“Your dad came round while you were out.” Now probably wasn’t the best time to tell him, but I didn’t want to wait till tomorrow night.
He perked up at that, but not enough to move away.
“What did he want?”
“To apologise.” I didn’t elaborate, Jasper would know what for.
“Ahh. I hoped he might.” He rested his head on my shoulder, soft hair tickling under my chin. “That’s good.” He didn’t seem the least bit put out with that news. Looked like Cole had been right again.
Since when did my little brother get so wise.
He’s the same age as Jasper, my mind helpfully supplied.
But while I was starting to see Jasper as a grown man these days, Cole would forever be my baby brother. I smiled to myself. I was perfectly okay with that.
Jasper sagged against me and I chuckled as I realised he was falling asleep on his feet. I glanced down to see his eyes closed. “Come on. Bed.” I guided him towards the door, his eyes flickering open as we walked.
“Thought you’d never ask,” he mumbled.
Despite knowing he was half-asleep, probably had no clue what he was saying, my breath hitched, heart skipping a beat as that thought slipped into my brain. And for a second I let myself imagine taking him up to my room and cuddling next to him in my king-size bed.
Sleeping on my own had taken a lot of getting used to, and I still struggled to fall asleep some nights. The thought of having Jasper curled up next to me was incredibly tempting.
With effort, I pushed that idea aside and followed him up the stairs, making sure he found his way into his bedroom. I pulled his door closed and leant against the door frame.
What are you doing, Finn?
Fucked if I knew.
I went back downstairs to turn off the lights and lock up, pausing in the living room doorway. With the main lights down low, the light from the Christmas tree filled the room with a festive warmth, making me smile. Angus appeared from under the bottom branches, yawning and stretching before coming to curl around my legs.
This felt nothing like last year.
Even then I’d known things weren’t right, but I’d tried to make it work. Tried to cling on to what I thought we had.
Having Jasper around was like sunshine at the end of a wintery storm. He’d fit seamlessly into my life and my home, filling a gap I hadn’t wanted to acknowledge, and the temptation to let him in further was strong. It would be so, so easy to take that next step.
Were my reasons for not doing so valid, or was I just making up excuses to not get hurt again? Christ. I ran a hand through my hair, huffing out a laugh when Angus tried to climb up my legs for attention. I bent to pick him up, grunting at the weight.
“You big cuddly bastard,” I crooned as he headbutted my chin, purring loudly. “What am I gonna do, eh?”
I glanced at the tree again before setting Angus down and bending to turn the lights off. Festive spirit my arse. I wasn’t going to let a tree and some fairy light make me rush into something I might regret.
Nope.
I scooped up Angus and made my way back upstairs, ignoring the little flutter my heart gave when I passed Jasper’s room.
Chapter 8
Jasper
Wednesday at workseemed to take for fucking ever to get through. Starting at seven thirty had been bad enough, but the extra hour in the morning was killing me. I yawned every couple of minutes on the drive home, or so it felt like.
By the time I stumbled through the front door, I was more than ready to collapse in a heap on the sofa. The heavenly smell that met me had me veering to the kitchen instead.
“God, that smells good.” Pausing in the kitchen doorway, I closed my eyes for a second and inhaled. “What is it?”
Finn turned around with a smile. “Chicken, bacon, and leek bake. With mini roast potatoes.” My stomach rumbled loudly, and he laughed. “It’ll be ready in about ten minutes. Go sit down and find us something to watch.”
