Page 21 of Blade’s Edge (L.A.S.T. Defense #1)

Emi

Kissing Jasper was a mistake. A glorious, fireworks-inducing, hormone-revving mistake. Because now that I’m in the shower—alone—all I want is for him to join me.

Though when I reach up to rinse the shampoo from my hair, my bruises protest the movement. Maybe naked fun can wait until tonight. Assuming Jasper has some ibuprofen around here somewhere.

Once I’m dressed in a pair of black leggings and a soft green sweater, I pull my hair up into a messy bun and pad back out to the main room. Maybe Jasper’s heard from his brother by now.

But the cabin is empty. Quiet. My tablet sits on the table next to a folded piece of paper.

Catching a couple of fish for lunch. You’ll be able to see me out the kitchen window. - Jas

The counter is cool against my palms as I steady myself on my toes to peer outside. My protector stands on a wooden dock with his back to me. His heavy winter coat can’t hide an ass perfectly framed by tight Wranglers.

He reels in the line with a fat, wriggling fish on the other end, and within five seconds, dumps it into a bucket at his side.

His Stetson shadows his eyes when he turns back to the cabin, but the look of peace on his face is…beautiful. There’s no other word for it. He’s beautiful. Handsome and strong and rugged…and—for today, at least—mine.

“I think we have a chance for somethin’…long term.”

Long term. How can he possibly be thinking long term when we’ve known each other for a week?

The same way you can.

Last night, when he climbed into bed with me, all I wanted was to be close to him. Some of that was probably my desperate need to keep my memories at bay. The gun pressed to my temple. The arm around my neck. My life flashing before my eyes. Turns out that actually is a thing.

But that wasn’t the only reason I wanted his arms around me. With Jasper, I feel like I’m the only woman in this world—in his world. He wouldn’t give a shit if I stopped covering the gray in my hair—or even lost my entire career tomorrow. It wouldn’t change a thing between us.

“Ready for a halfway decent meal?” he asks as he locks the door behind him. “Not much bitin’ this time of year, but the catfish are always hungry.”

“You know how to cook…that?” Gesturing to the bucket, I take a step back. I may be from Texas, but I prefer not to see my food in its original form. Or while it’s still wriggling.

He chuckles. “This cabin’s been in my family for fifty years.

AJ and I spent every summer weekend up here.

I caught my first bass when I was…” he rubs his chin, and his fingers rasp over his thick beard, “six years old. By the time I was nine, Grandpappy made sure I knew how to clean, prep, and cook the fish too.”

“You haven’t mentioned your dad once,” I say as Jasper transfers the fish to a utility sink in a small room off the kitchen. “Did he spend weekends up here too?”

Jasper’s shoulders go rock hard, and he shakes his head.

“Nope. He wasn’t around much when we were growin’ up.

He worked as a long-haul trucker until he got into a wreck on I-90 outside of Rapid City.

Fucked up his back so he couldn’t drive anymore.

Our mama—she was a teacher—had to take a second job at night down at the liquor store to pay the bills. ”

“Is he still…around?”

With a snort, Jasper slices the head off the first fish.

“The year we graduated high school, he went to jail for possession with intent to sell. The asshole left Mama with a mountain of debt. AJ was fit to be tied. Marched down to the courthouse the day after the trial ended to change his last name. Stone is Mama’s maiden name. ”

Well, that explains part of the mystery.

“Why didn’t you change yours too?” I ask.

Jasper slides the knife down the fish’s belly. I pin my gaze to his face so I don’t have to look at what used to be inside our impending lunch. “I should have. But I was young and stupid. I thought if I were a good enough trooper, I could somehow make up for all the pain our pops caused.”

“Jasper, that wasn’t your responsibility.”

My words hit him like a physical blow, and his shoulders jerk.

“Maybe not. But…” Shrugging, he moves on to the second fish.

“AJ called while I was out there. No one showed up at the hotel last night lookin’ for us.

But Austin PD took over the case from the Ranger Division, and they have me listed as a person of interest for the dead guy at your apartment.

The other one ain’t talkin’. Probably too scared the cartel will silence him permanently. ”

“Shit. What you did…it was self-defense. I need to call Detective Mitchell.” I turn back to the kitchen in search of one of the burner phones AJ gave us.

“Emi, no.” Jasper’s protest stops me before I can dial.

“Until we know for sure who sent those assholes after you, I don’t trust anyone but AJ.

He called in a few favors, and got a look at the evidence against Consolidated Investment Group and Eugene Fowler.

It’s solid. He can’t figure out what the FBI’s waitin’ for. They should have arrested him by now.”

I lean against the counter, the stress crawling up the back of my neck until my head starts to throb.

“So…we’re not going back to Austin tonight. Or any time soon.”

I’m equal parts disappointed and excited. Spending time with Jasper—here, where no one can get to us and we can just be ourselves—is wonderful. But before long, I’ll have to return to Channel 5, and I’d rather not do that with a target on my back.

