Jasper
The taste of her is still on my tongue but her eyes are closed and she’s limp. I groan, my knees cracking as I leap to my feet.
“Hey, baby! Willow, baby! Come on, sprite! You’re scaring the hell out of me!”
I sit down beside her and haul her limp body over my lap and that’s when I see the scars on her left leg. Burns.
My stomach lurches. This is why she wears so much covering her.
My fingers reach out and tentatively trace the puckered, pale pink skin. She moves in my arms and then her eyes open.
She smiles mistily at me until she realizes. I see it when she feels my hand on her leg.
She scrambles upright and tries to tug her shirt down to cover her lower legs but when that doesn’t help she almost buries herself in cushions.
“What are you doing?” she hisses.
“You passed out. I was trying to wake you up.” I keep my eyes locked on hers. I want to run my hands over every inch of her, trace every hurt and heal it. Take it on myself.
I lean back in the couch and cross my legs, reaching down to grab her pants and hand them to her. She grabs them and I turn away, letting her cover herself because it’s what she needs right now.
“What happened, little sprite?” I hold up my hand when she opens her mouth. “I saw the report. I don’t want to hear that again. I want to know what happened to you. I want to know how you felt. I want to know how you feel know. I don’t need a bunch of dry words. I need your words.”
She ducks her head and I see her swallow roughly. “You read it so you know that he was a fan.” I nod my head. “He was pissed because I killed off a character that he liked. He decided to try and change my mind.”
She sighs and leans her head back and my heart aches to touch her. My fingers fist at my sides and I take a deep breath, fighting to stay calm. To sit there and listen to what she needs to say.
I can tell she’s never talked about it and it’s frozen in time in her head. She’s frozen in that fear, in that place. She needs to talk about it. Move past it.
Move towards me. Us.
Her flame-red curls hide her face but I can picture her in my head. See the terror I’ve seen flash in her eyes. And I want to kill him. Slowly.
“He got in and came up to buy a book and then I told them I needed a break. There was just something about him that made me feel…wrong.”
“That’s your gut, honey. Telling you that danger’s near.
Something’s wrong. Always listen to that little voice in your head that tries to tell you when something’s wrong.
It won’t steer you wrong. And even if it does, it’s better to face a little embarrassment than something a helluva lot worse,” I whisper to her.
She nods her head lifts up to look me in the eye. Hers are dark, haunted. I move closer and she doesn’t move away. “Can I hold you?” I ask her.
She freezes…but then she slowly slides over to me.
One inch. Two. I wait patiently as she seems to try to decide how far she wants to go.
But then she climbs into my lap and I close my arms gently around her, letting her sink into me.
I lean down and bury my nose in her sweet-smelling hair. Like peaches and cream.
She sighs and leans into me. Then she says, “he followed me. I didn’t have any warning.
He just hollered Bitch! You killed her. How could you kill her?
And then there was a knife and so much pain.
He stabbed me about five times. And then he grabbed the bottle he had hidden in his coat.
Kerosene. I could smell it. And he threw it on me and lit a match. ”
She says it so quietly, calmly. But my heart is pounding in my chest and I can’t stop thinking, he could have killed her. I could have lost her before I found her.
A tear trickles down my cheek and I bury my face deeper in her soft, flame curls.
“Livvy realized what was happening and she got a guy that was there to tackle him and then she grabbed some curtains off this reading nook and dropped it over me and rolled me until the flames went out.”
Her tear-filled eyes come up to mine. “It hurt so much. I couldn’t breathe and I couldn’t move. There was blood everywhere and I got an infection because of the open wounds and the fucking kerosene. I was in the hospital for so long. I thought I’d never get out of there.”
“Oh, baby. I’m so sorry.” I hold her tight and try to freeze the terror that’s rippling through me.
She doesn’t need my dramatics. She needs my understanding. Especially when she hiccups and then sobs, her head buried in my shoulder.
My hands tighten on her, my fists clenching. I need to find this asshole and beat him. Kill him. Destroy him, slowly and painfully until he hurts the way he hurt her.
“Shhh. Baby, it’s okay. He’s not here. It’s just us. I promise you he will never get near you again. I swear it. I will never let anybody hurt you again.”
She breathes deep, the occasional hiccup making her shoulder jump against me.
Making her ass hit my aching cock just right.
My jaw clenches and I have to list a bunch of swear words in my head to keep from saying them out loud.
And to keep my damn cock from jumping up and slamming into her pretty, little ass.
Not today, fucker. Not now.
She finally settles in my arms and I pet her soft curls gently. Feeling her take a deep breath and matching her breath for breath.
“Hey, sprite. Why don’t you go ahead and go upstairs and get ready for bed. I’ll stay here until you fall asleep.”
