9. Jasper
9
JASPER
I lead her into the kitchen, every step a reminder of how furious I still am. Not at her exactly. Not only at her. But at the situation. At the goddamn fact that she was living in an ice box on wheels less than fifty yards outside our property line like a ghost no one noticed. And that I didn’t notice sooner. I think I’m more pissed at myself than anyone else.
She stands just out of reach, arms wrapped around herself, looking like she’s waiting for me to yell at her or something. I should feel bad. I probably didn’t handle things very well out there. Tossing her in the truck was an asshole move. But I wasn’t going to leave her out there. No way in hell. So I did what I had to do.
I move to the fridge, grab a plate of leftovers, and pop it in the microwave. Steak, mashed potatoes, and carrots. Something simple. Something warm. Something real and not out of a can.
Her stomach growls loudly, and I yank the plate from the microwave, setting it on the granite countertop harder than necessary.
Goddammit, she’s fucking starving.
I grab a fork and a steak knife and slide them toward her. “Eat.”
She eyes the plate like it might sprout legs and walk away, then slowly steps closer, pulling out a stool and sitting. I lean against the counter across from her, arms crossed, jaw tight.
And then, to my surprise, she picks up the fork and spears a bite of peas.
Peas. First.
My brows rise. “Huh.”
She glances up, fork paused mid-air. “What?”
“Nothing. Just... didn’t expect you to go for the green stuff first.”
She shrugs like it’s no big deal, but there’s a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. “I like veggies. I used to grow all my own.”
Interesting. I tuck that piece of information away for another day.
I want to ask her a hundred questions. How long has she been in that RV? Why she didn’t tell anyone she was freezing her ass off out there. Where the hell was she going when I found her walking back in the dark like some reckless deer asking to be hunted? Where did she grow veggies? Is she running from something? Or someone?
But I keep my damn mouth shut.
If I ask, she’ll stop eating.
Instead, I let the silence hang, even though it crawls under my skin. I watch her carefully, like if I look away for even a second, she’ll vanish again.
She’s halfway through the steak when I step forward, reaching to help cut a thicker piece she’s struggling with.
Her reaction is instant.
She smacks my hand away. Hard.
The sharpsound echoes through the room, and we both freeze.
Her eyes go wide. “I—I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to?—”
I stare at her, stunned. Not because it hurt. But because... shit.
“Did you think I was going to take it?” I ask, my voice lower, rougher.
She flinches, blinking too fast. “No. I just... I don’t know. Reflex.”
My jaw clenches. That wasn’t a reflex someone has unless they’ve been hungry for long enough that defending a plate becomes instinct. I know because I experienced it as a kid. Several of us did.
Food aggression.
Fuck .
I swallow hard and back up a step, lifting my hands in surrender. “It’s okay. I won’t touch your plate.”
She nods, dropping her gaze as she shovels another bite of potatoes into her mouth, this time faster. It’s as if she doesn’t eat now, she won’t get the chance.
And I don’t say anything else.
Because right now, she needs food. And I need to take a breath before I do something I might regret. Like, keep her here forever so she never has to be cold or hungry again.
* * *
“W hat’s your plan with her?” Ghost asks.
I lift a leg and rest of my foot on the ottoman in front of my armchair. We’re in the library having a couple of drinks before we turn in for the night. Ghost is on Rowie watch. I’m staying in the main house tonight because I gave Ariana a room here, and I don’t want to be far away.
When I first brought her here, I was going to take her directly to my house and keep her there, but I realized she’d probably be more comfortable in the main house with Rowie. Although, I much prefer the idea of her being in the privacy of my house, where I can watch her closely. I can still do that here, but there are other people around. And for some damn reason, I don’t like my brothers being here, seeing her, talking to her. I trust them with my life, and I love them endlessly, but they all have dicks, and Ariana is fucking adorable.
Fuck. The thought of any of my brothers touching her makes me want to kill them.
“She’s off-limits,” I snap.
Ghost stills, his whiskey cup mid-air as he stares at me for a second before the corners of his lips curl into a smirk. “Already knew that the second you walked in with her, brother. But my question was, what is your plan with her? She’s obviously Little. And she obviously needs a Daddy.”
