All she could do was voice her opinion, which she had, and hope that her mate listened. And if he didn’t … Well, she’d be disappointed, but she’d understand. She’d just need time to get over it.
“Murphy was cranky as hell this morning too,” Jasper continued, propping his forearm onto the countertop and leaning forward nonchalantly, facing her.
“I’ll bet he was,” Nessa muttered under her breath.
She had barely given Murphy a peck on the lips when he’d swapped places with Jasper a few hours ago. And before that? She’d been too in her own head to even keep a conversation with him.
Murphy didn’t deserve the silent treatment from her. It was juvenile and unwarranted, but it was difficult to pretend everything was fine when Angela’s heartfelt pleas still echoed in her head.
“You wanna talk about it?” Jasper asked, his tone shifting from carefree to concerned in an instant.
She shook her head. Whatever issues she needed to work through with Murphy, discussing it with his youngest brother wasn’t appropriate. Aside from that, Murphy was the Alpha. His bears didn’t need to know the inner workings of their relationship, especially when there were bumps in the road.
“Fine,” he said, put out. “I hope you’re not upset with me because I told Murphy that Angela was here.”
“I’m not,” Nessa answered sharply. She sighed, dropping the small bags onto the counter and turning to face him. “I am upset, but it’s not because of you, Jasper. You did nothing wrong.”
He canted his head to the side in confusion. “But Murphy did?” he guessed.
“Yes. No.”I don’t know.Frustrated, she scowled. “Didn’t I just say I don’t want to talk about it?”
“Yeah, but we both know I’m too adorable to resist for long,” Jasper replied smugly.
Nessa rolled her eyes, returning her attention to her half-organized pile of tea. “If by adorable you mean ‘infuriatingly obtuse’ then I agree.”
“Hey!” Jasper gasped dramatically, clutching at his chest. “You wound me, female. Now my offer to beat up Murphy for you has expired.”
She quirked a brow, sending him a sidelong glance. “You never offered to beat up my mate. And besides, I’d decline anyway.”
He nodded sagely. “You’re worried I’d hurt him. I get it.”
Cracking a small smile, she turned back to Murphy’s brother. “I’m actually worried that Tabitha will throw a fit once you get your ass kicked. I don’t want my mother-in-law blaming me for your shortcomings.”
Jasper’s jaw dropped, mock hurt shining in his eyes. “That might be the meanest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”
“Aw, you poor baby,” Nessa teased, some of her spirits lifting. Leave it to Jasper to help make her feel better using nothing but his never-ending humor. “Do you need a muffin to make you feel better?”
Dealing with her melancholy all morning deserved some type of compensation. Plus, it was the least she could do after outrightly stating he couldn’t handle himself in a fight.
Like he could take on Murphy and win. Your mate’s the Alpha for a reason.
Pride enveloped her, temporarily extinguishing some of her morose emotions.
“Really?” Jasper perked up, moving out from behind the counter and practically skipping to the display case full of treats. He touched the glass, peering inside with a look of pure delight etched across his features. It reminded her of a kid in a candy shop. “Oh, the chocolate chip looks delicious.” He glanced up warily. “How many can I have?”
She pursed her lips, wondering how many she could let go without losing a ton of profit. At the rate he was consuming everything, she’d be in debt by the end of the week. “Five?”
“Only five?” He pouted.
“Five and I’ll order us pizza for lunch,” she bartered.
“Hell yeah, Nessa,” Jasper praised. “You’ve got a deal.” Sliding open the glass window, he reached into the display case, grabbing his first muffin. He brought the baked good up to his nose, inhaling deeply. He groaned.
“If you plan on having sex with that muffin, do it in the back,” Nessa commented dryly, her lips twitching as she returned to her menial task.
She’d just looked down when the front door opened, the chime of the bell signaling a new customer.
“Hi, welcome to Nessa’s Tea—” Nessa glanced up. The remaining words died in her throat. A chill raced down her spine, terror gripping her stomach and twisting it so hard she wasn’t sure if she’d pass out or vomit all over the ground.
