they left me to my own devices. They didn’t even bother to hire a nanny or cook. I was just on my own. That’s why they sent me to Hawaii to live with my grandmother every summer. They didn’t want to deal with me, and my grandmother was the one who actually straightened me out. Anyway, my parents would have all of these parties where their fancy friends came over with their fancy jewelry and money. I kind of got good at pickpocketing.”
He raises an eyebrow at me.
“I know. I would pickpocket them and take any cash they had. They usually had a couple hundred dollars. But I never spent the money on myself. I would always donate the money or give it to friends who had less money than I did.”
“So, you were kind of like Robin Hood? Stole from the rich to give to the poor.”
I laugh. “I guess you could say that. I think running this nonprofit kind of became my penance. My parents gave me plenty of inheritance. Enough to comfortably live off of without working another day in my life. So, I live off of that money and don’t take a salary from the nonprofit.”
He nods.
“Your turn,” I say.
“My story isn’t really that exciting.”
“I don’t care. I want to hear it anyway.”
He sighs. “Fine. I never knew my mother. She left me when I was still a baby. My father raised me. And, honestly, much of my childhood was amazing. My father was the best. We didn’t have a lot of money, but it didn’t matter because we loved each other, and we were all either of us needed. But then he died.”
“How old?” I ask when Asher stops talking.
“Eleven.”
“I’m so sorry.”
He shakes his head. “It’s okay. It happened a long time ago.”
I hold his hand and kiss him on the cheek, hoping that I can somehow take his pain away even though I know I can’t.
“I moved from California to Hawaii to live with my coach until I was old enough to live on my own. I didn’t realize it then, but he only let me live with him so that he could have a say in my competition and sponsorship earnings. Even though I won a lot and should have had more than enough money to survive on by the time I was sixteen, with him being my legal guardian and signing all the contracts, he got control of my money. I eventually figured it out.”
“What did you do?”
“I ran away and lived on my own for a while. I didn’t really have a home, so I was couch-surfing for a while. But, after I won one competition, I suddenly had enough money to buy an apartment, and the rest is history.”
I tilt his chin up to me and kiss him on the lips, letting him know how much I appreciate him sharing and how much I wish I could take away the pain from his childhood. Within seconds, the kiss turns to more. More kissing, more need, more passion. Asher’s hand tangles in my hair, and mine goes under his shirt as Asher pushes me on my back. We make out on the old couch like two horny teenagers.
“Excuse me, Mrs., uh…um…”
We both freeze. We stop kissing. But our hands stay on each other. Because it doesn’t matter who is standing in the entryway. We need each other. We are desperate for each other. And, even though he is going to ruin our make-out session, we can at least still cling to each other for a few more seconds.
“You can still call me Ms. Hart,” I say with my eyes closed as I press my forehead against Asher’s for a little bit longer.
We each suck in a breath, and then I open my eyes back to reality as Asher does the same.
“I have to go,” I whisper.
He nods. “I’ll meet you back at your place.”
I lean forward and kiss his lips one last time. Then, I get up to meet one of my employees who needs me at the door before returning to the hustle and bustle of the office.
“Ms. Hart, I need you to look over some plans, and then I need…” Kenny keeps telling me what he needs as he walks down the hallway, expecting me to follow him so that we can talk and get things accomplished at the same time.
I have to stop though for just a second and look back at Asher one last time before I enter the real world again.
He has a heart. Honestly, I wasn’t sure he had one. But it makes my heart ache, just thinking about his.