“That’s one hell of an offer,” I tell him honestly. Only a fool would turn something like that down. “I need some time to think about it before I make any moves.”
“Spoken like a true businessman.” Jasper smiles as he stands up. I stand up with him and shake his hand. “Don’t take too long, Axel. Offers like that don’t linger forever.”
“I’ll be in touch.” I nod before turning my back on him. Walking across the yard, I make my way down the driveway and pause as I reach the gate.
Glancing over my shoulder, I look back at the fortress behind me and I see her. My eyes are drawn to her instantly as she stands by a window from the third floor. Her eyes penetrate mine as she stares at me from above. The front door opens, and I look down as Jasper slams the door behind him.
When I look back up at the window, she’s gone. I wait for her to reappear, but she doesn’t. Turning back around, I walk out through the gate and onto the sidewalk.
The farther I walk away from her, the more appealing his offer becomes.
Only a fool would turn down an offer like that… but only a fool would accept an offer like that, with temptation lurking around every corner.
I’m a fool no matter what I do.
Chapter Four
Jaslyn
THE HEATED marble floor warms my feet as I step out of the shower and grab a plush towel to wrap around my waist. Drops of water fall to the floor as my hair hangs down my back. The thick, wet strands stick to my skin as I try to shake out the excess water.
Stopping in front of the full-length mirror, I pull my hair into a topknot and let the towel fall to the floor. My eyes start at my dainty feet and slowly travel up the rest of my body. The bruises that adorn my skin has become somewhat of a permanent fixture. Old and new, and yellow, green and blue… they’ve become a part of me.
Jasper is careful with where he leaves his marks. Most times they can easily be hidden by clothing, but lately, he’s been slipping up more than usual. He takes it too far and gets too carried away.
Walking over to the vanity, I reach into one of the drawers and pull out a tube. Focusing on the mirror, I apply the coverup makeup to the scattered bruises. I never seem to run out, as another appears as soon as I’m running low. I know that it’s Jasper. He has an image to hold and an empire that he longs to control.
He needs me alive and under his thumb for now. As soon as we’re married, it all becomes his. And as soon as we’re married, he won’t hesitate to kill me.
He’s taking me out to dinner tonight, which he only does when he wants something. Spreading my thighs, I rub the cream on the skin between my legs.
‘No’ isn’t a word in his personal dictionary. Jasper takes what he wants, whenever he wants it. I used to fight him, but he’d eventually knock me out and take what he wanted anyway. I’ve become submissive and let him have his way with me, even though his way is borderline homicide.
He thinks I don’t know about the other women. I’ve always known, I’ve just never cared. He only fucks me when he’s actually home and he’s drunk or angry.
Nothing in life is permanent, everything is temporary. This will eventually end, and I’ll be free to live my life.
It has to.
But, until then, I’ll continue to cover up my bruises and let him use my body however he pleases.
I’ll make it out of here alive, whether I’m in one piece or not.
♦♦♦
Leaving my hair naturally straight, I put on my makeup and slip into a long lilac dress. The shoulder straps are thin, leaving my collarbone exposed and it dips low in the back. With a plunging neckline, my full breasts threaten to spill out.
Turning around in the mirror, I admire the way the silk clings to my body in all the right places. It falls gracefully to the floor, pooling around my feet. Grabbing a black pair of Louis Vuitton’s, I slide my feet into them and stand taller in the mirror.
I love this dress because it’s one of the few things that I’ve picked out for myself. It’s one thing that Jasper hasn’t picked out for me.
“Jaslyn!” Jasper calls from downstairs and interrupts my personal fashion show. “We are going to be late if you don’t hurry the fuck up.”
Letting out a sigh of defeat, I give myself one more glance before turning out the lights and abandoning the room. I grab my clutch from my dresser and make my way downstairs to my asshole fiancé.
Standing by the front door, he scowls at his phone as he types furiously. Looks like I’ll be playing third wheel at dinner with him and whoever’s on the receiving side of his text messages. Honestly, I’d much rather be alone at home than anywhere with him.
“Took you fucking long enough,” he mumbles as my heels on the floor announce my arrival. Closing the screen on his phone, he shoves it in the pocket of his dress pants and glares at me. “Do you know how long I had to wait to get a reservation at this place?”
I shake my head, not that I really even care.
“Too fucking long for you to fuck it up,” he barks as he grabs my upper arm and drags me out the front door. Desmond, our driver, holds open the door of Jasper’s Rolls Royce and patiently waits for us to get in.
Jasper’s fingertips dig into the sensitive skin on my bicep and I trip over my feet as he continues to pull me behind him. Desmond’s light grey eyes briefly meet mine and he looks at me with a mixture of pity and sorrow. This isn’t the first time he’s witnessed Jasper’s temper and it certainly won’t be the last.
This is mild compared to how he’s treated me in front of Desmond in the past.
Jasper stops at the side of the car and pulls me in front of him before shoving me inside. My feet get tangled in the bottom of my dress as I stumble and fall onto the seat. Jasper carefully slides in next to me, pushing me aside as I struggle to gain my balance and sit upright.
Desmond closes the door and gets into the driver’s seat as I adjust my dress to sit comfortably. I feel Jasper’s eyes glued to me as I try to keep my gaze out the window as we pull away from the house.
Roughly grabbing my face, he turns my head to look at him. “What are you wearing?”
It’s a struggle to maintain eye contact with a monster, especially when they have you within their grip.
“Um…” I stutter, like a coward. “I found it in my closet and realized that I had never worn it before when I saw the tags still on it.”
Jasper narrows his eyes as he continues to hold on to my chin. “I’ll be hiring a new personal shopper. From now on, you wear whatever I have bought for you.”
There goes another piece of my freedom… I no longer have a say in the clothing that I wear anymore.
“You don’t like this dress?” I ask him innocently as I bat my eyelashes at him.
I’d let him fuck me in this car if it meant he’d take his hands off me.
A wicked, sinister grin forms on his face. “Quite the contrary.” His expression quickly grows darker. “I like the thought of other men seeing how sexy you are, wanting to fuck you, and knowing they can’t. My ring is on your finger and the only cock you’ll be on is mine.”
I cringe inwardly at his words and the thoughts that plague my mind. Keeping my poker face on, I smile sweetly at him, just as he expects me to respond. I’d much rather have my finger cut off and his cock buried deep inside someone else.