by KB Winters
I held my breath, waiting for him to say something nice. Something complimentary. “Jasper,” I groaned.
“I need you, Mo. At least until they’re all trained up right.”
Those first four words, beautiful and misleading all at once, hit me in an unexpected place. Longing shot through me, so strong and deep and visceral it was like a dropkick to the center of my chest, at his slightly anguished words.
I knew Jasper wasn’t saying he needed me. He was the boss, after all. Even if that was true on some planet, he wasn’t the kind of man to say words like that. No, he needed my skills as a waitress.
“Sadie thought they were capable enough to open up Lucky Lopez.”
“Yeah, I know,” he growled and ran a hand through his thick hair. “And I’m telling you they’re not. You’ve seen it for yourself.”
“Fine,” I sighed. “Then train them how you like, or have Thomas do it. He probably needs something else to keep him busy between trips to the hospital. I can’t keep working this schedule, Jasper.”
Just as I said the words, a yawn split my jaw until it cracked, and I shook my head. “I’ll see you tomorrow at Midnight Mass.” It was well past time for me to get home and get to bed.
“Not good enough, Mo.”
Oh, he was fucking kidding me, wasn’t he? I whirled around to face him, no longer swayed by the way my heart beat just for him or the panty-melting scowl on his face. Now, I was pissed.
“I worked these shifts as a favor to you, Jasper. A fucking favor. If you want to fire me, then go right ahead because newsflash, I don’t work here. Send me a text message to let me know because I’m outta here.”
“Hot date?”
The question came out on a derisive snort. His arms folded across his broad chest, a knowing expression on his face as if he knew me. Knew my life.
“Why do you care?”
He shrugged. “Who said I did?”
“Exactly. We both know you don’t so stop with the questions. You get what you want and dismiss me like a fucking whore, so don’t start playing the role of a jealous boyfriend.”
I turned back toward the door and marched right through it, a head full of steam and heart full of anger ready to burst.
“Mo,” he called after me, but I did something I never did when it came to Jasper. I ignored him and kept walking. “Goddammit, Mo.”
“Not now, Jasper. I told you I’m tired.” And I couldn’t be responsible for whatever came out my mouth next. “Tomorrow. Midnight Mass. See you then.”
I felt the weight of his gaze on me as I pushed open the Lucky Lopez entrance harder than I needed to and walked across the parking lot, my heart slowly breaking as I slid into the waiting car.
Hulu spotted me in the rearview mirror. “Everything all right?”
I nodded, but Hulu’s kind gaze, so filled with concern, was my undoing. Tears fell down my cheeks, and I swiped at them angrily, as if they were to blame for my current state of emotions. It wasn’t the tears, hell, it wasn’t even really Jasper. He was the same man he’d always been, the same man I had loved all these years.
Between his all-powerful king of the world behavior and my hormones, my emotions were all over the place. I could barely see straight due to my confused state of mind, and I needed to get my shit together.
“I’m fine, Hulu. Thanks.”
“Wanna talk about it? I’ve been told I’m a good listener.”
His kind words put a smile on my face. “Thanks, but I absolutely do not want to talk about it.”
“I’m here if you do,” he offered and drove me home. Hulu came to a stop outside Emerald Isle and opened the back door for me.
“Don’t let Jasper get to you, Mo. He’s stressed as fuck right now.”
“I know.” But it wasn’t just now; it was always. Jasper was a powerful man who expected everyone to do what he asked of them, no questions asked. For years I’d been his happy little soldier, so I knew the last thing he needed now, with Sadie hanging on for dear life and some unknown shooter out in the world, was me changing shit up.
“I’m fine. Just a little emotional, probably from all the hours I’ve been working lately.”
He didn’t believe me, but thankfully Hulu was a man’s man and knew how to take a hint. He shrugged his big shoulders and stuck close to me.
“Then let’s get you up to your suite so you can get some sleep. What do you have up there, Egyptian cotton? Ten million thread count?”
