Jasper stood abruptly. She watched his throat bob as he swallowed. His face was a mix of tiredness and something she couldn't name.
“Sometimes I think,” he said suddenly,“if things had been different… ifI’dbeen different… maybe we could’ve had a life together.” His gaze fixed somewhere in the distance.“We probably would’ve crossed paths anyway. We went to the same college. Crazy, right?” He let out ashort, rough huff of pain.
She went still.
He still wasn’t looking at her.He was talking to the air.
“I’m sorry,” he added quietly.“I’m going to go.”
She didn’t walk him out. He found the door on his own.
She stayed where she was, standing in the middle of the living room, unable to understand why they had been forced back into this orbit. Why this man—who looked completely normal on the surface, who had somehow raised a wonderful daughter on his own—had lost control just once…
And that one time had irrevocably ruined them.
CHAPTER 36
Jasper shut the door behind him and paused in the entryway, forcing himself to breathe. The keys rattled as he tossed them into the ceramic bowl by the mirror.
Light spilled in from the living room. He squinted, walked that way slowly, and stopped in the doorway.
“Surprise,” a voice said before he could speak.
Lynn rose from the armchair. She was wearing an oversized hoodie, her hair pulled into a high ponytail, a mug cradled in her hands.
“What are you doing here?” Jasper asked, lifting an eyebrow.“Didn’t you insist I buy you your own placeso you wouldn’t, quote,feel someone breathing down your neck?”
Lynn sighed, stepped closer—and froze as she really looked at his face. One second later, her eyes widened.
“Dad… what happened to you?” Her voice dropped to a frightened whisper.“Were you attacked?”
He shook his head, careful to mask the ache in his body. Especially his ribs. He should probably swing by urgent care in the morning—nothing felt broken, but an X-ray wouldn’t hurt. They’d beaten the hell out of him. What pissed him off most was the memory of lying there on the ground like a useless idiot.
“No,” he said lightly.“Just a bad sparring session. Boxing training. One of those days when your jaw’s slower than the other guy’s fist.”
Lynn crossed her arms and looked at him closely.
“You’re lying,” she said calmly.“I’m not stupid.”
Jasper smirked—and immediately winced. And, not for the first time, noticed how much she looked like Nina when she was angry. Too much.
“Alright, you got me,” he said, heading toward the kitchen. He stopped and tossed over his shoulder,“Decided to chase a beautiful woman. Turns out she was married. Husband found out. This is the result.”
Lynn blinked, then rolled her eyes.
“You’re ridiculous,” she muttered, reaching for the first-aid kit that always sat on the kitchen shelf.
Jasper watched her, something tightening in his chest. She was already so grown. Not afraid of blood. And way too good at reading him.
“Lynn,” he said more quietly,“I’m fine. Really.”
“No, you’re not,” she snapped.“Not if you come home looking like this and try to joke it off like a clown.”
“I’m not joking,” he said honestly.“I’ll be more careful next time. I swear.”
She studied him for a long moment.
“More careful with women,” she asked,“or with their husbands?”