Her red, puffy eyes lift to me and I try not to wince. She looks wrecked. But still so damn beautiful.
Still so perfectly mine.
“I’ll lock up. And I’ll check around outside.” Which will give me enough time to get my ass under control. I’ve never felt the need to hunt someone down to rip them limb from limb before.
Control. That’s the name of my game.
But not with her. Willow Wilder tears my control away from me faster than anything in this life.
She’s my greatest weakness. And she always will be.
I kiss her cheek gently and stand easily with her soft curves in my arms. I set her on her feet one toe at a time until she’s standing in front of me, flushed and desperately sweet.
That will also give me a chance to call my mother and let her know that I’m going to be late and why. Mostly.
Shooing her up the stairs I turn to the door and lock it behind me. I still have a key for the lock because if I need to get to her, I fucking will. Not even a lock will stop me.
But I will never take away her choices. Her decisions. Even if I don’t like them.
Even if it breaks me.
The night air cools my fevered skin. It’s been hot as hell lately but tonight there’s a chill in the air. A fresh, ozone smell that tells me that somewhere out there, a storm is brewing.
I just wonder if it’s inside me or outside.
I don’t find anything and when I’m done, I sit down on the porch steps and pull out my phone, dialing my mom’s cell.
“Hello, Jasper. Care to tell me where you went tearing off to in such a hurry that you neglected to tell me where you were going?”
Wincing, I stand up and pace. “I’m sorry, mom. The notification went off at Willow’s place and I came out to make sure there wasn’t anybody trying to get in again.”
“How did you know that?”
“She told me.”
“You’re lying. Did you get the app too so you could track that poor girl’s movements around her own home?”
“It’s complicated.”
“That you’re in love with her? I imagine it is since you just met her. But sometimes that doesn’t matter. Time is relative. When you know you know. When I met your father I knew within the first seconds that he was the one.”
“So I’m following in your footsteps, huh?” I chuckle.
“Yeah.”
“I’m going to stay here until she falls asleep. She’s upset right now.”
She doesn’t say anything for a minute but then she sighs. “I read the newspaper reports. That poor girl. I knew I recognized her name. And not just because of her books.”
“Yeah,” I croak. “It was bad. I just finally got her to talk about it.”
“You mean after twenty four hours? That finally?”
“Okay, mom. I admit this is moving fast but that doesn’t mean it isn’t right.”
“You stay as long as you need. But tell her I’m gonna be there early in the morning. The fair is tomorrow. I thought I’d take her and Claudia. Tire both of them out.”
“Thanks, mom. But I don’t know if she’ll go. She hasn’t been outside of this house for the most part except for when I made her go.”
“Just tell her.”
“Alright. The Founder’s Day Festival is just a lot of fun. I know she’ll enjoy it.”
“Fine. But I’m gonna go in now. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Bye, sweetheart. Take care of that girl. I’ve got everything on this end. I’m just happy that some girl finally got you to let go of a little of that massive control of yours!”
“Goodnight, mom. Tell Claudia goodnight from me.”
“She’s already asleep.”
I hang up and stand in front of the door for a second, gathering the tattered remnants of my control.
I unlock the door after a deep breath. And walk inside to a quiet house. “Willow? Where are you, little sprite?”
“Upstairs. In bed,” she calls and my heart starts racing but I lock that fucker down. Checking the doors and windows, I start up the stairs slowly, so slowly, my steps light and quiet.
My breath is fast and loud in the silence of the house. It’s like the house is holding its breath. Waiting to see what’s coming next.
You and me both, house.
But when I get to the top of the stairs I see that the bedroom door is open and there’s a dim light burning. I push the door wider and she’s there. Her red curls catch the light and make a golden halo of fire around her pretty face. Her smoky eyes smile at me. She pats the bed and my brow lifts.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. You’re tired and upset tonight, baby.”
Her pouty lips turn down. “I know exactly what I’m doing. I want you.”
My dick is pressed against my pants like the fucker’s gonna push his way right out of them.
But that’s not happening right now.
“No. Not tonight. We’re both tired and emotional and I want you to know exactly what you’re doing. Because once I touch your body, once I claim you? That’s it. You’re mine. And I’m not sure that you’re ready for that.”
“I am,” she huffs.
“Not tonight. But I talked to my mom and I’ll stay tonight. I’ll make sure that you’re alright all night.”
She huffs again but then she growls. “Fine.” And she rolls over in bed and pulls the covers up.
“I don’t know how you sleep under all that stuff.
” I sit on the edge of the bed and tug off my boots and throw my hat onto the end table.
Then I lie down beside her and she turns over and curls into my side and I close my eyes, telling my fucking dick that that is not an invitation. No matter what he fucking thinks.
I let my shoulders relax and close my eyes, sure that I’m never going to be able to sleep beside my biggest temptation.