Chapter 1
Felicity yawned as she followed her co-workers into the parking lot. Dr. Borne smiled at her as he headed towards his car, “Thanks again, Felicity. We are thrilled to have you as part of our team.”
It had been six months since returning to her hometown of Clinton. She’d swore she would never come back, but then her mother died, leaving her no choice but to return. Her mother left her the home she’d grown up in, giving Felicity somewhere to land. At first it was hard to be alone in the house, the childhood memories were a painful reminder of everything she’d lost, and not just her mom.
“Well, thank you for letting me join the team. Y’all have been welcoming and have made me feel like part of the family.”
“See you Monday. Have a great weekend.” Dr. Borne waved as he got in his car. Felicity smiled, giving the building one last glance as she opened her car door. Her smile was quickly replaced by a frown when her cell phone vibrated in her pocket. She knew who it was before looking.
Jasper.
He was just one more mistake in her life. When she decided to move home, Felicity was certain Jasper wouldn’t want to follow her here – she was wrong, turned out that Jasper wasn’t willing to let her leave without him. Now, she was still trapped in a dead-end relationship.
Pressing the answer key, Felicity put on her well-practiced happy voice, “Hey baby.”
“Don’t fucking ‘hey baby’ me. Where the hell are you?”
“What do you mean? I’m just leaving work, Jasper.”
“It’s almost seven, Felicity. Your shift ended nearly an hour ago.”
“Jasper… I’m a physical therapist. My last client was at six. SHE just left and now I’m heading home.”
“Get your ass home, Felicity.”
Felicity held the phone to her ear long after he’d disconnected the call. Tossing the phone into the seat next to her, Felicity pressed her head to the steering wheel. She wished Jasper would get tired of this town and leave, but once they’d gotten here, he’d taken up with the ‘not-so-good’ guys she’d gone to school with. He could go out and drink with the boys, but she dared not ask to do the same. It would send him into a rage she’d rather not see again.
Felicity’s house was about twenty minutes away from the doctor’s office she’d been lucky enough to get hired on with. She was the only physical therapist in the office, giving her job security. At first, Jasper didn’t like her working for Dr. Borne, afraid he’d hit on her, but after learning Dr. Borne’s husband was a fireman, Jasper relaxed. He still monitored her phone calls and expected her to give him her schedule.
Jasper didn’t love her, not the way he was supposed to – no, it was more about control. Her bank account helped too. Not only did her mom leave her the house, but a nice sized life insurance policy left her well off. Jasper siphoned her bank account while he sat on his ass. Pulling into the driveway, Felicity cut off the engine and took a deep breath. The house used to hold happy memories, now it felt like a prison. A prison she would never be free from as long as Jasper was inside.
“Jasper?” Felicity called out as she threw her keys on the entry table. “I’m home. Where are you?” She walked through the house, expecting to find him – but only silence greeted her. Had she lucked out? Maybe he’d gone out leaving her alone. After going room to room, confirming he was not anywhere in the house, Felicity decided to take a hot bath. Her body ached from all the clients she’d worked with today. Rushing into the kitchen first, she grabbed a bottle of wine and a glass. Once she’d made it back upstairs, she closed herself into the bathroom. The master bathroom, which was now hers, held an old-fashioned claw tub, something her mom insisted on putting in a few years back. Right now, she was thankful for the install. Turning the spicket on, she dumped some bath salts and bubble bath under the running stream of warm water. Stripping her clothes, she set the wine bottle and glass next to the tub and climbed in.
The warm water felt amazing against her skin. Gripping the glass in her hand, she sipped the wine. Setting it down again, Felicity tipped her head back and closed her eyes. Pushing all the thoughts of how she ended up in this shitty place in life, she dozed off to sleep wrapped in lavender scented bubbles.
♦ ♦ ♦
The sensation of water covering her face caused Felicity’s eyes to open. She struggled against the hand holding her head underwater, finally pushing it free and jerking out of the water. Sucking in a deep breath, “WHAT THE FUCK!!”
She wiped the suds from her eyes to find Jasper standing over her. He was smirking at her, crouched beside the tub.
“Enjoying your bath, Felicity?”
“Jesus, Jasper. You could have drowned me.”
“Nah… I just wanted to wake you. Looks like it worked. Now get the fuck out of the tub and fix me something to eat.”
“What time is it?” Felicity sat up, covering her bare skin with her arms.
“Almost midnight. Hurry up. I have friends waiting downstairs and we’re hungry.”
Jasper stood, storming from the bathroom. Felicity clenched her eyes shut, anger consuming her. He treated her like a slave. She just wanted him to leave, find someone else to control. Slowly she pulled herself from the tepid water and dried off. Pulling on some athletic shorts and a tank top, Felicity pulled her blonde hair into a ponytail and headed downstairs. She could hear the voices before she’d even made it into the kitchen. Jasper was known to bring a friend or two over, but this time, there was the unmistakeable sound of a woman’s voice. Rounding the corner, she saw Adam and Bruno, two regulars. Standing all too close to Jasper, was a woman she’d never seen.
“Felicity, this is Alexis,” Jasper smacked her on the butt, “She’s going to be hanging out with us more often. Now feed us, we’re all hungry.”
Nodding, Felicity pulled open the refrigerator, “Spaghetti ok?”
“Yep – just make enough.”
Silently she got to making dinner as Jasper and his friends sat around drinking. Every now and then she’d steal a glance at the men as they passed Alexis around on their laps. This was a new low, even for Jasper.
“Dinner’s ready.” Felicity watched as the men filed into the kitchen and sat around the table. Jasper smiled at Adam before pulling Alexis into his lap. Felicity saw red. She pulled the plates out and set them out on the table. She served up each of the guests, finally stopping in front of Jasper. “Here, honey.” She dumped noodles into Alexis’s lap, who was comfortably seated on Jasper, followed by sauce. Alexis squealed, jumping from Jasper’s lap.
“What the FUCK?” Jasper roared, jumping to his feet.
“It’s one thing to order me to cook for your friends. But I won’t stand here and watch you get handsy with another woman.” Felicity threw the pan into the sink, “Enjoy your meal.” She turned, storming towards the stairs. Jasper stepped in her way, grabbing her by the arm.
“Who the fuck do you think you are?”
“Let me go, Jasper. I’m tired.”
“No. You don’t disrespect me like that in front of my friends.”
“This is my house. You and your ‘friends’ are free to get the fuck out. I’m going to bed.” Felicity jerked her arm from his hand, wincing at the pain, and turned back towards the stairs. She didn’t see the blow before it connected with her cheek, knocking her off her feet. Her hip connected with the bottom stair, sending a sharp pain up her side.