“What did I tell you about bothering the staff?” he barks. “I don’t pay the help for you to do their jobs for them.”
“I know, I just—” Jaslyn’s voice shakes, but Jasper quickly interrupts.
“Enough,” he demands in a clipped tone as he throws his hand in the air. Jaslyn flinches, my jaw tics as my hands ball into fists and Jasper cuts his eyes at her as he looks her up and down with disgust. “Go clean yourself up and meet us in the dining room.”
Jaslyn’s face is stoic and she gives him a blank stare as she robotically nods her head. Spinning on her heel, her bare feet lightly pad across the marble floor as she hurries out into the hall. Staring after her, Jasper turns to me as soon as she exits the room. Shaking his head, he snorts loudly and rolls his eyes.
“That girl has enough money and clothes to take care of a fucking city, yet she dresses like a trashy whore.”
My blood boils and my ears burn, listening to this piece of shit tear her down. Plastering on my poker face, I cock my head slightly and raise an eyebrow at him. “You think that she looks like a trashy whore?”
Jasper lets out a loud harsh laugh. “Did you fucking see her?” He stares at me like I’m a dumbass. “She’s an embarrassment and would tarnish my reputation if I took her anywhere looking like she does.” Chuckling to himself, he shakes his head in disbelief and walks through the door into the dining room.
I can’t say it… I won’t say it…
I say it anyway.
“What about the chicks that you do take out?” I question him as I follow him to the table. Jasper freezes at the head of the table with his hands on the back of his chair and he slowly turns around to face me.
His eyes are dark as he pins them on mine with a hardened glare. “What about them?”
“I mean, you’re engaged and shit.” I shrug impassively when underneath I’m ready to bare my fucking teeth. “Taking your side chicks out doesn’t look bad on your part?”
Jasper continues to assault me with his eyes. “I take her when and where I have to; where her and her money matters. But what I do or don’t do is none of your fucking concern.”
Laughing lightly, I shrug and pull out the chair next to his and plop down. “Where I come from, those trashy whores would eat her alive. Even in what she was wearing, she’d never fit in in the hood. That place would chew her up and spit her out before she’d ever have a chance at becoming a trashy whore.”
What I tell him isn’t a lie, but I tailor the words to appease him, to give him the impression that I’m on his side. But I’m not. He’s completely wrong about Jaslyn but he’ll never see that, even if he wanted to. His motive is slowly becoming more apparent. Money. It’s always all about the money.
“Ah, yes. The ghetto.” Jasper chuckles as he pulls out his chair and takes a seat. “I forgot you came from the other side of the tracks.” He smiles. “No wonder you’re fucking ruthless and fight like a goddamn machine.”
“The streets made me.”
And they’ll destroy me in the end.
Chapter Ten
Jaslyn
That was absolutely humiliating.
Jasper’s reaction and his words weren’t abnormal. It would be abnormal for him to treat me like a real person, like the woman he’s about to marry instead of a piece of trash on the bottom of his shoe.
He’d probably even treat that better than he treats me.
I started to not care about how he treated me months ago and after a while, I accepted it when he did it in front of Desmond and Nina. They were the only two who ever saw the marks and heard his words. Any time that we’re in public for an event or for something that he needs to have me on his arm, he treats me like a fine piece of china.
And then he takes that china home and shatters it into a million pieces.
♦♦♦
Axel is the first person outside of our home to catch a glimpse of the monster lurking inside Jasper; the monster inside him that only has an appetite for my blood. He’s never brought anyone into our lives like this before and they both caught me off guard.
The first time I met him, Axel lied to cover up who he was and the second time, he was moving in with the truth cloaking him. He asked too many questions, he was too observant with his deep blue eyes and his silence was deafening.
It has been hard to ignore the attraction and not appreciate every part of his essence. From working out, his body is solid. He’s lean and toned with the body of a god. I wish he looked like your stereotypical fighter—a classic meathead or someone hooked on roids. Either of those would be better than him. They wouldn’t make me feel things that I’m not supposed to feel.
