Chapter 13
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Veronica lay beneath Jasper, relishing the weight of his body on hers. The heat of his skin against hers. She soaked up the contact like a dying plant soaked up water and sunlight. It had been so long since she’d been touched like this.
Jasper eventually withdrew from her and disappeared into the bathroom. He came back with a washcloth and gently pressed it between her legs. Heat flooded her face as he cleaned her up. When she tried to do it herself, he just stared at her until she lowered her hand back down to the mattress.
When he returned to the bed, Jasper gathered her close, slipping an arm beneath her head and bringing her right leg over his hips. She was practically draped over his side like a blanket. She relaxed into him as his fingers drew a line up and down her spine.
Veronica felt safer than she ever had before. Even with her parents, she’d always been on edge, always worried about upsetting them. It was so difficult for her trust others, yet Jasper was rapidly convincing her to trust him.
That was why his words took her off guard when he said, “I’m cancelling my membership to Mystical Matchmakers on Monday. I’m no longer in need of your services.”
Veronica stiffened, suddenly wary.
He hooked a finger beneath her chin and tilted her face up so he could look at her. “I don’t need another match. I found the one I wanted as soon as I walked in the door.”
God, he had to stop saying sweet things like that. Every time he did, Veronica felt hopeful that this time things would work out. That he wouldn’t ghost her the way other men had.
“Why did you get so tense?” he asked.
Veronica sighed. “I guess I’m waiting for the catch. I know it’s my issue. You’ve been nothing but honest and great. There’s no reason for me to automatically think the worst of the situation.” She shrugged. “I’m used to the men I date thinking I’m too much work.”
Jasper traced her hairline with his fingertips, his eyes moving over her face. He didn’t look angry. Or even frustrated. If anything, his expression was sad.
“You don’t feel like work to me. You’re exactly what I want.”
Veronica was beginning to believe him.
For the second morning in a row, Veronica woke up in Jasper’s arms. He was curled around her back, his knees pressed against the backs of her thighs. One arm acted as a pillow for her head and the other wrapped completely around her waist, his hand tucked between her body and the mattress.
He’d made love to her in the middle of the night, and she’d only had the energy to pull on her underwear before falling back into the bed. Though it was cool in the room, Jasper ran hotter than a normal human or even a typical supernatural. He put off enough heat to keep her toasty warm, even dressed in nothing but a skimpy pair of panties.
Veronica tried to slip from beneath his arm, but Jasper grunted and tightened his hold on her.
“Where you going?” he rumbled, his voice deep and rough from sleep.
“Bathroom.”
With another grunt, he released her, and Veronica snagged his t-shirt off the floor, tugging it over her head as she headed into the bathroom. She washed her face and brushed her teeth while she was in there. When she came out, he was drinking a cup of coffee and holding another for her. The cabin came equipped with a single-cup coffee maker and pods, as well as sugar and tiny liquid creamer containers.
Grateful he’d made her coffee, Veronica took the cup and kissed his cheek. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. I ordered French toast, eggs, and bacon. The food should be delivered soon.”
“Sounds delicious. Thanks.” She sipped her coffee, humming in appreciation. He’d made it exactly as she liked it, with sugar and vanilla creamer.
“You don’t have to thank me.” He waited until she lowered her cup before he kissed her.
Veronica scrunched her nose at him when he pulled away and said, “I’ll thank you if I want to and you’ll take it.”
Chuckling, Jasper sidled past her into the bathroom. “If you insist.”
The food arrived before he came out, so Veronica accepted the brown paper bag and carried it into the kitchen. She liked that the food was delivered in containers rather than on porcelain plates or in glassware. It made it less likely that she would accidentally break something. She wasn’t usually clumsy, but she always worried she would mess things up when she stayed at hotels or at someone’s home.
The hotel must have spelled the containers to keep the food warm because it was still steaming when Jasper came into the kitchen and grabbed his plate. As they ate, Veronica asked him to go over the schedule for the day again.
“I’ll have to head to the main lodge in a couple of hours. The groomsmen and Milo are all having lunch with my dad and Prema’s dad. The ladies are doing the same thing with Mom and the bride’s mother. After that, I’m sure we’ll all be running herd on Milo to keep him away from Prema before the ceremony.”
“When does the ceremony start again?” she asked.
“Four p.m. It will end at five and the guests will have a cocktail hour and hors d’oeuvres while the wedding party takes photos. The reception is supposed to start at six, but knowing my mother and Prema’s mother, it will likely be six-fifteen or even six-thirty before we’re done. They’re going to want pictures of everything and everyone. Multiple pictures in case they don’t like the first, second, or third options they get.”
Veronica smiled. She hadn’t spent much time with his parents, but if his mother was anything like him, she could see the woman wanting everything to be as perfect as possible.
“What are you going to do while I’m gone all day?” he asked.
She grinned. “I booked a mani-pedi in town. I’ll probably have lunch while I’m there. Then, I think I’ll read for a while before I get ready.”
