I was rewarded with a chuckle.
“It’s a miracle you didn’t freeze to death before you met me.”
I looked up and was glad to see his smile reach his eyes. “So, give me a hint about my present.”
He grinned and shook his head. “No hints. You’ll see tomorrow.”
I kissed him softly. “I love you, Jasper.”
“I know, Shlova.” He hugged me tightly. “I love you, too.”
We shared one last kiss before I turned and settled myself against him for the night. His hand found mine and he pulled me close.
“Merry Christmas, Hayden.”
I smiled. “Merry Christmas, hun.”
*****
“So, are you ready for your present, Shlova?” Jasper was driving my truck down the road toward Shay’s.
I laughed. I wasn’t sure who was more excited about my present, me or him. “Is it here?”
He nodded. “Shawn picked it up for me this morning. Since we were coming here for supper anyway, he said he would wrap it for me.”
“Is it something I’ve asked for?”
He raised an eyebrow at me. “Hayden, I don’t think I’ve ever heard you ask for anything.”
I shrugged. “There’s not really anything that I absolutely need, I guess.”
“You’ll just have to wait until we get there.”
Thankfully, I didn’t have long to wait. We turned up the driveway and parked beside Shawn’s truck. We each grabbed a bagful of presents and headed into the house.
“Merry Christmas, guys!” I set the bag down and pulled off my winter boots.
“Merry Christmas!” Shay came to give us a hug. “How did supper go last night?”
“It was great. Jasper worked his charm and had them all eating out of his hand. He could have shifted right in front of them and I don’t think they would have noticed.”
Jasper smiled. “I don’t think it went quite how Hayden is describing it, but it definitely went well. Where is Shawn hiding at?”
Shay grinned. “He’s in our bedroom. He said for you to go straight there when you got here.”
He disappeared and Shay helped me bring the presents to the living room. “Tara and Ben should be here in a bit.”
“Are you ready, Hayden?” Jasper’s voice floated down the hallway.
“If I knew what I was supposed to be ready for, I might be able to answer you.”
“For your present, of course.” He walked into the living room, his smile lighting up his face. His hands were empty.
I laughed. “Are you my present?”
“No.” He chuckled. He gave a quick glance back down the hallway and his smile widened. “He is.”
I stared at the hallway waiting for whoever ‘he’ was to show up. I had to adjust the height of my gaze. “Oh, my god!” I knelt and picked up the little blue merle ball of hair that was the size of a big cat. One white eye and one brown eye peered at me. The green bow around his neck was almost as big as he was. “He’s adorable!”
Jasper came to kneel beside me and pet the little head. “He’s a full brother to Cooper.”
Cooper raised his head at the sound of his name before deciding that sleeping was more important than getting his ears scratched.
“He’s four months old. I have his papers right here.” Shawn handed me the documents. “His shots are up to date. He’ll need his booster and his rabies in a couple of months.”
The puppy struggled in my arms and I set him down.
Jasper put his arm around me. “What are you going to name him?”
I kissed him tenderly before looking at the puppy who had decided that his older brother had better wake up and play with him. “Kip.”
Kip looked at me and tilted his head before giving a bark and attacking Cooper.
I looked up at Jasper. “Do you think he’ll be able to cross over?”
“I wouldn’t have got him had I thought you’d have to leave him behind.”
I smiled and kissed him again.
There was a knock on the door and Cooper barked before running out of the room to meet whoever was at the door. Kip chased after him.
“Oh, my god!” Tara’s delighted squeal filled the house. She came into the room carrying my new pup. Ben followed behind her carrying an armload of gifts. He set them down and went back for a couple more.
Shay came in carrying a tray of glasses, rum, and eggnog. “Merry Christmas, everybody.”
We all poured a drink and raised our glasses. “Merry Christmas.”
Kip barked his approval.
*****
Before we knew it, Valentine’s Day was upon us.
“Did you pick the restaurant you wanted to go to, Shlova?” Jasper grabbed an armful of grocery bags and waited while I did the same.
“I was thinking Chez Nicole’s.”
We made our way into the house and started to put the food away. Kip came trotting down the stairs to say hello.
“Hey, pal. Do you have to pee?” I let him out into the yard and went back to the kitchen. I stood in the doorway and watched Jasper put the canned vegetables in the cupboard. “Why the frown? Did you want to go elsewhere?”
He started and dropped the can he was holding. He bent to pick it up and gave me a grin. “No. That sounds fine. I haven’t tried that one yet.”
I took a deep breath. “Alright, Jasper. Cut the crap, now. What’s wrong?”
He shook his head. “Nothing.”
“Don’t tell me there’s nothing. This is the first time in the almost four years that I’ve known you that I have managed to sneak up on you and surprise you. And I wasn’t even trying. I want to know what’s been bothering you.”
He was quiet for a moment. “There’s something I’ve been thinking about. I just wanted to be sure I knew exactly where I stood on the subject before I brought it up.”
“And do you know now?”
He nodded.
“So, what is it?”
He looked deeply into my eyes and his gaze pulled me to him. I took a few steps forward and stopped when I could take his hands.
“How would you feel about coming back here?”
