They exited the car and went into the lobby. A teenage girl was playing receptionist, though her attitude would have had her kicked out in any decent hotel. She didn’t even pretend to be interested in who they were or why they wanted to know Jasper’s room number. She just gave them the information including directions before she went back to playingCandy Crushon her cell.
“That was kind of anticlimactic. I thought we would have to at least bribe her into telling us his room number.” Leeland sounded disappointed.
“You, my friend, are watching too many bad cop series. And there’s going to be enough drama once I confront Jasper.”
“Sorry.” Leeland didn’t sound sorry. “I’m just trying to get into the right headspace.”
“We’re not going to torture him gang style.”
“You’re taking the fun out of this. All the fun.”
Curtis started chuckling, but it died on his lips when they reached Jasper’s room. It was time to get rid of the weeds in his life, metaphorically speaking. He lifted his hand and knocked twice in short succession.
“Who’s there?” Jasper sounded anxious and tired.
“Jasper, it’s me, Curtis. Can I come in?”
“Curtis?” Something thudded on the other side of the door, followed by hasty footsteps. Then the door opened so violently, the hinges squeaked in protest. Jasper looked terrible. His hair was a mess, his eyes bloodshot and puffy, his shirt wrinkled, and Curtis spotted stains on his slacks. He was barefoot, and the stale odor of cheap alcohol hung in the air.
“It’s really you. Come in.” Jasper must have overlooked Leeland, because his eyes widened when he entered the room on Curtis’s heels. “Who’s that?”
“Jasper, this is Leeland, a friend of mine. He’s here to make sure our meeting stays civilized.”
“Yeah. If you want to get uncivilized, that’s when I step in. Believe me, you won’t like it.” Leeland made his knuckles pop. Jasper stumbled back a few steps, the threat not lost on him. While Curtis admired the beautiful contrast of Leeland’s slender body and aggressive aura, Jasper was apparently oblivious to the parallels.
“Leave me alone! I haven’t done anything wrong.”
Curtis shook his head. “See, this is where youarewrong, Jasper. Why did you go to Andrew and confront him with your elitist tosh? What did you hope for? I thought I was crystal clear when we met for dinner.”
Jasper glanced nervously at Leeland, who was stretching his arms in preparation of a fight Curtis hoped wouldn’t come. “I was angry, Curtis. Furious. Why did you leave me hanging like that? Have you any idea how difficult all this is for me? I mean, look around at what kind of dump I have to stay in these days. Nobody would give me the time of day, not my former friends, no business associates, certainly no subs. You have the power to make all this unpleasantness go away, yet you act like a stubborn mule. I figured it had to be that gold digger you now call Master. He probably doesn’t want to share the riches.”
Curtis shook his head. “Do you even realize how bigoted that sounds—you calling Andrew a gold digger? So far, he hasn’t asked for a single cent, while you expect me to hand over my trust fund to you.”
“That’s different and you know it! We’re the same, from the same class. We have to stick together.” The desperate tone in Jasper’s voice was getting more aggressive with every minute.
“We don’t. In case you haven’t noticed, Jasper, we’re in America. Theoretically, we’re all equal. Which means I don’t owe you anything, and you have to stand up for your mistakes. It’s as easy as that.”
Jasper’s eyes narrowed. Curtis saw Leeland tensing in his periphery. “I am standing up for my mistakes. I’m trying to fix them, but you’re being stubborn as all fuck. I’m losing my patience, Curtis.”
That was it. Curtis was finally done playing nice. He fixed Jasper with a steely glare. “Fine. Since you don’t seem to understand the severity of my displeasure with your behavior, let me spell it out for you. I want you to leave me and my Dom alone. Don’t phone us, don’t text, don’t send smoke signals, and most importantly, don’t show your face.”
Curtis pinned Jasper with his gaze before he played his strongest card. “If you dare to come near us again, I will tell your mother the true reason for our breakup. When she finds out, you’re going to wish Leeland would have gotten to you first.”
As Curtis had hoped, Jasper blanched. Leeland threw him a quizzical look, which had Curtis mouthing “Later” before he focused on his ex again. Jasper looked as if he was going to keel over.
“You wouldn’t dare!”
“Try me!”
Jasper must have seen something in his eyes, because his shoulders slumped. A broken sob spilled from his lips. “That’s low, Curtis. Real low.”
Curtis shrugged. “Pot, may I introduce you to kettle?”
The only answer he got was a cross between another sob and an angry snarl. Curtis lifted a brow, even though Jasper was still staring at the ground and couldn’t see it.
“Do we have an understanding, Jasper?”
Jasper’s glare told Curtis he’d won, and that satisfaction would keep him warm on many cold winter nights—should he ever decide to spend a winter in actualwinter.
