I’d give anything to change the subject, but I promised this woman a proper date, and I intend to deliver. “Almost twelve years. A decade as a State Trooper before that. Me and AJ both.”
“Do you and your brother do everything together?” Her easy smile is one I could look at for…longer than I should admit after only a week.
A pang of something—regret, sorrow, longing—hits me square in the chest. “We used to. High school football. UT Austin—he studied Criminology. I went for Criminal Justice. I thought I’d become a lawyer.”
“A lawyer? Jasper, why didn’t you go through with it?” Emi leans forward, a little sparkle in her eyes. If only they weren’t still bloodshot from the late night and the concussion.
“I suck at standardized tests. No law school would take a guy who couldn’t score above 130 on the LSAT.” With a shrug, I reach for my water. God, I’d kill for a beer—or three—right now. But we’re out in public, and those sombitches who blew up her car are still in the wind. I have to be at my best if I want to keep her safe.
“So you followed your brother’s lead and became a State Trooper.”
“Hell, no.” With a chuckle, I dig into the plate of brisket. “He followed me. AJ couldn’t decide if he wanted to try for Austin PD or become a trooper so he could end up bein’ a Ranger. He went to Spain for two months after we graduated with a couple of his friends, and that’s where he met his wife, Grace. She was doing a semester abroad. It was love at first sight. It almost killed him to wait until she graduated college to propose.”
Emi lowers her gaze to her plate, and her cheeks turn a shade of pink. “I looked him up at the Boots and Bling event,” she says. “Your brother. What happened to him—to Grace…”
“If anyone knew what happened to Grace, AJ might be able to find some peace. As it is, he’s carryin’ a mountain of grief on his shoulders every damn day.”
I wish I could tell Emi about the old AJ. The guy who used to love pranks. Who sang karaoke. Who hosted poker parties out at the lake whenever we didn’t have to work a long weekend. Hell, I wish I could tell her about the man I talked to this afternoon. The one who could barely muster the will to play with the dog who used to look at Grace like she hung the damn moon.
Struggling for a distraction, I slide the basket of cornbread and maple butter across the table. “The last piece is yours, sweetheart.”
Emi bats her eyelashes at me with a wide smile. “Why Jasper Blade, are you trying to butter me up?”
“Depends. Is it workin’?”
She plucks the slab of bread from the basket lined with red and white checkered paper. “Come home with me and you can find out.”
Chapter Fourteen
Jasper
The ride from the restaurant to Emi’s apartment is the longest of my life. For almost two hours, we ate, talked, and even flirted over BBQ. If the parkin’ lot hadn’t been so packed, I would have had her up against my truck and kissed the hell out of her once I’d paid the bill. But there’ll be plenty of time for that when we’re behind locked doors with the blinds drawn.
She ran out of steam halfway to her apartment. Last night’s attack, the visit to the police station, her segment, and the food finally catching up to her. “That’s your third yawn since we left the restaurant, sweetheart. We’re goin’ straight to bed when we get to your place.”
“Bed, yes,” she says as she tries to stifle yet another yawn. “But I have plans for you, Ranger.”
“We’ll see about that.” Emi tries to glare at me, but she’s so exhausted, I choke back a laugh. “You’ll be asleep before your head hits the pillow.”
I love helping Emi down from my truck. Her hands rest on my shoulders, while mine mold to her hips. There’s nothing sexual about it, but these brief moments are intimate in a way I didn’t expect.
“You’re a real gentleman,” she says softly and brushes a light kiss to my cheek.
“I try, ma’am.” Settling my Stetson on my head, I grab my duffel.
“You…packed a bag?” She covers her mouth with her hand, eyes wide.
Fuck me.
“You ain’t stayin’ alone, Emi. Not with those assholes still out there. I assumed?—”
She laughs and runs her fingers through her long, brown locks. “Take a breath, handsome. I was joking.”
“Thank fuck. We still haven’t finished the conversation we were having in my truck this morning.” I rake my eyes up and down Emi’s body. Her hip is cocked to one side, her free hand on her waist. My jeans are strangling my dick, and I can’t think straight.
An SUV with a squeaky belt rumbles by on the street. Dammit. I didn’t hear it coming. Five-feet-six-inches of smart, sassy brunette perfection is all it takes to throw me off my game.
“Inside, Emi. Now.”
