Page 29 of Jasper

Safe. And truly wanted. My foster parents never made me feel unwanted exactly, but it was always apparent that they were neutral about any of us kids coming or going. They never cried or moped around when one of us turned eighteen and moved out. But Jasper is fighting me tooth and nail to keep me here, and it feels good. Too good.

Sometime in the few weeks me and this man have been playing cat and mouse, I’ve developed an attachment to him.

I don’t even know when it happened. Maybe it was when he cut up my breakfast this morning without making a big deal about it. Maybe it was when he left the twinkle lights on last night and cracked the door a little like he knew I’d sleep better that way. Or maybe it was the way he paid for coffee and pastries for me even though he wasn’t getting anything from it. He’s a confusing man, that’s for sure.

I wrap my arms around myself and take a shaky breath. “I don’t want to be a bother to you… or your family.”

He stops pacing and turns to me, eyes narrowed. “You’re not a bother.”

I shake my head, heart hammering against my rib cage. “It’s easier if I’m by myself.”

Because if I’m by myself, I won’t be heartbroken when it’s time to leave.

He steps closer, and the weight of his presence wraps around me like a blanket. “I don’t think it is, Little one. I think you need people in your life. Friends. People who care about you. I have a feeling you haven’t had enough care in your life.”

“You don’t know that,” I whisper.

He does something then that wrecks me. He softens.

All that intensity melts into something raw and quiet. “You’ve been on your own for too long, rainbow.”

I shrug and keep my gaze on a tree in the distance because if I meet his eyes, I might cry.

He sighs and runs a hand through his hair again, his voice a little rough when he speaks. “That ends now.”

“What?”

“You don’t have to keep surviving like this,” he soothes. “Not with us. Not with me.”

The walls I’ve built—brick by painful brick—start to crumble. I feel them falling, quietly, one by one. How is he able to do this to me so easily?

I finally look up at Jasper, my fingers curled tight in the sleeves of my worn sweatshirt. “What about your family? Won’t they care that I’m here?”

He shakes his head without hesitation. “Rowie and Ember will be thrilled to have you around. You and Rowie already seem like best friends. And my brothers? They won’t mind either.”

That surprises me. “Really?”

He nods. “We travel a lot for work. So, there’ll be times when only a few of us are around. But every night, anyone who is home has dinner together at six in the main house. That’s non-negotiable.”

“What do you do for work?”

Whatever it is, it’s obvious that they’re successful. This compound or whatever it is they have is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. They built an entire neighborhood, complete with a pool, playground, gardens, and so much more. Only someone with a lot of money could do something like this.

He pauses. Just a flicker, but I see it.

I narrow my eyes and give him a smug smile. “No lying, Jasper. If I can’t lie, then neither can you.”

He grumbles under his breath and gives me a glare, but it’s more irritated affection than actual anger. After a long moment, he sighs.

“Secret-ops. We work for different organizations. Military contractors, intelligence agencies, private security, the mafia, and business owners. It’s dangerous sometimes. That’s why we live out here, away from everything. It’s safer for everyone. This entire property, all the way down to the bottom of the mountain, is ours and is heavily surveilled. We have a complete underground saferoom and tunnel system here as well.”

I blink.

What. The. Fuck?

That was definitely not even close to the answer I was expecting. Yet somehow, I can see Jasper doing some secret-ops mission-type stuff. “Oh.”

“You’re safe with us,” he adds. “But you’ll need to follow my rules.”

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