Page 90 of Daddy's Bodyguard
Jasper takes a slow breath and looks over at the water pitcher. I pour him some, and he drinks it slowly. After a slow breath, he looks at the ceiling. “I know that you … you and I don’t always see things the same way.”
“Jasper—”
“That week we spent in the hotel … it changed things. I thought I … I was so sure about my outlook on life, that my dad was impossible, that there was no point in talking to him. That it’s my fault my brother died. That I couldn’t really protect anyone, and I was just playing pretend like some kid.”
“Hey.” I rub his hand.
He pulls back and clears his throat. “What I’m trying to say is, I want us to look ahead, not behind. I have a lot to do once I get out of here. A lot of things to fix. A job to find. And I need to take you on a date. A real one.”
I stand up and kiss his forehead. “We have a lot to figure out, but we have time.”
“You should be at work, shouldn’t you? It’s got to be a weekday.”
“I had a few weeks to burn through and consider everything … I couldn’t leave.” I bite my lip. “I guess some things are more important than work.”
Jasper smiles. “Me?”
“You.” I nod. “I know that I’m argumentative. I’m a control freak. And I’m going to have an ass load of trauma because of all this. But I … I realized things too. I have had so much backwards.”
“Sofia.” He reaches back out to me.
“About my dad. About you. About … about life.” I shake my head. “Thinking there was only one path to get to where I wanted to be.”
“Is that a yes to the date?”
I laugh and nod. “Yes, dummy. I’m saying yes to the date.”
“Well, now I have to think about that, considering how mean you’ve been.” He adjusts and smiles. “I might need some buttering up, especially since I hear Ellie isn’t happy with you.”
“Yeah. She was mad I didn’t kiss you awake like the story.” She shrugs. “But there’s this thing about consent.”
“I consent to every kiss you ever want to give me. Asleep, awake. Angry, happy.” He whispers.
“You’re such a …” But I bite my tongue.
Every time I’ve called him dumb, every time I’ve avoided an answer, every time he’s asked me for the truth, and I found another way to answer the question… It was all hiding one thing.
“You’re under my skin, Jasper. So deep.”
He smiles gently. “Then I think I should tell you a secret.”
“Oh, no. Not when you’re on drugs. I don’t want to hear a single thing until we’re out of the hospital.” I press my finger against his chest. “Which means you need to eat and focus on getting better.”
“I love you,” he says anyway.
I kiss his palm, the happy bubbles bouncing in my chest. “Shut up.”
“Do you think you could love a dummy?” He continues as if I didn’t just insult him. “Do you think you could like me, injured leg, broken pieces, unsure and messy?”
“Jasper.”
“I’ll never put pizza in the fridge. I leave dishes for later. I toss laundry in front of the washer.”
“Well, that just ruins it.” I can’t help smiling. “The laundry is my breaking point.”
He shrugs. “I could work on that.”
“We should go slow.”