“It’s not safe, sweetheart,” Jasper says softly.

“If I bring you to my place, chances are, I’ll be arrested.

Your apartment is still a crime scene. Austin PD found Benny tied up in a supply closet with a broken arm and a concussion.

He’s gonna be okay, but these assholes clearly don’t mind hurting anyone who gets in their way.

And we still don’t know what they wanted from you last night. ”

I sink down into one of the kitchen chairs and drop my head into my hands. “Then after lunch, I need to call Nelson.”

The fish was excellent—and Jasper surprised me by pulling a bunch of kale out of the fridge— my bunch of kale he’d apparently liberated from my apartment the night before.

Despite the company—and the food—by the time we finish the dishes, I’m about to come out of my skin.

“Call him,” Jasper says, sliding one of the phones across the counter to me.

“But don’t tell him where we are or who you’re with.

Nothin’ he could use to find us. And make damn sure he’s not with the FBI or Austin PD before you say anything they could use against either of us. ”

I stare at the screen for a full minute before I find the courage to dial.

“Hello?” Nelson’s voice carries a hint of confusion. Not surprising since I’m sure there’s no name associated with this phone number.

“It’s Emi. Are you alone?” I reach for Jasper’s hand. His fingers are warm and strong, and I need his touch to keep me from spiraling.

A door shuts—I think—before Nelson clears his throat. “I am now. Are you okay? Where are you? Two detectives spent an hour grilling me this morning. They say your ‘friend,’ Jasper Blade, killed a man at your apartment last night!”

“That man had a gun to my head, Nelson.” Saying the words out loud makes what happened hit me all over again.

“Jasper saved my life. We’re…somewhere safe, and we’re staying put for at least another couple of days.

I won’t have anything new to report on Monday.

Not unless the FBI arrests Fowler or suddenly decides I’m worth protecting. ”

“Emi, I don’t give a shit about the story. But there is something new to report. Fowler is suing you—and Channel 5 News—for defamation.”

“For fuck’s sake. He’s delusional.” I push to my feet and start to pace. “Email me all the details. I’ll send you an audio file you can play during the A-block on Monday.”

“We’ll run it. I promise. But stay safe. Please.”

I rub my hand over my heart to ease the ache deep in my chest. “I should go. But…is Kyle okay? No one’s gone after him or his family?”

“Kyle’s fine. He misses working with you, but he’s killing it on midday, and his wife is happy to have him home for dinner every night. Fowler’s only focused on you.”

Jasper

Spending the day with Emi was better than I could have imagined. I even liked the kale. Kind of like spinach with more backbone.

If only the conversation with her news director had gone better. She swore a blue streak for almost five full minutes after reading the lawsuit Fowler hit her and Channel 5 with.

It took her half an hour to calm down and stop pacing after that.

The sun is arcing toward the horizon. I don’t want to leave Emi’s side, but I need to walk the perimeter before dark. Check the fence line, verify the motion sensors are all working, set a handful of tripwires…

Emi’s wrapped in a blanket on the couch with her tablet balanced on her thighs, but when I pull on my coat, she frowns. “You’re not going anywhere, are you?”

“Gotta check the gas level in the generator and make sure no one’s been snoopin’ around the fence line. I won’t be long.”

“Can I come with you?” Emi sets the tablet on the coffee table and rolls her head from side to side. “I haven’t been outside all day.”

“All right. But you stay close. I can’t protect you if I can’t see you.”

I bundle her up in one of AJ’s jackets, then grab my SIG from the bedside table and clip the holster to my belt.

Emi eyes the gun. “I don’t suppose you have another one of those, do you?”

“Come again?”

“I was born in Texas, Jasper. I know how to shoot.”

Fuck. This woman gets hotter every minute. I return to the safe and find a Glock 19 for her. In under ten seconds, she’s dropped the mag and checked the chamber.

“I’ve shot one of these before,” she says, flipping the safety on, then slamming the magazine back into place. “Stop looking at me like that, Jasper.”

“Like what?” As soon as she has the gun secured in the little hip holster, I slide my hand around her waist. “Like you’re an amazing woman and I’d do near anythin’ for the chance to see where this goes?”

Her cheeks flush in the late afternoon sun coming through the front window.

“You…uh…you can keep on with that look.”

“Oh, really?” Dipping my head, I plant a kiss to the tip of her nose. “Is that a yes?”

“I didn’t hear a question,” she teases.

Drawing back enough to meet her gaze, I slide my left leg between her thighs. “Will you consider bein’ with me when this is all over? Long term?”

“Why, Jasper Blade, I don’t know what to say.” She grins, light dancing in her eyes.

“Say yes.”

I punctuate the words by scoring my teeth along the shell of her ear, and she shudders in my arms.

“Yes. Absolutely. As long as you promise to do that again,” she says, her voice not entirely steady.

“Oh, I can definitely promise you that, sweetheart. That and a whole lot more.”