“Ew, Jasp, seriously.” Eddy covered her eyes before snapping at the chick. “Get the fuck out of here, skank.”
The nurse glared before she slid off his hand—Jasper’s signature move—and straightened her clothes. “I’ll see you later,” she said to Jasper, shooting Eddy a sly grin as she passed.
Eddy shook her head before turning to her brother, who had thankfully tucked any body parts away, and was once again sprawled back with just a pair of gray sweats on.
“You’re looking much better,” she said, hurrying forward.
He shrugged. “Genetics. Mine are perfect.”
I snorted before I crossed to sit on the other side of him. He reached out with an arm and hauled me closer. “Better get my hug in before Beck shows up here and puts me back into surgery,” he said against my shoulder.
With a laugh, I gently pushed him away. “What?”
“Dylan called me. Seems our boy has a little problem with a pair of blue eyes and perky tits.”
Despite his injuries, I couldn’t help but slap him on the arm. “Seriously, dude. You need help.”
Eddy made a small sounds from nearby, and Jasper turned to her. “What, sis?”
She shrugged. “Nothing, just never seen you treat a girl nicely before. It’s … weird.”
Jasper was suddenly serious, and I preferred this side of him to the joking sleaze. That one was his facade for the world. I like the glimpses of the real Jasper I’d gotten in the forest. Strong and loyal, badass and brave.
“Riley is not just any girl. She’s ours. One of us. And despite the tension, I’ve been thinking about how the dynamics have changed. She’s good for us … she makes us better.”
He was talking about me like I wasn’t in the room, but when his face turned in my direction, there was so much emotion in his eyes, that my body tensed. It wasn’t romantic, per se, but it was something.
“Can you do me a favor?” Jasper asked, taking me by surprise.
“Uh, sure, what do you need?”
He grinned, and then reached across to a small side table to grab a set of keys. He dropped them into my hand, wrapping his fingers around mine for a moment. “There’s a race on Friday. It’s my race. I’ve won every year since I started. I need you to take my place and keep the legacy alive.”
I blinked, looking down at the fancy keyring with the Lamborghini symbol. “Are you serious?”
I mean, he’d seen me race once and I crashed the fucking car. I still wasn’t sure I wouldn’t have another freak out and do the same thing if I raced again.
Jasper chuckled. “Firstly, it’s just a car.”
Wrong, it was an effing Lambo, but sure.
“Secondly, I watched some race videos of you. Pretty sure my baby couldn’t be in better hands.”
No one called their “just a car” baby. He loved that yellow flashy number, and he was placing her in my hands.
“I’m going to win for you,” I said, determination lacing my words. “Those fuckers will wish they never underestimated me because I’m a chick.”
Jasper laughed. “Might be best if you don’t tell Beck until it’s too late for you to back out.” He turned to Eddy. “Can you make sure she has the cash for buy-in, we want this to look legit as possible.”
Eddy grinned a wicked smile. “You got it big bro! Oh, this is going to be fun.”
20
We ended up spending the rest of the afternoon hanging out with Jasper in his hospital room, and it was the most fun I’d had in a long time. Actually, the whole day had been—with the exception of Beck and Dylan’s little pissing contest.
When Eddy dropped me back off at the Deboise estate, though, my heart began to sink. If luck was on my side, Catherine and Richard would still be in the New York office, but that meant I was all alone in this massive mausoleum.
My golf cart was still at the Beckett house, so I took my time walking across the perfectly manicured grass to get up to the house.
