AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You’re not expecting someone?”
“Nope. I’ll be right back.” Who the bloody hell could that be? They were upending his hard-fought inroads with Freya. He sauntered through the living room to the front door, ready to tell whoever it was to get lost.
And scowled when he yanked the door open and spied the group on his front porch. “What brings you fuckers to my doorstep?”
“Josh called us,” Gabe replied, his arms crossed in front of his chest. He was the unanointed leader of their family.
“We need to talk,” Dean explained. “And I seriously doubt you want to have this conversation here on the front porch.”
“Who is it?” Freya asked from the living room. He glanced over his shoulder and found her with Maddie in her arms, distrust etched upon every line of her face.
“Just my cousins, lass. Take it easy.” He shifted his attention back to his idiot cousins, moving out of the way, and waved them in. “Well, don’t just stand there. Come on in.”
The group filed in. It was all of them: Gabe, Dean, Finn, Jase, Colin, and Asher. Once inside the living room, their attention shifted to Freya defensively holding Maddie like she was ready to make a run for it.
Jasper plastered a smile on his face, even with the microscope his family had put them under. Rage filled him. He was shocked steam didn’t pour from his ears. Then he joined Freya in the living room. He circled her stiff shoulders, pulling her against his side, both as a show of unity and to protect her from whatever they had come here to say.
“Lass, these are my rascal cousins I told you about. That is Gabe, Dean, Finn, Colin, who you met yesterday, Jase, and Asher. Although Asher isn’t a blood cousin but married to their sister Emilia. And guys, this is my Freya and her daughter, Maddie.”
Freya’s smile didn’t reach her eyes. “It’s nice to meet you. We were just having lunch. I could make you guys some sandwiches if you’re hungry.”
“Don’t go to the trouble, lass. We’ve already had lunch, but thank you just the same.” Gabe nodded.
“We just need to talk some business with Jasper, is all,” Dean explained.
“It’s quite a drive for a business meeting.” Freya glanced at him, searching for reassurance.
Needing to ease her mind, he pressed a kiss against her forehead. “Sorry, lass, the meeting slipped my mind. We’ll head downstairs so we’re out of your way. Why don’t you and Maddie finish your lunch, then we can go for a walk when I’m done.”
“Okay. Take your time. I have a feeling this one will need her nap soon.”
“No nap.” Maddie shook her head in defiance, pouting.
He tweaked her nose, much to Maddie’s delight. “You’ve got to make sure you take a nap, little lassie, or there will be no cookies for you later.”
At that, Maddie’s blue eyes went round, and then she smiled up at him. “Ja’per kiss.”
He gave her a smacking kiss on the cheek that sent her into peals of laughter that even made his idiot cousins grin. Then he whispered in Freya’s ear, “Deep breaths, lass, and you’ll get through it.”
Then he turned and gave his cousins an arched glare. “If the idiot brigade would follow me, we can get our meeting started.”
Jasper led the way into the basement, but he didn’t stop in the family room. He wanted privacy for whatever they said. Privacy where Freya wouldn’t accidentally overhear their conversation. So he led them into his dungeon and shut the room.
“This is quite the place for us to talk.” Asher shot him a bemused stare.
“Please, like you haven’t tied Emilia up in your private dungeon and fucked her,” Jasper chided him.
“I don’t talk about that in front of her brothers.” Asher shook his head.
Jasper crossed his arms. “What’s this all about? Not that I don’t enjoy seeing you. But Freya is right. It’s a long drive for a meeting.”
“We’re staging an intervention,” Finn admitted, crossing his arms in front of him. It was bad if they could get Finn off his damn farm.
“Josh talked. That fucker. I should sue the goddamn pants off him and file a malpractice suit against him,” he swore. The next time he saw Josh, he would give the man a piece of his mind.
“He’s family.” Gabe shrugged, like that was explanation enough and forgave his violation of their attorney-client privilege.
“And that makes his betrayal all right? He broke his word.” And he would chew him a new asshole at the first opportunity.