I narrow my gaze. “How do you know she’s Little?”
Hell, I didn’t even know for sure until I saw those damn ponies in her camper. Even then, adults can have toys and not be Little.
“It’s in her eyes. The way she used you as a shield. The way she bounces on her tiptoes when she walks. She’s Little, and you knew it, you just didn’t want to admit it to yourself. That’s why you’ve been going to that fucking coffee shop every day. To check on her.”
What the fuck?
Ghost chuckles and shakes his head, then takes a sip of his drink. “You have to remember that we’re brothers and we trained together day and night for years. We know each other better than we know ourselves, Jas. We knew there was a reason you were going for coffee. And we suspected it was a Little girl. You wouldn’t waste your time with anyone who wasn’t a Little. Being a Daddy is part of our DNA. Besides, my name is Ghost for a reason. You may not have seen me, but I saw you. And I saw her. And it’s pretty fucking obvious she’s a Little girl. If I were to guess, she’s really fucking Little.”
Fuck me. I wondered if she was Little. I also wondered just how small she would go for me in Little Space. Just the thought of my brother saying it so matter-of-factly makes me want to punch him. He doesn’t know her better than I do, and he never will. Asshole.
He’s right about one thing, though. We do know each other better than we know ourselves. I guess I didn’t think about that. It’s probably why the only questions about where I was going and what I was doing were coming from the girls and not any of my brothers. They knew.
“She’s too good for me. Too fucking sunny, and I’m too stormy. I’m just going to figure out what’s going on in her life and try to help her so she can be on her way.”
Ghost slowly nods, though his expression tells me he doesn’t believe a word I’m saying. Well, fuck him. He can believe what he wants.
Our phones light up with a movement alert on the second floor. I pull up the feed immediately and watch as Ariana tiptoes down the hallway, looking like she’s trying to sneak out.
“Looks like your Little girl is up to some trouble,” Ghost says as he watches his own screen with a smug smile.
I rise and slide my phone into my pocket as I make my way toward the doorway. “Fuck you. She’s not my Little girl. And stop fucking watching her before I slit your throat.”
Ghost laughs loudly as I exit, and I grind my molars together to keep myself calm. That asshole is going to pay one day. I’m going to make sure of it.
Just as I get to the bottom of the stairs, Ariana’s small frame appears at the top. She’s too busy looking around her to notice me at first, but when she does, she freezes and stares at me in surprise.
“Where you headed, Little thief?”
Her blue eyes narrow. “I was going to the kitchen.”
“Little girls who lie end up with red bottoms, you know.”
Fuck. Probably shouldn’t have said that. I don’t know what the hell has come over me when it comes to her.
Her mouth drops open, and her hand tightens around the railing until her knuckles turn white, like she’s trying to hold on to keep from falling.
“So let’s try that again. Where are you headed, Little thief?”
We have a stare-off for several seconds before she finally lets out a defeated sigh. “I need something from my camper.”
And she thought she would just be able to waltz out of this house in her pajamas and get into that half-ass camper without any of us knowing? I guess I haven’t explained to her who we are and what we do yet. She has no idea that every inch of this property is covered by cameras, traps, and other security measures.
“What do you need? I’ll get it for you.”
“What?” She shakes her head. “No, Jasper, I can get it myself. Besides, I need to feed Fluffy.”
This time, my gaze narrows. “Who the fuck is Fluffy?”
“My cat.”
I can’t help but snort. “You mean that bald-ass cat that only had fur on the tip of its tail? I’m not even sure it’s a cat, rainbow. It might be a rat for all we know.”
She puts her hands on her hips and glares at me. “He’s not a rat, and he can’t help that he’s bald. He was eating out of a dumpster when I found him, and he’d recently been in a fight. I assumed his fur would come back in, but it just hasn’t yet. It’s too late to change his name. Besides, he likes it.”
Fuck me. This Little girl. She can barely feed herself, but she saved a fucking animal from a dumpster and added another mouth to feed to her plate.
“Come here,” I say in a low voice as I point to the bottom step in front of me.