My heart jumped. “When?”
“When we’re done saving the world.” He smiled.
I frowned. “You want to come back?”
“If that’s what you want.”
“What about our cabin? And Dodge? And Luke, Mel, and the boys? God, Jasper, you’re finally able to live a normal life with your brother and his family. Why would you want to give that up?”
It was his turn to frown. “Well, I like it here. I like working on the ranch. Do you realize we have gone nine months without someone trying to kill us or steal you away? Well, other than the incident at Bruce’s, but I don’t really think that qualifies. And I can see you’re happy here. Aren’t you?”
“Of course I’m happy here! I was raised here. This is what I know best. But I’m happy there, too. There are pluses to being both places. I’ve already told you, hun. I don’t care where we are so long as you’re there with me.” I looked into his eyes. “You hurt here. It may not be as bad as when we first got here, but I can still see it in your eyes.”
He swallowed and something close to fear passed over his face. “Will that always be enough?”
“What?”
“Me. I keep thinking that maybe for now, it might be. But what about five or ten years down the road? Will you wake up one morning and think of everything you’ve given up to stay there just to realize that you regret the choice? That it wasn’t worth it. That I wasn’t worth it.”
I looked up at him, shocked. “I don’t know how to answer that. Have I done something to make you doubt how I feel about you?”
“No. Not at all. I just…” A low growl escaped his throat. “I just want you to be happy. If you feel you are happier here, I will be glad to come back. I like it here. At the rate we’re going we’ll have enough money put away so that we can put some down on our own
place when we’re done over there.” He looked down at my hands in his and gently rubbed the gold band on my finger with his thumb. His eyes met mine again. “You always say that you don’t care where you are so long as we’re together. I need you to know that the same goes for me.”
I reached up and touched his face. “How about we see if we survive saving the world and then we’ll decide where we’ll stay.”
“We’ll survive.” He caught my hand in his and brushed his lips over my knuckles.
“How do you know?”
“I just do. We just have to.” He took my other hand and pulled both of them so they were behind my back and I was pressed against his chest.
“And why is that?” I closed my eyes and shivered as he ran his lips over mine.
“Because I’m not done loving you yet.” He rested his forehead against mine and took a deep breath.
“Well, that’s good to know.”
Jasper pulled back and looked and me. “Oh?”
I stood on my tip toes and ran my teeth along his jaw line. “I’m not done loving you either.” He let go of my arms and I wrapped them around his neck. “How are you worried about where we’re going to live when we’re about to be neck deep in bodies and blood in a few months?”
“Bodies and blood I’m used to. Not knowing what to do with myself afterwards is what I’m worrying about. I’m used to being told what to do. I must admit that the past three years I have felt a little lost. I have no doubts that my place is by your side. It’s what I’m supposed to do while I’m there that has me more than a bit confused.”
A lump was forming in my throat and I had to swallow a few times. “Why have you never told me any of this?”
He smiled sadly. “Because I knew it would make you cry.” He wiped a tear off of my cheek with his thumb and I closed my eyes. “Hayden. Look at me.”
When I didn’t look up at him he pulled me to his chest and rested his chin on my head. My shoulders shook as I tried to keep in the sobs while I thought about what he had just said. Why had I never thought to ask? Why hadn’t it occurred to me that breaking his bond to Melana would affect him in some way? It was more than just being freed from the urge to do what he was ordered to do. Namaels were genetically programmed to obey whoever ruled at the time. Being fated to me had disturbed his being at more than just a conscious level.
Jasper’s arms tightened around me. “I love how you fit so perfectly against me like this.” He took a deep breath. “Do you know what else I love? I love how I can get lost in your eyes; how I can lose myself in your kiss. I love waking up beside you every morning.” His fingers ran through my hair. “I love how you are trusting to a fault. That you believe in the good in people even after everything you have been put through the past few years.”
I looked up was a bit shocked to see he was smiling.
He kissed the bridge of my nose. “I love how stubborn you are. How you get so cold and that I am the one who warms you up.”
His lips brushed along mine and I shivered. “But most of all, Shlova, I love the fact that no matter where we are, no matter what we are doing, we will be together. All of the small details will work themselves out.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be. I wouldn’t change a thing that’s happened the past few years. Well, maybe the parts where I almost die and you get abducted.” He smiled and I had to laugh. He kissed me softly. “Think about it. When this business with the humans is done and over with, we don’t have to stay there. And it’s not like we can’t go back to visit.”
“I wonder if Dodge would come back.”
“I’m surprised he isn’t here already.”
I took a deep breath. “We’ll talk about it some more later. I’m not deciding this on my own. Whatever we decide, we’ll decide it together.” I looked up at the clock. “Let’s go practice. Everyone else will be there already.” I stood on my tip toes and kissed him softly.
“Alright. I still think we should cross over so you could work on your magic too. I hate not knowing what Damian saw.”
I shook my head. “We can’t take a chance that someone might see us.” Though we didn’t know exactly what would be waiting for us when we crossed back over the night of Shay and Shawn’s wedding, we had been warned to be ready to fight. We spent a few hours three days a week sparring out at Shawn’s to keep on top of our game. I went up the stairs to my room and pulled our weapons out from under the bed.
