Chapter 14
Chapter Fourteen
QUINN
Stretching out, I hear the soft pitter-patter of feet coming from the kitchen.
Dolly. I have no idea what time it is, but I know it’s early because it is still dark out.
Peering over at the sleeping form next to me, I see that Jasper is out cold.
The sheet hides almost nothing as I ogle his body—soft breaths coming from him as one arm covers his eyes and the other rests on his stomach.
The same body that spent the night licking, sucking, and kissing me all night long.
Everything about last night was perfect. I could lie in bed all day staring at Jasper. I’ve never felt more comfortable, more at home, more safe with anyone else in my life.
Not wanting to wake him up, I grab his shirt, button it up, and pad out into the kitchen.
Dolly is eating from her automatic feeder when I start the coffee.
My phone is on the kitchen counter. Grabbing it, I pull up my emails.
Considering the first email I get is from my attorney, I can only assume it’s not good news.
The only good thing is that her email is short and to the point. Court date is set for the first week of March. A delay from when she originally thought. Prep for court to start after the holidays.
As annoyed as I am, I’m glad we have a court date. A set date that maybe all of this will finally go away. The law is on my side, but considering it’s going to be a jury of our peers, I have no idea what is going to happen.
Will he try to charm the jury to convince them he’s innocent and being framed? Will people think I’m greedy for wanting what’s mine?
Every time I think about it, a sick feeling settles in my stomach.
Fuck.
The coffee pot bubbles. Grabbing two mugs, I pour myself a cup, but before I can pour the second and take it into the bedroom for Jasper, warm hands wrap around me.
“And here I thought I was going to be the one waking you up,” Jasper says.
“Couldn’t sleep,” I say. He lifts me into his arms with ease, setting me on the counter. Sleep lines his face and pillow marks crease his cheeks. “Now I’m wishing I stayed in bed a little longer.”
Jasper takes a sip of my coffee before setting it down. He kisses me and makes my toes curl.
“Waking up to you and a cup of coffee isn’t a bad second.” He smiles. “Although, you sounded a little grumbly when I came out.”
“Well, aside from the fact that you didn’t get to wake me up, I got an email from my attorney.”
“Really?” Jasper takes the second mug and pours himself a cup.
I nod. “I have a court date.”
“I thought you already had one?” he asks. “I know a little bit based on passing conversation from Harper and Stevie.”
“Sometimes things change.”
“And this is for your manager?”
I sigh, tracing a hand down his carved abs. It helps to distract me from the awkward conversation we’re about to have. “Also my ex.”
“Your ex.”
Pushing him back, I hop off the counter. “This is a couch conversation to have.” He looks confused. “I’d prefer not to have it while I’m sitting on the counter.”
Taking his hand, I lead him toward the living room and take a seat. He sits down next to me, pulling my legs onto his lap.
“Okay. Tell me about this guy.”
His thumbs start digging into the arches of my feet and damn, does that ever feel good.
“Eric was my manager.”
“Was your manager?” he asks.
“Eric signed me when I was eighteen. It was my very first contract. He discovered me at a talent competition in Boston.”
Jasper gives me a cocky grin. “I knew it.”
“Yeah, yeah.” I wave him off. “Ever since I was a kid, all I ever wanted was to be a singer. My parents took me to see Dolly Parton and I fell in love with her presence on the stage. The way every single person in the venue had eyes only for her. They were mesmerized by her.”
“I think people can say the same about you.” Jasper’s eyes are soft as they look at me. “I’ve only seen you sing twice, but you sucked me in. I’ve seen how people react to your music. They love you.”
His words make me blush. Fans heaping praise on me is one thing, but the man I’m intimate with? A completely different story.
“I love doing it. Seeing how people react when I’m on stage is the most rewarding part about being in the music industry. From day one, Eric took advantage of me.”
“What do you mean?”
Jasper’s fingers work their way up my calves. It’s like he’s loosening my muscles to make it easier to tell him all of this. It’s a weight I don’t like carrying around.
“Before I signed my contract, everyone told me make sure you own the rights to your own music. It was something I paid attention to. When I signed the contract, that’s about the only thing I did look for.”
“I don’t like where this is headed,” he says.
I shake my head. “Everything was great for those first two years. All the money was going into producing my albums and getting my name out there. It’s about that time we started dating. Musician and her manager—seems like it’d be an epic love story.”
His hands stall. “And I’m guessing that’s where it all went wrong.”
