Page 44 of Jared's Redemption

“Luna.” He warns me, leaning so close his breath fans my cheek while I fight the urge to turn my face towards his. The tension between us builds, nearly suffocating me in the front of the SUV until I hear the low rumble of a car coming towards us and Jared leans back against the seat.

“Well, that didn’t take long.” I mumble in annoyance. He blows out a deep breath and climbs out of the vehicle without another word. I get out as well, shivering against the cold as my father slowly walks towards me, leaning on his cane.

“She got shot. Your daughter doesn’t belong out on the field with us.” Jared shouts over his shoulder, stomping towards the warehouse with a group of what I assume is Lucian’s employees.

“Asshole.” I mutter as my father hooks my arm with his cane. He yanks me close to him so he can look at my bandages I’m holding. I roll my eyes, but my sight catches on the gray peppering his beard. The lines on his face are deeper, and he relies on his cane more every time I see him. My heart twists as I face my father’s mortality while he peers at me through wisdom filled eyes.

“You’re lucky it only nicked you. Your mother begged me to tell you no, so let’s not tell her about this. Either of us.” He grunts out, sighing as he waves a hand. One of his men steps forward with a thick wooly blanket he drapes over my shoulders. I sigh, wrapping myself tightly while burrowing into the warmth.

“Who did this?” He asks, his eyes shifting to Jared and back to my neck. I grasp what he’s assuming and have to stop from rolling my eyes.

“The guy inside that building who has his brains splattered over the concrete.” I say, poking at the tender flesh of my neck. My dad flinches at my crude words but says nothing else while we stand in comfortable silence.

High-pitched giggles make me lift my head and notice a pretty woman with blonde hair laughing too loud. The woman from my father’s team has her hand on her hip, smiling brightly up at Jared as he humors her with a quirk in his brow. Rage makes my body tremble and nausea churns my stomach when she leans forward and puts her hand on his arm as she laughs at something he says.

“Luna, don’t make a scene.” My father warns, tapping my ankle with his cane as I fist my hands so tight my knuckles ache. Jared glances my way once, his eyes locking on me. I can feel the jealousy seeping from my very being, taking control of my movement. The woman grips his shoulder, pulling him down to whisper in his ear as she clings to him. And he lets her.

My steps crunch through the snow, the blanket falling from my shoulders as heat rushes through my veins when I close in on them. Jared sees me coming, putting his hand up to stop me. Markus walks past us, his brow raised, looking the woman over as if she’s a pest.

“You should run.” He warns her, winking at me as he keeps walking and whistles a tune under his breath. I point at her, baring my teeth as I fight to lean around Jared.

“Don’t touch what doesn’t fucking belong to you. Next time, I’ll cut your damn fingers off.” I snarl the words, amusement rising when a look of fear crosses her face.

“Miss Collins, I am so sorry.” She mutters the apology, looking behind me at my father. Worried that she had just lost her job and possibly her life, no doubt.

“You’re gonna get sick if you don’t dry off, damn it.” Jared grumbles, ducking down to throw me over his shoulder. This time I don’t fight him, even as my side screams in agony. I stick my tongue out as Jared stomps away.

“Jealousy is fucking sexy on you.” He mutters in my ear, dropping me to my feet next to my father.

“Vincent.” Jared says, nodding once in respect. My father sighs, tipping his head once. I frown at the blanket on the ground, the pain in my side making me grit my teeth.

“I’m freezing. Will you grab me another blanket?” I try to keep the exhaustion I’m feeling from my voice. Jared reaches into the car for another blanket while I glare daggers at the woman, who keeps glancing at us.

“You’re playing a dangerous game with this one.” My father tells Jared, tipping his head towards me. Jared snorts in amusement as he stares down at me and wraps another blanket around my shoulders. He has no idea how right my father was.

Chapter 33- Jared

That had to be the quickest shower I have ever taken. Luna used all the hot water, and I know she did it to punish me for not taking one with her. When I walk out of the bathroom, I nearly fall flat on my face at the sight of her. She prances through the living room, wearing only a lacey lingerie set in a deep purple.

The thong she was wearing resembled my patience, just a thin strip I could tear with my teeth.

The sight of fresh bandages plastered to her side sobered my thoughts, though. A plan was forming in my head as I pulled my sweatshirt on while she lays on the couch with her new reading tablet, her perky ass in the air.

I went into the bedroom, gathering all the blankets and taking them to the laundry room. After that, I adjusted the thermostat, ready to stoop to her level. She might play dirty, but I played smart.

Luna was watching me from the corner of her eye as I went to every window, pulling them open to let the frigid night air blast in. She squeals, jumping up to yank them shut, but it was no use. The air conditioner was running full blast, on the lowest setting and I had locked it.

“Damn you, Biggums!” She howled, stomping into the bedroom and slamming the door behind her.

“One, two,” I mutter under my breath, snatching up her abandoned book just as she jerks the door back open.

“Where are the fucking blankets?” She shouts, vigorously rubbing her arms to chase away the chill. I smirk to myself, my eyes skimming the page she was so deeply interested in a moment ago.

“They’re all in the wash.” I say with a shrug. The words on the page make my eyebrows raise, the descriptive details paint a scene of a man railing the female character on the couch. I sip my steaming mug of hot cocoa, trying to ignore Luna as she stomps around our house. No, this isn’t our house.

I nearly drop my mug and the book as Luna climbs onto the couch behind me, wrapping her ice cold legs around my waist and bunching up my clothing to cover her body. She hums happily, her fingers curled against my chest as she saps my warmth.

“You’re a leech.” I grumble, unable to hide the amusement in my voice. She snickers against my back before biting me, hard.

---