Axel doesn’t belong in my life and he doesn’t belong in my head. His opinion of me and him seeing Jasper in his natural habitat shouldn’t matter to me. I was comfortable with the abuse and numb to the pain before him. But now… now I feel everything.
Jasper never should have let him in.
After applying some makeup and wrapping my hair into a neat bun, I slipped on a dress and a pair of strappy heels. It’s a look that I’ve grown accustomed to, but it’s not one I’ll ever like. Shifting the straps of my black chiffon dress, I give myself a last glance in the mirror, making sure that my appearance meets Jasper’s standards.
With a deep breath, I abandon my bedroom and make my way down to the dining room. Jasper’s smiling wide, talking to Axel when I enter and my stomach churns at the sight of them together. Jasper doesn’t look my way and the back of Axel’s head faces me as he’s turned toward Jasper. Swallowing down the bile in my throat, I straighten my shoulders and my expression and walk across the room to my spot at the table.
Both men glance at me as I take my seat, but only one set of eyes linger. Jasper rolls his eyes, muttering something about my outfit as dinner is served and he looks down at his food as our plates are placed in front of us.
Axel doesn’t look at the full plate in front of him. He doesn’t look at Nina as she fills his glass of wine. He doesn’t look at Jasper as he digs into his food like a ravenous animal. He doesn’t look anywhere other than at me.
Axel looks at me like I’m the only person in the room. His deep blue eyes, as blue as the ocean, stare through mine and into my soul. He sees straight through me and the walls of this fortress crumble to the ground.
Reaching out with a shaky hand, I grab my glass of wine and take a large gulp. Jasper glances up at me as I set it back onto the table in a rush. A small drop splashes out, landing on my hand.
Quickly pulling away, I tuck my hand under the table and brush off the droplet as Jasper’s eyes bore holes into mine.
“I don’t know what the hell has gotten into you,” he scolds.
I can feel the color drain from my face from his unspoken threat and the sound of Axel’s knuckles cracking fills the room. Jasper grabs my glass and moves it to the other side of him, just out of my reach.
“You’re fucking sloppy from one sip. That’s my drink now,” he sneers with a sinister smirk on his face. “Eat your food, Jaslyn.”
Bowing my head, I avoid Axel’s piercing eyes and follow Jasper’s command. I have no appetite—I rarely do anymore—but I would rather force feed myself than have him feed me his fist later.
I don’t look back up as I hear Axel’s silverware against his plate. The three of us eat in silence with Jasper ignoring me, me ignoring Axel and Axel simply sits back, taking it all in.
A loud ringing breaks through the silence, making me jump in place. My fork falls from my hand and clatters on the plate as I glance around the room. Jasper cuts his eyes at me, before muttering something under his breath as he pulls his phone from his pocket.
“I need to take this call,” he says to Axel as he rises to his feet and doesn’t look at me again as he slips out through a pair of French doors that lead out to the patio.
An awkward silence fills the room as soon as the doors are closed. Picking up my fork, I stare down at my plate as I push my food a
round, moving it from one side to the other. Time slows down as the silence continues and Axel never moves an inch. I don’t have to look up to know that his eyes are on me. I can feel them as he watches me, and my skin grows flushed under his gaze.
“Jaslyn.” His voice is low, but there’s a softness in his raspy tone. I keep my eyes trained on my plate and ignore the sound of his voice ringing in my ears. “Jaslyn,” he quietly calls to me again. “Please, look at me.”
Briefly closing my eyes, I breathe deeply and look up at him as I exhale a shaky breath. Ocean blue eyes search mine as he scans my face with concern. I know the look that he’s giving me. I’ve seen it before in Nina and Desmond’s fleeting glances.
He’s confused—he doesn’t understand, and chances are, he probably never will.