I nod. “Eric got me into all the right places, so when that first album dropped and my single hit the top ten, I was on cloud nine. Appearances on TV shows, meeting the right people, opening for one of the biggest bands in the world? I didn’t think it could get any better.
But then I got my first royalty check and to say it was lackluster is an understatement. ”
Jasper growls, not interrupting, but I can sense his anger with Eric.
“I made pennies on what I was bringing in.”
“What happened to it?”
“When I asked Eric, he said it all went to cover production, tours, marketing, blah, blah, blah. Being young, na?ve, and in love with him, I believed him. But as I got bigger and headlined my own tours, the checks got smaller and smaller. I knew something was wrong.”
“God damn it. If I ever see this man, I will punch him in the face.”
“Believe me, I want to. He was embezzling and stealing from me. His lawyer got him out of jail, but the trial is coming up soon and it’s going to be hard because my attorney is still having trouble tracking down where all the money went.”
His hand tightens around my calf in a protective way. I love that feeling. Feeling safe and protected with him. Something I never felt with Eric.
“This guy is an asshole.”
Crawling over and settling on his lap, I wrap my arms around his shoulders and cup his cheek. “No punching is needed, but I love that you want to defend me.”
He links his hands behind my back, settling just above my butt. “I’m sorry that you have to go through all of this.”
“It kind of sucks. Until all of this is resolved, I’m in limbo. No manager. No contracts. No studio to record in. I can make music here, but all the creative juices are zapped.”
“Because you’re so stressed,” Jasper confirms.
“Yeah. It’s the worst.”
“Is there anything that I can do? Be your sugar daddy?” He presses a kiss to the tip of my nose. “You’ve already ruled out punching him, so that’s off the table.”
“Well, as far as sugar daddies go, you’d be a pretty good one.” I smile back at him. “I just hate how young and stupid I was. Everyone told me to keep my rights, but I didn’t think past that.”
“Hey. You weren’t stupid.” Jasper’s voice is firm. “He took advantage of you. Here was someone young and vulnerable, and he didn’t think twice about doing what he did.”
His words stir something deep inside of me. The part that made it hard to trust after Eric. It’s thawing that wall around me that I’ve been taking down brick by brick because of this man here.
“He made it hard to trust my own judgment. I thought he was one of the good ones. I just wanted to be famous and tour the world.”
Jasper smiles, pressing a kiss to my palm. “Well, at least he did that. I know you’re famous and I don’t really follow pop music.”
“You’re going to have to start. I mean, how can you be my groupie if you don’t know any of my songs?”
“Hey.” He points a finger at me. “I know the one you sang—”
“You better not say at the game,” I joke. “Everyone knows the national anthem.”
“I was going to say the one with the flowers in the cracks from the gala.”
“‘Wildflowers in the Weeds,’ but close.”
“See? I’m already halfway there.”
“I can send you home with all my CDs. Play them for Zucchini so she doesn’t forget who I am.”
Jasper shakes his head. “It’d be impossible for anyone to forget about you.”
The smile that Jasper gives me does funny things to my insides.
Swirls and mushes them all up and rearranges them in a way that he completely owns.
Maybe this is why I was so hesitant to meet Jasper in the first place.
Because I knew once I met him, I would fall hard.
Hell, texting with him over the phone, I knew I was falling.
And now…now I'm so far gone for this man. I don’t know which way is up and which way is down.
It’s why the next confession slips out.
“You know what I always wanted as a little girl? Even more so than being a singer?”
“What?”
Jasper traces his fingers along the lines in my palm. Wrapped up with him like this, I feel safe. Like I can tell him anything and he’ll never judge me.
“A red farmhouse on a big piece of land away from everyone. I wanted to raise chickens and have some horses. I wanted to run barefoot through the grass. Have a tire swing and let the wind blow through my hair.”
“You want to be free.”
“Yeah.”
“I’m sorry, Quinn. I wish I could whisk you away from all of this.”
“You being here helps more than you know.”
“I only wish I could be here for you more.”
I smile at him, stroking his cheek. Memorizing his handsome face. Every little detail that I never want to forget. “Life of an NHL player and all.”
“You know, it’s been pretty hard these last few years. Getting older and trying to keep my place in the league. I guess we’re more alike than we thought.”
“Both fighting for our place in our respective careers.”
The corner of Jasper’s mouth quirks up into a half-smile. “Well, if I had to fight for things with anyone, I’m glad it’s you.”
“Me too.”
Happier than I could ever admit, I don’t think I could even put it into words. Because having Jasper on my side through this whole ordeal will get me through it.
Come hell or high water.