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She shakes her head and brings me into a hug, stroking my back. “Jasper isn’t anything like him. Believe me. He can be a selfish person, but I can tell you he cares a lot about you.” She tucks her hair behind her ear. “You need to get a restraining order against Link. The way he tried to… you know. I think he’s going to try to do it again.”
Thinking about what he did makes me want to go apeshit as I’m still shaken up about it. Michael escorts me everywhere I go now, not letting me out of his sight, and I’m grateful for it.
I shake my head. “It won’t keep him away, besides, I have a bodyguard to follow me around and Jasper put him in his place.”
It’s time for the baby’s gender reveal, and Atlas ushers everyone outside on the patio. Lake joins him by his side, and they count to three. Lake pops a balloon and blue smoke floats in the air. Everyone claps and cheers. Atlas picks Lake up and swings her around, kissing her softly. My eyes go to Jasper, and he wears a sad expression. Why is he sad about seeing his best friend happy? He strides inside and sits on the couch, rubbing his fingers against his pants.
I follow after Jasper and sit so close to him that our arms rub against each other’s. Maybe he’s upset he can’t give me a child? I’m starting to be okay with it, but I have to reassure him. I’m getting something better now. I’m going to help so many children, thanks to his help.
“What’s going on?” I ask him.
He places his hand on his chin, his face laced with so much sorrow I can feel it radiating from him. I’ve never seen him look so sad.
I grab his chin so he has to look at me. “If you’re worried about not giving me a child, I’m fine with it. Really, I am. I’m more excited about helping other people’s children with special needs.”
He shakes his head and removes my hand from his chin. “I’m just having memories about Harper.”
Jealousy roars in my chest. He’s thinking about his ex. I swallow the lump in my throat. We’re nothing but friends who have a marriage contract, but I need to control my emotions. I’m already getting attached to him, and that’s not a good idea.
I’m grateful for all the things Jasper does for me, but I need to stop blurring the lines between us.
“Oh.”I get up from the couch.
He grabs my hand, tugging me to sit back down beside him. I resist at first, my feet glued to the marble floor. “Wait. Don’t go.”
I don’t look at him, my eyes venturing to the high ceiling. “I don’t want to hear you mourning over your ex-girlfriend.”
He twists me around on the couch to face him and cups my face. “Stop being jealous. She’s not my ex-girlfriend; she’s my daughter.”
My mouth hangs open at his words, and I can’t speak for several moments.
“You have a daughter?”
“Had.” Sorrow is evident on his face as he hangs his head down. “She passed away due to a fire. I wanted to have drinks with my friends, so I hired my next-door neighbor at the time to watch her.” He thrusts his fingers through his hair and yanks at the strands hard. “I made her dinner before I left and I forgot to remove the towel from beside the stove while the burner was still on. My neighbor told me she would finish making dinner, but I was in a hurry to go.” He has a haunted look on his face. “She died from inhaling too much smoke. She was only three at the time.”
That explains a lot, the reason he doesn’t want kids. I thought he just didn’t like kids, but it’s clear he hasn’t gotten over his daughter’s death. I can’t imagine losing a child and I never want to experience that type of pain either. Jasper looks so heartbroken. I pull him into a hug and I inhale his woodsy scent.
“Is that why you don’t want kids?”
He pulls away and nods. “I don’t want to let him or her down like I did with Harper. Sometimes, I’ll sit at the park and look at families with kids and question why it happened. Why wasn’t I paying attention? I just wanted some time with my friends, and I was a single parent. Her mother dropped her off and wasn’t really there for Harper like I was. She was too busy chasing men, doing whatever she wanted.”
I would ask him more about his ex, but this is a big deal. He normally doesn’t open up to me and I’m glad he’s sharing this with me now.
I stroke his hand as we sit in silence, listening to the loud music blasting from the balcony. I don’t know the right words to say to a person who is grieving.
I glance at Jasper’s face. I’ve never seen him so broken.
I wish I could take back the pain from him, because no one deserves that type of sorrow.
Atlas walks inside with a beer in his hand. “You okay, man?”
Jasper shakes his head.
“Is it about Harper?” Atlas asks.
He nods. Atlas sets the beer on the table as Trent strolls in, taking in the scene. I watch both of them wrap their arms around Jasper, embracing him as a few tears leak from his eyes.
Jasper is broken like shattered glass, and I wish I had the glue to hold him together.