Leaning forward, he lowers his voice as his expression grows softer. “I can get you out of here,” he urges. “I can take you far away from here, far enough that you’d never have to worry about him again.”
He wants to be my knight in shining armor, to swoop in and save me from my unfortunate fate.
But Axel isn’t a knight and he can’t save me.
With a sad smile, I shake my head and confusion washes over his face as his eyebrows pinch together. He doesn’t know the things that I have done. He can’t see that this is me getting exactly what I deserve.
“He would follow me to the ends of the earth and hunt me down because I’m the only one that can give him what he wants.” I pause as Axel’s eyes search mine with unasked questions. “There’s more to the story than you know. And Jasper is a man who will stop at nothing to get what he wants.”
“No,” he rebuts persistently. “You can’t stay here. You’re not safe and I can’t protect you when you’re with him.”
His words strike a nerve and I sit up straighter in my seat. “I’m not some damsel in distress, Axel, and I don’t need your protection.”
Axel’s face falls and his body grows rigid. “I never said you were,” he says quietly.
Shaking my head, I laugh lightly. “You’re here for him, Axel… not for me. You may be a fighter, but you’re not a knight.”
Doesn’t he know that knights only exist in fairytales?
And fairytales aren’t real.
Chapter Eleven
Axel
SHE’S HARD-HEADED and stubborn, and quite frankly, she’s maddening. On the outside, Jaslyn looks like a meek, battered woman who bows her head and takes what is given to her. But it’s all a façade, a deception that hides the true fighter inside her.
She’s stronger than she lets on and she takes the abuse with purpose. Why, I don’t know… but I have every intention of finding that out.
“You’re wrong,” I counter as she stares back at me with a blank expression on her face. “I came here for him and his money, but that’s not why I stayed.”
Jaslyn’s eyes narrow slightly as she assesses me, struggling to keep her expression neutral. “You’re a fool.”
“And you’re an impostor.”
Her impassive look is gone, and her eyes are wild with anger. “Excuse me?”
A smile plays on my lips and I add more fuel to the fire. “You’re a tiger living the life of a field mouse.”
“You don’t know a goddamn thing about me or my life,” she growls. She’s offended and pissed off, but she’s only proving my point.
I shrug indifferently. “Prove me wrong.”
Jaslyn lets out an exasperated sigh and snorts. “I see your angle, Axel. I’m not taking the bait.”
“There’s no bait to take.”
“I don’t have to prove anything to you,” she declares.
“You don’t,” I agree, hiding my amusement at her reaction. She continues to stare at me as her expression softens.
“I don’t do friends,” she warns me, catching me off guard.
Of course she doesn’t… she doesn’t need anyone.
“I never said that I wanted to be friends.”
“Good.” She nods in agreement.
“We’re both stuck here and I’m sure it gets lonely.” I lay down my proposition. “We don’t have to be friends, we don’t have to know each other, but no one said that we can’t keep each other company.”
Jaslyn cocks an eyebrow at me. “You don’t strike me as someone who needs the company of others.”
“And you don’t strike me as someone who needs the approval of others.”
Her gaze remains on mine for a few moments before she sighs in defeat. “I’ve already been planning my funeral, but we might as well start planning yours too.”
“Be careful,” I warn her with a smirk. “That sounds like something a friend would do.”
Jaslyn rolls her eyes and shakes her head. “Watch yourself, Rocky, or there might not be a body to bury.” A ghost of a smile plays on her lips as she winks.
A sudden rush of warm air flows into the room as the French doors are pulled open.
“Be glad you’re not a fucking doctor,” Jasper scoffs as he reenters the dining room. “Someone always needs something from you.”
“I don’t envy you,” I admit as he sits back down at his seat. “I hate to cut this short, but I should hit the sack. Today kicked my ass.”
“Yes, of course.” Jasper nods. “We need you in your best shape right now.”
Well, that was easier to get him to walk right into.
“Speaking of,” I start. “I prefer running outside rather than a treadmill, so I was wondering where the best place to do that is.”