The air between us is charged. It has been since the first day I met her. A crackling energy that I feel deep in my bones. I want to deny it. Pretend it isn’t there. That I’m just being a good citizen, trying to help a young woman who needs some assistance. But let’s be honest, I’ve never been a good citizen. I’m not a good man. I get pleasure from torturing people. I’m a psychopath. So doing good deeds just because isn’t my thing. I’m just not sure what my ulterior motive is here yet.
“I don’t wanna,” she replies nervously, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth.
Raising my eyebrows, I smirk. “You don’t wanna? Would you prefer I come to you? Because I think we both know how that ends up.”
As if the memory of me throwing her over my shoulder flashes in her head, her eyes widen, and she starts taking the steps down one at a time, slower than a slug.
“I’m going to be old and gray by the time you make it all the way down, Ariana. I don’t have a lot of patience, Little one, so you better hustle. And hold on to the damn banister.”
Her hand shoots out and grabs the railing as she starts moving faster until she’s two steps away and stops.
“I said here.” I point to the bottom step again.
As if the world was playing in slow motion, she moves down one and then another until she’s standing right in front of me. Her hair is still wet from having a shower, and the scent of strawberries surrounds us both. When I showed her to one of the guest rooms, I grabbed a bunch of bath stuff from the hall closet that we keep stocked with toiletries for Rowie and left it on the vanity for her to choose what she wanted. Whatever she chose, I fucking love it, and she smells edible.
My cock twitches at that thought. Shit. I need to get control of myself. The last thing she needs is me having filthy thoughts about eating her. Even though I’ve already had dozens of them since meeting her. And each time it’s ended with me coming in my fucking hand.
The pajamas she has on are new, a set that Cage got for Ember, but she hadn’t worn yet. A soft pair of pants and a tank top with a sleeping cat on it. The top is light pink and thin enough for me to see the outline of Ariana’s nipples.
Jesus. I’m going to hell. The things I want to do to this Little girl is fucking unforgivable.
“I’ve already fed your cat, rainbow. Gave it a can of tuna. I’ll get some kibble from the store tomorrow.”
Her expression softens as she stares up at me. Even though she’s on a step and I’m on the landing below, I’m still taller than her by a couple of inches.
“You fed Fluffy?”
I nod and reach up to brush a strand of her damp hair away from her face. “Yeah. I did. He’s at my house now, where it’s warm, probably clawing at my fucking furniture. He’ll be fine there, away from you girls until I make sure he doesn’t have fucking rabies or some other communicable disease. I set up his litterbox and left him with plenty of water.”
Ariana blinks several times, her eyes filling with tears. “Thank you. I know he’s kind of ugly, but he’s all I have.”
If I had a heart, it would crumble at those words.
“He’s not all you have anymore. You have me.”
And I am so incredibly fucked because I think I have feelings for this Little thief.
I let my gaze travel down her body, trying my best not to linger anywhere for too long. The last thing I want is to scare her with how fucking intense I can be. As I trail over the milky skin of her shoulder, my dick twitches, but I don’t stop even though I know I should. Her nipples press against the thin shirt, and I inwardly groan. Fuck. How long has it been since I’ve touched a woman? Too damn long if I can’t even take a stab in the dark at a date.
Then again, there hasn’t been any woman I’ve actually wanted to touch. Until now.
When my eyes skate down a bit and land on her forearm, every ounce of arousal vanishes and is replaced with urgency.
“Baby, what happened to your arm?” I reach out and grab her wrist, more roughly than I mean to, but shit, why is she all scratched up? They’re too thick to be claw marks from Fluffy.
Ariana pulls her arm back and holds it close to her chest. “I fell earlier. I’m fine. I washed it in the shower.”
She fell? On the ground? Was she alone? Did anyone help her? Was she scared?
Fuck.
Why do I hate myself for not being there with her? To make sure she was safe?
“Where did you fall? Did you trip?”
Her blue eyes stare up at me, wide and innocent, yet I already know as her lips part that she’s about to lie to me. Too bad for her, before the night is over, she’s going to tell me everything I want to know, whether she likes it or not. And it’s going to be the truth.