“I think I’d rather go with you,” Jasper grumbled.
Veronica laughed and waved him off. “You should enjoy your day with your family. Your brother is only going to get married once.”
“I hope so, because I’m not going through this rigamarole again.”
“What about your own wedding?” she asked. “Surely your mother will insist on something like this for you.”
Jasper shook his head. “Absolutely not. She already knows that I’m not having a three-ring circus when I get married. I’ve already informed her that I will probably elope. She threatened to disown me but changed her mind when I told her that was fine with me.”
“She would never disown you.”
“Probably not, but if it keeps me from having to do this when I get married, I’ll happily accept it.”
Shaking her head, Veronica took a sip of coffee.
“What about you? How do you envision your wedding day?” he asked.
She choked as her coffee went down the wrong way. Veronica bent over, coughing and sputtering, as she tried to clear her airway.
“Shit!” Jasper was kneeling beside her in a blink, gently patting her back. “Are you okay?”
She nodded, clearing her throat as the spasms began to subside. He jumped to his feet and came back a few moments later with a glass of water. Veronica gave him a grateful look as she took a sip.
It took a few more minutes of sipping water before she was able to speak again.
“I didn’t realize asking you that question would bring on such a strong reaction,” Jasper said. His tone was light, as though he were joking, but his eyes were serious on her.
“Honestly, I haven’t thought much about it. I told you that I never thought I would get married. It’s still not something I’m quite sure I could see for myself.”
She left out the part that she could easily envision herself married to Jasper. They had only been together for a short time, but Veronica was falling hard and fast.
“Let’s say you will get married someday. What do you see when you think about it?”
Veronica took a deep breath and let herself imagine that it could happen. That she would find someone who loved her, who she loved, and who she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. Her eyes drifted shut as she took a deep breath. In her head, she could see herself wearing a light, ethereal dress. Something like the mating gowns that fae women wore. She’d seen a picture of her great-grandmother’s gown. It had flowed over her body like water, following the lines and curves of her figure. The material itself had been white but with an iridescent sheen. It looked like her great-grandmother had been wearing a prism beam. The colors were gentle and soft, but they changed with each angle and plane. Two thin straps held the dress up. Her shoulders were bare, but a drape of fabric hung from her bicep to her elbow, making graceful sleeves. The rest of the dress was utterly simple, following the contours of her great-grandmother’s body to her knees before flaring out slightly to the floor.
Veronica could see herself wearing it, facing a man, and holding his hands. The sun was setting behind them and they were standing outside, surrounded by a very small group of people. If she was being completely honest, the man in her imagination had Jasper’s face and some of the people around them were his parents and brother.
“What do you see?” he asked.
She opened her eyes. “I see myself standing outside at sunset, with only the man I’m marrying, our parents and siblings, and the officiant there. I’d wear my grandmother’s fae mating gown and a crown of white flowers. There wouldn’t be a reception, just a quiet dinner at our favorite restaurant. After that, my husband and I would go somewhere secluded, like a cabin in the forest or mountains, and we’d spend the next week with each other with no one else around.”
She was smiling as she described it, able to see it so clearly that it almost felt as though she was there. When she focused on Jasper, he was studying her intently.
“That sounds perfect,” he murmured.
The look on his face made her feel awkward and fidgety. She wanted to look away. The intense black gleam of his eyes felt like a brand on her skin. But she couldn’t. Her eyes were locked on his, held in place by the force of his attention.
The spell was broken when his cell phone trilled from the bedroom, a loud, obnoxious melody echoing through the cabin.
Jasper blinked and sighed heavily. “I’m sure that’s my mother with some sort of emergency. I changed her ringtone, but it never stays that way for long. I’ll be back in a moment.”
He left the dining table and disappeared into the bedroom. As soon as she heard him answer the phone, Veronica took a shaky breath. She wasn’t sure what was happening in that moment, but it felt huge. Important.
As though the rest of her life were balanced on the edge of whatever Jasper might have said.
The murmur of Jasper’s voice came from the bedroom. His tone was soothing, and Veronica knew he was probably talking to his mother. She smiled at the sound. As much as he pretended that she exasperated him, it was obvious that Jasper loved his mother. From her short interactions with both of them, she got the impression that they were very similar. They were both stubborn, used to getting their own way, and generous with the people they cared about. Veronica sensed that whoever Jasper chose to marry, the woman would be blessed beyond measure because he would do everything in his power to create a beautiful life with her.
She finished her breakfast and was drinking another cup of coffee when Jasper came out of the bedroom, his phone in his hand.
“Well, that was the first narrowly missed catastrophe of the day,” he said.
She grinned. “What happened?”
“The florist got lost. Mom wanted me to go and get the woman and her employees, but I convinced her it was better to have one of the hotel staff help her find the way.” He sighed and tossed his phone down on the table. “I’m going to shower before anything else happens. If the phone rings, throw it out the window. Or answer it and tell them I ran away.”
Veronica laughed as he snagged his cup of cold coffee and vanished back into the bedroom.