There was a knock on the front door and I heard Jasper head over to answer it. His growl stopped short and turned into a grunt. I heard chairs being knocked over and something heavy fell on the dining room table hard enough to collapse it. I stuck my dagger in my belt and pressed myself against the wall, listening.
“Where is she?”
Jasper coughed. “Gone.”
“Where?” The man’s voice sounded desperate. And familiar.
“I’m not sure. She had errands to run.” Jasper grunted again.
I debated putting my swords on my back and decided against it. There wasn’t enough room to maneuver safely downstairs. I pulled on one of Jasper’s bunny hugs on and made sure my dagger was covered. I stuck his in the back of my pants. With the living room and dining room situated at the bottom of the stairs there was no way I was going to sneak down and surprise them. I took a deep breath and tried to keep my voice as normal as possible.
“Jasper, hun? Who was at the door?”
I heard him suck in a breath. “Just an old friend of yours and a few of his.”
“Oh! I’ll grab some beers from the fridge up here. How many do I need?”
“Seven if you want one.”
That meant there were five. Now, who was my old friend and why was he beating the crap out of my mate. I checked again to make sure neither of the daggers were showing and went to the spare room where the beer fridge was. I moved the bottles around to make it sound like I was grabbing some but only took two. I knew I wasn’t very good at throwing knives, but I was sure I could hit what I was aiming at with a beer bottle. If anything it might slow the person down.
I made my way down the stairs. I took a few seconds to scan the room then leaned nonchalantly against the wall. Jasper was standing in the dining room amongst pieces of the table. His nose was bleeding and his eyes were swelling. There was a blond man holding a dagger to his throat.
“Do they always have to break your nose?”
Jasper shrugged. “It was crooked when you met me, Shlova.”
“This will be the fifth time since I’ve met you I have to straighten it.” As I talked, I looked around. I only saw four men.
“Yes, well, it’s not like I ask to get hit in the face. And don’t forget, one of those times, it was you who broke it.”
I smiled. “I remember.”
I took a closer look at the men holding him. “So, Rainen strikes again, does she?”
A dark haired man standing to Jasper’s left looked surprised.
“It’s your eyes,” I explained. “You’re hurting and since Melana isn’t after me anymore, there’s only one other choice.”
“Smart. I always loved that about you.” A man walked in the front door carrying ropes and my heart jumped.
“Dave?”
He laughed. “Oh, that’s priceless. You should see your face.”
I had an idea what my face might look like and I could feel it getting redder. I looked closely and noticed what I hadn’t before. Hidden behind the sneering look in his eyes was the pain.
“It turns out Rainen doesn’t appreciate how long it’s taken me to get you back to her so I’m here to finish the job.”
All I could do was stare at him. He grinned at me.
“Those times you tried to haul me away, all those times you would somehow know where I was…” I was starting to see him in a totally different light though one thing puzzled me. “But you can’t fight?”
It was his turn to turn red. He shrugged. “When I crossed over I found t
hat if I was drinking I didn’t feel like I was dying.” He looked at Jasper and sneered. “I’m not drunk now.”
Jasper stood almost casually pressed against the blond man’s chest though the dagger was pressed hard enough against his neck that a thin line of blood was starting to show. I had seen his battle calm before. This wasn’t it. This was the look he’d had when Brice had taken me. He stared directly at Dave and his sky blue eyes held a promise. Whether Dave managed to get me to Rainen or not, he was a dead man.
Dave’s smile slipped slightly and Jasper’s lip curled.
I tried to figure out a way to start this fight without getting Jasper killed. Five on two weren’t very good odds, especially when one of the two already had a dagger to his throat.
“So what’s your plan, Dave?”
He looked at me. “I’ll tie you two up and we’ll head to the park behind your mom and dad’s place.”
“You’re going to tie us up?” I laughed. “I’m pretty sure little Mrs. Connelly down the street will have the cops over here in a flash when she sees that.”
He frowned.
“Why don’t you just leave us be. We were coming to see Rainen in a couple of months anyway.”
“Why should I believe you? You’ve been hiding from her here for almost a year.”
I shook my head. “Not her. Braw.”
He snorted. “Hiding from the humans? Now I’ve heard everything.” He pulled a piece of rope out and straightened it. “Come here. By the time old Mrs. Connelly realizes what’s going on we’ll be well on our way.”
I looked at Jasper and he shrugged. He smiled. “Sae nos craix dess mansun nos ist mourt.”
I raised an eyebrow at him. He was right of course. If we crossed over now we were dead. Then again, if I did anything right now, he was dead. I told him so.
He shook his head as much as he could without slitting his own throat. “Purt avens luib.”
I looked at Dave, smiled as meanly as I could, and nodded. “Not before him.”
Dave blinked then sneered. “Get over here, or he dies in front of you.”
I grunted. “Wouldn’t be the first time.” Though I said it casually, my heart was pounding in my chest. If anything happened to Jasper here, I knew I couldn’t save him.
Journey 'The Chosen One Trilogy: Book Two' Page 27