Jaslyn has the lean body of a runner and I didn’t miss her shoes in the gym. It’s a shot in the dark, but I’m confident that she goes running.
“Jaslyn will make you a map of her typical route.”
“Perhaps she could just show me?” I suggest innocently as I glance between the two of them. “I can’t read a map to save my life.”
Directing his dead eyes to Jaslyn, Jasper takes a sip of his wine as he sizes her up. Jaslyn doesn’t look at either of us as she carefully folds her hands in her lap.
“Fine,” Jasper declares, looking back at me. “You do not let her out of your sight, and I expect you to keep her safe. Are we clear?”
“Crystal.” I nod without hesitation and catch Jaslyn’s eyes as she peers up at me from my peripheral vision.
Jasper doesn’t notice her gaze as he drains the rest of his glass. “Jaslyn,” he barks, getting her attention. “Leave us.”
Quickly getting up, Jaslyn nods with a small smile and rushes out of the room. As soon as she leaves, Jasper rises to his feet and starts for the door after her. “Come,” he motions. “I’ll walk you out.”
Silently, I follow him down the hall to the back door that we came through. Jasper pulls open the door and stands to the side, allowing me to pass through.
“I talked to the men at The Vault and your next fight is in two weeks.”
Stopping abruptly, I pause for a moment before turning to face him. I’ve always made my own schedule and hearing it from someone else doesn’t sit right with me.
You fight for him now.
I’ve sacrificed many freedoms by agreeing to work for him, but I’ll be gaining more in the end. One year is what I agreed to. I can get used to this enough to get through one year and then I’m free.
“Feel free to use the pool and the gym at your leisure.” Jasper crosses his arms over his chest as he leans against the doorframe. “You know how important your training is.”
There’s an underlying tone in his voice that I can’t decipher, but I can feel the threat in my bones.
“No disrespect, but I know what my body needs,” I tell him calmly. “I have a strict training schedule that I adhere to.”
“Right.” Jasper nods. “And that includes your daily cardio?”
Narrowing my eyes at him, I mirror his stance and defensively cross my arms. “Cardio is extremely important,” I declare. “Is there a problem with that?”
Chuckling, Jasp
er rolls his eyes. “I’m not blind, Axel. I know that my fiancée is appealing, even if she is a slob.” He pins his hardened gaze on my face. “Remember who she belongs to.”
He speaks of her as if she’s a tangible item to possess. She might be in his world, but she will never be that in mine. She’s becoming much more.
“I told you that I don’t shit where I eat.”
It’s an uncomfortable, awkward moment between us as we stare each other down for our own separate reasons. A few moments pass before Jasper nods in agreement as he uncrosses his arms.
“Goodnight, Axel.” He nods again as he steps back into the house, closing the door behind him.
Spinning on my heel, I stride away from the house and back to the pool house in a fury. My mind is a clusterfuck and I’m caught in a whirlwind of emotions. I need to do something, anything, yet I’m rendered helpless at this point.
Everything’s building inside and I can’t handle it. I can’t control it. I need to unleash it somewhere and I can’t do that here.
Slamming the door shut behind me, I grab my phone from the counter and quickly find his name.
“Shit, son. That was fast.”
“Rush.” The beast inside me growls into the phone. “I need you to come get me.”
Rush mumbles something and a rustling sound comes through the speaker. “Go outside and walk it off. I’ll pick you up at the end of the street in fifteen.”
“This isn’t something I can fucking walk off.” I grind out the words through clenched teeth as I flex my hands.
“Go the fuck outside, get off their property and don’t do a fucking thing until I get there.” Rush’s tone is harsh as he barks out his demand.
The beast inside me roars and my body shakes with my internal struggle. I’m always the voice of reason, until the beast demands its freedom.
Rush has pulled me back from the edge more times than I can count. He has looked the beast in its eyes and spit in its fucking face.
Mirage: Veiled Love Duet: Book One Page 6