Page 87 of Embrace

He stared at me with an unreadable expression. I heard my heart beating and felt it too. He still hadn't said anything. Jasper wanted me to do exactly what I was doing—stand before him, trembling like a leaf in the wind.

“We were once on good terms, weren’t we?” he asked.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, knowing that I was prey, and he was the predator, toying with his kill.

“I wanted you to be the least of my worries, Julia. But now you’re the cause of what’s worrying me the most. It wouldn’t take more than an hour to make that nagging feeling go away. Do you understand me?” One of his eyes had narrowed slightly. He was angry. I couldn’t grab his dick or unbutton my blouse and offer him my tits. None of that worked on the Jasper Christmas—never had, never would.

I… I didn’t know what to say. I wanted to plead for mercy and accuse him of ruining my family. I no longer had any friends. Everyone abandoned me after hearing what my father had done to those women. And then there were the videos. I couldn’t wipe them out of my memory, even though I have tried.I know he committed those crimes. But I can never admit. If I did, I would lose everything.

“You were supposed to marry me, take care of me. That was the deal between our fathers,” I said.

He glanced over his shoulder. The door was still ajar, and knowing Jasper, he hadn’t wanted anyone to hear what I had just said.

“But that wasn’t our deal. I never agreed to marry you. However, you’ve threatened Asher and Bryn. You’ve accosted Dr. Ross. And, you’ve extorted some of my former employees.”

My lips parted. Once again, I was on the verge of accusing the Christmases of abandoning the Valentines. But Bryn was still close to Carter, my brother. He wouldn’t even take my calls or agree to meet me. At that moment, for some strange reason, I remembered the last words I spoke to Carter. I had put together a string of insults my father used to call him. I was mean, unloving.I loved my brother. Didn’t I?

But the look in Jasper’s eyes said he didn’t give a damn about my woes. I felt trapped. It was as if I were living the final moments before the blade of the guillotine sliced through my neck.

Dispensing judgment, he turned his back on me. “I’ll be in touch."

“Wait,” I called, realizing it was time to fight for the little I had left.

Thankfully, Jasper stopped in his tracks. “Make it good.” His back was still turned.

“I did it. Everything you said, I did it.” My confession made me want to barf.

Never admit defeat, I heard my father say in my head.

“I know that already.”

Anxiously, I rubbed my palms together. “I don't know why I do what I do. Survival, maybe. But, I will leave your family, Dr. Ross, everyone alone. If you just don’t hurt me.” I inhaled deeply, and my throat trembled as I released the air and whispered, “Please.”

I was weak and a mess. But my fate was in his hands. Come tomorrow, I could be poor, or I could still be rich. The choice was his.

Still, with his back facing me, he stood very still. “You’re fired, Julia. Leave the hospital and the city.”

Then he walked away.

I opened my eyes, and tears welled up inside them. That was last year. Jasper had chosen not to bankrupt me. And I kept my promise; I backed off from the Christmases. But what had I gotten in return? My sister, who was the result of my father’s sins, was a Christmas, and I was not.

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