I can’t find my voice, but I nod. Carefully.
Jasper sighs. “I suppose that’s good enough for now. I know a quick way out through cardiology.”
With his arm still tight around my waist, he steers me through the halls. As soon as we pass through a set of double doors, it’s quieter and calmer. The scent of blood starts to fade into the background. Two minutes later, we’re outside, only a couple hundred feet from a big, hunter green pickup truck.
The lot isn’t full. Not by a long shot, and a cool breeze prickles against my cheeks. Suddenly I’m very, very aware of how vulnerable I am. He was a Ranger. I know he’s a good guy. But an hour ago, someone blew up my car.
“This…uh…thank you, Jasper. For everything. But I can manage from here. I’ll call a rideshare to take me home.” I duck out from under his arm, teetering on the uneven pavement for a moment before I can steady myself.
“Sweetheart, I ain’t leavin’ you out here. If you insist on calling that car, I’ll wait with you until it shows up. But I’d much rather drive you home. Or…to a hotel. Or hell, to my place. Anywhere you won’t be alone.” Jasper guides me toward his truck with a hand at the small of my back, unlocks a storage box in the bed, and pulls out my bag of groceries. “What the hell is kale anyway? Fancy spinach? It looks like I should be feedin’ it to a horse.”
“It’s not—” A wave of pain blooms across my forehead, and my stomach twists. “Shit.”
Before I double over, Jasper’s there, steadying me, letting me lean against him. “You’re not staying by yourself tonight, Emi. You didn’t much like the idea of coming home with me, so I’ll give you three choices. Go back inside, go to a friend’s, or let me sleep on your couch.”
“I can’t do any of those things.” Taking a step away from him, I pull out my phone. “I’ll be fine. I promise. My building is secure.”
He huffs out a breath, setting the canvas grocery bag down next to me and shoving the kale back inside. The fire in his eyes should scare me, but instead, I feel safe. Protected. “Fine. But I’m waiting with you until the car shows up and you’re giving me your number so I can check on you in a few hours.”
“A town car will be here in seven minutes.” I show him my screen, then sink down onto one of the benches along the side of the building. “You don’t need to wait with me. There’s a whole hospital full of people thirty feet away. It’s been a terrible night, I barely know you, and I’d really like to be alone now.”
Tears prick at my eyes, and I lean forward with my elbows on my knees. I’m being a bitch to him, and I don’t know why.
Jasper takes a few steps back, removes his hat, and holds it over his heart. “I figure you could learn quite a bit about me if you wanted to. You bein’ Channel 5’s star reporter and all.”
Despite my body feeling like an old punching bag, I start to laugh. Big mistake, as it makes the pounding in my head so much worse. “Star reporter? That’s not a thing.”
“It is from where I’m standin’. Your reporting on that Fowler asshole was damn fine work.”
Leaning against the door of his truck, he crosses his legs at the ankles and shoves his hands into the pockets of his Wranglers. His eyes dart around the parking lot, lingering briefly on each shadow, each person heading to or from a car.
Shit. I haven’t been paying attention to anything around me. What if Eugene Fowler is trying to kill me? What if he knows he didn’t succeed at the grocery store? What if he found out which hospital I was taken to?
My phone screen isn’t as clear as it was a few minutes ago. God. I’m so tired. I want to sleep for a week, wake up, and find out this was all a bad dream.
The rideshare app buzzes. No. This can’t be happening. The car’s ten minutes away now and headed in the wrong direction. Another blink, and it’s twelve minutes away. For the love of all that’s holy in this world, I want to go home.
“Jasper?”
In two shakes, he’s in front of me, crouching down with a grunt so we’re almost eye level with one another. “You okay?”
I show him my phone screen. Fifteen minutes now. “I…could you…?”
“I’ll drive you home, Emi.” He holds out his hand, his fingers curling around mine to help me to my feet. “Thank you for trusting me.”
“Seeing as you saved my kale…”
Jasper opens the passenger door and practically lifts me into the seat. “I just might have to try it one of these days.”
Chapter Nine
Jasper
Emi drifts off less than five minutes after giving me her address. Dammit if I don’t want to drive around all night so I can keep stealing glances at her. But she has a bruise on her forehead the size of a golf ball, and her eyes are puffy.
She needs her own bed, a couple of ice packs, and someone watching over her until morning.
Her apartment building is one of Austin’s nicest. As I pull into the parking lot, the speed bumps jolt her awake, and she whimpers softly.