I let out my first real laugh of the day. “Ten million?”
He shrugged. “I’m not fancy. Spent years of my life in the desert sleeping in a tent.”
“Eight hundred. I’ll buy you some.”
“Don’t do that. I might like ’em too much, and then I’ll be fancy like you.”
“Would that be so bad?”
“For you? Not at all. I’m a big burly son of a bitch, though, can’t walk around bragging about my fancy-ass sheets.”
“Sure you can.” I bumped his shoulder as we stepped off the elevator, feeling the tension of the long day seep from my shoulders the closer I got to the door. “The women will love it.”
“Well now, that’s a much better selling point.” He laughed and waited until I stepped inside my condo before his smile faded. “Lock the door. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“I will. Thanks, Hulu. Have a good night.”
He winked and stood there, waiting for me to close and then lock the door. When I did, he gave two sharp knocks, and then I heard his whistling as he walked back towards the elevator.
Why couldn’t I have fallen for a guy like that?
Because you’re too fucked up for a good guy.
Oh, right. That.
Chapter Seventeen
Jasper
Well, shit. I couldn’t have fucked up that interaction with Mo more if I tried, and it really fucking pissed me off that I even cared. What was up with Mo, anyway? She was a good-time girl, mouthy and sassy and always with a smile on her face. That was what I liked about her from the very beginning, a mouthy kid who put on a tough front because life had required her to. Lately, though, something was up with her.
She wasn’t just defiant, refusing to work shifts when I needed her to; she was also quiet and sullen. Her attitude was growing worse by the day. Something was definitely up with her, and I planned to find out what. I’d do it tomorrow before she started her shift. I couldn’t afford to lose Mo, not while Sadie was still out, and I had to deal with Lucky Lopez.
A whore. She accused me of treating her like a whore, and what the fuck was I supposed to do with that? A whore was exactly what she was. Maybe she wanted to sugarcoat it, but she straight up had sex for money and not just with me.
It was no secret that Mo liked the finer things in life. Designer shoes and handbags, fancy vacations and room service meals prepared by five-star chefs. Those things cost money, and she had no problem moonlighting as a sex worker to pay for those things.
So why the fuck was she so angry about the way I treated her? I took a shot of Velvet Fire, smiling at how much it would piss off Virgil that I shot his sipping whiskey, and then I slammed the glass down hard as I replayed that last fuck in my office.
I wasn’t a cuddler, but Mo’s curves were tempting enough that I sometimes wished we’d cuddle, just for a few more minutes, but that was it. She was a fuck, a damn good fuck but still just a fuck.
Did she expect flowers or chocolates? That wasn’t what we did, but still, the instinct to drop a few hundred on a nice gift was strong, especially if it would get her to help out at Lucky Lopez until she was no longer needed.
“Fuck!” I reached for my phone and dialed Maisie because I didn’t need to hear Kat’s shit.
“Jasper, what’s wrong? It’s four o’clock in the morning.
I frowned at the phone. “Nothing. I need a favor.”
Maisie yawned. “I’m good, Jas. How are you?”
My shoulders fell in resignation because I knew ther
e was no way around it. Maisie wasn’t an asshole like the rest of my siblings, but she was stubborn in her own way.
“I’ve been better, Maisie, but I’m glad to hear you’re all right. Did I wake you?”
“Nah. I’m up already. Drinking coffee and looking for belly dancers for a sunrise barbecue and arranging a luau in the desert.”
She sounded tired but happy, and I was glad I never had to worry about Maisie doing her job. The big spenders had nothing but good things to say about her, and she brought in more every quarter.
“Sounds fucking stupid.”
She laughed, and I could almost picture her rolling her eyes at me. “Sounds like people with a lot of money and very exacting standards and incredibly specific expectations. Almost like someone else I know.”
Me. “Who?”
She laughed again. “What’s up, Jas?”
“I managed to piss Mo off somehow. Can you arrange a nice gift for her?”
After a long beat of silence, I frowned. “Maze?”
