Page 21 of Take

“So, Adrian must have a lot of money.” Because I was betting Jasper didn’t come cheap.

“Adrian keeps his business, his business, and I’ve never really given a shit why or how.”

“And you take jobs from this guy?” I couldn’t understand why Jasper would do this. Why he’d take jobs from a man he didn’t really know anything about.

“Yeah, babe. I do. That’s who I am.” His voice hardened and he abruptly took out his wallet and threw down some money. He was silent and his brows lowered with a slight twitch in his jaw. “And my life and what I do is none of your business.”

I shoved my mug aside and asked the question I was afraid to hear the answer to, but had to know how far Jasper would go. “Would you take money from whoever offered you the most?”

He stiffened and his eyes narrowed and darkened. “Probably.”

“So if this guy who is after me offered you a lot of money to give me to him, would you?”

“Jesus, Max.” He got up so brusquely, my mug toppled over as the table moved and the remnants of coffee spilled onto the table. Then he spat, “Yeah, I would. Is that what you want to hear? That what you’ve heard about me? Don’t worry, sunshine, he could never match what Adrian is giving me.”

I should’ve expected that answer. I did expect that answer, but for some reason, I’d expected more from Jasper. I thought when he’d touched my arm, softened his voice, and the grey in his eyes warmed, that there was good in Jasper.

Apparently, I was wrong.

“Let’s go.” He snagged my hand and before I could take my napkin off my lap, he had me up and walking out of the restaurant.

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