“I’m here, just thinking.”
“About?”
She let out a sigh. “Never mind all that. A thousand bucks nice? More? Less?”
“Fuck if I know,” I growled. “Just make it something she would like. Something nice.”
Maisie laughed at me. Again. “Sure. You want to give it to her yourself?”
“No,” I growled.
“Yeah, I think you should too. I’ll have it sent to you at Midnight Mass.”
I could have argued with her, but I was too fucking tired and not in the mood. “Thank you.”
“No problem, brother. None at all.” There was laughter in her voice as she ended the call.
That was my final fucking task for the night before I headed home. I washed down a sleeping pill with a glass of whiskey and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep because drugs were the only way I could fall asleep these days.
Nothing tasted better after a solid night of sleep and a few glasses of Velvet Fire than buttery toast and scrambled eggs with pepper. A lot of fucking pepper. It was the perfect cure to keep the hangover away because I had too much shit to do to deal with a fucking hangover.
“Jasper.” Thomas entered the dining room, where I was enjoying my breakfast. In peace.
“What?”
Thomas dismissed my tone and said, “We need to talk.”
I shoveled another forkful of eggs into my mouth. “About what?”
He let out a long-suffering sigh as if it was his breakfast being interrupted. “Lucky Lopez, obviously.”
His tone pissed me off, and I dropped my fork with a loud clang. “It’s way too early for your bullshit, Thomas. Say what you need to say and get the fuck out.”
“There’s too much security at the club. That’s fine for the tourists, the weekend warriors who like to feel like they’re in a bit of danger. But the big money guys, the gangsters, they feel antsy. They’ll stop coming if we don’t scale back.”
He was right. I just had the same fucking conversation with Provo, but dammit, I just wanted to enjoy my fucking breakfast. I smacked a hand against the table, angry as hell.
“Just because you’re fucking Sadie doesn’t mean you’re in charge. Stay in your goddamn lane.”
The motherfucker laughed at me. “It’s more than that, and we both know it, but if it makes you feel better to minimize things between me and your mother, fine. I’m talking about business, Jasper, not personal shit.”
“This business isn’t yours to talk about.”
“No?” He folded his arms and arched a brow. “Then why even let me manage the club in her absence? Because you’re already spread too fucking thin, and you need the help, even if you are too fucking stubborn to admit it.”
“I don’t need help.”
“Right, I forgot, you’re a fucking magician. At all places, at all times. Then I hope you’re not too tired to take tonight’s shift since I’m not in charge.”
“Cut the shit, Thomas.” I pushed away from the table and went to the bar. Yeah, it was early, and I was about to down three more fingers of Velvet Fire before I even finished my eggs.
“Shit? I’m just trying to do my best to abide by Sadie’s wishes. That’s all. We want the same thing, Jasper. When she’s out of the hospital, she’ll be happy to see Lucky Lopez exactly how she wants it.”
“If she gets out,” I growled, and I realized what had me on edge. What if Sadie didn’t wake up? What if she never woke up but instead drifted off into a permanent fucking sleep, never to rise, to talk shit, never to light up a joint in her salon ever again?
Thomas gave me one of his looks of steel while still a badass gentleman. “She will. Sadie is stronger than even she knows underneath all that bluster and steel. And when that happens, you will have wasted your time trying to change things that she’ll only change back.”
Thomas raked his fingers through his hair and sighed. “Just listen. You used to be able to do that pretty well.”
“I’m not a kid anymore, Thomas,” I snarled at him, pissed off that he was reminding me of the kid I was before I found myself. My strength.
Thomas smiled, but it wasn’t filled with amusement or pride. “You’re all grown up, but lately, you’ve been acting like a petulant fucking brat.”
“A brat?” I snort-laughed. “A brat, Thomas?” I stood and threw my glass at his head, deliberately missing so it shattered against the wall. “Yeah? And what are you going to do about it, old man?”
Thomas smiled back. “Happy to remind you who taught you to hand out a good ass-whipping.”
Hell, yes. This was what I needed. Killing those bikers didn’t do shit to satisfy my bloodlust.
“I’m happy to let you try,” I told him as I removed my cufflinks and rolled up my sleeves.
Thomas did the same, slowly removing his vest like this was another one of our lessons. Shoulders squared with a slight hunch, fists protecting his face. “Let’s see what you got. Brat.”
I lunged forward, sneaking a jab between his arms. It landed on his nose. “Too slow, old man.”
The old fucker put his right fist forward and landed a body hit and a hook to my jaw with his left. “Who you calling old?” He flashed a confident smile that just pissed me off.
“The only old man in the fucking room,” I growled and landed two hammer fists to his jaw. Thomas stumbled back but only a step before he recovered and came back at me. “Yeah, come and get some more.”
He ducked my next jab and landed two in my gut and one in my side, smiling the whole fucking time.
Time to stop fucking around, son. Colm’s voice came to me in that moment, and all I could see was red. Anger and hurt and disgust rose to the surface, and I had the perfect fucking target in front of me. I landed a hook to the jaw, an uppercut to his chin, and another hook to his side.
Thomas spat and pushed me backward, not hard enough to fall, just enough to let me know he wasn’t fucking around anymore either.
“You wanna fight me, Jasper? Fine. Let’s do it.” He got back in fighter’s stance and backed me up until I was against the wall and landed blow after blow to my face, my stomach, and side. My ribs.
No way was I letting his fucker beat me.
“No!” I pushed him into the table, and a few chairs toppled over and lifted my foot to stomp him.
Thomas rolled away, fast for his age, and was on his feet again quickly.
I was on his ass as soon as he was on his feet, three blows to the gut. One to the back and two more to the ribs.
“Fuck,” Thomas growled and showed his gratitude by landing a spinning elbow right on my mouth, splitting my lip open.
I spit the blood out, angry and sore but not ready to quit. Never would I fucking quit a fight. “Sucker punch.”
“Not a sucker punch when my back is turned, you little shit.”
That satisfied fucking smile on his face only pissed me off more, if that was even fucking possible. I let loose another jab that barely grazed
his jaw, but the next one landed perfectly. Good.
His head snapped back, and he reset quickly before he stepped in and landed two consecutive leg kicks. I stepped in to land another punch, and that earned me another fucking kick to the other leg.
“Fuck!” My roar of pain echoed in the dining room.
“Done?”
“Not even fucking close,” I growled and stepped in for a combo. Jab. Hook. Jab.
“Jasper,” he scolded.
“You can stop this at any time,” I told him, breathless and panting.
Something flashed in his eyes, and Thomas nodded before he stepped with his right leg, but I was ready for him this time and blocked that left jab. He kicked me with the right leg before he punched me twice in the mouth. One final leg sweep, and I was on my back, staring up at Thomas’ angry, anguished face.
“I just did,” he growled. “Unless you want me to knock you out?”
I spat out more blood and glared up at him. “Fuck you.”
“Yeah, fuck you too, Jasper.” He extended a helping hand to me, and I smacked it away, but Thomas was a stubborn bastard, and he kept his hand there, daring me to not accept it, to prove I was the little shit he accused me of being.
I accepted his hand and got to my feet, gripping his hand hard for a long moment. We stared at each other, the moment tense and almost awkward, but I had to let him know who the fuck was in charge.
“Think you broke my fucking calf.”
“I could have if I wanted to.” Thomas made his way to the bar, pouring two glasses of whiskey and handing me one.
“Yeah, thanks.” Even though I got my ass beat, that fight was just what I needed to get my head on straight, to satisfy my need to fuck some shit up. Some more shit, my mind taunted.
“Look, Jasper.” Thomas took a sip and sighed. “I’m not an Ashby. I damn well know that. You love to remind me of that, just like your father did. The thing is, I know I’ll never be, and I’m fine with that, but I love your mother and even her adult children. This house full of people? The only fucking family I have.”
